Chapter 8
The sad sigh and the way Greg clung to him made Nick want to cry. "I have to do it, Nicky. If I don't–"
"You're planning to go back, aren't you," Nick quietly demanded, forcing Greg to meet his gaze with a finger under his chin.
"If I don't, they'll just keep sending soldiers after me. Other innocent people will be killed. You could be killed." Tears shimmered in Greg's eyes, threatening to fall.
"So, what, you're going to sacrifice yourself?" Anger blazed in Nick's eyes. Not all of it was directed at the Nazis, some was actually directed at Greg. For all of the younger man's genius, he could be downright stupid sometimes! "If they don't outright kill you when you get back, they'll force you to continue working on that project, then kill you! I won't let you do it, Greg!"
Pulling away from Nick, Greg stood and walked several paces away from him. Wrapping his arms around himself, Greg stood with his naked back to Nick, nearly as comfortable in his own skin now as Nick was.
Nick let Greg go, watching as every muscle in Greg's body tensed. Even as mad as he was at the thought of what Greg was going to do, Nick still felt his body react to the sleekly build man just feet away from him. He had to strain to hear what Greg said next.
"I have to go back and destroy everything. The bracelets, the home base unit–" he trailed off again.
"You said they could rebuild them, though," frustration weighed heavily in Nick's voice.
"They can't if they're dead," Greg said, shocking Nick with the venom in his voice.
Nick sat in stunned silence. This was a side of Greg he'd never seen before, and hoped to never see again. The unrestrained fury in the younger man was so completely out of character for him that it actually scared Nick.
Standing, Nick moved up behind Greg, reaching out a hesitant hand to touch the younger man's shoulder. "You're not a cold blooded killer, Greg," he murmured softly.
Closing his eyes, Greg leaned back into the touch, sighed when Nick pressed his whole body against his back and wrapped his hands around Greg's waist. "I don't have any other choice, Nicky. If they aren't stopped, they'll just keep coming after me. They could even find a way to take something back from the future that could change the outcome of the war."
"If you destroy everything, you won't be able to come back," Nick spoke the words quietly, feeling them destroy a little more of his soul.
"Not using the Nazi equipment, no," Greg said, squaring his shoulders and slowly turning to face Nick. He wrapped his arms around Nick's waist, tilting his head back to regard the older man solemnly.
The words slowly sank into Nick's brain, comprehension following a moment later. "I-is that what you've been working on in the spare room?"
Giving a small nod, Greg said, "I was able to create a home base unit using a laptop computer and some other readily available components. I'm nearly done assembling a bracelet slaved to it. I'll use my original bracelet to go back, do what I have to do, then activate the new bracelet to come back home. If all goes according to plan, the new unit will bring me back here within moments of me having left, no matter how long I'm in the past. Then I'll destroy the new unit."
"You've planned out how to get there and how to get back, how about while you're there? How are you going to–" Nick couldn't finish the sentence, but he knew Greg would understand what he was trying to ask. "Do you even know when you'll be going back to? How does going back work?"
"I need to get my hands on a couple of bricks of Semtex, and a timed detonator. That should be sufficient to destroy the main lab, where the home base unit is. I-I'll take my gun, too." The last questions were the most difficult to answer, as he wasn't sure of that himself. "I-I'm not really sure when I'll be going back to. My best guess is that I'll be going back just after Emerick came forward. If I went back to before he left, it could cause a paradox. As for when he left, it could be days after I originally left, maybe even weeks or months. I guess it depends on how long it took them to fix the bracelets."
"What if not all of the scientists are there at the time? What if there're more guards? I don't want to lose you, Greg!"
"Damn it, Nick! I have to do this!" Greg spat out at Nick, causing Nick to take an involuntary step backwards. Just as quickly, the anger was gone. "Emerick was the only guard they allowed into the lab. I guess there are guards that patrol outside, but it's a big building, so I really don't know. They never allowed me outside. All of the scientists are always there."
A thought occurred to Nick, "What about Emerick's bracelet? It's probably in evidence," he trailed off, not quite sure what to say.
"Emerick wouldn't have been wearing it. He would have left it wherever he's been staying. Once the home base unit is destroyed, it'll cease to function."
Resigning himself, Nick said, "When?"
"Once we can get back into the house, it's going to take me a couple of more days to finish up the bracelet. Plus, I need that Semtex and detonator. As soon as all of that is done, I'll go."
Knowing it could cost him his job, if anyone ever found out, but not really caring in the grand scheme of things, Nick said, "I'll get you the Semtex and detonator."
~~~CSI~~~
Sitting back from his workbench, Greg sighed. The last of the intricate circuits were finished, the bracelet was done. He'd spent the time since they'd been able to come back in the house working on the device that would hopefully allow him to return to 1999, taking very little time to eat or sleep.
Nick had gotten two bricks of Semtex and a timer style detonator the day before, telling him not to ask how he'd gotten it. There was nothing keeping him from going right now. Except the man pacing in the next room.
Taking a shaky breath, he gathered everything up. Holstered Glock on his hip, spare ammunition clips in his front jeans pocket. A brick of Semtex in either jacket pocket, the detonator in the inside pocket. The bracelet he'd be using for the trip back already on his wrist, the other tucked safely away in the pocket not occupied by reserve Glock clips.
When Greg appeared in the hallway, Nick knew this was it. The leather jacket Greg wore hung heavily on him because of the Semtex in the pockets. Emotion hung heavily on the younger man's face. Fear, a fierce determination, loss, but most of all, love.
Closing the distance between them, Nick wrapped a hand around the back of Greg's neck, pulling him in for a searing kiss before leaning his forehead against Greg's. He'd given up on trying to talk Greg out of doing this, so all he was left with was praying that the younger man would survive and return to him. Tears gathered in his eyes, and he fought to keep them from falling.
A single tear slipped free from Greg's eyes, trailing down his cheek until Nick brushed it away with his thumb. "I love you! Please, come back to me!"
Pressing one last kiss to Nick's lips, Greg pulled back, murmuring, "I love you, too! I'll do my best! If I'm successful, I should be back here within the hour. Any more than that, and–" he didn't finish the sentence.
Stepping back, Greg pulled the Glock from its holster, flicked off the safety and pulled back on the slide to cock the gun. Pulling up the right sleeve of his jacket enough to access the bracelet, Greg pressed a button on it and watched the living room of his home fade away.
Nick hadn't really truly believed until this moment. This fact occurred to him as he watched Greg fade away after activating the bracelet. Now that he'd seen firsthand, the knowledge rocked him to his core, and he sank to his knees, unable to hold himself upright any longer.
His eyes were drawn inexorably to the clock. Unable to look away, he watched the minutes slowly pass. Five minutes, then ten. When fifteen minutes past and Greg hadn't returned, Nick decided he had to do something. The younger man had said it could be up to an hour before he returned. If he returned.
Pulling himself unsteadily to his feet, he moved down the hallway to Greg's workshop. The room was mostly neat and tidy. The workbench along the wall showing the only signs of use. Tools and parts were scattered haphazardly over the surface. The home base unit, a laptop with incomprehensible parts Frankensteined to it, sat open and active on one end of the workbench. Being Greg's only means home, Nick knew better than to touch it.
A different laptop – deactivated – sat on the other end of the workbench, next to an HP printer. There were two papers in the printer. The top one looked like a letter. The words, "My beloved Nicky," along the top had Nick snatching the pages from the printer.
His heart fell as he read:
My beloved Nicky,
I know your curiosity forced you to come into my workshop after I left, that's why I've left this letter in here for you to find. My own curiosity got the better of me, and I did some research. The article with this letter tells me my mission is successful. However, as you will see, it is at a great price. I'm afraid I won't be coming back to you. I am deeply sorry!
If I have not returned within an hour of my departure, please shut down the home base unit and destroy it.
Yours Always and Forever,
Greg
Hands trembling, Nick pulled the second paper from beneath the letter. He skimmed through it, reading about the explosion that destroyed a research and development lab belonging to the Third Reich. It killed all but one of the scientists, who escaped with minor injuries. He reported that the explosion had been caused by one Greg Sandler, who had been trying to sabotage the Fuhrer's attempts to create clean energy. According to the sole survivor, Greg had been killed in the explosion.
Letting out a howl of despair, Nick folded in on himself, collapsing to the floor, tears blinding him.
Outside, in a cloudless sky, lightning flashed over the house, followed almost instantly by a low rumble of thunder that was more felt than heard.