Vegas in Red: I Won't Back Down2
Moira slid the phone into her pocket. Feeling silly, stupid, weak. She shoved stray hair out of her face, feeling hot and embarrassed. She couldn't shake the need to see him, to reassure herself he was fine now. She turned, hearing the distinctive sound of his boots on the floor. The measured, steady tread of a man knowing exactly where he was going and determined to get there efficiently.
She swallowed, nervous. Began to speak even before he turned the corner and came into view. "John, John, I'm fine, really, I just needed I just wanted, I just…oh John, John!" Tears filled her eyes as she rushed to him, flung herself into his embrace as he opened his arms to receive her. Not caring how he might react at that moment.
"Whoa, whoa, Moira!" John said, holding her close, staring down the hallway but there was no one there who might have upset her. There was no one there to see. "Sweetheart, what's wrong? Easy now, Moira." He brushed his lips across her brow, her hair. "Moira, are you okay?"
She calmed. Secure against him. Feeling his solidity, his warmth. His strong heartbeat. "Yes." She pushed away from him gently. Uneasily met his gaze. "Sorry, John. I didn't mean to get all emotional. Blame my Irish ancestry. It's just when I saw the, the hand and where the sucker should have been and then the fingers, the adhesive to prolong the feeding process it made me think of you and what you endured. The marks on your, your chest were caused by that adhesive grip on the fingers when it, when it oh John!" She hugged him again.
John enfolded her in his arms, blinking at the profusion of words. Of sentiment. "Easy, Moira. I'm fine now. I'm okay."
She pulled back again, glaring. John fell into the depth of her brown eyes, into all of that emotion solely for him. "I know that! It's just, it's just you…the thought of that happening to you…what you endured…the physical…the…I…um…sorry." She drew away from him, heading for the lab. "I should get back to work. I've never done an autopsy and I felt a little sick so I had to—"
John followed. He caught her arm, spun her round to face him. Drew her into his arms again and kissed her. Startled she pushed then melted into the languorous kiss.
Moira bumped into the wall, realized John had gently pushed her there, his body aligning with hers as his mouth took possession and wouldn't let go. She gently pushed free of the kiss. "John? I…I said I was sorry!"
He smiled. "Moira." So much emotion in that one word she stared, mouth open. "I'll take you home, then."
"Huh? No!" She pushed, pushed, sidled free of him and the wall. "I need to finish this. I'm fine now. I said I was sorry, John!" she flared, as if he had yelled at her. She fled into the lab, her white coat flapping to either side of her.
John shook his head, amused. Enamored. He followed after her, stood in the doorway. The insane Wraith was gutted. Carson and Jennifer were going over notes, weighing shriveled internal organs and muttering their observations. John made a face at the odor. At the sight of the corpse. "Moira," he said, as she moved round the table to a microscope, "call me when you are done here and I will take you home. Moira?" She was ignoring him. "Moira!"
"Fine! Go away, John!" she snapped, eyes on the microscope.
Carson eyed John who shrugged, as baffled as the doctor. Carson stepped to Moira. "Here, love. Examine these tissue samples for me and see if you can isolate the enzyme cells. Jennifer and I will finish this."
"Thanks, Carson," she said, grateful. She glanced over her shoulder to see John still lounging in the doorway, his gaze locked onto her. "John! Go!"
He smiled at her tone. Licked his lips as his body stirred with carnal thoughts. "Going, your highness. Call me when you're done here."
"All right! Just go, would you?"
He snorted a laugh as he departed at last.
Rodney stared at the screen. "Whatever it is it is more sporadic now. I'll run a full sensor scan. I can't make heads or tails of this."
Evan was connecting a series of cables to the alien device. The Ancient panel had been removed, leaving a scar along the brown, fleshy communication module that had been pulled from the Dart to act as bait for the insane Wraith. Tendrils were spreading out from it, like vines off a tree. It had a squishy feel to it as Evan plugged in yet another cable to connect it to a monitor that Rodney was watching. "If it was emitting some kind of signal it's not now. It looks like its dying."
"That's what I'm afraid of," Rodney muttered. His gaze darted to the device, back to his screen. Back and forth like he was watching a tennis match. It was at times like this he really missed Radek Zelenka. Unfortunately the scientist had been an early victim of the Wraith sympathizers.
"What? That it isn't emitting a signal?"
"Yes." Rodney drew his dour thoughts away from his friend and back to the science.
Evan frowned. Thought. Gaze on the device. A tendril fell off. Like a dried off limb. There was a slight pulsing in the skin, where the cable was connected to it. It made Evan feel uncomfortable, as if he was aiding in torturing a living thing. "Because that means one got through," he realized.
"Yes." Rodney sighed, shaking his head. "It's possible, but highly unlikely that one got through the rift. Or where the rift was in real time and space. The location is not fixed, not in time or space but can be accurately predicted with mathematical equations. All of these atmospheric disturbances mean something. I suspected it was this device, that when it was activated it somehow initiated a protocol all on its own."
"Like a signal from a downed aircraft, a distress signal," Evan reasoned. "But didn't you say the rift was closed?"
"It was. Is. We've employed counter measures but.."
"But? I don't like where this is heading," Evan complained.
"Nor do I," Rodney agreed. "Give me time. I'll figure it out." He turned back to the screen. Seemingly dismissing the other man.
Evan considered. "What if it wasn't a long range burst but a shorter one?"
"Come again?"
"A shorter burst of data. A shorter distance. What if instead of trying to communicate through the rift, to another reality it is trying to communicate in this reality."
"There's no way it could…" Rodney spun in his chair to face the other man. "You mean in this reality's Pegasus Galaxy?"
"Yeah. There are Wraith there, right? If these realities are running at all parallel."
"I suppose there could be…I hadn't considered that. I mean I have but I dismissed it based on practicality. But that's impossible. I mean the distances between our two galaxies. Even a Hive ship couldn't manage that. It would be easier to travel through realities, through the rift than to traverse galaxies."
"Oh. Okay, then. I guess."
Rodney smiled. "It was a good idea, though. The Wraith don't have access to that kind of power, hyper drives and light speed—"
"Okay, got it. I think. This really isn't my forte."
"Really? Gee, I never would have guessed that." Seeing Evan's scowl Rodney dialed down his sarcasm. "And what is, Mr. Lorne?"
"It was flying, until that ended. Then it was art. Now I'm not so sure," he admitted with a shrug. "But I'll tell you one thing."
"And that is?"
"It sure as hell isn't science!"