Date: ??/??/2001
From: SouthernSlider

Colin wasn’t sure how long he sat there with Wade in his arms, but it didn’t really matter.  She needed this to start the healing process.   And with every second that passed, he thought of Kelly.  He thought of how devastated he would be if she were to disappear from his life; he knew Quinn must have been going through the deepest, darkest hell all this time without Wade.  A movement by the lady in his arms arrested him from his thoughts.

“I’m sorry to have put you through this,”  Wade said, wiping the remnants of tears from her cheeks.  “I didn’t mean to come apart like that.”

“You have no need to apologize.  You obviously needed to let your emotions out. I am sure they have been buried in you for too long.”

“Not just buried, but destroyed . . . or, at least, I thought so.”  She cast her eyes down at her fidgety hands.

He shifted his position on the sofa, then tucked his fingers under her chin to force her to look into his eyes.  “But now you see that you are, indeed, human.  They may have tried, but they did not kill that spirit in you.  You have feelings, wants, needs, desires . . . and I think the biggest of those is to be reunited with the people you love, especially Quinn and Kelly.”

Wade tried to smile.  Deep down, she knew Colin was right.  She did want that very much; she just didn’t know if she was ready for it now.  So much had happened, things she could never reveal.  What kind of relationship could hold up under the secrets she would bury with her on her dying day?

Quinn would always wonder; it would gnaw at him until he demanded the truth. Maybe not at first, but down the road, he would want answers -- answers she could never give.  She had to get out of this.  She wasn’t ready to face it.

“Give me some time, Colin.  I need a few hours to think . . . alone.”

He wanted to protest, but held his tongue.  Do not push.  The first step has been successfully taken.  “I understand, but remember, we are sliders.  We only have hours, not weeks . . . not even days.”  He could see the uncertainty in her eyes.  He had to ask.  “Is Kryoptus against this reunion, Wade?”

She hadn’t expected that question.  The man was very intelligent.  He seemed to have all aspects of her situation in consideration.

“Not really.  It’s just that he understands my mental state.  He knows how hard this is for me.  He’s not exactly trying to talk me out of it, but he doesn’t want something happening that I can’t handle.”

“I get the feeling you can handle anything that comes your way,”  he countered softly.  “You have handled the Kromaggs; I promise you:  Quinn will be a piece of cake.” He smiled, hoping he had lightened the mood just a little.

Her heart lurched.  They even smiled alike.  Was he right?  Could she handle anything?

***

Colin was surrounded the second he walked through the doors of the suite.  They all pummeled him with questions, tugging at him to look their way and answer theirs first.  He looked at one, then the other, seeing the same expression of fear, yet, hope in everyone’s eyes.  Finally, his brother’s pleas emerged the loudest.  He shushed everyone, in order to hear Colin’s story.

He knew they were all more than a little anxious, so he dove right into the talk he and Wade had.  The hurt in Quinn’s, Kelly’s and Remmy’s eyes was very prominent. He wished he could have spared them that pain.

“Well, I, for one, don’t believe it for a minute.  That Kryoptus guy didn’t turn over no new leaf.  Those Kromaggots have got her brainwashed.  That’s all there is to it; and I’m not going to stand for it,”  Remmy said.  There was a quiver in his voice, for all the bravado he was trying to display.

“Remmy, I do not think so,”  Colin said, trying to calm him.  “She . . .”

“Look, Farm-boy.  You have had very little experience around those bastards.  I know what it’s like, firsthand.  Don’t tell me they’re not controlling her.”

He stood and paced around the room.  Colin blew out his breath, and looked to Quinn for guidance.  Kelly noticed that plea for help, and squeezed his hand. She knew Colin was sincere in his beliefs.  She hoped they weren’t naive.

Quinn stared, at first, at his brother, and then to Remmy.  He saw everyone in the room looking to him for an answer.  They always did.  Head or heart -- which did he follow?  Somebody would disagree with him no matter which path he chose, so what did it matter?  If they were looking to him for a decision, he would make it; if they didn’t like it . . . too bad.

He, too, stood and paced around the room for a moment, trying to think which course to choose.  The silence was a thick blanket, almost smothering everyone. Quinn suddenly stopped and closed his eyes.  I have to do it.

“I’m going after Wade.”  The sparkle in Remmy’s eyes lit up the room when he heard Quinn’s words.  “I have to.  If she’s under Kromagg mind control, I have no choice. If this decision is hers, then she can hate me later for rescuing her.  I would rather have to live with that hate, than the hate I know would possess her if I had a second chance to get her away from them, and didn’t take it.  I couldn’t live with myself -- I wouldn’t live with myself.”

Remmy slapped him on the back, and grinned.  “Now, you’re talking, man.”

Colin clasped his hand.  “You know I am with you, brother, in whatever you choose to do.  I just hope you have chosen wisely.”  He felt Kelly’s soft touch on his back.  The rest of her body was against him in seconds.  He hoped this was the right decision for everyone.  “Should I return and insist that she meet with you -- somewhere neutral, maybe?”

“Absolutely not!”  Remmy stepped in with fierceness in his voice.  “We’ll not give those bastards the upper hand in knowing our plan.  I say we all go over there right now.  Storm the place with surprise!  It’s our only chance.”

Quinn thought on Remmy’s words for a moment, then looked to Maggie.  “What about you?  You’ve said nothing.  What is your military opinion?”

She looked around the room as they all pinned their eyes on her.  Military instincts sided with Remmy.  She shoved her personal feelings aside.  This was no time to be selfish.  They had a life to save.  She couldn’t live with herself, either, if she didn’t give it her best.

“Remmy’s right.  We have to move now.  The element of surprise is our only hope -- if it’s possible to have that with Kromaggs.”  She flinched at her own words.

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