Runner's Moon Trilogy Megabook Series (44 page)

"It's not you, Simon. At least I believe deep in my gut it's not you. It's me. I'm the Doubting Thomas. I'm the person with the hang-ups."

He gave her a confused look. A hurt look. For a moment Sarah wondered if she had the strength to tell him everything. He deserved to know how she felt. He deserved the truth. And now that she'd started up that hill, she was damned and determined to finish climbing it.

"I'm waiting for the other shoe to fall."

This time he appeared positively lost. Slowly shaking his head, Simon reached over the table and silently beckoned for her to take it. "What do shoes have to do with our relationship?"

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"Simon, do you realize how crazy this all is? That you and I can meet, and fall in love, and have absolutely perfect sex, and then make plans for a Happily Ever After? It just doesn't happen like that!"

He reared back as if she'd slapped him. "But ... you're my life mate. You sense me. Just like I can sense you. And the sex—"

"Simon, you're not listening to me!" she dropped her voice to an urgent whisper. "I'm not saying we're not right for each other. I'm not saying that what we have isn't what I want, because it is! It's more than I ever dreamed of! But it's ... it's impossible! That's what it is! Real love just doesn't happen like this!"

"But it can! And it did! For us it did," he argued, dropping his voice to match hers. "What do I have to do to prove to you how much you mean to me?"

"It's not that, Simon. I believe you. Can't you..." She pressed her hands to her chest and felt how hard her heart was hammering inside. How could she explain it to him without doing any irreparable damage to their relationship?

"Can't you sense how I feel about you?"

He paused, leaning back in his booth seat to take the moment to gather himself. She could tell by the paleness in his face that she was scaring him, and that alone frightened her as well. She didn't want to scare him. She couldn't bear to lose him. But there was a dark cloud hanging over them that she couldn't see, couldn't run from, and couldn't explain.

Ever since her attack, Sarah had felt a foreboding sense of ...

something ... hovering in the background. She had gotten 608

these feelings in the past. Not often, but whenever she did, the bad cloud never had a silver lining. The monster appeared every time.

Every. Damn. Time.

And now the horrible feeling was back.

"Something isn't right, Simon. I don't know what it is or how to fix it. But it's like there's ... shit, I can't explain it!"

Their meal arrived, forcing them to a temporary truce as the waitress set down their dishes. Once she was gone, Sarah dove into her chicken. She was famished. Taking a cautious glance across the table, though, she could see Simon barely pecking at his salad. Several long moments passed in silence before he spoke again, this time with his gaze on his food and not upon her.

"My love ... tell me what I can do to ease your worry." His voice was tight and filled with pain. Again Sarah was reminded of the fact that he was a foreigner to her country.

Obviously things happened very differently where he came from. Romance was different. It was almost like being from two different worlds. Reaching across the table, she laid a hand on his wrist.

"I'm not rejecting you, Simon. I'm telling you there's something else hovering over us that I can't explain."

He looked up. "What do you mean, 'hovering over us'?"

"That's just it," she shrugged. "I don't know! I don't doubt how you feel about me. Or how I feel about you. But something isn't right. Something is ... it feels off-kilter. Like the edges aren't quite lining up. Or the patterns don't match.

I'm sorry." Taking a deep sigh, she leaned back in her seat.

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"Forget it. Forget I brought it up. Obviously I'm the only one who feels this way, and I apologize. I must be nuts to say something that could jeopardize what we've found with each other. Let's not say anything more about it, okay? Let's try to relax and enjoy our supper."

She tried to shake off the sense of foreboding that had been steadily growing denser, and larger, and harder to ignore. But talking about it was proving to be futile. That, and the fact that she was starting to scare Simon, which was the last thing she wanted to do. She'd only mentioned it because she had hoped he might be able to come up with some sort of answer. Or maybe pinpoint some flaw in her thinking that would set things straight. Unfortunately she had just made everything worse.

They continued eating. The waitress returned to freshen their drinks and inquire about dessert. They both declined, and the waitress left them their check.

When the silence became unbearable, Sarah pushed away her empty plate and reached out to clutch his arm. Simon raised eyes that looked lost and fearful.

"Don't leave me, Simon," she whispered, giving the arm a squeeze. "If I've worried you, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to. And I certainly didn't intend to give you the impression that I want what we have to end. Because I don't. I never want it to end.

I never want to lose you, or do anything that would send you away. You do believe me, don't you?"

He placed a cold hand over hers. "I believe you are legitimately worried about something. But I can't help you, and that's what bothers me. If there was any way I could 610

understand what the problem is ... Tell me what to do, t'korra. Tell me what you need me to do."

"Look ... maybe it's just the jitters. Yeah. Maybe that's it. I mean, after all, I've never been close to having a semi-permanent boyfriend, much less a fiancé. And a stud at that."

She forced a smile onto her face and hoped he would reciprocate. She wanted that nice romantic fog to descend back over them and allow them to have a blissful evening that would culminate in another sweat-soaked orgy in the bedroom. Or two.

After a brief interlude, Simon managed to return the smile.

"All right. Let's not worry about something we have no control over." He glanced over the remains of their meal. "Look, are you still hungry?"

She shook her head. "You?"

"I'm done here."

"Then let's get out of here. Where to now?" She scooted out of the booth and followed him over to the register where he paid.

"Actually I didn't have anything specific in mind, other than to spend the time with you. Would you mind a stroll around the campus? You could play tour guide," he suggested.

Hooking an arm through his, she propped her chin on his shoulder and gave him one of her best smiles. "I have a better idea."

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She took him to the planetarium. After unlocking the big double doors and letting themselves in, she reached over to the wall and flipped on the first set of lights. A dim glow permeated the immense lecture hall.

"This is where I hold most of my classes," she explained.

Her voice sounded hushed and distant amid the acoustics.

Much like being inside a church, she used to muse. Except this was where she worshiped the stars, the planets, and all of the creation of the universe.

Simon walked down the aisle and across the thick carpet toward the dais in the center of the room. Sarah slowly followed him as she watched his reactions. She knew she had lost a part of him back at the diner, and she had been cursing herself for her stupidity all the way over to the college. If she wasn't careful, she could lose the most wonderful thing that had ever happened to her. And there wasn't a chance in hell she believed she'd get a second chance at the kind of love he was offering her.

He tapped the lectern, then turned to face her. "Do you stand here?"

"Sometimes. If I'm using the projector, I'll sit at the computer console behind the dais." She moved behind him and showed him where the controls were located. Leaning over the computer, she booted the system and gave him a timid smile. "I want you to be the first to see this."

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They waited for the system to cycle. Once it was ready, Sarah killed the lights from where they stood. Simon took a startled step back from the sudden curtain of stars filling the room. Sarah couldn't help but smile to herself.

"This is our solar system and our galaxy." She gave him a moment to absorb it before adding, "Kind of makes you feel rather puny when you compare yourself against it, doesn't it?"

Simon gave her a look that was completely incomprehensible to her. In the reflection of the faux stars slowly rotating overhead, his eyes took on an eerie sparkle.

Clearing her throat, she brought up another file. The picture above them shifted slightly but appeared to be the same shot as the first one.

"This is what I have been driving myself crazy over for the past few years." Using the remote control, she spotlighted a tiny section directly over Simon's head. He watched in silence as Sarah expanded that portion of the picture.

"Nearly seven years ago, when I was working on my master's thesis, a good friend of mine invited me to spend the summer with her. Delia lives in Honolulu, and her father works at the Mauna Kea Observatory for the Institute for Astronomy at the University of Hawaii. I was getting my degree in earth science, but I already knew I wanted to expand outward." She gave a little laugh at the poor joke.

Simon continued to shift back and forth between watching her and looking at the panorama above them.

"She took me up to the university's telescope and let me look through it. I was immediately hooked. Dr. Wang was 613

very sweet to show me around. I must've asked him a thousand questions that week. Lord knows the poor man got very little of his own work done because of me. But the best thing he ever gave me was a file filled with shots taken of the universe. I took them home and pored over them, hoping I would find a rogue comet or unknown meteor." She laughed softly again. "I was so determined to get my name attached to some previously unknown phenomenon. That was when I decided to get my doctorate in astronomy. Because of these photos."

He seemed to sense that she was about to reveal something very important, and he held back making any comments until she did. Sarah gave a nod.

"I found my phenomenon."

The tiny box around the nearly indistinct cluster of stars grew larger, bringing the group into sharper focus. Sarah used a digital pointer to illuminate one particular bright spot in the picture.

"See that light?"

"Yes," he finally said.

"Find it here."

The picture never appeared to change. It was the same close-up of the same cluster of stars. Only the light that she had been emphasizing was no longer there.

"Still see the light?"

"No."

"That's because it moved." The pointer traveled downward until it was just above the level of the back row of seats in the auditorium. "It's there."

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He was silent for several seconds. "How do you know it's the same light?"

"I ran a full spectrum analysis on it. The shape, density, everything is exact to the thousandth degree. Which means it's the same object."

Giving her another one of those patient looks, Simon commented, "And this is important because..."

"It's not a meteor or a comet," Sarah said.

"Maybe it's a planet or a moon."

"Can't be," she argued. "It's not natural to the universe.

Those two photos I showed you were taken thirty seconds apart. Which means the object was traveling at a speed unobtainable by anything created by the cosmos."

He digested that bit of information. "Then what do you think it is?"

"A spaceship."

He looked back at the light before returning his gaze to her. "A space shuttle, perhaps. Or a satellite. You're not seriously thinking it's a flying saucer, are you?"

"It's a spaceship," Sarah reiterated firmly. "Not one of ours. Not one from another country. But one from another world. Another solar system. Maybe from another galaxy!"

"Sarah, do you know how preposterous that sounds?" He waved a hand at the picture above them. "Is this what you've been working on for the past several years? Is this the basis behind your treatise? That you believe a spaceship passed over Earth? Professor, you're going to be laughed out of town!"

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She felt her anger bringing a flush to her face. Pressing her lips tightly together, Sarah threw another picture onto the ceiling. Another little red box framed a distant light. A fourth picture changed over, also with a little red box. She punched the remote to show him a fifth picture. And a sixth. A seventh. An eighth. A ninth. A tenth.

She continued to change files, pausing long enough for him to see the markings of each dot of light that had been outlined. At the end of the sixteenth photo she finally stopped.

"Not one picture, Simon. Thirty-one pictures. I've tracked five separate and individual ships coming to earth, and I've tracked nine individual lights either circling this planet, landing, or taking off. There are aliens coming to Earth and landing here, and I've got the proof."

"You've got dots of light in a series of photographs. It's not proof of alien life landing on this planet."

"Then explain to me what they are," she challenged him with a flat smile. "Explain to me how they are able to hover, land, and take off like birds."

She watched as he shook his head in disbelief. "You've been tracking these lights for how long?"

"Nearly seven years. I got my first set of photos back then.

Since I've gotten my doctorate, I was able to cut a deal with Mauna Kea and the U of H for regular feeds. Now that I know what I'm looking for, I was able to tag the next twenty-odd shots relatively quick. Simon! Think about it! Aliens here on Earth!"

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"Yeah. I am thinking about it." He ran a hand through his hair, but it was clear to her that although he was thinking about it, he wasn't buying it. She gave an irritated little snort.

"What's more, Simon, the ships are becoming more prolific."

His head suddenly jerked up. Alarm was written all over his face. "More of them? When? Where?"

"Hold on. I can give you the exact dates in a sec."

Dropping into the console seat, Sarah opened a new window on the computer and pulled up the specs. "Okay. Here's what I got. That first set of photos I showed you? The ones I got seven years ago? That ship was a loner."

"What do you mean, it was a loner?"

"Exactly what I said. It was larger, not to mention a completely different shape than the others."

He crossed his arms over his chest and continued to stare at her. He was listening, giving her the chance to prove herself. Sarah took a deep breath and plunged on. This was her first attempt to see how far her investigation would hold up. If she managed to convince him that the possibility of aliens living on their world was feasible, she knew she'd have a good case in front of a jury of her peers when it came to fighting for tenure.

She poked a finger at the computer screen. "Look here.

There were three ships that I can pinpoint in August almost two years ago. There may have been others between the time I got my first set of pictures and the second set, but I can't be certain. But I do know that these kinds of ships have been 617

coming and going since that first one seven years ago. And they're different from that first one."

"How different?"

"They're smaller and faster. Here. Let me show you."

A series of numbers scrolled down one side of the monitor: dates, sizes, light absorption ratios, velocity, density, plus height and width. Behind her she could hear Simon mutter something and back away. "It's nothing but a bunch of numbers and foggy photographs, Sarah. Surely you're not seriously trying to convince me that aliens have landed on this planet, are you?"

"Yes! Think about it, Simon!"

"Your theory is seriously flawed. It has more holes in it than a roll of chicken wire," he scoffed and turned away from the monitor. Sarah rose out of the chair to follow him.

"How can you blow off what I have photographic evidence of? There were ships or crafts, or whatever the hell you want to call them, and they came from out there to land here."

"Here where? How do you know what you have photos of isn't some old satellite falling out of a decaying orbit? Or, or space debris coming back through the atmosphere?"

"Because I checked. And double checked. And triple checked. And quadruple checked," she said through gritted teeth. The man's persistent denial was starting to test her patience, but that was a good thing. "Every time I got one of those images on my screen, I made damn sure it wasn't one of those old satellites or a piece of space debris. I checked with every source I have at my command, and they all told me the same thing. It wasn't one of ours. It wasn't from 618

Earth. Hell, I even phoned a friend of mine who's associated with SETI, just to cover all my bases."

He leaned against the dais. "All right. All right, Sarah. Let's pretend for a moment that I believe you. And that I believe there have been spaceships from other worlds landing here on Earth. So ... what do these alien tourists do? Land, take a few snapshots to show the relatives back home, then leave?"

This time she could give him an honest shrug of her shoulders. "I don't know the answer to that one, Simon.

Maybe they landed and stayed." She pounded the lectern with a listless fist. "I wish I knew what happened to the first ship I noted. It would have been fascinating to find out if it stayed or left. And if it left, how long was it here before it took off?"

"It had to have left, just like the others," he suggested.

"Possibly. But what if it didn't? Those other ships, the smaller ones ... what if they landed and left a few of their kind here on Earth?"

Simon shook his head in denial. "You're delusional. Flat out delusional." He held out his arms to encompass the room. "Is that all you have? Is that all you've been working on? Trying to prove that aliens might be living here on Earth because you think you saw spaceships on a few grainy photographs?"

This time his condescending tone irked her. "Basically, yeah. That's exactly what I'm trying to prove! Although my treatise will be a lot more formal in its presentation than what I'm giving you."

"Then explain to me where these aliens are, if you're so damn sure they're among us," he taunted. For a second his 619

strange glittery eyes looked like two emerald gems beneath a strobe light. Sarah had to look away in order to concentrate.

"They're probably in hiding somewhere. You know as well as I do that there are places here on Earth that man hasn't touched in centuries. Maybe they're there. Or maybe they've found a way to disseminate themselves among the populace."

"And not be noticed?" He gave another shake of his head.

"Sarah, what convinced you in the first place to get this irrational idea in your head? What persuaded you to pursue it? Have you presented this to anyone else?"

"No. I told you, you were my first."

"Then ... let me get this straight. You are working on this

... presentation. For what purpose?"

"It's a requirement for tenure at the university," she explained.

"What's done with the research? After you present this, what happens to it?"

"Then it's published."

He frowned. "Whether you get your tenure or not?"

"No. Only if I gain tenure."

"So why is it important for you to gain this tenure? More money?"

She managed a small smile. "Sort of like that. Colleges are notorious for near-sighted budget cutting. If they need to save money, they cut teaching slots inside the departments.

And right now the only thing holding the astronomy department together is this building. It was a gift from Joel Werewent's estate. He was an ex-bigwig alumni, but the grant from the fund is going to run out in eleven years. I'm 620

the only astronomy teacher here, and my chair is a dying breed. If the college board decides they need to cut a few teaching positions but would like to keep this department, there are plenty of students getting their degrees in this field who won't cost half of what my salary already is."

"Then it's a matter of permanency."

"Job security. Yes."

She knew that with this presentation she was treading on very thin professional ice. But she had hoped she might have been able to turn Simon to her way of thinking. It was a long shot that obviously missed its target. Strangely, the knowledge that he was scoffing her theories hurt more than she realized it would. Taking a shaky breath, she made one last attempt. "Simon, I'm not making up these lights. They really existed. They're documented evidence."