52

The command center was normally deserted after midnight. Not tonight. Chase sat with Mel at her station. Nearby, Switchblade monitored the world up top. Others milled around checking on security and travel conditions. Mom sat with Amos near the hallway leading to another hall that held the only exit left from Blue Sky Field. It’d be a chore getting Amos up the stairs and out the hole behind the dumpster. Shorty would meet them at the end of the alley.

Chase watched his wife as her fingers moved over the keypad before her. But then she stopped typing. A tear fell on her cheek.

Chase leaned forward and grasped her hands. “No, sweetheart, don’t cry.”

“I just wish we had more time. I want to go with you. It’s our wedding night and you’re going off with your mother. That’s not right.”

“I’d prefer to leave her here, but Amos likes the idea of having her there while he recovers.”

“If he recovers.” She pulled her hand away and wiped her face.

Switchblade pulled a chair close and dropped beside Chase. “If anybody ought to be going with you on this outing, it’s me. Leave the women folk behind, Charlie.”

“I told you I’ll feel better knowing you’re here, Switch.”

“How you getting back? You’ll be on your own. I don’t like that.”

Mel rested her hand on Switchblade’s arm. “I don’t like it either.”

“Look, I’ve still got a flight pack,” Chase said. “I’ll travel at night and I’ll be back in twenty hours.”

Switchblade shook his head and breathed out one of those obnoxious snorts.

Chase narrowed his eyes. “Could we have a little time alone?” He jerked his head to one side, hoping the man would get the hint.

“I’m going.” He left them, mumbling about “another asinine idea.”

Chase grabbed hold of Mel’s hands, pulled them to his lips, and filled them with kisses. “Twenty hours. I’ll be back and we’ll pick up where we left off.” He couldn’t help but smile.

She frowned but then a quivering smile overtook her. “Can’t we just put this off for a couple of days?”

“Our transport will be here soon and Amos is getting sicker.”

“You can tell from the touch?”

“Yes.”

Her eyes lighted on the computer screen. “I’ve been working on something since you got that God-forsaken exoself back in you.”

“Mel, that’s harsh.”

“I’m sorry. It’s who you are—I know. And I love you. And all your inner workings. Well, this is kind of a wedding present for you and Sparky. I’ve been reworking the entry point of the code I put in you.”

“Nineteenth processor, second factor.”

“Yes. I think I’ve got a Bible ready for you. Concordance and study guides too.”

“What’s a concordance?” He shifted from Mel’s code to general intel. “Never mind, I’ve got a dictionary.” He found the meaning but not the Biblical application. What did it serve the government to extract Christianity from the cyber world?

“It’ll help you understand the Bible better,” Mel said. She pushed a few keys and then looked up at Chase. “Well? You got it?”

Chase sparked the processor. He shook his head. “Only the few Psalms that led me to your code.”

Her shoulders sank and she stared at the screen. “I’ll keep trying.”

He put his arm around her and rubbed her back. “I know you’ll get it.”

She reached to the other side of her station and grabbed a VPad. “You take this with you so you can answer me when I ask the exoself if you’re still alive.”

“I’ve got a little present for you too.” He sat back in the chair and closed his eyes. “Type a message to me.”

Her fingers clicked against the keypad.

Chase opened his eyes wide and then jerked his head from one side of the command center to the other. “Uh, Mel, you didn’t need to get so personal. Delete that.” He smiled. “But first, watch the screen.”

She kept her eyes there and then brought her hands to her cheeks. “You can answer me. How?”

“Just another development in my…in me.”

She reached for his hand as she stared at the screen. “It’s wonderful.”

“Yeah, but don’t talk to me like that anymore. Not until I get home.” He bent near to kiss her.

Mom joined them, and Mel’s eyes showed a hint of panic as she reached forward and punched the delete key.

“Hi,” she said. “Mom.”

Mom put her hands on Mel’s shoulders and kissed the top of her head. “I know you must feel bad about me going off with your groom. Doesn’t seem right.”

Mel cocked her head and raised her brows at Chase. Then she said to Mom, “I know Amos wants you to go. And I need to stay here and do my job. It might be a while before the two of you can return. You all right with that?”

“Whatever happens, we’re all under the watchful eye of the Lord. We’ll be back together soon enough.”

Mel nodded. “It’s almost time. Isn’t it?”

“Yes. Some of the men are helping with Amos. Chase, you can meet us in the upper hall whenever you’re ready.” She left them.

Chase fell into his wife’s dark eyes. He’d never be ready. “Don’t come up with me. Let me say goodbye here under Ciel Bleu Domaine. There’s nobody left in the room but us.”

She rose from the chair. “But—”

He stood and weaved his fingers into her hair. He put his lips to hers and lingered there. Pulling back, he wiped another tear from her sweet face. “Stay right here. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Twenty hours,” she said.

“That’s all. And then I’ll be home.”