The Freezer (Genesis Endeavor Book 1) (21 page)

The music was fairly slow, and perfect for some close,
romantic dancing. Wendy’s eyes were closed and her hips swayed to the music. He
stepped up to her, took her hand in his and wrapped his other around her waist.
They slowly danced around the room for at least a half hour, bodies moving in
perfect unison.

Wendy was smiling, staring into Jack’s eyes. “I wasn’t sure
how you would react to the music, or if you would even be interested in
dancing. I always liked going out dancing on a date, and I figured this date
wouldn’t be complete without some. You make a fine partner Mister Taggart.”

Jack put on his smoothest smile, spun her around slowly and
then dipped her. “You’re not so bad yourself, Miss Roberts.” With that he
kissed her deep, and she sort of sunk into him. They broke off the kiss and
settled back down on the couch. He took the lead for a while, and they made out
like a couple teenagers on the basement couch. Wendy finally stopped and stood
up, holding Jack’s hand, urging him to follow.

They made their way to her bedroom. He stopped at the end of
the bed, and kissed her neck, then slid the shoulder of her dress down and
kissed her shoulder. He slid the other shoulder off and kissed the nape of her
neck. Working his way down her body he slowly peeled the dress off and kissed
each inch of her body. He paused at her very erect nipples and gave them a
little extra attention before continuing down her body. When he reached her
hips, the dress slid the rest of the way to her ankles by itself. He kissed
just below her navel, then slid back up her body, sliding his hands up her
thighs, over her hips, landing finally on her breasts as he kissed her deeply
again. A little moan escaped her throat and she backed up to pull his shirt
off. She kissed his chest as she slid his pants and boxers off, then embraced
him and kissed him deeply on the lips again. He picked her up, her legs
wrapping around his waist, and carried her to the bed. He laid her down and
went to work again with his lips and tongue, working his way all around her
body. He brought her to orgasm with his tongue, and she screamed out his name. He
then slid back up to kiss her on the lips, and finally entered her. He worked
slowly and with perfect rhythm, until she was practically screaming, gripping
at the sheets, wrapping her legs around him. He released when she peaked and
they shared a long, intense orgasm.

They lay there for about five minutes, him on top of her,
just gazing into each other’s eyes as if communicating telepathically. Finally
he slid off to the side, and lay on his back. She cuddled up to him, one leg
draped over both of his, pressing her warm body to his. “My God, Jack, that was
incredible.” She was still a bit dazed, the remnants of the intense orgasm
tickling her spine.

Jack didn’t feel the need to say anything; he just held her
tight and closed his eyes. They lay like that for about an hour, drifting in
and out of sleep, totally at ease in each other’s arms. Two more times that
night they repeated the performance, taking the passion to new heights, and by
midnight they were completely spent and both sound asleep.

* * *

Wendy woke up in Jack’s arms. The lights in the apartment
had slowly gotten brighter, simulating a rising sun. The effect worked as
intended and soon she was wide awake. Jack was still sound asleep, so she carefully
extracted herself and climbed out of bed. The clock on her datapad showed just
before six a.m. Standing up revealed a stiffness in her legs that was a little
painful but completely welcome. It reminded her of the evening before, and a
smile made its way onto her face.

She used the bathroom, and then went to the kitchen. While
she dug out the diary, she thought about the night before. Ever since he called
her earlier in the day, she had been nervous about that evening. She knew that
at some point in the evening she would have to confess about the diary. Although
she didn’t feel good about the motives behind the meal and the dress, it did
give her great satisfaction to make him happy.

At some point during preparations for the date, she came to
the conclusion that she was being too hard on herself about the whole thing. There
should be nothing wrong with a woman doing what she can to please her man, even
if part of the reason is because she did something she feels bad about and
doesn’t want him to be mad about it. It had been a complete surprise when he
reacted by grabbing her and kissing her. At that moment she would have done
anything for him. In retrospect, she felt a little guilty about the date and
dinner, but since she genuinely cared about him, it was all acceptable.

She got the diary out and headed back to the bedroom to
watch him sleep for a little while before waking him. They nearly collided as
she rounded the corner. “Oh shit! You scared the hell out of me Jack!” She
smiled and kissed him. They were both buck naked standing in the middle of the
doorway.

“Good morning. What time is it?” He looked worried that he
had overslept.

“It’s only 0600. Plenty of time. Here, I was digging this
out for you. It is yours after all.” She handed him the diary. He took it, looking
at it in reverence as if it held all of the answers to life’s greatest
mysteries.

“Thank You. You have no idea what this means to me. I was
hoping I could find something like this to give me some insight into how I
died.” He walked over to his pack and put the diary in it. Wendy figured he
would read it on the flight this morning. He paused after he stood up, looking
down at his pack. “Say, you didn’t by chance change my computer file after
reading that, did you?”

It was an oddball question, but the fact was, she had. There
was an entry in the diary about how he had changed his birth certificate to get
into the military, and she figured that having his correct age in the system
might make a difference in bringing him back. Of course, she hadn’t been able
to just tell Teague without revealing the diary, so she snuck into his office
and made the change. She blushed and said, “Yeah, actually, why?”

“Oh, just clearing up a mystery. Teague will get a kick out
of that.” He chuckled, shaking his head.”

“Wait, you can’t tell him, it might get me in trouble!”

Jack seemed to think about that for a second. “True. Don’t
sweat it, it isn’t a big deal anyway. I need to use the bathroom, then take a
shower.” He patted her on the butt as he walked past. She admired the view as
he walked into the bathroom. After using the toilet, he started the shower and
said, “Any chance you want to wash my back?”

She smiled, went into the bathroom, and climbed into the
small shower stall with him.

Jack stepped off the elevator on level one and made his way
down the hall to a small locker room that was next to a loading dock for the
rail line that ran five miles away from the complex to an underground air
field. He had called Chuck ahead of time to find out where on level one they
would meet. Chuck was nowhere to be seen, but a new face was there putting on
his combat gear. He was a fairly light skinned African American, just under six
feet tall, lean body, and appeared to be about thirty years old. His hair was
cut to the nap, and his features were sharp. When Jack walked in, he looked up
from lacing his boots, and smiled. “You must be Jack. I’m Emmet Johnson, nice
to meet you.” His voice was about that of a tenor which seemed to fit his size
and stature, and there was a hint of southern hillbilly accent. He held out his
hand and Jack shook it. The grip was firm and his hands were well calloused.

“Pleased to meet you Emmet. I assume you are the third team
member?” The question was rhetorical. Jack put the pack on a bench and pulled
out his gear. He started getting undressed. “So tell me Emmet, are you a reborn
or a native?”

“Reborn, actually. One of the first. I have been here for
just about four years now. I was a staff sergeant in the Army when I died in ‘97
from lung cancer.” Jack was pulling his under suit on, and the word Cancer had
stopped him dead.

“I’m sorry to hear that, I know what it’s like to learn you
have cancer. Thankfully I don’t remember the year that I spent getting
treatment or having to deal with it...” Their eyes locked for a brief moment
and it felt like a bond passed between them. Jack resumed getting dressed.

“I knew you were going to be short on memory, but damn, a
whole year?” Emmet had a very expressive face, and his eyebrows did as much of
the talking as his mouth did. He wrinkled his brow and said, “Of course, I was
surprised that Teague was able to do anything at all, given how early you had
been frozen.” Now his eyebrows went up and he closed his eyes as he said, “It
was a miracle, my man, God himself must’ve had a hand in it.” He had finished
securing his armor, and was putting his webbing on, making sure he had all his
gear.

“I sure feel like I was blessed. A week ago I was told I had
cancer and was going to die, and here I am, healthy as can be, younger than I
was, a beautiful woman to keep me warm, and one hell of a rifle to keep me
safe.” They both laughed. “So I imagine you have kids, but are you married?” Jack
was at ease with Emmet, he seemed to wear his heart on his shoulder.

Emmet pondered the question for a moment, his face visibly
working as he thought. “The first couple years, I went from woman to woman,
having the time of my life. But after a while it felt a little lonely. I dated
one woman here steady for about a year, but Teague told her she had to have a
baby with one of the new guys we brought back, and it kind of pissed me off
when she jumped right in the sack with him. I told her I would rather she did
the artificial thing, but she blew it off and told me not to be silly!” His
eyebrows were all over the place as he told his story. “Can you believe that
shit? Those women can be cold about sex, Jack. Just some friendly advice, have
fun with the natives but don’t get involved.” The last sentence ended with his
eyebrows in a flat line across his brow, signifying that he was dead serious. Jack
was surprised that he had opened up like this. Most military types would keep
this sort of thing to themselves, and just pose and posture when asked about
women. He decided he liked Emmet. “You about ready?”

Jack was just securing his last piece of body armor and he
nodded. He grabbed his pack and said, “Lead the way.”

They stepped out of the room into the loading dock. There
was a small rail car there, the shape of an egg if you stretched it to about twice
its length. The door was open and inside were some benches. They climbed in and
Emmet pressed a button next to the door. It slid shut and the car accelerated
very quickly. Jack’s ears popped as they rode along, and he figured they were
not only moving away from the complex but also climbing in elevation. In about
two and a half minutes they slowed down and the door opened.

They exited into a huge cavern-like room with natural rock
walls and ceiling. The room was basically a large dome, perhaps four hundred
feet by seven hundred feet, lit with an orange tinted light, reminding Jack of
a warehouse lit with mercury lamps. On one wall there was a giant set of doors,
easily eighty feet high.

Chuck was holding a datapad and a flashlight and was
inspecting inside a panel on a small aircraft that looked like a sleek
helicopter with short wings on either side and no blade on top. It was painted
in desert camouflage, had a door on each side, and the cabin was surrounded
with large windows. The short wings had small propeller blades inset in them,
but Jack couldn’t see any engine or turbine. Chuck closed the compartment he
was looking in, and made a note on the datapad. He dropped the datapad and
flashlight on a cart next to the aircraft and turned to the men walking toward
him. “Good morning gentlemen, your ride is checked out and ready to go.” He
said it with a smirk on his face, and without waiting for a response, opened
the door and climbed in the front seat.

Jack went around to the other side with Emmet and climbed
into the back seat, stowing his gear next to him where Chuck’s pack already
rested. Emmet handed him his pack and climbed in the front. When the door
closed, Jack felt his ears pop again. He asked why.

Not turning to look at Jack as he was busily flipping
switches and getting ready to fly, Chuck said, “The cabin is pressurized. We
will come out of those doors up ahead and shoot up to an altitude of about
forty thousand feet. The ride will take about two hours, and according to my
weather info, should be pretty smooth.”

Jack was surprised when the aircraft suddenly lifted about
ten feet off the ground. “Holy shit! I didn’t even hear you fire up the
engine!”

Concentrating on flying, Chuck said, “Yeah, it’s driven with
electric motors so it’s quiet, but also the same technology that went into
those ear plugs I gave you is used in the cabin here to keep it quiet. If you
were outside right now it would be loud, but nothing like an old chopper or
plane.”

Jack nodded. Emmet was fiddling with his PDP up front, and
Chuck was busy flying, so he sank back in the seat to enjoy the ride. The large
windows to either side gave him a nearly three hundred sixty degree view. The
giant doors opened up and the aircraft shot forward. He held his breath as they
cleared the doors with about a foot to spare.

Sunlight filled the cabin and they were surrounded by red
and brown desert, with little clumps of grayish green brush dotting the
landscape. The sight was quite stunning, and as Jack took it in, he realized he
could not even spot the camouflaged door they had exited. The morning sun was
coming in from the east at a steep angle, suggesting that sunrise had only been
in the last hour or so. That likely meant it was late fall or early spring. Jack
had never asked what season it was, but now that he was outside, it all of a
sudden felt relevant. “What time of year is it?”

Emmet turned around and said, “Early spring, about March I
would say. It was a long cold winter, brother.” He was smiling when he said it
as if he was happy to have it behind him. His eyes narrowed slightly and his
brow wrinkled just a bit as he said, “So tell me Jack, did you have a family
back home? Any kids?”

A thread of sorrow made its way through Jack’s heart,
followed by a little guilt. He hadn’t thought about his wife or daughter for
two days, and with all that had happened, it felt like two months. He softly
sighed and said, “I had a wife and daughter, but they died in an auto accident
about two years before I, uh, passed.” Jack still felt weird referring to his
own death as a point of reference. “I was just getting over it and about to
start trying to find a nice woman to date when I was told I had cancer.”

Emmet nodded slowly and his brow and mouth both scrunched
up. “Sorry to hear that Jack. A man should never have to bury his child.” The
way he said it suggested that he knew from experience what he was talking
about. His expression changed as fast as his topic and he asked, “I know you
haven’t been here long, but tell me what you think so far of the whole female
situation. You mentioned you had a warm body to keep you company?”

Under normal circumstances, Jack would hardly be discussing
his sex life while making small talk with a stranger, but he felt a sort of
camaraderie with these men. They were both military, and it was obvious to Jack
that both had seen heavy combat at some point in their lives. He also
understood that the community was small, and everyone would know most of the
details of his life sooner or later. “Actually, I met someone that I think I
could spend the rest of my life with.” To his surprise the reaction from the
two men was not at all what he expected.

Chuck glanced at him for the first time since leaving New
Hope, and Emmet’s brow shot up as his eyes seemed to catch fire with interest. “No
shit!?” he exclaimed. Then more solemnly he said, “God I hope she ain’t a
local. They don’t look at things the way we do.” Emmet obviously had a chip on
his shoulder regarding the local women.

“Nope, she’s a reborn.”

Chuck and Emmet exchanged a look that might have been envy
then Emmet looked at Jack and said, “Consider yourself lucky. Now I myself
wouldn’t have wanted to settle down before having a few weeks of fun, but you
are
blessed if you already got yourself a main squeeze. Especially if she won’t run
off with the next swinging dick that comes along!” Emmet turned back to Chuck,
and one eyebrow went way up and his eyes were wide as he exclaimed, “You hear
that Chuck? He got himself a reborn in the first couple days!” He turned back
to Jack and his brows once again furrowed, this time in concentration. “I know
it isn’t Elizabeth, Michelle, or Cynthia. They’re all shacked up with someone
already.” He appeared to be going through a mental list of names trying to
figure out who it was. Finally he shrugged and said “Damn, I can’t figure out
who it would be. There are only a few reborn ladies that aren’t pregnant or
involved at the moment, and I can’t see any of them wanting to be in a
relationship right now. It’s not Heather is it?”

Jack chuckled to himself, thinking that he probably shouldn’t
have said anything, but now Emmet wasn’t going to stop until he at least found
out who it was. “No. I’ve only met three women since waking up, and I don’t
think one of them was a Heather. Just to put your mind at ease, Emmet, it’s
Wendy Roberts.”

Chuck turned to look at him again, this time he didn’t look
back right away. Both he and Emmet couldn’t have looked more surprised if Jack
had said it was a man he was sleeping with. Chuck examined Jack for at least
ten seconds, then turned back to the aircraft controls and said, “Bullshit.”

Emmet continued to look at Jack, his brows hunkered down in
concentration, and after another ten seconds the brows shot up and with a look
of surprise he said, “Jesus Christ, Chuck I think he’s telling the truth!” Jack
considered this parlay, wondering why it was so unbelievable to them.

“I don’t understand guys, what’s the big deal?” He wondered
what they knew that he didn’t.

Chuck spoke first. “Jack I’ve been on over a dozen patrols
with her. She’s as cold as ice when it comes to men, and most of the guys
around here think she is more interested in the women, if you know what I mean.
About six weeks ago, a guy named Jeremy put his hand on her ass and she nearly
broke his nose. I find it hard to believe that you’re doing anything with
Wendy. It’s strictly business around that woman.”

Jack just shrugged and sat back, trying to hide the smirk on
his face. He figured there was no sense in arguing the fact, and quite frankly
he didn’t care if they believed him or not. Thinking about her, however,
reminded him of the diary so he grabbed his pack to pull it out. He figured
there was a good hour and a half before he had anything to do, and he was
anxious to see what he had written in it.

Before he could open it, Emmet spoke up. “Jack, regardless
of what Chuck here says, I believe you. Congratulations, Wendy may be a cold
bitch but she seems like a good, solid person. She can tune up a flyer like
nobody else too.” Obviously that was the end of the subject, and he turned
around to fiddle with his PDP some more.

Jack was not offended by the term ‘cold bitch’. He felt like
maybe he should be, but if Wendy had acted that way towards other men, it
actually made him feel better. He smiled, filing away the term for later and
settled back to read.

Emmet finished whatever he was doing with his PDP, and warm
classical music softly filled the cabin. Jack had attended a few symphonies in
his time and he now felt as if he were in the front row. He closed his eyes,
and for a moment he was right there, just behind the conductor. “You don’t mind
if we listen to some relaxing music do you, Jack?”

It took him a moment to realize that Emmet had asked a
question. “Uh, no not at all, but can you tell me where it’s coming from? It
sounds fantastic!” He had not questioned Wendy last night when she turned on
the music, thinking at the time that there was some sort of player in the other
room, but this was not a large cabin, and he did not see anything that
resembled a playback device or radio.

“It’s all in the PDP. Teague is sort of a connoisseur of
classical music and he put some of his collection on my pad. I have some heavy
rock and some alternative too if you’re interested.” Emmet took note of Jack’s
blank stare and tried to clarify. “The music is stored digitally on my PDP, and
I am sending it to the sound system in the cabin here through the wireless
interface.”