Ten minutes later, we all gathered in an area turned into a conference room, and the Director and Dr. Müller briefed Sharon and me on the location and operation of the gate system's central hub. The mission would involve some fancy footwork on the fly, but infiltration was Sharon's specialty. Me? I was apparently the computer systems specialist. Only problem was I had no memory of being one. None. Zero. Zilch.

I voiced my concern. "So, what do we do if we get to the hub and none of this comes back to me?"

The Director steepled his fingers as he leaned back in his chair. "Just follow the procedure laid out here, and you should be fine. We tried to make it as clear as possible."

I nodded. "Yes, it seems clear, as long as nothing unplanned happens. But, you know how it is..."

"The key is supposed to be able to help with this in a way. Let us test it." Dr. Müller tapped on his tablet and then handed it to me.

It was in gibberish, using a script that looked part Korean and part Farsi. I studied it, but it didn't become any clearer to me.

The doctor leaned forward. "Set the key to the third face on the dial, the one with the symbol from this planet's primary language. It is supposed to act as a translator of digital text."

I did as he suggested. I pulled and turned the stem until it landed on the face with the nine numbers, then pushed it back in and looked at the tablet again.

The symbols on the screen began to waver, changing into English. Once it settled, I could easily read the message: The mission is critical. Trust Sharon with your life. Succeed at all costs.

I nodded and handed the tablet back to him. "So I have a way of translating digital text. That will be helpful. Does it also help with other communication?"

Dr. Müller shook his head. "No, but these do." He brought out two small devices, each about half the size of the palm of my hand. "These are common in Vegan society as more and more immigrants move between planets. No one will bat an eye that you use them to help communicate. You tap them to activate them, speak what you want translated, and it will then repeat what you said in the set language. We will be working overnight to program the languages of the key into them, just in case. We don't know where the gate is going to take you."

I was surprised. "We know all those languages?"

The Director answered. "We will. We are making a deal."

I scowled as I looked at the translator device. It struck me as similar to a Star Trek communicator badge. I was fascinated but also angry. Having them work meant we were trading more memories. I couldn't help but wonder where the memories would come from. Probably some homeless person we'd found who was willing to cooperate for a hot meal, shower, and maybe some drugs. I hated our tactics. The more I thought about it, the more Alex's words hit home. Memories were our personal property... we should have a choice about trading them and be adequately compensated.

Sighing, I slid the badge across the table back to the doctor, but I stayed quiet.

"Our next item," Sharon said as she pulled out a device, "Is extensive maps of the gate planets. That's what we have loaded on these." She handed me one.

It was about the size of my phone, maybe a little bigger, but it'd still fit in my pocket. "But we won't have internet or phone signal once we're off-world," I pointed out.

Sharon shot me a don't-be-an-idiot look. "The maps are local files. You do know how to read a map without GPS, right?"

Bitch. "Of course I do."

"Good. So, on each, we have pinpointed the locations of all the known gates. On the map of Vega Prime, we also added the most likely locations of the gate hub. We will have to check each one and hope we get lucky early on."

When we got to the hub, we were to use a Vegan digital storage device to install a virus into the system. It functioned much like a USB stick. We'd then have an hour to find a gate to bring us home before all hell broke loose.

"How do we get into the hub area to install the virus?" I asked as I pocketed the device.

She leaned back. "Our best bet is to disguise ourselves as part of the cleaning crew or maintenance staff. Some job that fades into the background with invisible service."

One of the agents that had checked me over spoke up. "Yes, for all their technology, Vegans still use real people for their cleaning crews. From my studies of the culture, they seem to find it both more personable and less intrusive to do so."

"That seems odd," I commented. "You'd think that cleaning robots would be easier."

"Easier, maybe," the agent continued. "But Vegans are highly social creatures. So, be prepared to converse with them if you go in with that disguise. Not everyone will want to talk to you, of course, simply because of social status, but some might. Have a story ready."

"We'll get it figured out," Sharon assured him. She looked at me. "Mostly, just let me do the talking. We'll say you're too shy and new to speak much."

"I'll totally take your lead on that. If I have known anything about Vegan culture in the past, I don't remember anything now."

As our briefing session ended, the motion of someone entering the room caught my eye. When I looked, I couldn't help but grin when Nancy stepped toward me. Her smile was just as wide.

"Hi," she said in a low voice as everyone stood and mingled, discussing various aspects of the mission.

"Hi yourself," I answered. I wanted to reach out and touch her, but I was unsure. She chose for me and took my hand. Her hand was soft, and a thrill ran up my spine.

"How are you feeling? Had any more memories?" Her eyes searched my face. "You look different."

"I've had some memories, but nothing helpful to the Team." I ran my hand through my hair. "I look different because I'm getting ready for a mission."

Her eye widened a little, then she scowled. "You are? I haven't cleared you for that!"

I cupped her cheek. "We've been compromised. We need to do this and do it soon. In fact, we're going to the lab in a few minutes to see if the key will open the gate. Then, we'll set out in the morning on the mission."

Her pursed lips displayed her annoyance. "Yeah, but it doesn't have to be you."

"Actually, it does. It seems that the key is synced to me and only me."

"But—"

I pressed a finger to her mouth, silencing her. "Shh. I need to do this. If not for the Team, then for Alex."

She sighed and nodded.

"Where are you staying?" I asked.

"I don't know. The Director just asked me to report."

As if she'd summoned him, we heard the Director's voice. "Dr. Roseau. Thank you for coming. I want you to monitor Ethan overnight. There's a room set up for you upstairs. Maybe you can get more of the drug cleared from his system?"

She nodded. "Yes, Sir. I brought a kit with me, as you asked." She glanced at her watch. "We should get something on his stomach before we hook him up, though."

"Dinner should be ready by the time we're done in the lab. You can set up your things in the last room to the right upstairs. It has a bathroom en suite, so it's both convenient," he winked at me, "and private."

I chuckled while Nancy flushed. She cleared her throat and spoke. "Thank you, Director. I'll have my kit sent up. There's very little setup to do, so if you don't mind, I'd like to observe the gate test."

He nodded. "Very well. We are gathering in the lab in ten minutes." He turned away, catching Dr. Müller as he did for a private conversation.

"I can help you carry your things," I volunteered.

She smiled at me, and my stomach flip-flopped. Her cheeks were still rosy from her blush. I couldn't decide if it was adorable, sexy, or both at the same time.

"Okay then, come on. I have the kit and my suitcase in the foyer."

Her suitcase was bigger than her kit. I hauled it up the stairs and down to the room, depositing it at the foot of the bed. When she did the same, I grabbed and pulled her to me. She came willingly, slipping her arms around my neck. I needed little encouragement to lean in and claim her mouth with mine.

She molded herself to me as I ran my hands down her back and over her ass. She moaned as I pressed my erection into her and kissed her deeper.

~

"Do you want children?" Nancy asked as she popped a forkful of delicate, flaky salmon into her mouth.

"Oh, yeah," I said, cutting my steak. "I've always wanted to be a father. I didn't have much of a childhood myself, being in and out of foster homes. I decided early on to be sure I give my kids a different life." I looked at her. "I just have to find the right woman."

She blushed. "I want kids, too."

The feeling I got when I was with Nancy was nearly indescribable. She was, in a word, amazing. Intelligent, funny, beautiful... just everything. I had to work at not squirming in my seat with excitement in anticipation of the rest of the evening.

~

I stiffened at the intrusion of the flash of memory. She noticed and pulled back.

"Are you okay?" she asked as she cupped my face.

I tried not to scowl. "Just disoriented a little. This feels so natural with you, but I don't remember a lot. I feel guilty that I don't."

She kissed me gently. "Don't feel guilty. It's just the drug. I'll answer whatever questions you have."

"How long have we been dating?"

"Almost a year. You asked me out after you came to the clinic for your annual physical." Her eyes gleamed with amusement. "Normally, I don't say yes to patients."

I chuckled and hugged her close. "I'm glad you did."

"Me, too," she whispered.

A knock on the open bedroom door caught our attention. Sharon had rapped her knuckles on the wood. "Come on, you two. Everyone's in the lab. It's time to test."

I scowled. "Be right there."

Sharon nodded and moved on, clomping down the stairs to the first floor.

I turned my attention back to the woman who had stiffened in my arms. "Hey, everything's going to be okay. Let's test the door, and then we can start the drug treatment. I need to see if any more of my memory will come back."

Nodding, she hugged me. "I'm worried. I don't like the idea of this mission. It's dangerous."

I kissed the top of her head. "I know. But this is what we signed up for, and it's important. If we can stop the gates, then we have leverage. Once we have leverage, then we can gain a foothold."

She stepped back. "What do you mean?"

"Well, once we show the Vegans that we aren't just a free meal, so to speak, we can start to take some control and make our own decisions about memory trafficking."

"How so? What decisions are there to make? Memory trafficking is a horrible practice."

I tucked a loose strand of hair behind one of her ears. "I remembered a conversation I had with Alex. He said some things about memory trafficking... about how stealing memories is the bad part, not necessarily the selling or trading of them. I can't help but wonder if he's got a point."

Her eyes widened, and she pulled away, crossing her arms and closing herself off. "What are you saying?"

I felt colder without her arms around me. I slipped my hands into my pockets. "I'm saying that we should have a choice about our own memories. If they're potential currency, maybe people should be able to cash in if they want."

She blinked and stepped back. "You think we should be openly selling our memories?"

I knew I was on slippery ground, but I didn't want to hide anything from her. "Me, personally? I don't think I could. I mean, I don't really know. But Alex pointed out some details... I don't know, they seem kind of logical. Like, if we figure out how to download and restore memories, we could just download memories and sell them to the Vegans, and we wouldn't lose them at all."

"But, we're years away from being able to record memories without destroying them in the person's mind! Maybe even decades."

I stepped forward and coaxed her hands into mine. "Which is why this mission is so critical. We need time. Taking out their gate system will only be a temporary thing. They'll rebuild it... and they'll come back because they know we're here now. This buys us some time to prepare."

"I don't like the idea of selling memories. Not after..." she trailed off, her gaze on the floor.

I lifted her chin to me. Tears glistened in her eyes, ready to spill over.

"After what?"

She searched my face. I could tell that she wanted to say something but was unsure.

"After what?" I urged again.

She cupped my cheek. "After they made you forget that I'm pregnant."