My stomach tightened, my breath caught, and my heart skipped a beat, all at the same time. "You're pregnant?"

Nancy tried to pull away again, but I refused to let her go. "Yes. About eight weeks. Is that still okay? You were happy about it before."

"Is it okay?" I sputtered. "Is it okay?" My heart soared. I grabbed her to me and lifted her, spinning her in a little circle. "It's more than okay!" I set her down gently and kissed her.

"Hey!" Sharon shouted up the stairs. "Come on, Ethan! We need to do this. Now."

Nancy giggled. "We can talk about it more later. Let's get to the lab."

I took her hand, then took the lead, heading down the stairs to the hallway and the second flight to the lab. All eyes turned to me when we came into view.

"Finally," Sharon muttered, and I flashed her a don't-be-a-bitch look. She rolled her eyes.

"Ethan, please come and stand by the gate," Dr. Müller requested.

I squeezed Nancy's hand before releasing it, facing the blue side of the door. He nodded to one of the lab techs sitting at a bench. She threw a few switches, and I heard a hum of electricity. I felt the crackle of static around me, just enough to make me aware that something odd was happening.

Dr. Müller nodded. "Good. Now, set the key to the fifth watch face. That will send you to the Alpha Centauri system storehouse. Our contact is there knows to watch for you and let you through. They'll also help you get to Vega Prime and back."

"Just keep walking when you exit the gate and go with the flow of travelers," Sharon instructed.

I pulled the stem on the watch and turned it. When I pushed it back in on the correct setting, the hum of electricity increased as the watch face settled. "So, do I just open the door and walk in?"

"Yes. It should be that easy," Dr. Müller said. "Good luck."

I took a breath and released it, squaring my shoulders before reaching for the knob. I snatched my hand back when I was shocked as I touched the knob.

"Is that supposed to happen?" I asked, looking at my hand.

"I don't think so," Dr. Müller said, looking over the shoulder of the tech. "All readings appear to be normal, however. Try again."

This time, I felt no shock as I gripped the knob. I turned it and swung the door inward.

It opened onto a platform where a ramp led down from the door. Beings of all natures moved toward what I could only assume was the exit. I set my jaw and stepped through the door, walking down the ramp and into the throng, glancing back once to ensure Sharon was right behind me. She nodded, and I watched the door shut on the lab, Nancy's worried face the last thing I saw.

"Just keep moving," Sharon ordered.

I did as she told me. The crowd moved steadily, and soon, we climbed a set of stairs and were dumped into a larger area full of bright lights flashing in the night with low-flying vehicles whizzing by overhead. Crowds were gathered in pockets around street performers and at stalls hawking things I couldn't hope to recognize. It had the feel of a shopping district, a casino, and a carnival all rolled into one.

I pulled Sharon into an empty space on the walkway. "Okay, now what?"

Before she could answer, Juno appeared beside her.

~

"Room 1926," Juno said into his phone. He paused, listening. "Ten minutes. Got it."

Alex stepped into the bathroom and motioned for me to follow. He shut us in and fished out a small baggie from his pants pocket with two red and blue capsules in it. "Nancy sent us these. You need to take yours," he whispered.

"Like hell!" I said just as softly. "You need me. That will knock me out. You know that."

"Yeah, I do." He thrust the bag at me. "But before it does, it will make you forget most everything, and we don't know what will go down here. They'll leave you alone if they can't get anything from you. All they want are the memories."

I stared at the drug, my heart pounding. I scowled and snatched the bag, extracting one of the capsules to toss in my mouth. I sipped a handful of water from the sink to wash it down. It wouldn't take long for the drug to take effect. I hoped that it'd be in time to be of some good.

He flushed the remaining capsule. "No need to give them something to take home and analyze," he explained. "Now, go away and let me piss in private."

I exited the bathroom to find the sliding glass door to the terrace open, the curtains fluttering in the hot desert breeze. Juno was out on the balcony looking over the city. I wondered briefly if I could be stealthy enough to sneak up on him and push him off before my better sense came over me. We needed him. Bastard.

My stomach cramped, and I sat on the bed feeling queasy. I wondered if I would get sick as I listened to the toilet flush, then the water run in the sink. The room started to spin, so I laid down, which helped immensely.

"Hey," Alex said, and I cracked an eye open to see what he wanted. "Here. This will help." He stood over me and held out a glass of water. "Drink it."

I sat up enough to down the fluid, and he was right, it did help. The room stopped gyrating, and I stood just before the knock on the door came.

Juno nearly sprinted to the door and flung it wide, ushering in a trio of Vegans, two enormous bodyguards, and a slender female. She was stunning and looked human in every way that mattered in her blue dress covered in rhinestones and sequins. She was carrying a small leather box I immediately knew was for us.

She looked me over from head to foot. "Is this the one?" she asked as she moved closer. I must have looked odd to her because she scowled as she got closer and sniffed. "He smells different. Is he on something? I don't like him."

"No, your Highness," Juno said. "That is not him." He swept his arm to Alex. "This is your feast."

Alex stepped forward. I could see the tension in his shoulders, causing him to be stiff. I grabbed his arm. "You don't have to do this."

He looked at me, and I saw the sorrow in his eyes. "I'm sorry, Ethan, but I do." He turned to the female again. "I am prepared to sweeten the deal."

Her eyebrow shot up. "Oh? Do tell."

"I am prepared to offer more memories in exchange for cash."

"You're what?" I said, just before the room started to spin again. I fell-sat on the bed, useless.

He ignored me and continued. "Twenty million US dollars in exchange for all my memories about the Team. I'll want a good-faith downpayment before we begin."

"No!" I barked, fighting against the encroaching blackout I knew was coming. "You can't!" I attempted to reach for my gun, but my movements were sluggish. Juno easily stopped me and disarmed me. The room spun so severely that I had no choice but to flop back against the pillow or risk falling off the bed.

"Lisa needs the money, Ethan. There's a new treatment..."

"Ten thousand is the best we can do in a pinch," the female said. "Bichan, give the man the money you won this evening."

One of the bodyguards scowled but reached slowly for his pocket, extracting an orange and gold poker chip. He held it out to Alex, who took it and examined it.

"Cash that out, and I will consider it the downpayment," Alex agreed, handing the chip back. "Bring it in an unmarked duffel bag."

She nodded to the guard, who immediately set out to get the money.

"I will need the rest in an offshore account set up so my sister can access it. Juno, if this kills me, you must contact her and make sure the exchange happens."

"It will be done," Juno replied. I knew he told the truth. If it was one thing we could trust the Vegans to do was to follow through with a memory deal. They wouldn't cheat him; as lecherous as they were, they regarded the deal's integrity as paramount.

"Alex," I rasped, my vision tinged red and black. "You are giving too many memories. This will kill you."

"Yeah, probably. But Lisa..."

"I will take care of everything," Juno reassured him. "Lisa will want for nothing." He crossed his arms, my gun stuffed into the waist of his pants. "I'll take care of this one, too."

"He's going to remember this eventually," Alex looked at me. His face was pinched, and he looked like he'd aged just in the few minutes we'd been in the hotel room. "Be prepared for that."

Juno gave him a curt nod. "I'll keep that in mind."

The female pursed her lips. "We have two deals on the table. We brought the payment for the childhood memories." She held the box out to Alex.

Alex opened it and found the watch inside. He turned the box this way and that, examining it.

When he went to touch it, she threw out a hand. "No! Don't! I will sync itself with whoever adjusts it first. It is best not to touch it until you are ready."

"How does it work?:

My body felt heavy, and I knew I'd not be aware much longer. My eyes shut of their own accord, but I listened intently. Her voice echoed in my head.

"It is a universal remote... very expensive and very desirable. It was enormously hard to obtain. It will operate any memory system gate and take you to all nine storehouses. Making it look like a watch was a good request by your superiors; no one will suspect its versatility. It is clearly an Earth device, so most will assume it controls only Earth gates."

"Alex," I croaked. "Don't..."

Whether they didn't hear me or they simply ignored me, I didn't know. I heard Alex close the box and felt him sit on the foot of the bed. Just before I sank into the abyss, he said, "Okay, this deal is satisfactory. We can begin with the childhood memories."

~

Juno leaned in and sniffed me. "You've remembered some things. I can smell it."

I grabbed him by the shirt collar and pulled him to me, twisting and lifting as I did. He didn't try to fight me even though he could have easily reached into the messenger bag he was carrying for a weapon. "I remember that you helped Alex betray the Team."

"Alex what?" Sharon asked, looking from me to Juno and back again.

"Let me go," Juno said, straining to speak and swallowing against my grip, "you'll draw the attention of the authorities."

I tightened my fist, my blood boiling, and I wondered if his physiology was close enough to ours that I could simply strangle him to death.

Sharon put her hand on my arm. "Let him go, Ethan. He's our contact. He's here to help us, despite whatever else he'd done."

I shook him once before releasing him, allowing him to drop the few inches I'd lifted him. He adjusted his shoulders and rubbed his throat.

"Yes. I am here to help. More than you know. I have my own agenda, and it includes aiding your and your Team to take out the system." He smoothed out his clothing and settled himself. "Of course, it will only be temporary, you know."

"Yes, but if we do our job well enough, it will buy us time," I countered.

"If it makes you feel any better, the Princess did not gain much information that our intelligence didn't already know. She was hasty in her deal; Alex was not the best source of information about the Team, given that you two were not yet off-world." He handed me two small envelopes. "My condolences on the death of your partner. I helped him write the note you found. I take it was sufficient?"

"It worked well enough," I admitted. I looked at what he'd handed me and opened the thicker one. "What is this?"