The day of the funeral was appropriately dreary, a gray drizzle drifting from the sky without even the energy to be a rainstorm. Wes tried to concentrate on the words being spoken over Nick’s gravesite, but his eyes kept returning to the grave itself, waiting to swallow up what remained of a good man. He shivered at the memory of cold, and the smell of earth.
“Wes...” Eric’s voice was only a whisper, but his arm around Wes’s back was strong and steady.
“I’m okay.” Resolutely Wes forced the images away. This was no time to be thinking about old fears. He glanced sideways to where Lyn Tate was standing, her blonde head bowed, a pale little boy clinging to her hand, his eyes wide with the confused hurt of a child who doesn’t yet understand why Daddy is never coming back.
On the other side was Wes’s father, with Lina. They had flown back for the funeral, and to hold a press conference afterwards. From the way they were talking, they might not leave again anytime soon. It hadn’t been much of a honeymoon for them.
And there was Eric. He hadn’t said much since the night after it had happened, but he didn’t have to; the signs of grief were there for someone who knew him very well. Wes slipped his own arm around Eric and they leaned on each other in the quiet rain.
“Wonder how they’ll take it,” Eric said, his voice lowered, as he peered out from the half-open side door of the large SPD meeting room where the press conference was about to start. It was packed with reporters and bristling with cameras.
Wes, standing beside him, shrugged slightly. “The press? Who knows? But if anyone can spin things the right way, it’s Dad and Cruger.”
“Yeah,” Eric muttered. “But aliens? The whole world could go into a panic. Just what SPD’s been trying to prevent.”
“There’s no choice,” Wes said. “Too many people saw Mirloc and his gang. We have to tell the truth.”
“I guess.” Eric frowned. “I’m a little surprised Doggie’s here. He hardly ever comes out where he has to use a hologram to look human. Probably afraid someone’ll bump into his nose.”
Wes gave him an amused look. “Doggie? You don’t call him that to his face, do you?”
“That’s what Nick called him, so he’d better get used to it.” Eric glanced over his shoulder into the small office they were all standing in, to see Mr. Collins still huddled with Cruger and Kat, in their human disguises, and Dr. Zaskin. As he watched, Collins and Cruger shook hands with an air of determined finality. Mr. Collins stepped to the center of the room and looked around at all of them.
“It’s time,” he said quietly. “Dr. Manx, Commander Cruger, and I will conduct the press conference. I’d like the rest of you out there too, if you don’t mind. There might be questions you can answer.”
Wes glanced at Eric before they both nodded.
“Good. Then let’s get out there and get this over with.”
There was a rustle of papers and a murmur of anticipation as Collins stepped out into the conference room with Kat behind him. Cruger began to follow, but paused and stepped aside to speak to Wes and Eric.
“Thought you’d want to know,” he said in a low voice, “I’ve heard from SPD Central Command. They captured Mirloc not far from your solar system. He’s being taken to a specialized maximum security prison. Justice will be done, for this crime as well as all the others he has committed.”
“Good. I hope he rots,” Eric muttered, and headed for the door.
“As all of you know, Newtech City came under attack three days ago. Thanks to the efforts of the Rangers, including my son Wesley Collins and Eric Myers, while there was heavy damage to several buildings casualties were kept to a minimum. Unfortunately, one of those casualties was SPD’s own Nicolas Tate. In his time as the first SPD Ranger he proved himself to be a true hero, and he will always be remembered as one.”
Mr. Collins paused to look directly into the video cameras that were carrying his image across the country as he stood behind the long table that was serving as a stage, Cruger seated on one side and Kat on the other. Watching from a row of chairs along the side of the room, Eric could see a muscle clench in his employer’s jaw. Now came the hard part.
“Many of you - no, all of you - have been wondering where the five criminals who perpetrated this crime came from, and who or what they are. You’ve been wondering where the four captured by the Rangers are being held. We are going to answer those questions now.”
Every reporter in the room seemed to be holding his or her breath as Collins continued. “Over the years, we’ve all seen some very strange things, especially in California. In Silver Hills, my home, we suffered repeated attacks of this nature nine years ago. That time it was mutants. This time - the criminals who appeared here were aliens. The kind of aliens who come from other planets, other worlds.”
Collins waited for the rustle of surprise and excitement that greeted this to settle down. “To answer the next question most of you are probably thinking about, they are no longer on Earth. Their leader, Mirloc, escaped but was captured in space only today. The other four have been deported to answer for their crimes. They were not turned over to the police for two reasons: because the prisons here are not designed for aliens, and because they have committed other crimes - elsewhere. We at SPD felt the only realistic course of action was to turn them over to another authority, better equipped to deal with them.
“Which brings me to my last point. What you have known as the Special Police Division of Bio-Lab is in fact an Earth-based outpost of another organization. Space Patrol Delta is an interplanetary law enforcement and defense association dedicated to protecting planets like Earth from criminals like Mirloc.”
There was another muted buzz of conversation. Collins waited patiently for the reporters to focus their attention on him again. “And now, Commander Anubis Cruger of SPD will explain in more detail.”
Again the atmosphere seemed to crackle with tension as Cruger slowly got to his feet. “Good afternoon,” he said solemnly. “Three days ago, we all saw an example of what aliens of evil intent are capable of doing on Earth, of the harm they can and did inflict. We all suffered from that harm. For myself and the others at SPD, we lost a man we had worked with for years, a man we valued and who will be missed sorely.
“Now, the natural reaction for many of you will be anger and distrust of all aliens. You may decide that the best course of action for Earth is to remain isolated, to prevent anyone from other parts of the galaxy from making any contact with Earth, let alone allow them to settle and live here. However, I am here to tell you that this would be a mistake. There is a vast universe out there, filled with life, and even in this small corner of space some of that life will inevitably come your way.
“Indeed, it already has. For the last several years, we at SPD have been working to protect Earth from criminals like Mirloc. We have been working, and continue to work, to protect and defend it from the possibility - or rather, the probability - of even larger threats. I ask of all of you, every person on Earth - don’t judge all aliens by Mirloc and his companions. Just as some humans commit evil, so do some aliens. But just as most humans at least try to do the right thing, so do most of us.”
Cruger raised his chin. “Yes, I said ‘us’. You already have aliens living and working among you, and I am one of them. I hope you will allow us to remain, and to continue in our mission to preserve the peace of the galaxy.”
Raising a hand, he touched his tie clip, pressing it lightly. For a moment, his form wavered and blurred, and then snapped back into clarity. A large, blue, scaly-skinned dog’s head on a stocky humanoid body faced the reporters unflinchingly as Kat stood also, swallowed nervously, and deactivated her own disguise. Glancing around, Eric saw a few of the other SPD employees standing and sitting along the walls blur and reappear in various other shapes.
There was a chorus of gasps and exclamations, an uproar as a few reporters seemed about to run, a blaze of flashes as the photographers took pictures, a flurry of motion as video cameras tried to capture as much of the scene as possible. Cruger waited, unmoving, as the commotion ran its course until his voice could be heard again, and then asked quietly, “Any questions?”
It was over two hours later before the questioning had been ended and the members of the press were finally escorted out. Wes had gotten into a discussion of Bio-Lab business with his father after that. Tired of the talking and in need of fresh air, Eric was headed for the front door, thinking of taking a short walk and vaguely surprised to see through the front windows of the building that it was still day. He was more surprised to see a blond woman in the lobby, no longer dressed in black but still surrounded by an almost visible veil of mourning, a little boy close at her side as they stood looking at the model of SPD’s future headquarters that Zaskin had shown him only a few days ago.
He and Wes had only seen Lyn twice since Nick’s death: in a brief and awkward condolence visit the next day, and at the funeral. Eric remembered that he wanted to talk to her about what Wes had suggested, but - was it too soon? On the other hand, he and Wes would be leaving - there might not be another opportunity for a face-to-face conversation for quite a while. As he was hesitating, trying to decide, she looked up and saw him.
“Mrs. Tate,” he greeted her, coming closer. “Are you all right?”
“Yes, under the circumstances,” she said.
“Do you need anything?”
“No. We’re just - looking around.”
“Looking around.”
She glanced back at the model, avoiding the implied question. “I saw the news conference on TV. I think Doggie and Kat were very brave to tell everyone the truth. I’m glad Nick had the chance to work with people like that.”
“So am I. But they were lucky to be able to work with him, too.”
She nodded, not looking up. “Thank you.”
Eric took a deep breath. Now was as good a time as any to say what he wanted to say. “Uh... If you ever need anything, anything at all... Well, I want you to know you can always come to me and my partner, Wes Collins. Maybe we could call you sometimes, and maybe help out with Sky. Nick - Nick meant a lot to me, and...” He ran out of words and trailed off as she looked up.
He saw something challenging in the depths of Lyn’s eyes as she said, “Nick told me once there was a man in the Army. They were very close. Very close.”
Eric wasn’t quite sure why he didn’t lie or just not respond - except that this was Nick’s wife, and for whatever reason he knew he owed her his honesty. “You’re right,” he said. “Nick and I had - a relationship. But I want you to know, all that ended when I got out of the Army, before he ever met you. When we saw each other again we were just friends. You’re the one he loved.”
“I see.” She fixed him with that keen gaze for another few moments. “And is that why you want to help us?”
“That’s part of it. But also - Nick was a Ranger, a great Ranger, and that means a lot to me and Wes. I mean it; whatever we can do to help, just ask.”
“Thanks. I’ll think about it.” She stared for another few moments and then nodded. They began to walk slowly towards the exit with Sky following. As they reached the door she turned to face him again, looking thoughtful. After a long hesitation she said, “There may be something you can do.”
“Name it.”
She sighed and looked around, and then reached out to ruffle Sky’s hair, pulling him closer. “I came here today because I wanted Sky to see where his father worked. To know something about him. To make sure he remembers Nick the way he was, as a person, not just as a face in a fading photograph.” Lyn looked up, the brightness of her eyes and the tremble of her lips betraying the tears she was holding back. “Do you know what I mean?”
“Yes, of course.”
“You knew Nick before I did. When Sky gets a little older, maybe you could tell him what Nick was like then. Make his father stay alive for him.”
“I’d be proud to.” Eric looked down at the little boy staring up at him solemnly. “In fact - wait right here. I’ll be back.”
They were sitting on a bench in front of the building when he returned. As he approached, they stood up and came to meet him. Eric held out what he was carrying, and let Sky take it in his little hands.
“This was your father’s helmet,” he said. “This is what he wore when he was a Ranger. Keep it, and it’ll always remind you that he was a hero.”
He let his eyes come up to meet Lyn’s, and saw her smile.
“Cruger and Kat let you take the helmet?” Wes asked.
“Kat has the rest of the suit for her tests and so on. If she needs the helmet, she can borrow it.” Eric smiled. “I convinced them that Sky should keep it.”
“I would have liked to see that conversation,” Wes said. They rode on in silence for a few minutes, as he looked out the window and tried to imagine Eric arguing with Cruger. Talk about an irresistible force and an immovable object. Except he wasn’t sure which was which.
Despite the day being almost over and the drizzle which had turned into a steady rain, they had both decided to return to Silver Hills that night. Wes had declined his father’s offer of a ride back in a company helicopter, and with his own car destined for the junkyard was riding in Eric’s car. A couple of hours alone together, a little comfortable conversation, the prospect of home ahead - for the first time in days, he could feel his mood lifting.
Eric broke the silence, his voice serious and a little hesitant. “Nick and I talked about you. About you wanting to move in, and me saying no, and the problems we’ve been having.”
“Yeah?” Wes said, surprised and not sure he liked the idea. “What did he say?”
“The guy always had guts. Nick was never afraid to say what he thought, and he thought I was wrong.” Eric smiled again, this time with a tinge of sadness. “Among a lot of other things, he told me I’m ashamed of being gay.”
“What?” Wes stared. “That’s ridiculous. Isn’t it?”
“That’s what I said too, but now I’m not so sure. What you said that night, that nothing terrible was going to happen if people find out about us, and then what he said - it made me think. Then Kat and Cruger today, standing up there and showing the whole world who they really are. That took guts, too. So I started to wonder... what am I really afraid of? If they can do it, why can’t I?”
“A lot to think about,” Wes said after a pause, trying to sound neutral.
“Yeah.” Eric slid him a sidelong look. “Anyway, I figure with aliens running all over the planet, no one’s gonna notice two gay guys moving in together.”
“Yeah, things are going to be pretty interesting with- huh?” Wes looked at him in astonishment.
Eric kept his eyes on the road, but he was smiling again. “I mean, if you haven’t changed your mind about living with a jerk like me,” he said.
Wes could feel a grin starting to grow inside himself, struggling to get out - but - “Are you sure?” he asked. “I mean, have you thought about it? Is this really what you want?”
Eric nodded, his voice quiet and serious again. “Yeah, I’m sure. After what happened - well, life’s too short to waste time on being afraid. I want us to live together, and the hell with anyone who doesn’t like it. I’ve fought for everything good in my life. This is worth fighting for too.”
“Pull over.”
“What? Why?”
“Don’t argue, just do it. Pull over and stop the car.”
Eric looked confused and a little apprehensive, but he obeyed, pulling onto the shoulder of the highway and coming to a stop.
The moment the parking brake was engaged Wes slid over, reached out to pull Eric closer, and kissed him - a long and lingering kiss, filled with happiness and hope as Eric’s arms reached around him, tightening. They pressed together, intensifying the kiss into something deeper than a physical embrace, something that made Wes’s heart lift as the rain grew heavier, as sheets of water cascading over the windows seemed to lock them into their own half-lit little world and wash away the rest of reality, as the drumming of raindrops and the occasional whoosh of the windshield wipers almost drowned out the softer sound of their own breathing.
After a while Wes pulled back, raised a hand to stroke Eric’s cheek, and finally let that grin out. “Okay,” he said. “Now we can go home.”