Close Encounter Read online

  “Marry the smoking hot physicist or disappear into a government-funded hole forever,” Eliza said hoarsely. She held out a hand to Sean and raised an eyebrow when he didn’t take it immediately. “I’m not getting married on my back, Doctor.”

  Sean’s face heated as he helped her sit up. “It’s just legal stuff, Captain. I won’t…expect anything from you. I give you both my word on that front.”

  “She could kick your ass, Cohen.” McAlister cleared his throat as Sean stuck the comm panel back on the wall. “Don’t let her fall off the platform, Cohen. Five minutes from now she’ll have a license to berate you like a professional.”

  Sean caught her when she listed slightly to the left and wrapped an arm around her waist. “This is the most absurd situation I’ve ever been in.”

  “Son, I’ve read your file. I know all about Bangkok,” McAlister said dryly. “I don’t know how you said that with a straight face.”

  Eliza glanced at him briefly but lifted her chin and gave her CO a nod.

  “Do you, Elizabeth Marie Hawthorne, take this man as your lawfully wedded spouse?”

  “I do.”

  Sean relaxed slightly. She hadn’t hesitated, which was something, but he was certain she was looking at the whole situation, including him, as some kind of extreme survival scenario. He didn’t blame her at all.

  “Do you, Sean Reginald Cohen, take this woman as your lawfully wedded spouse?”

  “I do.”

  “By the power vested in me by the UN Security Council and Space Command, I pronounce you husband and wife. The forms should be available to you. I’ve already added my signature.”

  “Arti?” Sean asked. The comm screen blanked out briefly, and a document appeared.

  “Sir, if you would press your thumbprint to the box and add your digital signature.”

  Sean quickly did as he was instructed and pulled the screen down so he could bring it close to her. “Here, Captain.”

  “Call me Eliza,” she whispered. She pressed her thumb to the screen in the box for the second partner and keyed in her signature shakily.

  Sean saved a copy of the file to his personal server and sent a copy to his boss at Teko Solutions before sending it back to the admiral. She wrapped her fingers around the edge of the comm panel before he could put it back on the wall and took a deep breath as the admiral’s face reappeared.

  “Orders, sir?”

  “Rest, get better, and write your report on the mission. Leave nothing out and send it back to me as soon as you can. The AI on board the station will handle the encryption. I’ve already given him a special set of protocols to use.” McAlister paused. “I’ll do my best to keep my seat and keep you in my command, Eliza.”

  The transmission ended abruptly, and she released the panel. Sean tossed the thin device toward the wall, and it adhered where it landed, lopsided and thankfully still blank. “Let’s get you comfortable, Captain.”

  “Eliza,” she reminded with a little huff as he lowered her back on the platform. “This thing is hard as fuck.”

  “It has sensors in it that will direct your nano-tech in repairing the damage done to your body the most efficiently,” Sean explained. “Arti, is the upgrade for her nano-bots ready?”

  “No, sir, I believe she’d be better served with new nano-tech. The upgrades Armstrong Station forwarded are severely outdated.”

  Sean looked over her face, taking in the bruises and the dark circles forming under her eyes, which fluttered shut as he stood there. Her breathing evened out as she surrendered to natural sleep. The stimulant had worn off very quickly. “Her cosmetic enhancements are starting to degrade.”

  “It’ll be rapid,” Arti supplied. “They obviously did not hold up well during cryo-sleep. I have standard protocols for the cosmetic enhancements, but we’d have to contact Earth regarding any more fashionable options.”

  “Prepare a full nano-tech net for healing. Also, go ahead and put in protocols for the recycling of her old obsolete nano-tech. We’ll want to do a full in-depth scan of her neural implant and discuss that with her later.”

  “Shall I include her cosmetic enhancements in that recycle order?” Arti questioned.

  “Yeah, give her a standard package, I guess. Do you have records on Stephanie Riley’s cosmetic protocols? They have the same basic coloring and skin tone.”

  “I do, and I can use the protocols from the captain’s degrading enhancements to tailor the look slightly.”

  Sean nodded. “Sounds good. Keep it simple, though. She doesn’t strike me as the kind to really care about the latest fashions.”

  A few minutes passed before a drawer opened on the other side of the room, and Sean crossed to retrieve the injector. Her fingers twitched as he pressed the injector against her upper arm and pressed the button. After pulling out a thin blanket and covering her, Sean moved the comm panel close to the bed and left his wife sleeping.

  * * * * *

  He dropped down in his chair on the command deck with five minutes to spare before the orbital blackout and wasn’t at all surprised when the large screen in front of him activated. Sean found himself face to face with the entire crew of the Jupiter Station. They were all staring at him gobsmacked.

  He huffed and glared back at the five-man crew—a crew he’d been a part of off and on for the last ten years. “Well?”

  “Holy shit, man,” Preston said, awed. “You just got married.”

  Sean sighed. “You guys watched all of that?”

  “You bet your ass we did, Cohen,” Dr. Eichi Minobe, the team leader for the entire sector, said sharply. “I’ve already contacted Dr. Tek with the news, and we’re preparing…for whatever may happen. We’re not going to let the military push you or your new wife around. I’m sure your grandmother will be informed shortly as well.”

  “You’re not pissed?”

  “I was ready to interrupt and marry her myself if you declined,” Minobe said and smirked. “I’m closer to her age at any rate.”

  Sean laughed. Minobe was an incredibly fit ninety-two, and he never let anyone forget it. Making people fifty years younger than him feel lazy was the man’s primary hobby. He reached out and activated a viewing screen. Arti anticipated him, and Eliza’s medical platform immediately appeared.

  “Has Dr. Tek responded directly?”

  “He’s reviewing the footage of her recovery and your conversation with Admiral McAlister. I suggested that you be assigned a legal team. We’ll have some options by the time you come out of orbital blackout.” He paused and inclined his head. “You realize, of course, that an unconsummated domestic union can still be annulled in civil court in the NAU?”

  Sean’s mouth dropped open. “Sir?”

  “It is an archaic law, but it’s nonetheless true. There was a movement some ten years ago to remove it from the legal code, but with the birthrate already so low, asexual marriage proponents couldn’t gain enough support for the legal precedent to be established.” He cleared his throat. “And, of course, truth testing would reveal dishonesty in either of you should the subject come up in an interrogation. If her circumstances are as dire as Admiral McAlister has indicated, it’s not a risk you can take even considering the influence of your family.”

  Sean slouched back in the seat and stared moodily at them. “Arti, do you have a current copy of the NAU Legal Code of Conduct?”

  “Yes, Dr. Cohen.”

  “Prepare an information packet for Captain Hawthorne and put it on a tablet. We have until Space Command arrives to get her up to date on her rights, responsibilities, and privileges as a citizen of the North American Union and a soldier in Space Command.” He paused and cleared his throat. “I may have to return to Earth for an undetermined amount of time.”

  Minobe nodded. “We understand duty at Teko Solutions. Dr. Cohen, we would be pleased to contract Dr. Elizabeth Hawthorne should she choose to leave her posting in the military. The woman is an accomplished engineer, after all. Catching her up
on the technology of the day would be worth her future contributions.”

  Sean nodded. “I’ll let her know.”

  Minobe cleared his throat and inclined his head. “This is a long-term commitment for you, Dr. Cohen. It could be years before…she’s safe from government interference. Teko Solutions will do all that it can to protect you both as long as you are in our employ.”

  “Understood,” Sean murmured, his mind already racing with possibilities. “Ganymede out.”

  He sat in the silence for five minutes, absorbing what he’d done and how he’d changed his life in a smattering of seconds. He hadn’t had a serious relationship in years and hadn’t had sex with another person in thirteen months. He was quite used to taking care of his own needs or using the VR. Though virtual reality sex was nowhere near as satisfying as having another human being pressed up against him, it helped keep his libido in check.

  He was forty-two, but thanks to biological modification and a full complement of nano-bots, he was physically as fit as he was on his twenty-fifth birthday. He had a sex drive to match and had always declined the temporary chemical castration that Teko Solutions offered all of its employees who were handling long, solitary rotations. Space Command had given him a nano-protocol for subduing his sex drive, but he’d had it deactivated when he’d left the service, and considering its classified nature had never discussed it with the people at Teko Solutions.

  “Dr. Cohen, it’s time for your sleep rotation.”

  “Prep a medical platform for me,” Sean murmured. “I don’t want her to wake up alone.”

  Chapter Two

  Eliza woke up with a small scream slamming against clenched teeth. She rolled slightly on the hard platform her husband had left her on and used one arm to sit up. Her breathing was ragged, uncontrolled. She rubbed at her breast bone with fury roiling around in her gut as she got her bearings.

  “Good morning, Captain Hawthorne.”

  She flinched at the voice and looked around the room only to encounter the sleeping, still form of Sean Cohen. “You’re the AI then?”

  “Yes, AI-456Y87 is my designation. But Dr. Cohen simply calls me Arti.” A soft humming sound filled the room, and a slim drawer opened. “I’ve prepared an information packet per Dr. Cohen’s instructions. You may use it to create your reports for Space Command on the data-pad as well. Shall I wake Dr. Cohen?”

  She frowned. “His sleep isn’t natural?”

  “Like many individuals engaged in civilian space exploration, Dr. Cohen optimizes his sleep rotation by engaging hibernation protocols. It allows him to get the benefits of nine hours of normal sleep in just four hours.”

  “Allowing him a longer workday,” Eliza surmised. She appreciated the discipline.

  “Yes, of course. He enjoys his work a great deal.”

  “I assume we’re alone on this station?”

  “Yes.”

  She pushed her hair back from her face. “Let him complete his rotation. I don’t want to interfere with his schedule any more than I already have.”

  A door opened in the back of the room. “Perhaps you’d like a shower?”

  “Arti, I love you.”

  “I’ll refrain from mentioning your burgeoning affection for me to your husband.”

  She laughed, then groaned. “That’s going to take some getting used to.” She slid off the platform, keeping a hold of it as her feet touched the floor. “I feel a hundred percent better.”

  “We upgraded your nano-tech, Captain. I believe you’ll find the technology has vastly improved since your departure from Earth.”

  “What is the date on Earth?” Eliza asked as she crossed the room and entered the bathroom.

  “It is now March 6, 2245 on the continent of North America.”

  Eliza stopped at the small sink and stared at her reflection in the mirror. “I can’t believe I got married looking like this.”

  “I’d say the marriage part was startling for most of us, Captain.”

  Eliza grinned at that. “What about fresh clothes?” A cabinet above the toilet clicked open, and she found a few pairs of white medical scrubs and a set of towels. “I guess that’ll have to do.”

  “If you place your uniform in the cleaning unit—it’ll be repaired and cleaned by my systems,” Arti explained. “I believe you could wear any of Dr. Cohen’s shirts, but his trousers will be too large for your frame.”

  “We’ll leave off borrowing the man’s clothes until we’ve had a decent conversation,” Eliza murmured. She rubbed at the dirt on her face and scowled. “How long does Dr. Cohen have left on his sleep rotation?”

  “Forty-two minutes.”

  “Is my healing time the norm?” Eliza asked as she sat down on the closed toilet to take off her boots.

  “Yes, Captain. Within the next twenty-four hours, all of your nano-bots will be upgraded. Any obsolete units will be disassembled and rebuilt per the new protocols. Dr. Cohen gave you the best we had to offer, which is considerable and even more advanced than what current military personnel are given by the NAU.”

  “Huh, how did he get access to that in a civilian operation?”

  “Dr. Cohen is the foremost expert on nano-technology, and he is considered the father of modern biological modification. Teko Solutions is very fortunate to have him in their employ.” The shower turned on abruptly. “Your preferred water temperature, Captain?”

  “Ninety-eight degrees,” Eliza murmured. “Does he have a lover that I need to know about, Arti?”

  “Dr. Cohen regularly receives personal communications from Earth from his family and from the personnel on Jupiter Station. He has engaged in mutually beneficial sexual relationships with both men and women in the past but has demonstrated no marked preferences recently when it comes to gender or an individual that I’m aware of.”

  “And you would be aware?”

  “I am Dr. Cohen’s personal AI, Captain Hawthorne. I have been with him for the past fifteen years.” The AI paused. “He has declared me his brother from another mother.”

  Eliza laughed. “I see.”

  “He is very fond of retro entertainment programming,” Arti explained. “We have watched many thousands of hours of movies and serial programs.”

  “What’s your favorite?” Eliza asked as she finished undressing and dropped all of her clothes and boots into a cleaning slot when it opened for her automatically.

  “I like science-fiction shows and movies, but I find some treatment of my kind untoward,” Arti answered. “Dr. Cohen enjoys legal procedurals such as Law & Order. He also likes Sherlock Holmes shows and movies of all variations.”

  Untoward, Eliza mused. “I’m guessing you’re terribly offended by 2001 then.”

  “It is not a favorite but not as bad as the interpretation of the entity known as Skynet.”

  “I always really enjoyed the Terminator series,” Eliza admitted as she stepped into the stall.

  “I will begin a file on your preferences and gather entertainment as we get to know each other. I take you like your female protagonists to be badass?”

  She grinned at the term. “Absolutely.”

  “Very well then,” Arti said. “The shampoo is in the first container, and the body soap is in the second. Dr. Cohen doesn’t require a conditioner for his hair, so there is none stocked in any of the shower facilities on the station. I can requisition it from Jupiter Station.”

  “I can make do without if it would inconvenience anyone,” Eliza said.

  “It can be manufactured in a production lab on the station, Captain. All of our supplies and food come from it. Your cosmetic enhancements did not survive cryo-sleep. We recycled them along with your obsolete nano-tech. Once your healing is complete, a new standard enhancement will be generated by your nano-tech net. I can acquire new protocols that adhere to the current fashions regarding coloring and enhancement styles. I could send a communication to Dr. Cohen’s younger sister requesting the newest enhancement; she’s a fashion d
esigner in New York Dome.”

  She didn’t feel particularly attractive at the moment and had never put a lot of stock in the turn of her face to be honest. The cosmetic enhancements had been part of the marketing of the mission, and she’d accepted them grudgingly. Though the specialist who had handled the work had done a fantastic job of keeping her look uncomplicated but sophisticated at the same time.

  “Yeah, that would be great. There will probably be press coverage when we return to Earth, and I don’t want to look completely outdated. Admiral McAlister said that Dr. Cohen has a large family?” she prodded as she started washing her hair for the third time.

  “Dr. Cohen is the middle child of seven,” Arti began. “His older brother, James, created me as a gift to his brother when he left Space Command and began his work with Teko Solutions. The third oldest child is also male. Thomas is in the NAU Marine Corps and is currently serving on Mars as part of the military security force. The rest of the Cohen children are female and are from oldest to youngest: Chloe, Danica, Susanne, and Jessica.”

  Eliza blew out a surprised breath. “Are such large families normal these days?”

  “Women of the appropriate biological age are encouraged to have at least four children, but the world average is 5.4 children per household. Some other countries require married couples to reproduce if they are physically able while the NAU merely encourages through a series of financial and social rewards.”

  “Current world population?”

  “1.98 million. The war lasted for many years after your departure from Earth, and the damage done to the population and planet were extensive. Thanks to the work of men like Dr. Cohen, humans are far more robust in today’s age. They are adapting rapidly to the new Ice Age on Earth, and the drive to leave the planet has dwindled accordingly. There are several government and private exploration missions in operation at present, but they no longer have the urgency you and your crew must have felt upon leaving the solar system.”