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"Hey Lili, smile it's almost Christmas." Augur said with only slightly exaggerated cheerfulness as he entered the room, his hands hidden behind this back.
"Its hard to be happy this Christmas, too many memories." Lili stated, her gaze drawn toward a shelf with the Taelon cube she and Augur had given Liam when he was little perched precariously on top of a modern art book.
"I got something that will make your days merry and bright," Augur said producing a Christmas present wrapped in metallic gold paper with red poinsettia flowers from behind his back. "Go ahead and open it."
Lili turned the package over and carefully unfastened the tape along the seam before pulling the wrapping aside to reveal a blue hardcover book. She flipped it to the front in order to read the title.
"The Kama Sultra!?" Lili exclaimed.
With a serious expression not quite masking the mirth in his eyes, Augur deadpanned. "To give you ideas." He finished with a sly wink.
Lili burst out laughing.
"What's so funny?" A gruff voice asked from behind them. Jonathan Doors set his glass of water down on the counter and after taking in the used gift wrap peered at the book. A smile flitted across his face when he read the title.
"From you?" He asked Augur.
"Do you even have to ask?" Lili said, breathless from laughing so hard.
"Probably not. I heard someone laughing and wanted to see what was going on. We've had so little laughter in our lives since the election." Jonathan replied with a distant look of sorrow mixed equally with guilt on his face.
"Hey Doors, it wasn't your fault." Augur tried to reassure the Resistance leader.
Doors looked unconvinced. "Joshua is my son. I know that I wasn't the best father, but I had no ideas exactly how badly I'd failed with him until I saw the hate in his eyes. Now the Taelons are even more entrenched on Earth and with both yours and Liam's ties to the Resistance public knowledge we have to rely solely on Lassiter. Sandoval is watching the other agents like a hawk these days and our contact with him is by necessity sporadic. The news tells us more about what the Taelons are up to these days than what is left of our intelligence network!"
They grew somber after that and once again Lili's eyes were drawn to Liam's puzzle.
"This would have been Liam's first Christmas." She said, not realizing she had spoken aloud until Augur replied.
"I once joked with him that he wouldn't live to see his first birthday, but? Augur whispered before his emotions made it too difficult to continue.
"He was a good person." Doors acknowledged grudgingly. With Liam gone, it was easier for Doors to speak better of him. "His intentions and ideals were far more sterling than mine have ever been."
A tiny light began to beep on one of the computer consuls. Augur got up and walked over to check on it. He opened a file and nearly gasped.
"Hey, this message was sent using the frequency and encryption code Liam gave to Da'an."
"What does it say?" Lili asked, coming to stand behind Augur. Doors did likewise, peering over Augur's shoulder until the techno wizard sent him a glaring look that the billionaire ignored.
"He wants to meet with Lili alone. The message ends by saying Remember our discussion concerning Zo'or's clarity of purpose??What does that mean?"
"It means it was really sent by Da'an." Lili announced. "When are where does he want me to meet with him?"
"One of the subterranean tunnels under the embassy three days from now. That's Christmas and security will be a bit lax plus he includes a bypass code for the security system."
"Three days." Lili repeated.
"You're not think of actually going to this so-called meeting. It could be a trap!" Doors asked sharply.
"I'm going." Lili said firmly in a voice that left no room for debate.
* * *
Ronald Sandoval tried to tune out the piped in Christmas music that disturbed the usual quiet of the lab as he approached the unmarked door. His CVI told him the song was "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" and brought forth memories of hitting Jimmy Casten on the head with popcorn while seeing "Home Alone" in the theater and kissing Dee-Dee under the mistletoe while the song played on the radio. Halfway down the hall the song entered and another replaced it, Dee-Dee's favorite, "Silent Night".
"Silent night, holy night!
All is calm, all is bright.
Round yon virgin mother and child.
Holy Infant, so tender and mild,
Sleep in heavenly peace,
Sleep in heavenly peace.
Silent night, holy night!
Shepherds quake at the sight;
Glories stream from heaven a far,
Heavenly hosts sing, Alleluia!
Christ, the Savior, is born!
Christ, the Savior, is born!
Silent night, holy night!
Son of God, love's pure light.
Radiant beams from your holy face
With the dawn of redeeming grace,
Jesus, Lord, at your birth,
Jesus, Lord, at your birth."
With a shake of his head, he opened the door. Erika Vosser immediately looked up from the screen full of information she had been studying and snapped to attention.
"Agent Sandoval?"
"Volunteer." Sandoval acknowledged his subordinate, pleased by her alertness and decorum. "How fares our project?"
A smile crossed Vosser's face. "Even better than our highest expectations."
Sandoval raised an eyebrow at that remark and was about to ask her to elaborate when his vision was consumed by gray spots and he slid to the floor, unconscious.
* * *
When Sandoval came to, he was startled to realize that he had lost 2.8 hours worth of memory and that he was lying in a hospital bed. His CVI had been checked out only last week, but problems could always arise unexpectedly. He had experienced no head pain recently, but CVI failures were still far from routine and he would be the first to experience a second such breakdown.
His CVI appeared to be functioning to him, anyway. It allowed him to recall his collapse, Vosser must have called for help, and he made a mental note to find some way of rewarding her continued loyalty.
Then Dr. Kurzon came in to tell him the bad news.
"...from a first degree relative, a parent or a child."
Sandoval felt as though he had been slapped. When she mentioned a possible treatment, his hope had risen, now he wondered if this disease was some kind of sick revenge by the universe for what he had done to Liam.
"My parents are both dead and I have no children in this world." Sandoval told her numbly, watching the sympathetic mask slip in place over her features. It was not entirely a lie.
After the doctor left, Sandoval ignored the temptation to sleep. He needed to think, to find a way out of this situation even while a small part of him said that he deserved this and far worse.
Vosser had drawn quite a bit of Liam's blood, but that was weeks ago and it had already been used during analysis. His sister had died in a car accident five years ago and his closest relation on Earth was his cousin Ricky.
He sighed in frustration and pulled out his global. Vosser answered it promptly, alert despite the fact that it was well after midnight and from her rumpled appearance she had obviously been sleeping. Yet another quality about the Volunteer that had contributed to his decision to bring her into the fold.
He explained the situation, all the while observing her expression, then ordered a world wide search for anyone else with compatible DNA. When he finished his calls he put the global down on the bedside table and stared up at the ceiling.
"I've all but signed my own death certificate for what I've done to you, my son." Sandoval whispered, knowing Liam could not hear him before he succumbed to the urge to sleep.
* * *
"We've got a situation," Augur informed Lili as soon as Doors left. They were sitting eating a breakfast of coffee and bagels and Augur had trying to talk to Lili alone for over an hour now. When Doors finally left to make his pre-arranged call to Halley, Augur took advantage of the opportunity as soon as it presented itself.
"What kind of situation?" Lili asked carefully as thousands of scenarios danced through her mind.
"Someone has been busy trolling for Liam's DNA."
"What do you mean trolling?"
"The file I created for him has been hit, we all have actually, by a worldwide medical scan." Augur said taking a sip of his coffee, wincing slightly and adding more cream.
Lili shrugged. "There are a couple of those kind of searches a month. What is so different about this one, aside from whose DNA they are looking for?"
"The one doing the looking is Ronald Sandoval." Lili immediately came to attention with that had stared at Augur, urging him to continue with her eyes. "He is in the hospital, its pretty serious from what I've been able to find out by hacking into some of his and Dr Kurzon's files. He needs the hemoglobic factor from a parent or a child."
"Liam." Lili said, the pieces falling into neatly place.
Augur nodded. "Sandoval's parents are both dead and he killed Liam. Talk about shooting yourself in the foot.
Lili nodded. It seemed to be poetic justice to her that the only person who could save Sandoval's life was someone he had murdered. At the same time she allowed herself to enjoy the irony, a tiny voice reminded her that Liam would not have wanted his only surviving parent to die, especially when he could help. He would have gladly given up some of his blood to save the implant.
"Liam would have found a way to get some of his blood to Sandoval." Augur said, his words echoing her thoughts.
Liam's blood suddenly Lili remembered something. For a long moment she kept the knowledge to herself before she decided this was something she could do to honor Liam's memory far better than using him in trite speeches to motivate downtrodden Resistance members to keep up the fight.
"Dr Park kept a couple pints of Liam's blood on hand in case anything happened to him." Lili said slowly.
"Liam would have wanted them to go to Sandoval." Augur agreed. "I can't say I'm thrilled about doing this, but it would be what Liam would have wanted."
"My thoughts exactly."
* * *
"You're awake." Dr. Kurzon said in a pleased tone as she looked down at her patient.
"It worked." Sandoval breathed.
"Yes, it did. I must confess: I don't want to go through all that again. Two pints of anonymous blood left by the doorstep is not exactly the way they teach it in medical school."
"Someone who was a close match wanted to remain uninvolved?" Sandoval speculated.
Kurzon shook her head in the negative. "Not just a close match a perfect first degree match. The DNA analyzer hit some gene oddities it couldn't process, but you do have a child in this world."
'Not in this world', Sandoval thought regretfully. "Thank you doctor," he said by way of dismissal. The doctor took the hint and left. Once he was alone, Sandoval called Vosser.
"Good work."
"Sir, that blood was not sent by us. It is Kincaid's blood, but I checked and our labs had already used the samples we took from him."
"Then where did the blood come from?" Sandoval asked, confused by this revelation.
"Santa Claus, the blood fairy, or Kincaid had some blood stashed somewhere in case he was injured and needed it. Our medical scan might have alerted someone."
"If anyone knew about him then they would have to have Resistance connections." Sandoval stated. "But why would anyone with Resistance connections go out of their way and put themselves at risk to save me?"
"Honoring their Hippocratic oath, maybe?" Vosser suggested.
"Or a memory," Sandoval whispered, a strange light in his eyes.
* * *
Lili waited nervously in the tunnel, drawing her coat more tightly around her body. It was Christmas day and for the first time in Lili's recollection Washington, D.C. was being treated to the phenomenon of a white Christmas. Lili found herself wondering how Liam would have reacted to the holiday. He approached much of life with a vibrancy that was contagious.
"Captain Marquette?"
Lili turned to see Da'an staring at her inquisitively.
"Da'an." Lili replied with unexpected nervousness.
"I believe that it is appropriate to wish you a Merry Christmas."
"Thank you. Is that why you asked me to meet with you?"
Da'an's hands fluttered in graceful gestures as the Taelon spoke. "No. I have requested this meeting with you because I believe Liam still lives. I attempted to so inform your group before Agent Sandoval's plans for my protector reached fruition, but my message obviously failed to reach you."
"We did receied to see Da'an staring at her inquisitively.
"Da'an." Lili replied with unexpected nervousness.
"I believe that it is appropriate to wish you a Merry Christmas."
"Thank you. Is that why you asked me to meet with you?"
Da'an's hands fluttered in graceful gestures as the Taelon spoke. "No. I have requested this meeting with you because I believe Liam still lives. I attempted to so inform your group before Agent Sandoval's plans for my protector reached fruition, but my message obviously failed to reach you."
"We did receive a message a few days after the election." Lili recalled, thinking back. "At the time we were preoccupied and it was thought to be a hoax as we had a visual ID on Liam's remains."
"The message, unlike the remains, was genuine."
"You seem agitated." Lili suddenly noted.
"Your attempt to sabotage the Mothership combined with the specter of Zo'or discovering our clandestine meeting gives me no cause for relaxation. We do not have much time. On this disk is the proof that Liam has not yet embraced the void."
Da'an handed Lili a small disk and turned to leave.
Lili felt she could not let this meeting end with that. "Da'an?"
"Yes, Captain?"
"Merry Christmas and thank you."