Sam drowsed in the early morning light.  He was almost too warm and he tried to move away from the furnace behind him only to be stopped by the arm that cuddled him.  For a moment he didn’t know why he was so restrained then his eyes popped open and he slowly turned over to confront his bedmate.  Seth was still asleep, his hair every which way and his cheek creased by the pillow.

 He looked beautiful and Sam lay in their bed, giving thanks for finally achieving at least a part of his fantasy.  He thought back over the strange evening spent in a loft over a bar and the odd men to whom Ruth had gone for help in her journey.  But he wasn’t going to think about her now, not when he was finally in bed with the man who’d stolen his heart so many months before.

 Everyone in the family knew they were together now, except for the absent Peter.  Dad will come around eventually.  I think it’s more the age thing than the male part.  At least I hope that’s it.  He watched the morning sun creep over the dark green comforter then across Seth’s arm where it lay in unconscious possession of Sam.

 Sam stroked the bare arm that lay against his skin.  Seth was tan everywhere and the contrast between their skin tones was quite evident.  The dark hair on his arm was soft and almost silky in contrast to the heavy beard that had grown overnight.  Sam lay and watched Seth sleeping and for the first time in a very long time, he was truly content with his life.
 
 There were challenges to come but he would have someone with whom to face them.  The last week had been a nightmare of trying to track down the stranger, going to bar after bar, homeless shelters and alleys to try and find Joe.  Sam had been certain that he was the key and Seth had accepted his reasoning, backing him up without complaint against all comers.

 Now that they knew she’d been following a plan all along, Sam felt the driving urgency fade into concern.  They’d come back to Marag’s late last night, telling her what they knew then collapsing in her guestroom and falling instantly to sleep.  He’d barely had enough energy to strip off his clothes or even ogle Seth’s own striptease before he’d fallen fathoms deep.  But now, he had the time to just look his fill and touch him without worrying if someone would notice and make a comment.

 He liked the laugh lines that radiated out from Seth’s eyes and the way his dark bushy eyebrows peaked above them.  The straight nose was classic Celt as were the high cheekbones.  His fingers gently traced a path from the eyebrow down the cheek to the cleft chin below those soft lips that drew him like a magnet.  They’d shared . . . he paused to count . . . fourteen kisses and almost as many hugs but now he wanted . . .

 More.

 Sam smiled at his sleeping lover.  He knew that Seth was hesitant to take it farther because he thought Sam was still unsure of their path.  But if last night had taught him anything, it had taught him that everyone was responsible for themselves.  He cared for Ruth deeply and not just as a ghost of the Queen he’d known so many millennia ago.  But she had chosen the path she walked with her eyes wide open.  He might disagree with her choice but not with her right to make it.

 His choice was lying beside him half turned towards him and his arm heavy against his stomach.  And it was time to do something about him.  Grinning, he let his fingers trail over Seth’s lips.  They twitched, then a pink tongue came out and licked them.  He shivered and moved a little closer.

 “Hm-m-m, salty Sam.  My favorite.”  Seth’s husky murmur poured over his ears like golden honey.  “Good morning.”

 “So far, it’s been excellent.  I’ve never awakened with a man in my bed before but I think it might be habit forming.”  Sam rolled a little closer and Seth pulled him in.

 A lazy kiss . . . then another and Sam was seriously thinking of pouncing when a knock at the door and a cheery voice interrupted them.

 “Guys, you have a visitor, not that I’m complaining, you understand.  It’s been years since I’ve had someone with this much testosterone in my kitchen.  So, take your time while I work my wicked wiles on him.  Seth, you keep bringing home such interesting people.”

 “We’re awake, Marag.  Is his name, Wolf?”

 “Yes and he’s yummy so take a long hot shower while I make him breakfast.”  Marag’s laughter was carefree.  “Of course, you should conserve water and shower together.”

 “Go, Marag.  We’re big boys and can take of ourselves.”  Seth grinned at their unseen wake-up caller.

 “Just trying to help, sweetie.  See you later.”

 “So thoughtful, my cousin.”  Seth pushed back the covers and stretched all over while Sam watched wide-eyed at the expanse of flesh and muscle.

 “She’s right, we should share.”  Sam let his curious hand glide over the stretched ribs down to the taut stomach.

 Seth caught his hand before it could stray into the danger zone and brought it to his lips.  “Are you ready for that?  I may not be able to control myself once I see you wet.”

 “Good.”  Sam leaned up and kissed him lightly.  “It’s time to go a little further.”

 “You’re sure?”  Seth looked at him uncertainly.

 Sam smiled and pulled away, rising from the bed and walking across the room to the door of the adjoining bathroom.  He looked over his shoulder in time to catch Seth’s hungry look.  “Coming?”

 “I certainly hope so.”  Seth said, rolling out of bed and joining him.  “Shave first then shower.  I don’t want to mark that beautiful skin of yours.”

****************

  It was almost a half an hour later when they strolled into the kitchen, shaved and squeaky-clean.  Sam wondered if his smile would give them away but Wolf appeared too distracted to notice anyone other than Marag.  She was wearing a long flowing purple caftan covered with white embroidery in intricate Celtic patterns.  Her red hair cascaded down her back in wild curls and her green eyes were sultry as she drank a cup of tea with the big man sitting uneasily at the breakfast nook.

 Wolf nodded at them his eyes still on Marag.  “I linked into the satellite feed for NOAA and checked on the Sea Wind’s readings.”

 “Would you like to decode that for us?”  Seth grabbed the coffeepot and poured more coffee for all of them while Marag set plates in front of them with fresh fruit and a large muffin, still steaming from the oven.

 “Sorry.”  Wolf dragged his eyes from Marag with a little shake of his head and a sheepish grin, finally making eye contact with them.  “Sea Winds is the name for the scatterometer they installed on Japan’s Advanced Earth Observing Satellite.”

 “What does the scatter-thing do?”  Marag joined them, sitting between Seth and Wolf.

 “It measures wind speed and direction over the world’s oceans.  The first one launched disappeared in 1997 so they launched another one in 1999.  NOAA . . . sorry, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration uses it for lots of things but primarily for the tracking of climate changes.  The scatterometer really belongs to NASA but it’s used mainly by the weather boffins who try to predict the weather.”
 Sam had to swallow first.  “I’ll bet the commercial shipping firms use it too.”

 Wolf nodded.  “It’s only one of the tools they use to try and predict the weather, the ocean currents and all kinds of other things.”

 “The hole in the ozone.”  Marag looked up into Wolf’s craggy face.  “Isn’t that how they’re measuring it?”

 He smiled.  “They use a spectrometer for that but it’s on the same satellite.  In conjunction with NASA’s Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer that is in a different orbit, they pretty much map the world, both land and ocean.  Of course, they’re going for lengthy records so they can compare the data over time.”

 “But it can be used for short-term pictures as well?”  Seth had finished his fruit and was tearing the muffin into small pieces.

 “Yes, it flew over the Arctic Circle at 0300 this morning and will be again at 1400.  I think we may have a position for her.  The readings are off the scale for a single area.  There’s a low pressure zone where it should be high pressure.”  Wolf looked down at his plate and began drawing imaginary circles in the crumbs.  “I kind of hope I’m wrong and I’m misreading the data.  But if I’m not, she’s gone above the 75th parallel almost to the 80th.  And there is one hell of a storm brewing.”

 “That doesn’t mean anything to me, Simon.”  Marag looked at him in dismay.

 “Boston is a little above the 42nd parallel.  It means she’s gone so far north that she’s pretty much run out of land.  There’s a little island named Meighen up there and I think that’s where she’s gone.  It’s equidistant from Alaska and Greenland so the fallout from whatever she’s going to do shouldn’t do too much damage to either of them.”  Wolf shook his head.

 “It also means that getting to her in time is going to be difficult.”  Seth’s face was grim.  “There’s a joint military exercise going on up there called Northern Quest on Victoria Island.  If we contacted them, they might be able to get some troops up there in time.”

 “Northern Quest?”  Sam laid down his fork and shivered.

 “What’s wrong?”  Seth’s warm hand covered his.

 “Peter’s unit is up there, coordinating with the Canadian Land Forces Command.  They’re flying out of Elmendorf Air Force Base in Anchorage.”

 “There’s something about your family that’s determined to be in on this.  What are the odds that all three of you shared lives with her?”  Seth shook his head.

 “’There are no odds.  Only actions when She’s involved.’  Ruth said that when I asked her if she thought Peter might be related too.”  Sam sighed, turning his hand over and squeezing Seth’s.  “I hope that Goddess of hers knows what She’s doing.”

 “What She is doing is making sure that Ruth has someone to fight for.”  Marag smiled gently.  “Ruth is so locked into this task that she has blinders on.  I can’t imagine waking up and suddenly having four distinct personalities and lives all fighting for space in my brain.  But she did and right now she’s focused on the end result to the exclusion of all else.  She knows she has to fight the Ikiiri, save the Earth and die.”

 “And there may be another way that she hasn’t seen because she’s so focused.”  Wolf looked approvingly at the woman by his side.

 “We’ve been fighting the Ikiiri for six thousand years.  I wonder if any one has asked them what they want from Earth.”  Sam mused.  “Why they keep coming back?”

 “First things first.”  Seth squeezed his hand then let it go to finish eating.  “We need to know if the ship is headed in that direction.”

 Wolf finished his coffee and sat back.  “It is.  NASA had a spokesman fending off questions this morning.  Every channel in the world is tracking them and the speculations are crazy.”

 “We need to be there when they reach Earth.  How do we do it?”  Sam asked, shivering a little at the thought of the coming confrontation.

 “There’s not much info on Meighen’s Island.  But the ice pack is dense at this time.  We could take up a sea plane with skis once we’re in the general vicinity but we’ll need something really fast to get near.”  Wolf shrugged.  “If the military is already on Victoria Island then we should probably head there first.  Do they have a landing field that can handle a jet or is your brother’s unit just providing air cover for the exercise and returning to the base every night?”

 “I’ll take care of getting us there.  And there is a strip on Victoria that will take the aircraft we’ll be in.  What about cold weather gear?”  Seth got up and headed for the phone.

 “I can get us what we need.”  Wolf nodded.

 “I’ll put together the medical supplies that we, hopefully, won’t need.”  Sam offered.

 “I’ll take care of our provisions.”  Marag said calmly.

 “No way are you going, Marag.”  Seth turned from the wall phone to glare at his cousin.

 “Don’t be sexist, sweetie.  Ruth is going to need all of her family.”  She spoke calmly.  “Just because it may be dangerous doesn’t mean that the weaker sex shouldn’t go.”

 “I’ll get gear in your size.”  Wolf made a note to himself in the notebook he’d pulled from a pocket.  “Joe says he has to go as well, so there’s five of us.”

 “Seven.”  Toby’s voice came from the kitchen door.

 “Good morning, everyone.  Thanks for calling us, Marag.”  Mei Ling smiled at everyone, pulling off her gloves and shoving them into her coat pocket.

 “No.”  Sam was on his feet.  “It’s too dangerous.”

 “Sam, we have to go.  Sure there’s danger but life is dangerous.  And how safe will we be if Ruth loses and the Ikiiri take over the Earth?”  Toby crossed the kitchen and hugged his brother.

 “We were drawn to her for a reason.  Perhaps the Goddess is moving us around like pieces on a game board and what Her purpose is, we don’t know.”  Mei Ling poured a cup of tea and sat down by Marag.  “But I trust Ruth and if there’s a way to face the Ikiiri and not die, then she will find the answer.”

 “But only if we back her into a corner and give her hostages to protect.”  Wolf pointed out quietly.  “She has more power than she realizes.  But I think she’s tired.  It’s time we gave her back a little of that energy that she’s been giving to us.”

 Sam held on to his little brother and tried to think of a reason to leave him behind.  But nothing came.  Meeting Seth’s eyes, he saw acceptance and pain in the bright green gaze.  “I understand, Toby.  I hate it but I do understand.”

 “Besides, if we’re going to meet up with Peter, you’re going to need all the help you can get.”  Toby smiled wryly and let go of Sam with a last squeeze to his shoulder.  “You know how . . . stubborn he can be.”

 “Ha!  He’s worse than Ruth.”  Sam grimaced and crossed to Seth who was still using the phone.  Sliding an arm around the trim waist, he leaned against his lover and soaked up the warmth.

 Seth slid his arm around his shoulders and squeezed lightly.  “It will take us about two hours to get there.  Hang the fuel tanks on both wings and make sure she’s gassed and preflighted by 0930.  And Gunnie . . . not a word to anyone . . . yeah, I know.  Just say the orders are from me and I’ll be inspecting personally . . .” he smiled a little  “I’ll explain when I get there . . . Would I lie to you?”

 Sam heard the explosive laugh of Seth’s second in command and he shared Seth’s grin.  “Never mind that now, Gunnie.  Just expect us when you see us.  Bye.”

 “I’ll need to get on the road to get the gear ready.  Joe’s at the warehouse right now, going through the cold weather supplies.”  Wolf stood and nodded at his hostess.

 “Could you use some help?”  Toby stood and eyed the tall man dressed mainly in denim and leather.

 “Sure.  We can introduce ourselves while we work.”  Wolf started for the back door, joined by Toby and Mei Ling.

 “Come to Hangar 6 when you’ve got the gear loaded.  I’ll leave word at the main gate to let you through.”  Seth told them.  “Four of you?”

 Wolf nodded and held the door for his new partners.  “Thanks for breakfast, Ma’am.”

 “You are entirely welcome, Simon.  Next time, let’s see about having it with just the two of us.”  Marag’s voice was sultry and Sam watched Wolf blush to the tips of his ears before escaping out the back.

 “You’re an evil woman, Marag but I like that in a woman.”  Seth wrapped his other arm around Sam.  “Finally time is it?”

 Green eyes met green eyes and she nodded.  “I’ve mourned for eight years now.  I loved Sebastian with all my heart and his death almost killed me.  If I hadn’t had young Jimmy to care for, I don’t know what I would have done.  But he’s grown up, joined the Navy and after a year on my own, I thought I might be ready to test the waters.  It’s why I’m on so many boards.  Getting out and working for causes I believe in has the added benefit of meeting people with like minds.”

 “But nothing clicked until now?”  Sam was fascinated with the possibilities.

 “When he walked through that door, I felt as if a light had come on in a dark room.  It’s a good thing you’d told me about him so I could answer his question semi-coherently.  Part of my mind was focused on what the neighbors were going to say about the biker who came for breakfast and the primitive part of my brain was speculating on how best to trip him into my bed.”  Marag sighed and began opening the freezer to pull out food.

 Seth was shaking with laughter.  “Honey, I know exactly what you mean.  You just explained what I felt when I walked in and found Sam in my bed.”

 Sam blushed and ducked his head in embarrassment.  “I was so confused, I didn’t know what I was feeling.”
 “But you know now?”  Seth sounded just a touch unsure and Sam shook his head, strengthening his grip on him.

 “I love you and when this is over, we’re going to explore all the fun things that go along with that.”  He said determinedly.

 “Yes, we are.  But for now, I need to get to the base so I can use a secure line to call in some favors.  And you need to help Marag with the supplies and bring her with you.”  Seth leaned in and took a deep breath.  “I think I’m addicted to your smell.”

 Sam buried his head in the curve between Seth’s shoulder and throat.  “Me too.  I hate to be away from you.”

 “I know.  But there’s so much to do and so little time.”  Seth hugged him tight then stepped away to an arm’s length, staring at him as if memorizing him.  “Hurry and come to the base.”

 Sam nodded, afraid to trust his voice.  Seth pulled him close and kissed him gently.  They stood like that for a long moment then he left abruptly, leaving Sam feeling as if the room had suddenly grown cold.  Without another word, he began helping Marag assemble the supplies they would need on their trip.  They worked well together, making sandwiches, thawing out cookies, gathering fruit that could be eaten easily and filling thermoses with a variety of cold and hot beverages.

 In an hour they were ready.  Marag had changed into a sturdy outfit of denim, silk and wool.  They loaded Sam’s old blue Chevy with the packed milk crates and began the long drive to the base.  While they drove, Sam listened to Marag reminisce about growing up with her cousins.  He treasured the stories about a young Seth and all the scrapes he’d gotten them into and out of.

 The base was practically empty when they got there.  The security guard at the main gate looked at Sam’s ID and gazed at them with a curious eye.  “Your brother and the others came through just a few minutes ago, Captain Hamilton.  The Colonel said to go on to Hanger 6 because he’d already raided your office.”

 Sam ignored the faint hint of a question and smiled.  “Thanks.  This car and the truck my brother came in may be parked in the lot for a while.  Make a note to tell the other shifts so nobody gets excited.”

 “Yes, sir.”  He stepped back and waved them on through, following them with his eyes before hitting the button that closed the gate again.

 Sam drove along the base road towards the huge hangars that clustered by the long runways that stretched out into the countryside.  Spotting the truck at the last hangar, he pulled in and parked beside it.  Toby and Mei Ling met them and between the four of them, they hauled the crates into the hangar.

 Seth was on his cell phone and he waved them on towards the gleaming gray jet that sat on the concrete floor in front of the still closed hangar doors.  Wolf hurried over to relieve Marag of her crates.  He introduced her to Joe who just smiled and nodded shyly.

 Everything fit.  Barely.  Sam sighed and nudged his crate just a hair further in so he could squeeze out of the way while Gunnie stretched the cargo net securely around them and fastened the cargo hooks into the floor rings.  Heading out to the hangar floor, he looked for the others.

 Marag and Wolf were sitting on the bright yellow tug watching Seth hold onto his temper by a thread.  Toby was in the crew chief’s office using the phone and he beckoned to Sam.  Curious, he made his way over, detouring by Seth so he could catch his eye and smile at him.  Seth just made a face and kept on trying to break into the diatribe coming at him through the phone.  “General . . . General . . . Damn it, Harry, would you let me finish?”

 Sam snickered and walked on into the office.

 “Mom, I love you but I have to do this.  Please understand . . .” Toby’s voice betrayed his frustration.

 Taking the phone from his hand, Sam took a deep breath and spoke to his mother.  “Mom, its Sam.”

 “Thank God.  Sam, tell him it’s too dangerous.  I don’t want either of you anywhere near her.”

 “Mom, we chose to do this.  It’s my duty to protect my country from foreign invaders and these are about as foreign as you can get.”

 “There is nothing humorous about this, Sam.  She’s gotten you both killed once already.”  Julie’s voice shook.

 “I know that, Mom, but she’s alone, fighting an enemy that threatens all of Earth.  There are no safe places now.  Peter’s already the closest one of us and he doesn’t know what’s going on.  He’s in as much danger as we are, probably more.”

 “She’s taken all of you then.”  Julie was weeping now.

 “Mom, we are your sons and we love you with all our hearts.  But you taught us what’s really important in life, family and love.  You and Dad are the best examples I know of lovers who created a family overflowing with love.  Please understand, we have to do this.”  Sam gripped the phone.  “I promise you that we will come back.”

 “Son, its Dad.  Take care of yourselves and come home.  No matter what happens, we love you and we want you and Toby to remember that.”  His voice shook.

 “Dad, I’m sorry if I . . . disappointed you.”  Sam faltered.

 “Nonsense, Sam.  You surprised me but you’ve never disappointed me.  I love you and you need to come back so I can tell your significant other, welcome to the family.”

 “Thanks, Dad.  Here’s Toby.”  Sam handed off the phone to his brother while trying to keep from crying.  Then Seth was holding him and rubbing his back in soothing circles that calmed him.  Looking up into concerned green eyes, he tried a smile.  “Dad says, welcome to the family.”

 Seth returned the smile.  “It’s a good thing since I may soon be out of a job.  The General was not excited about us borrowing his favorite jet.  We need to get going before he decides to come down and go with us.”

 “Let’s leave now.  There isn’t room for another person.”  Sam rubbed his eyes and turned around to check on Toby.  Mei Ling was holding him fiercely and the phone receiver was back on the hook.  Leaving them alone, he and Seth rejoined the others.

 Gunnie was arguing that he should go along but Seth vetoed that notion, citing lack of space and the need for him to get them airborne.  In a moment more, Toby and Mei Ling joined them and their goodbyes were said quickly.  Seth took the pilot’s seat and Sam joined him in the cockpit while the others buckled in the cabin.

 The hangar doors rolled slowly open then Gunnie towed them out onto the concrete apron that skirted the hangar and to the taxi way for their last preflight checks.  Another fifteen minutes passed while Seth talked to the tower and Gunnie checked their exterior to make sure everything was air worthy.

 Then they had clearance and they taxied to the end of the runway, took a few last minute readings then began to move down the runway, lifting lightly into the air and climbing steadily through the winter clouds.

 “Next stop, Victoria Island.”  Seth announced over the intercom, taking Sam’s hand in his and smiling at him.

Sam returned the handclasp, saying a quick prayer for a safe trip.

Hang on, Ruth.  Whether you want us or not, we’re on our way.

*******************
End chapter 13