Historian’s Note: This story opens just over a week after the episode The Long Sleep written by David Tomblin, but most of the events depicted here take place about one month before the episode Timelash written by Terence Feely.


Prologue:

Ed Straker looked up as Virginia Lake walked into his office having finished her meeting with Doctor Jackson. She looked drawn and haggard and he closed the door behind her as he stood to take her in his arms.

“Virginia, are you alright? You look exhausted.”

She nodded and returned his embrace. A few minutes later he led her to the conference table.

“The interview was emotionally draining, and intensely personal,” she said as she sat down. The emotional toll of the encounter was still evident in her voice. “Are you sure you still want to go through with this Ed?”

Straker was not at all looking forward to the required meeting with Jackson. Both he and Virginia had followed the regulations by filing the required relationship study, six weeks ago, and even though the results indicated no contradictions, Henderson had somehow convinced the commission that this issue required closer scrutiny. Because of that the IAC decided to have Doug Jackson interview the couple, and make a recommendation based on the findings.

Virginia and Ed were given a choice, submit to the interviews, or end their relationship.

“Want to?” he asked, “No. Have to, yes.”

For Ed there was no choice in the matter as his objectivity had been called into question and his dedication to SHADO required that he submit to the scrutiny, no matter how uncomfortable it might be. He was just as motivated by duty, as he was by love.


“I could always transfer back to the research section,” said Virginia. “According to Jackson, this interview process would not be necessary if I step down as your second.”

The two of them had discussed the idea of her taking reassignment, a conversation that lasted well into the previous night, but the circumstances and needs of the organization would not allow that possibility.

Straker shook his head, “Virginia, we’ve been over this. I need you where you are. Alec is still busy with the Skydiver and aeroceptor projects, and Foster is not yet ready to take over as executive officer. Don’t worry; I’ll be alright with this. You got through it okay, didn’t you?”

She gave him a wan smile as she continued, “You’re a much more private person than I am. Compared to you; I’m an exhibitionist.” Her smile became a wry grin. “I just don’t want to see you put through more stress on my account.”

Ed admired her selflessness. Virginia had insisted that she see the good doctor first and he reluctantly agreed, after a somewhat heated discussion. As Commander, he would still have to field the toughest of Jackson’s questions.

Taking her by the hand he said, “I’ve been through much worse for less. Once this is done, you and I should be in the clear, assuming that Jackson doesn’t throw us to the wolves.”

That statement brought the smile to her face that he had hoped for and she squeezed his hand.

Well, I’m going to get this over with. I’ll see you in a few hours,” he said as he stood to leave.

Virginia got up with him and allowed herself to be gathered in his arms. He noticed that her blue grey eyes were moist but he just held her in silence.

“I’ll see you when I’m done,” he said again, gently breaking away. He reached down and opened the door to the office and walked out heading to the SHADO medical center.


When the door opened, Jackson looked up from his notes, “Ah, Commander. Please have a seat,” he said.

“Doctor Jackson,” he said as he sat down.

The SHADO psychiatrist regarded his commanding officer for a moment as he considered their shared history. Jackson knew that the man seated in front of him had, at one time, a measure of contempt for him and his methods. But the Commander had warmed to him somewhat over the past year. He hoped that it would make the interview less painful for the very private man.

“Commander, I would like to assure you that my report to the commission will omit any personal details which we discuss in the course of this interview,” Jackson said quietly. “The report will only contain my recommendation after reviewing the facts.”

“I appreciate that Doctor Jackson,” Ed said. “More than you know.”

Jackson looked down at his notes as he asked, “Shall we begin?”

Straker nodded his consensus to proceed.

“Now Commander, how long have you been aware of Colonel Lake’s emotional attraction toward you?”

“I suspected it…” Straker paused, “a couple years ago, a few months before she was assigned to Moonbase. I didn’t know for certain until over a year later. Virginia inadvertently revealed her feelings when she warned me about Craig’s change in personality.”

Jackson nodded, “Ah yes, Colonel Collins, a terrible tragedy. He was a friend of yours, I understand?”

“Yes, one of my best friends.” agreed Ed. “We joined the astronaut corps together, and the two of us commissioned SID. I still can’t believe he is gone…”

Jackson nodded and allowed a moment for the Commander to collect his thoughts. He continued, “Do you have any idea why Colonel Lake told you her feelings?”

“I don’t think she meant to. She knew that Craig and I were close friends and that I would defend him unless I had overwhelming evidence that something was amiss. I was shocked when she informed me that Craig had attempted to sexually assault her.”

Jackson paused and looked up, “She did not tell me about that.” An element of astonishment was evident in his voice.

“I’m not surprised. I didn’t find out until it was too late to take any official action. It was, in her words, a borderline incident and it’s my guess she didn’t want the event to ruin Craig’s career. Colonel Lake is not a vindictive person, Doctor.” Straker paused, “In the heat of the moment she told me that she didn’t want to lose someone she cared about. Virginia may very well have saved my life with that admission.”

“And you Commander? Did you feel the same way about her?”

Ed paused again, dealing with the uncomfortable situation. “Virginia has always had a reputation of being cold and aloof. I never agreed with that assessment as I find her to be warm and selfless and those who have a different opinion probably don’t know her. I consider her to be a close friend and the two of us have much in common, but I didn’t seriously consider the possibility of a relationship until a few weeks before the Timelash incident.”

Jackson nodded as he wrote down notes on the pad piecing together a picture of the events that brought these two people together. He had been monitoring the Commander’s stress levels since the incident that had taken the life of Craig Collins. Straker was coming dangerously close to the point where medical intervention would be necessary. To his surprise that trend started to reverse soon after the Timelash incident. The only explanation that Jackson could find was the relationship that bloomed between Lake and Straker.

“Tell me Commander, what changed your mind.”

“Now that, Doctor, is a very long story.”

Jackson smiled, “Colonel Lake indicated the same thing, but I have set aside plenty of time.”


Over the next few hours Ed Straker found himself baring his soul. It would be one of the hardest things he ever faced.

Chapter 2:

Commander Straker looked haggard, even though the interview had barely begun. Doug Jackson felt empathy for his commanding officer, privately wishing that this interview wasn’t necessary. But like his CO, Jackson was a man of duty. And the integrity of SHADO’s command structure trumped all other concerns. He had to be absolutely sure that the relationship between Straker and Lake would not compromise that structure. This was a decision that a computer simply could not make.

“Commander, do you need a break?”

“No Doctor, let’s get on with it.”

“Very well,” he said. “You told me that you intended to talk to Colonel Lake about not calling her by name. Were you going to tell her why?”

“I’m not sure. At that point I still had no intention of acting on it.”

“So tell me Commander, did you miss her, while she was posted to Moonbase, on a personal level that is?”

“Yes,” Ed said huskily.

“And that absence was complicated by the loss of your father was it not?”

“I received a call from my father two weeks after Virginia left for Moonbase. We haven’t spoken much since I took over as C in C of SHADO.”

“Your father was a career air force officer, he was a mustang, and he came up through the ranks, eventually retiring as a full colonel.”

“Yes, he disapproved of my decision to leave the military to run a film studio. Of course I couldn’t tell him the truth due to security.”

“Tragic, of course,” said Jackson. “Commander it is truly unfortunate that you have had more than your share of personal sacrifice, to protect the security of this organization. Why don’t we continue there, tell me about the events leading up to the meeting with your father…”


“I tell you that woman is as cold as an Alaskan glacier,” said radar operator first class Patrick Turner, to his two coworkers.

The three men had an access panel open in the corridor outside of the control room. One of the radar circuits had malfunctioned and Keith Ford assigned the three junior members of his team to the task of tracing the problem.

“Are we talking about the same person?” asked Mike Watson. “Colonel Lake seems like a nice lady.”

“She gave me hell for being two minutes late for a duty shift,” added Gregg Carlson. “I call her the ice princess.”

“Oh come on Gregg, you’ve been late every day this week, it’s not her fault that you can’t get here on time.” Watson said dismissively. “In my opinion you deserved it.”

“Yeah Mike? Well she got all over my case too. A few weeks ago, I was trying to make a date with Ayshea, when the frigid witch blew in and pulled me aside,” said Turner.

Watson stopped what he was doing and looked at Turner, “Pat, I told you that Ayshea wasn’t interested. If you keep on hassling her, and Straker finds out about it, you’ll find yourself in Siberia building igloos.”

“I don’t care if…” Turner suddenly paused. “Commander?”

Straker looked at the three men, a stern expression was lined in his face and an awkward silence filled the corridor.

“Lieutenant Watson, Keith Ford is looking for you in control,” said the Commander, his voice carefully neutral.

“Yes sir,” said Watson as he quickly left.

Straker turned his attention to the two men in front of him, “Lieutenant Carlson, if you think Colonel Lake was hard on you, trust me, you’ve seen nothing yet. How would you like to be reassigned to Cape Horn? I can arrange that.”

“That won’t be necessary sir,” said Carlson.

“I expect you to be on time from now on. Is that understood?”

“Yes sir,” he said quietly.

“As for you Turner, HQ is not is not your private playground. If I get any complaints about unwelcome advances, you will find yourself reassigned to a posting where that particular temptation will be nonexistent. Do I make myself absolutely clear?”

“Clear as glass, Commander.”

Straker turned to walk away, when he suddenly stopped and turned back to the two men. His voice was like ice as he spoke.

“One more thing gentlemen,” he paused for a moment. “If you have any derogatory opinions about any members of this organization, I would strongly suggest that you keep them to yourselves. I had better not ever again hear the things I just heard. That’s all.”

The Commander turned and stalked away. Patrick Turner looked at his CO with contempt, as he walked away. “Big man,” he said in a voice dripping with sarcasm. “Your day is coming Straker, and much sooner than you think.”


Later that day, Lieutenant Ayshea Johnson stood at attention in front of the Commander’s desk. Straker regarded her for a moment.

“At ease, Lieutenant,” he said kindly.

Ayshea visibly relaxed. Although she was reasonably sure why she had been summoned by the Commander, one could never be certain.

“I received your request to be reassigned to the available posting on Moonbase. Your record is flawless and I have subsequently approved your transfer.”

“Thank you sir,” she said.

“Lieutenant, I do have one question. Is your request, in any way, due to a problem with personnel?”

“No sir,” she said.

Straker was sure that he saw a barely noticeable flicker cross her eyes, but he chose not to pursue it.

“Very well Lieutenant, you will start your new position in three weeks. Lieutenant Barry is getting one of my best people and you will be sorely missed here at HQ.”

“Thank you Commander,” said Johnson. “I’m very happy working here, but I see this as a chance to expand my horizons. I’ve dreamed of going into space since I was a child. I’m really looking forward to it, sir.”

Ed Straker could relate to that very ambition as he recalled his own childhood aspirations. He stood to shake her hand.

“Congratulations Lieutenant.”

“Thank you Commander.”

After she left Ed sat back down at his desk and he began looking through the stack of personnel files, in search of a replacement for Lieutenant Johnson.

One name had risen to the surface, Lieutenant Tamara “Tara” Paulson. She had been temporarily assigned to HQ during the incident where Craig Collins had been lost, and was already familiar with the operations procedures at the base. Ed pulled her file and thumbed through it finding her record still spotless along with a note that indicated her desire to return to HQ should an opening become available. Tara was currently assigned to a Skydiver crew and was on a scheduled furlough. Ed made a note to call Pete Carlin and inform him that he may need to find a replacement for her.

The direct line to the office upstairs rang and Ed picked it up.

“Yes Miss Ealand.”

“Commander, I have your father on the line. He says that it’s important.”

Ed’s face went ashen, as he had not spoken to his father in almost two years and he had not seen him since before he married Mary.

“Put him through Miss Ealand.”

Ed heard the click of the transferred call.

“Dad?”

A weak almost unrecognizable voice came on the line.

“I’m surprised that you took my call,” said Tony Straker.

“Dad, you don’t sound well, what’s wrong?”

“Son, you and I have some unfinished business, and I don’t have a lot of time. I need you to come home for a couple of weeks.”

He and his father had been estranged for years; they were barely civil to each other on the phone. Ed still blamed the death of his mother on the bout of alcoholism that his father had succumbed to soon after he retired from the military.

“A couple of weeks!” he exclaimed. “Dad, I don’t really think…”

“I’m dying Ed.”

Ed was shocked by his father’s admission and he swallowed hard. After a moment he asked, “How long?”

“A week or two, maybe a month on the outside,” said his father. “Ed, we have a lot to talk about, and I don’t want to go to my grave leaving these things unsaid.”

“I’ll get a flight out this afternoon. Once I land a Logan, I’ll call you,” said Ed.

When Straker got off the phone, he mashed the intercom, “Lieutenant Ford, find Colonel Foster and have him come to my office.”

Right away sir.


Gently he caressed her back as he drew her into his embrace and she lost herself in his arms. As she brushed her hands up his back to firmly grasp his shoulders, she gazed into his deep blue eyes as he lowered her to the bed. She closed her eyes as he met her lips with his, a light touch at first, growing deeper with the rhythm of her sighs. As the satin sheets cradled her back and the kiss deepened she began to tremble in anticipation of…

Virginia was awakened by the buzzing of the intercom; she reached to the nightstand, still somewhat disorientated by the extremely erotic dream. Damn him, she thought to herself.

“Yes.”

“Sorry to wake you Ginny, I have the Commander on the line for you, he said it’s urgent.”

Yeah, I’ll show him urgent, she thought as she quickly tried to collect herself.

Nina noticed that she seemed out of sorts, “Are you okay, Ginny?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” she said huskily. “Put him through.”

Virginia could feel herself flushing as the Commander’s image came on the screen. I should have switched off video.

“I’m sorry to wake you Colonel,” he began. “I have to take a week or two of personal leave in the States to attend to family matters.”

Her embarrassment quickly subsided as she realized the gravity of the situation. Ed only had two living relatives, a sister in Arizona, and his father in Boston. A few months ago, in a rare moment of weakness Ed had opened up to her, about the situation between him and his father. The pair had been discussing Craig Collins and the shared loss had bridged a gap between them. From the pain she saw in his eyes she was sure this had to do with his father.

“I can be back on Earth in about six hours…”

“No, with this morning’s attack, I need you to stay on Moonbase. I’m going to leave Foster in command here at HQ, but you are still overall senior. I know it’s harder to keep an eye on things from up there but…”

“Ed, take care of what you need to, Paul and I will be fine,” she said. “If I can do anything…”

“Thank you…” he said with genuine gratitude. It seemed to her that he was going to say something else, but the words never came. “I’ll leave a number where I can be reached in Boston, if need be.”

The connection closed and Virginia lay back in her bed, her emotions in turmoil now. She felt sorrow for Ed knowing that his father was up in his years and for him to leave now, she knew this had to be serious. But she was still confused as to her own feelings about the unspoken message he had given her. His eyes had said, thank you Virginia, she was sure of it.

Over the two weeks, he had called her at least twice a day, mostly for legitimate reasons. But at least two of his calls could have been deemed superfluous, not that she minded. Maybe Nina was right all along, she thought suddenly terrified at the prospect that the two of them might be dancing around their feelings.

Ginny knew that she wasn’t going to get back to sleep and Nina was due for a break. She needed to talk to someone and Nina was both a friend and a confidant. She got up to quickly dress and she walked out of her quarters to see her friend.


In his office at HQ Straker looked up from the videophone as he closed the connection with Moonbase. Paul Foster had been sitting across from him.

“I’ll call you once I know where I’m staying, Paul. The phone will be most likely an unsecured line, so we’ll have to plan accordingly. If all goes well, I should be back before the aliens strike again, assuming that they stick to their latest pattern.”

“Yes sir,” said Foster. “Commander, if there is anything else I can do…”

“Thank you, Paul,” said Straker as he stood and closed his briefcase. “Make sure that these documents, that Professor Reinhardt is sending, make it to Moonbase. Colonel Lake is going to try to make some adjustments to the tracking sensors based on this new information.”

“Do you want us to keep you apprised of our progress?”

Straker noticed his choice of words implying a team effort and he felt more confident in his decision to leave Foster in charge at the base.

“You can summarize it when I check in, otherwise don’t call unless it’s an emergency.”

“Understood, have a safe flight sir.”

Straker walked out of the office leaving a bemused Paul Foster standing there.


Ginny and Nina sat at a table in the leisure sphere, engaged in quiet conversation. It was the middle of the low watch and they had the room to themselves.

“I knew something was up. That must have been embarrassing,” said Nina. “You’re having a passionate dream about someone, and then they call you out of the blue.”

“Don’t I know it,” said Ginny. “I’ve had this dream before, and I always seem to wake up just as it’s getting to the good part. What’s weird is it seemed so real this time, I’ve never been kissed like that, not even by my ex-husband.”

“You’re lucky; I never get to have those kinds of dreams. I’m jealous.”

Nina looked genuinely hurt at first, until her grin gave her away. The two women started laughing uncontrollably.

“Remember what you said to me about Ed not calling me by name?” asked Ginny, redirecting the subject.

“Yeah, I do. Why? Are you having second thoughts about what I said?”

“I never saw it before tonight, but when he said thank you, I’m certain that he meant to call me by name. This time I could see it in his eyes. I don’t think he’s ever looked at me like that before. I mean, it was same way he looked at me in my dream.”

Virginia paused and shook her head, “You know, I’m probably just getting my hopes up and I’m going to end up making a fool of myself.”

“Maybe not Ginny. Think about this for a minute; you had just been awakened from a very intimate dream. Maybe you saw him in a different light. He’s called you at least twice a day since you arrived.”

“Hardly for social reasons Nina,” Virginia retorted.

“You have to admit; at least two of his calls were not what you would consider urgent.”

“I didn’t think anyone else had noticed,” Ginny said pensively.

“You trained me too well Ginny. I don’t miss much. Besides, Ed Straker never calls up here unless something significant is going on. Granted that the two of you are working closely together on a project of extreme importance, but that alone doesn’t explain his behavior, and I know for a fact that he’s not watching over you. If you ask me, he misses you.”

“I don’t know Nina…”

“Do you want to find out once and for all?” she asked.

“How?”

“Commander Straker told you that he’s going to pick you up from the airport when you’re finished up here, right?”

“Yeah, so?”

“What did you bring for civilian clothes this trip?”

“We’ll there is the cream colored…”

“You mean the getup you had on when you arrived? No, that won’t do at all. What else?”

“I did bring one other outfit. I bought it the night before I came up here and I only brought it with me to try on…”

“Let me see,” said Nina.

The two women got up and went to Ginny’s quarters and she opened her closet to retrieve the outfit, a purple silk blouse with a matching set of slacks. As accessories she had a wide black belt to cinch the outfit in at the middle and a purple scarf with black accents.

“Yes,” said Nina. “That will definitely turn his head.”

“Nina, we’re talking about Ed Straker here,” Virginia said dismissively. “Do you know how many young beautiful actresses he see’s every day? I think Ed Straker is oblivious to female beauty.”

Nina shook her head, “He’s still a man, and no man is completely oblivious to the opposite sex. Straker is better at hiding it than most. Virginia let’s face it. Ed Straker is an intellectual and any woman that has any hope of being with him is going to have to meet him at least somewhat on that level. Most of those actresses have absolutely nothing between their ears so they aren’t even on his radar screen. On the other hand, you are brilliant, kind, and very independent. That’s a big plus for someone with his responsibilities. He doesn’t want to have to hold his life partner’s hand. Believe me, he will notice you.”

“Nina, what do you really think, I mean just think of the problems this could cause.”

Romantic relationships were allowed within the organization within certain parameters, one aspect being no more than one step of separation in rank. Direct chain of command relationships were discouraged as well although they were handled on a case by case basis. But a relationship with the SHADO C in C was uncharted territory.

“You’ll cross that bridge when you get to it. You may end up having to take reassignment if the two of you end up together. I think Ed is interested, but he’s still sitting on the fence about it. You need to make yourself irresistible.”

“And just how do I do that?” asked Ginny, very skeptically.

“Well for one thing, you need to quit hiding some of those curves that you’ve been blessed with. That outfit is a good start, it’s stylish and sexy, yet it still leaves something to the imagination.”

“Are you sure about this…”

“When you leave for Earth in a couple of weeks, you’re going home wearing this. Trust me, you’ll knock him dead. Come on, try it on and make sure it fits.”

Chapter 4:

Doug Jackson found himself in a place of astonishment, not something he was used to. During his stint as the IAC military liaison, a position he held before the formation of SHADO, he already knew much of what Straker had just told him, but finding out that Straker’s father was involved surprised him. Apparently, much of the information, or more precisely who knew about it, had been compartmentalized.

“Were you surprised to learn that these events were factual, Commander?”

“More like shocked, Doctor Jackson. When Henderson confirmed all of this, last week, I was at a loss for words. Some of this information could have been useful, had I been aware of it earlier. And I still don’t understand why the General hid the fact that he knew Virginia and her family.”

“I noticed that you didn’t react when your father mention Bob Lake,” Jackson added.

“At the time, I didn’t realize Dad knew her father. It wasn’t until Virginia told me that her father flew with Henderson, that I made the connection. As you can well imagine I was quite shaken by some of what he told me.”

“I suspect that Henderson knew that if you became aware of the shared history, between your three families, you would find out things that he was under orders to keep from you.”

Jackson stood and walked over to the coffee pot and poured two cups. He walked back and handed one to his boss.

“You’re not going to get on me about my coffee intake?” Straker asked, somewhat bemused.

“Under the circumstances, Commander, I think you could use it right now,” he said as he took his place across from Straker.

Picking up his notepad, Jackson continued, “There were at least two attacks while you were in the States, correct?”

“Yes, Virginia and Paul handled them both very well and I didn’t find out until after the fact,” he said, with a hint of disapproval.

“All the more reason for you to take some of your allotted time off, you’ve trained your command staff well and it is no longer necessary for you to be here every waking moment. This leads to my next concern.”

“Go on,” said Straker.

“If you and Colonel Lake are allowed to continue your relationship, you realize that it will require both of you to spend time nurturing that association.”

By the look on Ed’s face Jackson registered the confusion and went on to clarify, “One of the concerns put forth by the IAC is how the two of you would handle the demands of an intimate relationship in the face of your duties, and what would be the ramifications if the two of you parted ways? By your own admission, reassignment is not an option, so the two of you would still be required to work together. Have you considered this carefully Commander?"

Jackson watched his boss meticulously as he answered the very difficult question.

“When Virginia told me that she loved me, the two of us made a promise. Regardless of what happens, or where this relationship goes, we would always remain friends. You see Doctor, one of the reasons that I waited so long to pursue this is I consider Virginia to be a close friend. I was afraid to put our friendship in jeopardy. Her friendship means as much to me as…” he paused, seeming to consider his words. “We gave each other our solemn word. Truth be told, I think our close friendship will be the means that will get us through the hard times.”

Jackson was impressed, but he gave no indication of the fact. It was evident to him that both of these people had thoroughly considered the consequences of their actions.

Contrary to popular belief, Jackson was not a vicious man but the responsibilities of his position often required actions that would be considered callous and cruel. The SHADO psychiatrist had no wish to cause these two individuals pain or heartbreak, in fact he had a unique understanding of the Commander’s dilemma. Isolated from his peers by protocol and unable to form a lasting bond with outsiders, Straker seemed to be a man doomed to loneliness and isolation. It was truly sad that his duty may require just that.

He flipped his note pad to a new page and looked up at Straker.

“Commander, let’s continue with what happened the day of the first attack.”


“Red alert, interceptors, immediate launch,” Colonel Lake said into the mic as she brought the base to full alert.

The UFOs had appeared on radar, less than thirty miles from the base, by far the closest approach yet, but the tracking modifications had given them enough warning that an attack was pending. The interceptor crews were already on the pads and warned up when the track was confirmed by radar.

“Interceptor leader, lock on to bearing two five three.”

“Roger Colonel,” said Lt. Andrew Conroy.

Virginia and Nina watched the scope as the interceptors closed with the targets.

“This is too close Ginny, without the modifications, we wouldn’t have had time to launch,” she said.

Lake glanced at her friend seeing her own concern mirrored in Nina’s eyes.


“Leader to group, they’re making a run for it! Break formation!”

The three interceptors each selected one of the three targets and closed to attack.

“Set weapons for minimum yield, we don’t want to take out the base,” said Conroy.

Both of the other pilots set their weapons accordingly and signaled their readiness. As they reached the launch point, Conroy counted down the seconds.

“Missile launch in five…four…three…two…one…fire!”

Each pilot released his weapon and the missiles rapidly closed the distance as the three interceptors peeled off. Their aim was true and the three UFOs were obliterated by the explosions.

“Interceptor leader to Moonbase, splash three, Colonel!”

“Roger one, good shooting. Return to base.”

“Okay boys, you heard the lady. Let’s go home.”


“That was too close, Nina. Did we just get lucky, or what?”

“Maybe they’ll take the hint,” replied Nina.

Ginny shook her head, remembering a conversation with Ed almost a year ago. “Somehow I don’t think they are quite with us done yet. Let’s keep the base on full alert for now. I have a feeling that they are going to try this again.”


The man and woman moved in stealth, hidden amongst the rubble that was once Harlington-Straker Studios. It was also home to Supreme Headquarters Alien Defense Organization, a fact known to a very small fraction of the planet’s once teeming population of humans.

The outbreak of war and the subsequent alien invasion had culled the population to a fraction of what it once was. The pale blonde man looked over the carnage in despair. His own body was covered in bruises and scars from the treatment in the detention camp, run by the collaborators. He looked at the woman next to him; her torn and tattered clothing reflected his own. Her once beautiful shoulder length ash-blonde hair was now a tattered and matted mess and her blue grey eyes were haunted by the shame of violation, and the grief of great personal loss.

The two of them crouched when they spotted an alien patrol but they soon found themselves running for their lives as the patrol opened fire on them. As they crested the hill, the woman cried out as she was hit by a round in the back. The man turned and caught her as she fell. Hidden in an alcove he cradled her now dying form as she looked up at him. Through all the pain and anguish, he saw her undying love, as her spirit slipped the bonds of her earthly life…

“Virginia…no…please don’t go…VIRGINIA!”

Ed bolted up in a cold sweat from the nightmare and tried to get his bearings, reeling in his still raw emotions.

The phone was ringing on the nightstand and he quickly answered it.

“Straker residence.”

“Ed, it’s Paul.”

“Paul…what’s wrong?” he asked, still somewhat disorientated.

“We had visitors, again. They came much closer this time.”

“How long ago?”

“About thirty minutes.”

“Virginia…” he said without thinking.

“Her and her coworkers handled the problem. Our guests were assigned to stage D.”

Straker understood the hidden message, the aliens had been destroyed.

“Alright Paul, I’ll try to check in later, good night.”

“Good night Ed.”

He hung up the phone and laid back down thinking about the attack. The closest place he could find a secure line would be Hanscom Air Force Base, about fifteen miles north. Ed looked at the clock; it was almost four thirty in the morning. He decided to get up, knowing that he wasn’t going to get back to sleep anyway. He walked into the bathroom and splashed water on his face as he remembered the details of the dream. The feelings that he had felt for Virginia, in the very vivid dream went well beyond friendship. By the haunted look in her eyes he knew that they had shared a terrible personal loss but he couldn’t remember what it was.

Ed showered and dressed now wearing his USAF uniform. Between that and his high level SHADO clearance, he would be granted unfettered access to the base.

When he went down stairs, Ed was surprised to see his father already up making breakfast.

“Where are we off to this morning?”

“I have to drive up to Hanscom, I promised an old friend I would stop in while I was here.”

“I see, well tell Charlie Johnson I said hello, and that he still owes me that lobster dinner. Do you have time for breakfast and coffee? It’s just about ready.”

Ed was hungry and still somewhat groggy. A cup of coffee would do him good.

“Yeah, I think so.”

Tony Straker poured his son a cup and set a plate of cinnamon French toast and scrambled eggs in front of him.

“The syrup is on the table,” the elder Straker said.

“Thanks Dad.”

Ed was quite at home in the kitchen, a skill he had learned from his father and he was pleased to see that his father had not lost his skill as a culinary artist.

“So tell me son,” said Tony as he sat down. “Who is Virginia?”

“Why do you ask?” Ed said cagily.

“I heard you yell out the name, just before the phone rang.”

Ed paused for a moment before he answered his father’s question.

“Virginia is a colleague and a friend.”

“Yeah, a friend, friend, or a girlfriend?” asked his father.

“It’s platonic Dad.”

Tony Straker looked unconvinced as he absently stirred his coffee.

“From the way you called her name I’d say you feel a lot more than that, but you probably don’t want to talk about it.”

“That would be about right,” agreed Ed, hoping that his father would drop the subject.

The elder Straker was not so easily dissuaded being the source of Ed’s own stubbornness.

“So, are you going to just stay alone for the rest of your life? You’ve been divorced, what, ten years now? Don’t you think it’s time to move on?”

“Dad, I really don’t want to…”

“You really are stubborn, you know that? Just like your mother and just like me. The apple never falls far from the tree, does it?”

“I suppose not.”

Tony picked up a tabloid magazine and handed it to Ed. He had it open to an article about the studio.

“So is that her?” he asked pointing to a picture of Ed getting into a car with a blonde woman.

Ed examined the picture and sighed in frustration, “Damn paparazzi.”

“I take that as a yes. Welcome to the life of a film studio executive. Anyway I read her bio and I was surprised to see that she’s in her late thirties, she looks ten years younger. She dresses very conservative for an associate producer and that’s probably not a bad thing. So what the hell are you waiting for, an engraved invitation?”

“It’s not that simple, she works for me Dad.”

“You know as well as I do the movie industry doesn’t have that kind of taboos. Let me guess, she’s dumb as a rock.”

Ed chocked on his food with that. He washed it down with a quick swing of orange juice before answering his father.

“Hardly Dad, in fact she is probably the most brilliant woman I know. She holds a doctorate in physics and she is chief technical advisor for most of our science fiction productions.”

“It sounds to me like the two of you have a lot in common,” said Tony.

“I told you, we’re friends. Look Dad, I’m not blind. I can see how attractive she is, but our relationship just isn’t that way.”

“Ed, I’m going to say one more thing and then I’m going to shut up. Your mother and I had a lot of plans for our retirement, we were going to travel and do some of the things that we couldn’t do while we were raising you and your sister. And then your mother got sick. If I’ve learned anything, I’ve learned this. Life is not a dress rehearsal. Learn to live in the moment; because once the moments are gone, they’re gone forever.”

An eerie silence fell in the room as Ed considered his father’s words.

“Well Dad, I’d better get moving, I should be back before noon.”

“Alright Ed, watch the traffic up on 128, they still use the breakdown lane during rush hour. And don’t forget to give Charlie my message.”

“I will Dad. See you later.”


As Ed walked out the door his father looked down at the article noticing how much Virginia Lake looked like Bobby Lake’s wife, Lynn.

Nah, it couldn’t be…


“Colonel Lake, call for you from Earth. Audio only.”

Virginia put aside the book she was reading and switched on the intercom.

“Thank you Carol, patch it through please.”

“Colonel Lake, I understand that you had some excitement,” said the Commander’s voice. “I’m glad to see that you’re still in one piece.”

“That makes two of us, Commander. It was touch and go for a while. I do have some good news. The upgrades to the tracking system seem to work. It doesn’t give us much lead time but it certainly is better than the alternative.”

“I agree. I understand that Moonbase is still on full alert.”

“Yes sir. At maximum range we only have about ten minutes of lead time before the UFO drops to sublight. As I said it’s not much but it’s a start.”

“When will you be heading back to Earth?”

“I still have to upload the new detection routines into SID. I can do that easier from up here. Unless you need me back there for a reason?” she asked.

Virginia noticed a slight pause.

“No, that will be fine. How long will it take to upgrade the entire system?”

“I’m planning on another few days to perform the necessary modifications and I’d like to spend at least a week testing it.”

“It looks like I’ll be home before you then,” he said.

Virginia decided to go out on a limb, “So I can still expect you to pick me up at the airport,” she said in a slightly flirtatious voice.

“Colonel Lake, it would be ungentlemanly to leave a lady stranded. I’ll see you in about a week…”

“Ed, how’s your father doing?” she asked before he closed the connection.

“He’s…not well. He’s going in for surgery in a few days, but Doctor Cartwright thinks this will only postpone the inevitable.”

“I’m sorry…,” she said as her voice trailed off. Virginia remembered seeing him in pain at his son’s funeral and she had to struggle to keep from tearing.

“Take care…and thank you.”

Ginny closed the connection and she sat back still fighting back tears. I hope he was able to set things right with his father…

Chapter 6:

“Have you told Ed about this yet?” Virginia asked over the communications link to HQ.

On the screen the image of Paul Foster shook his head.

“Not yet, I figured I would wait until he returns and give him the news then. Besides, that will give Joe Kelly a chance to finish the analysis of the water to metal bonding and possibly devise a formula to synthesize a protective coating.”

“I can’t believe it Paul; we may actually get a chance to study an alien craft at length without having to worry about it disintegrating. Does Lt. Colonel Kelly think the coating would interfere with the operation of the propulsion system or the power core?” she asked.

“He doesn’t think so. Water seems to bond to the paddles to form a protective barrier yet it seems like it has no effect on the power system. Unfortunately the only way to test his theory is to get our hands on an alien ship. Still, I think this is a significant breakthrough and Ed will be ecstatic.”

Virginia nodded, “You have a talent for understatement. Did the search in Scotland turn up anything?”

“No, we surveyed the entire area that you calculated as a possible landing site but we came up empty. The only other possibility would be the deep end of Loch Ness, but the high peat content makes an underwater search next to impossible. Have you had any other sightings, Ginny?”

“It’s been quiet since the last attack.”

“The calm before the storm,” agreed Paul. “How are things progressing with the upgrades?”

“I finished them yesterday afternoon, but I’d still like to verify functionality under actual operational conditions. And I still have another week worth of testing and calibration,” said Virginia. Changing the subject, she asked, “Paul, have you heard from Ed today?”

“He called around noon. His father went into surgery this morning,” he said quietly.

“Would you call me if you hear anything else? I don’t care how late it is.”

“Of course,” said Paul, looking somewhat surprised.

She closed the connection and stared at the blank screen as a feeling of worry came over her.


Ed and his sister were sitting in the waiting room when the doctor came to see them.

“Dr. Cartwright how is he,” asked Ed as he stood to speak to the surgeon.

“Mr. Straker, your father is one very stubborn man. He made it through the surgery okay. We were able to remove the blockage, but the overall prognosis is still unchanged. The cancer has spread very rapidly through his body and all we have managed to do is buy a small reprieve. And now that the tissue has been exposed to air…it’s just a matter of time. The best that we can do now is to keep him comfortable.”

“When can we see him,” asked Barbara.

“We’ll be moving him out of recovery to his room in about twenty minutes, Dr. Straker. I understand that your father signed a DNR.”

Barbara Straker nodded in affirmation.

“Once he has been moved you will be able to see him. In the mean time why don’t the two of you grab something to eat? There is a cafeteria style restaurant on the first floor.”

Straker had skipped breakfast that morning and was starting to get hungry.

“Alright, you have my pager number?” he asked.

“I do Mr. Straker. I will call you right away if there is any change.”

Ed and his sister walked down the hall to the elevator and pushed the button for the first floor.

“I thought I was ready for this Eddie,” said his sister, on the verge of tears.

“I don’t think we are ever ready for it.”

They stepped onto the elevator and the door closed. The pair had the car to themselves.

“Did you and Dad square things away Ed?”

“Yes…I shouldn’t have waited this long…if only I hadn’t been so damn stubborn…”

“Don’t second guess yourself, and don’t blame yourself later,” she said. “We all make mistakes.”

“I suppose that’s true.”

The car stopped and the two of them got out on the first floor and made their way to the cafeteria. A short time later they were having lunch at a table overlooking the courtyard. The sun was shining brightly and the last of the snow was just about melted away.

“So Dad showed me a picture of you lady friend this morning,” she said teasing him.

Ed shook his head, “You two don’t give up do you?”

“She’s beautiful Ed, what’s she like, in person.”

“Well she’s brilliant…”

“I don’t mean that. What’s she like?”

Straker had to pause suddenly at a loss for words, “I…”

“Is she kind, is she flamboyant, is she shy…”

“She is kind, although she is reserved around people that she doesn’t know very well, and it takes a while to get to know her. But once she befriends you, it’s for life.”

“I think I like her already. What does she like to do?” asked Barbara.

“I’m sorry?”

“Does she ski, ride horses, workout?”

“She hates exercise that I do know.” said Ed with a slight grin, remembering Virginia’s reaction to his question we he interviewed her. “She enjoys flying small aircraft, she listens to classical music, and she’s a photographer. I think she mentioned once that she played the piano.”

“You see, the two of you do have a lot in common. If she likes classical music, you should take her to the symphony. Doesn’t LSO do a spring show in London?”

“They do, it’s a black tie affair,” said Ed.

“That would be perfect; you would get to see each other at your very best. Do you know a good restaurant, I mean something really fancy?”

“The Register, it has a great reputation and the food is excellent.”

“There you go, now all you have to do is ask her,” she said.

“Don’t you think all of this is a little much for a first date?”

“It depends. How long have the two of you known each other?”

“Almost four years.”

“Long enough, Dad said that the two of you are close friends so spent an evening enjoying each other’s company. You both might be surprised at what happens.”

Ed felt as if he was standing on the edge of a cliff. His sister had no idea of the ramifications that this could cause, but she had somehow convinced him to seriously consider the possibility. He knew that Virginia would say yes in a heartbeat, but the prospect of asking her gave him more pause than facing an alien fleet.

They finished lunch and dropped off their trays.

“So are you going to ask her?”

“I haven’t decided,” he said.

Barbara Straker stopped in front of the elevator and tilted her head slightly with her hands on her hips as she glared up at him. That pose reminded Ed, so much of Virginia when she was angry, and he couldn’t hold back a chuckle.

“What’s so funny?”

“That pose,” said Ed. “You have Virginia down to an art.”

Barbara lightened up, “I knew I liked her for some reason.”


When the aliens attacked again, they received an unexpected surprise. At least that’s what Virginia was thinking as the last UFO was obliterated by interceptor two.

Seated at the command console she called down to HQ.

“That’s it Paul, splash three!”

Paul Foster breathed a sigh of relief; the three UFOs were on a course heading that would put then within a mile of the base. The interceptors had stopped them just shy of the million mile mark.

“We’re all breathing down here again, thanks.”

“With this last attack I have all the calibration data I need,” said Ginny. “I should be able to triple our interception range. That will put the target datum at roughly three million miles. Granted this is closer than we are used to, but still within acceptable limits. The only way to shave any more time off this figure is to keep the interceptors space borne. I don’t see that as a viable long term option.”

“I agree, but at least we aren’t in knife fighting range anymore,” said Paul. He continued in a subdued voice. “I spoke to Ed this afternoon; there has been no change since his father got out of surgery yesterday.”

“Thanks, Paul. Call me if anything changes. Moonbase out.”

Virginia knew that Ed’s father was not likely to recover having spoken to him late last night. He said that the doctors only gave his dad a few weeks on the outside but after seeing him Ed was convinced that he would not last the week. Ginny was glad to learn that Ed’s sister was there with him. At least he didn’t have to face this alone.

Nina walked into the control sphere and spoke quietly to Ginny, “You look like you need a break. Care to join me for coffee?”

“Yeah, okay. Carol, would you take over for me please?”

“Sure thing, Colonel.”


“Alright Ginny, talk to me. What’s wrong?” Nina asked her friend as they sat alone in the leisure sphere.

“I’m worried about Ed,” said Ginny. “He carries the entire weight of the organization, the responsibility for the safety of each and every one of us, as well of the safety of the planet, squarely on his shoulders. And now his father is terminally ill. Damn it Nina, he shouldn’t have to do this all on his own.”

“For as long as I’ve known him Ed Straker is a man who has always stood alone, maybe that’s why we all find him so attractive. In the midst of his solitude he holds firm in the face of almost impossible odds.”

“I wish I could do more for him.”

“I think you’re already doing it Ginny. In all my years with SHADO, I’ve never seen the Commander away from HQ this long for personal reasons. He wouldn’t do that unless he had absolute trust in the person he left in charge.”

Nina looked closely at her friend and suddenly realized that she was crying.

“You are really upset about this aren’t you?”

Ginny simply nodded as she wiped her eyes.

“Nina, you know that Ed lost a child in an automobile accident.”

“Yes, that was so tragic.”

“What you don’t know, in fact no one does, is that I was at the funeral. I saw Ed grieving for his son and it’s the only time I’ve ever seen him cry. It tore my heart out, and I wasn’t in love with him back then.”

Nina knew that Ginny was attracted to Ed, but she wasn’t aware how deep those feelings went, until now. She regarded her friend for a moment before speaking again.

“Do you love him Ginny?”

“Yeah, I do. I think I realized that just now. God Nina, what am I going to do?” she asked her friend as she shook her head.

“Follow your heart Virginia, tell him how you feel. Then let the chips fall where they may,” said Nina in a voice filled with sincerity.

“I can’t just come out and tell him that, as much as I want to, and I don’t want this to come between the friendship Ed and I have fostered.”

Nina leaned back in the chair and sipped her coffee.

“You and Ed have always been honest with each other. At some point in time you are going to have to broach this subject with him and now that you have admitted this to yourself, it’s not going to go away.”

“You know that I told him that I cared about him last year, just before he went up with Craig,” said Ginny.

“Caring about someone and being in love with them is two different things.”

“Don’t I know it,” she said ruefully. “I know I’m going to have to talk to him about it, at least then it will be out in the open, but I’m not going to do it right away. I still want him to make the first move.”

Ginny looked at her watch, “Well I’d better get back to work. Thanks for the coffee Nina.”

“Anytime.”

Nina Barry watched her friend walk out of the room and briefly contemplated intervening on her friend’s behalf. She just as quickly dismissed the idea as a bad one. Ed and Virginia will have to work this one out on their own.


“Ed wake up,” called Barbara Straker from the doorway.
Ed roused and looked over at the clock seeing that it was just past two in the morning.

“What is it Barbara? Is it Dad?”

“Yeah, the hospital just called. They said that we had better get down there right away.”

Straker jumped out of bed and dressed with haste. In ten minutes the two of them were on their way to Mass General. Before they had left the house, Ed had called a friend who was on the Massachusetts State Police Force and told him they were heading to the hospital. He was surprised however to see a cruiser pull alongside him and wave them to follow.

“Good ol’ Randy,” said Ed. “I didn’t expect this.”

“Dad has friends on the force too Ed.”

“You’re right, I forgot about that.”

With a police escort they made it to the hospital in less than thirty minutes. Tony Straker’s oncologist was waiting in the lobby for them. For a brief moment Ed was afraid that they were too late, but the doctor quickly ushered them into the waiting elevator.

“His breathing started to get labored about an hour ago, and I’m surprised that he’s still holding on,” said the doctor as they rode up to the third floor. “You got here quick.”

“We had help from some friends. Is he awake?” asked Ed.

“Yes, I think he would have passed on had he been sleeping. Your father has an incredible amount of will power.”

The trio stepped off the elevator and they made a quick trot to Tony’s room. “I’ll be making rounds if you need me,” said the doctor as they arrived. Ed and Barbara walked into the room and saw that their father was looking out the window. When he saw his children, he smiled and waved them to his bedside.

“I guess this is it kids,” said the elder Straker. It was evident that he was struggling to stay conscious and his voice was weak and raspy. “I want both of you to know how much I love you. And I’m proud of both of you. I always have been…”

His voice trailed off and he looked at his children intensely. Ed could imagine him trying to burn the image in his mind.

“Dad I’m so sorry I didn’t set things right before,” Ed said, on the verge of choking up. “Please forgive me…I love you Dad…I always have…”

As tears flowed from his eyes, he found that he could no longer speak. Beside him his sister was openly crying as she said her final words to her father.

“Daddy I love you, you can let go now, Ed and I will be okay…”

Anthony Straker closed his eyes for the last time while two children held his hands. Slowly his breathing became less labored but more shallow and the beeping of the heart monitor slowed.

It was just before three in the morning when he took his last breath. Ed and Barbara said their last goodbyes and walked out of the room. Ed’s sister was still openly crying and his own eyes were drenched in tears.

“Eddie, at least he’s with Mom now,” she said trying to pull herself together.

“Yeah,” I hope so.

Ed had been raised a Catholic but had become disillusioned with the church soon after leaving home. Unlike his sister, who remained a staunch believer, he questioned the existence of God or heaven. The discovery of extraterrestrial beings only added to his quandary.

When he had composed himself enough to drive, the two of them left the hospital and began the journey home.

Chapter 8:

Having returned from his trip to Boston, Straker had spent a full day getting back into the hectic rhythm that was the norm at HQ. It had taken him most of the morning to wade through all of the reports, and that was after Virginia and Paul had highlighted the relevant information. Had it not been for that, he would have still been working on them. As he walked into the control room he noticed that the radar console near his office was pulled apart and being worked on.

“Paul I’m on my way to the airport. You should be receiving a telex from Washington shortly. General MacGruder is scheduled to visit next week and Henderson wants us to give him the Cook’s Tour, something to do with getting more funding.”

“It’s a sad state of affairs when our fiscal future hangs on a dog and pony show,” agreed Foster.

“I know. When it comes in leave it on my desk would you?”

“Certainly Commander, are you returning later this evening?”

“Yes, Colonel Lake and I need to go over the new tracking modifications before we go see Henderson. I suspect we’ll be burning the midnight oil.” Straker tilted his head to the radar screen behind him. “What’s the story with that radar unit?”

“A glitch in the new firmware, it should be repaired before you return. We had a problem with one of the communications channels to Moonbase as well. I’ve got a radio tech coming up to look at it.”

“I’ll leave it in your capable hands Paul,” said Ed as he strolled out of the control room and made his way to the executive lift.


As was always the case, Miss Ealand was hard at work when Straker stepped out of his office.

“Miss Ealand,” he said in greeting. “I’m on my way to the airport to pick up Colonel Lake. If anyone calls, tell them I’ve left for the day. Between us, I’ll be back in a couple of hours.”

“I understand sir, did you see the note I left on your desk about the concert?”

“Oh, yes I did. Thank you. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Good night, Commander.”

Ed looked at the clock on the way out of the studio, seeing it was about ten minutes of six. Virginia’s shuttle was due in around seven and it took about forty minutes to get to the SHADO airfield north of Harlington. The traffic on the M4, this time of day tended to be congested. Once he got to the M25, he should be through the worst of it.

He thought about Virginia while he was driving, and while he looked forward to seeing her again, he still felt a great sense of trepidation. He was unsure if he made the right decision by telling her that she was missed by him, and even though he knew she cared, her admission caught him by surprise.

There was another issued on his mind that troubled him almost as much, Alec and Barbara. Neither of them had elaborated as to how well they knew each other but Ed Straker was keenly aware of everything that went on around him. It was a trait that had saved his life, and more than once. He could see by the subtleties of their interaction that there was much more there than he had been told.

At thirty six, his sister was well beyond point of having to be looked after. In fact he knew she would take great offense to it, but Alec’s reputation with the ladies was somewhat colorful, although Ed didn’t really know how much of it was for show. Alec was also his best friend, fiercely loyal and protective of him and the organization they both served. In his heart he knew that his friend would be just as protective of her especially now that he knew who she was.

Ed grinned when he pictured Barbara forcing Alec to tow the mark, if anyone could do it, it’s her…


The lunar transport ship landed a few minutes before seven in the evening. As Virginia stepped off the shuttle she noticed that it was getting dark. She grabbed her bag and proceeded towards the security post where Captain Morgan was working the desk.

“Good evening Colonel, the Commander just called and he’s running a few minutes late. There’s a traffic snarl on the M25,” said Morgan.

“Thanks Captain, I’ll wait for him inside.”

It was still chilly outside and she hadn’t brought a jacket. She hadn’t needed it with her other outfit. Inside the terminal she sat down and flipped through a magazine while she waited. She didn’t have to wait long.


The Commander pulled into the secure airfield just after seven. He swore to himself when he noticed that the transport had already arrived. Straker parked the car and quickly made his way to the terminal. He hated being late.

Ed had to catch his breath when he saw her sitting there having never seen Virginia in anything but ultra conservative attire. The combination of missing her and seeing her dressed differently than he had ever seen made her more attractive and he found that he had to force himself not to stare.

“I’m sorry I’m late,” he said finding his voice.

“That’s alright; I just sat down a few minutes ago. It’s just a tad chilly out this evening so I decided to wait in here.”

Virginia set the magazine aside and stood, “Well what do you think?

“I think it suits you, it’s snappy,” Ed said, trying to avoid tripping over his feelings.

“I thought since I’m spending more time upstairs, I should look the part of an associate producer. The shot they took of us for the tabloid last month? In the article they described me as frumpy,” she said with only a hint of frustration in her voice.

Ed was somewhat amused by her reaction, he reached down and grabbed her bag, “Are you ready?”

“Yeah, thanks for picking me up, you didn’t have to, you know.”

As they walked to the car the pair continued to chat.

“I know that…”

“Ed, how are you holding up?” she asked, color in her voice.

“Dad was in his seventies, he lived a full life. I just wish that we hadn’t wasted the last fifteen years…”

He paused just as they reached the car and opened the passenger side to allow her to climb in. With her bag stowed in the back, he sat behind the wheel and started the engine.

As they drove towards the highway Ed could see that the traffic was still jammed up. Before he got to the on-ramp Virginia spoke up, “Go straight about half a mile, and take a left. You’ll bypass all this traffic.”

“Alright.”

“I used to go this way on my furlough weeks. It’s a longer distance than the M25 but lightly traveled. Most of the time, you’ll save about twenty minutes going this way.”

Straker took the road that she had indicated and they found very little traffic to contend with.

“Ed I’m sorry that I couldn’t be there…”

“That’s alright…I know you would have been there if you could have, like you were at John’s funeral.”

Virginia was caught off guard, “How do you know about that? I’ve only told one other person and I know she wouldn’t have said anything. At least I don’t…”

“Relax,” Ed said gently. “No one violated your confidence.”

He paused and glanced over at her, “I saw you standing in the back of the group. I was going to thank you for coming but I couldn’t find you later. I assumed that you had departed with everyone else.”

“When your ex-wife’s family left, I sat back in my car…I wanted you to have your privacy. You never said anything before now, why?”

Ed pondered her question, knowing that if he answered it truthfully, he’d be committed to the path.

“Probably for the same reason that I always call you Colonel,” he said.

Ed could feel her eyes on him and his glance to the right to see her look of astonishment was unneeded.

“You’ve known all along haven’t you? When I warned you about Craig, you already knew how I felt about you? Don’t deny it.”

He nodded, “I highly suspected it but I wasn’t really sure until you told me. I assumed that you would see right through me. At least now I can thank you properly. You are an incredible lady, Virginia.”

The conversation stalled and Ed was sure he saw her drying her eyes.

“Are you okay?” he gently asked.

“I’m fine,” she said. “Just give me a minute.”

When he spoke again, he changed the subject, “Paul tells me that that Joe Kelly’s team made a breakthrough.”

“Yes,” she said in a still shaky voice. “He thinks he can synthesize a compound that can be applied to the exterior of an alien spacecraft. The thought of recovering and examining a UFO certainly intrigues me.”

Their mood lightened considerably as talking shop was familiar territory for both of them.

“How is Alec doing with the aeroceptor project?” she asked having recovered her composure.

“He has one squadron completed. According to him the aircraft is a dream to fly.”

“How is he doing Ed?”

“I think he’s involved with my sister Barbara,” he said reluctantly.

“You’re kidding?” she asked, a wide eyed expression on her face. “They just met didn’t they?”

“Apparently that’s not the case. Barbara is on the medical staff at the base and she was still going by her maiden name. Alec didn’t know she was my sister. I think he was very embarrassed by the situation.”

“Alec, embarrassed? I would like to have seen that. How did your sister take it?”

“She found it rather amusing. At least that’s the way it looked to me. Neither of them would confirm but I’d bet a year’s salary that they are an item.”

“I miss all the good stuff,” she said feigning hurt.

Ed glanced back over at her, seeing her smile. She has a lovely smile, he thought.

“I understand the tracking adjustments went very well.”

“We finished with a loss of about twenty percent. The interception datum point is about three million miles. That certainly beats forty.”

“I agree. The next step is to go see the General,” Ed said in a lighter voice. “That’s why I wanted to pick you up myself. I wanted to brief you before you spoke to Henderson.”

“We’ll I knew it wasn’t for my big blue eyes.”

“Coming back from the moon can be disorientating. Even moon speeds have some effect on time,” he said, feigning seriousness.

“Yes sir, I see sir, never knew that sir,” Virginia responded facetiously.

Ed looked over at her and saw that she was smiling at him again. He returned her gesture and turned his attention back to the road.


Doctor Jackson closed his notepad and looked up at his boss, “I’m sorry that this had to be so personal Commander. After looking all of this over I don’t think I will need to interview the two of you together.”

“So where do we go from here?”

“I will compile all of the notes I took into a report to the commission. As I stated to you before we began, none of either yours or Colonel Lake’s personal information will be divulged. The report will be a psychological profile and impact analysis of your relationship with Colonel Lake.”

“Do you care to guess how this will pan out Doctor?”

“It’s hard to say Commander. My involvement is to make a recommendation to the commission, but the final decision rests with them. I’m not normally supposed to reveal my findings to either you or Colonel Lake, but under the circumstances I think the two of you are entitled to know. I can meet with both in about an hour if you would like?”

“I appreciate that Doctor Jackson.”

The SHADO psychiatrist watched his boss as he stood to leave. He couldn’t help but feel a deep sense of admiration for the man that was now coupled with a new understanding.

When the Commander had left, Jackson returned to his notes and began his final report to the IAC.


Virginia looked up from the desk as the doors opened. Ed looks like hell, she thought to herself.

The Commander’s session had gone into overtime by almost three hours and it was almost nine in the evening. She closed and locked the door and made her way around the desk to embrace him.

“Did I look this bad when I came out of there?” she asked.

“You did look tired,” he said.

The couple made their way to the couch and sat down. Although she understood the need, Virginia found herself cursing the system for the hell they had been put through.

“This is the type of thing I’d tried to avoid by getting the rules about the computer study changed. Damn them. Why can’t they just let us be? We’re not robots Ed, we’re human beings. How the hell are we expected to just turn off our feelings?” she spouted off in exasperation.

“You know, you’re beautiful when you’re angry.”

He was giving her a smile that melted her heart which caused her to lose most of her steam.

“Yeah, right,” she said more subdued. “I’m sorry Ed, I’m sure that you don’t feel like hearing me rant.”

“Jackson is going to meet with us in an hour to give us his recommendation. It won’t be the final word, but it’s a high probability that the commission will follow his recommendation.”

Virginia considered this, “It’s not a given, is it?”

“No, it’s not,” he said. “I don’t think our problem is going to be Jackson.”

“Ed, have you considered that if the commission rules against us, they could also separate us?”

“To forcibly transfer you would require a unanimous vote of the commission. I know at least two of the members will not go along with that. If that did happen, it would eliminate the problem altogether. Of course we would have to carry out a long distance relationship.”

“I suppose there are worse things than that. You could use some of that leave time you have accrued to come see me. I promise I would make it worth your while,” she said with a saucy grin.

“Maybe that’s why I never use it,” Ed said in a sorrowful tone. “Until now, I never had anyone to share with.”

Virginia leaned over and gave him a gentle kiss. They looked at each other in silence.

“Hey, I’m hungry,” she said. “Join me for dinner in the mess hall?”

“That sound like a good idea.”

Absence:

My thoughts:

This story has been almost nine months in the making, and it’s finally made it to paper. When I wrote Soul Mates, over a year ago, I had laid out a fairly complex back story for both Ed and Virginia. That shared history became Mission of Mercy, Best Friends, Silver Star, and finally, Absence.

When I set out to write this saga, I had two specific goals in mind, stay true to the events in the series, and share my own vision of Virginia and Ed as a couple. After seeing the episode Timelash, for the first time, I realized that there was chemistry between Straker and Lake. According to Sylvia Anderson in her commentary with Wanda Ventham on Timelash, many of the fans felt this way, which means, I wasn’t alone.

By the end of Silver Star both Virginia and Ed are dancing around their feelings, although Ginny had inadvertently told him how she felt. True to form, Ed keeps his feelings to himself. Absence tells us what brings him to admit his feelings for her.

My original plan for this tale did not include the drama of the IAC scrutiny or the interviews with Dr. Jackson. That aspect was added to the story as the result of a marriage/canon discussion on the writer’s guild. While I don’t agree with some of the opinions that were put forward, the one thing I did agree with was that could cause problems in the command structure. It’s plausible that the IAC would examine this pairing in much greater detail than a simple computer relationship study. By addressing this issue, I think I added much more credibility to the story than it would have had otherwise. Ironically, the pairing of Straker and Lake would have no effect on their studio cover, as this would be considered the norm.

I left a couple of things open ended in this story as they come into play later in the saga. The UFO that landed in Loch Ness and the research that Lieutenant Colonel Kelly as started on Argon. I chose this particular element for two reasons. Earth’s atmosphere is comprised of slightly less than one percent of this element so there is more than just a trace of this gas. The second reason is Argon is what is called a Noble Gas it does not normally react with, or form compounds with other elements. But, in the story, the alien element does react to it, causing the disintegration of the spacecraft. Finding a way to counteract that effect is important, as SHADO is able to capture an alien spacecraft at the end of Soul Mates.

Ed’s family history is mostly conjecture as there isn’t much onscreen information to go on. I decided to give Ed a younger sister instead of a brother. It’s a different dynamic than having a brother would have been and I think it worked better for the story. I never intended her to get mixed up with Alec, but it was just too much fun to resist.

One of my favorite parts is when Virginia is standing at the window thinking about the burden and loneliness of command while wondering how Ed can stand it. The other part I really thought worked well was the conversation in the car. I wanted to shed some new light on the lines from the episode as one of them, the one about moon speeds would have been an insult to Virginia’s intelligence. She is a scientist after all.

Of course some of the things I did with this story mean that Soul Mates will need a rewrite. Since I planned on it anyway that’s not an issue. I think I can make it a better story and it’s going to become a trilogy within the saga.

I do want to mention two stories that have given me inspiration in my writing. The first is Wounded Dreams, written by Deborah Rorabaugh, a story that tells the beginnings of the friendship that formed between Ed and Alec. The second is By Invitation Only, written by Catherine Stewart, a story that tells how Virginia went from the chief designer on the Utronic Project to a Colonel in SHADO. Both of these stories are so well choreographed into my vision of the UFO universe that I consider the events, portrayed in the stories, to be as valid as the events in the episodes and I have referred to them in my stories. I would consider both these stories highly recommended reading.

This story was almost as challenging as Silver Star and I hope everyone enjoyed it.

Matt