Broken Protocols 1-3

by Dale Mayer

  Charmin spoke up abruptly. “Remember how you always dreamed about marriage and kids one day?”

  She looked at him. “Yes?”

  “Well, you just might be in for a surprise.” And he hopped down and moved stiffly to the doorway. He turned to look back at her. “Remember to keep your dreams fluid.”

  And he left.

  Even more concerned now, she got dressed and made her way out to the kitchen. Levi was standing there, talking in a low voice to Milo.

  “What’s going on?”

  Levi spun, smiled at her, and took a deep breath. “The first night you were here, I took you to Johan’s pod. I tried to erase the information, but it caused some issues on the machine and sent corrupted data to the Council. Johan had some of the information still in the unit. When he was raided this morning, the Council gained access to the bulk of his place. He’s gone travelling to avoid the Council. He had his own reasons for not wanting the Council to gain access to his place.”

  She shook her head. “So we’re safe?”

  “No. In fact, there is only one way to make sure you are safe.” He paused, and Milo spoke up. “Make sure you know what you are doing, Levi.”

  Levi spun on him, his anger turning his face red. “You brought this on. Not me. Not Dani. Yet we are the ones that are taking the hit.”

  “You don’t have to. We can find another solution.”

  “Really?” Levi asked, bitterness in his voice. “You’ve had time to utilize that magnificent brain of yours – what solution did you come up with?”

  Milo looked downcast. “Sorry, bro, I hadn’t thought this through far enough.”

  “Yes, that’s exactly right.”

  “What does this have to do me?” Dani crossed her arms over her chest, wishing they’d get to the point. “Milo said something about having to appear in front of the Council?”

  “Yes. The occupants of my residence have been ordered to appear. They already suspect there are three of us here, therefore the three of us will show up. It also means they’ll know that you were the one in the pod.” He paused. “The thing is, I don’t think you are ready. There are too many pitfalls that you could get into trouble over.”

  “But there isn’t an option, is there?” She studied his face even as her stomach sank. In fact, panic settled in on the edge of her consciousness. “I really don’t want to go if I don’t have to.”

  Milo nodded. Levi said, “My family is wealthy, powerful, and we have members in big business across most sectors.”

  She waited.

  “With all the problems…past, present, and potential…” He took a deep breath. “The best way I can protect you is to give you the benefit of my name. I can stand in front of the Council on your behalf that way.” He paused, then added, “There is only one way to do that.”

  Her heart stopped. What did that mean?

  “Dani, will you marry me?”

  *

  Levi held his breath. Inside, he wanted to wrap her up and rush her to the opposite end of the planet. Only that would just delay the same ending. They’d be found. There was no way they wouldn’t. But she looked so lost. So forlorn. It broke his heart.

  He walked over and tugged her into his arms. He didn’t love her, but he knew he was well on his way to that state. But she hadn’t had a chance. To understand life here. To understand her options. To understand what any of this meant.

  “I just want to go home,” she whispered, her words a dagger to his heart.

  Charmin hopped up onto the table, whispered, “Me too.”

  “I’m sorry,” Levi said to them both. “That’s the one thing we can’t do for you.”

  “Well, at least not yet.” Milo said, “I might be able to build a new program, but they took most of my computer equipment from the office during the raid. It will take years to recreate my work.”

  “Do they know what they have?” she asked, peering around Levi’s shoulder.

  Milo shook his head vigorously. “No, the program was set to corrupt when anyone else accessed it. My records show it’s gone.”

  She stared at him suspiciously. “And you didn’t have a backup? A half dozen backups? Some modern way to make sure you didn’t lose everything?”

  He gave her a sheepish grin. “I do, but it’s not that simple. It’s in pieces and everything is encrypted.” He frowned. “Chances are I could put it together again, but knowing that it succeeded and that they are now looking at it makes me less likely to want to even try. It could take years to make it functional – even worse – there’s no way to test if it works.” He glared at Dani in a challenging manner. “Are you going to want to try it under those circumstances?”

  She shifted her gaze to Levi. “I have to make a decision today?”

  Levi winced. “We have to be at the Council in an hour.”

  She stared at him. “And what? We’re going to tell the Council that we are engaged?”

  Charmin snorted. “Engaged? You?”

  Milo and Levi looked at each other. Milo grinned. “Nope. You’re going to be married.” He started to laugh.

  Levi growled, “Milo, stop.”

  But he laughed louder. Between his giggles, he said, “Except for the final formality, you’re already married. He just didn’t bother asking you.”

  Chapter 15

  Dani stared at the two men. One howling with ill-placed humor, oh so typical of a teenager. And the other shuffling uneasily on his feet.

  Charmin, his eyes bright and lively, stayed quiet, watchful. Smart.

  “Are we married?” she asked in an ominous voice. Could something like that really have happened without her permission or her knowing? Of course it could. These two could do anything.

  She studied Levi’s stance. She didn’t believe he’d done it for a bad reason. After all, he could marry anyone. Why her? Unless he cared about trying to keep her safe. Of course, keeping her safe also meant keeping his brother safe – so that made a kind of sense.

  But that was the last reason she wanted to get married. All she ever wanted was to be loved. For herself. Not because she was a problem.

  She gazed out the window, realizing it was uncovered. She wasn’t sure she wanted to look out. To see what was outside. She’d loved the bit from the rooftop space, but she knew there would be more out there. She’d wanted to stay inside and avoid the reality check of her new…reality. She was in hiding like a victim. And she was damn tired of feeling that way.

  Ignoring the two men, she walked over to the window and stared out. Even though she’d seen little bits and pieces before, she almost turned around and ran back to the healing pod. With no frame of reference for what she could see outside, the thought of going out there terrified her. The odd-shaped buildings appeared even closer from here. More alien in shapes and color. And…the flying cars – if they were flying at all, which they weren’t – at least not in any way she understood flying. The cars had no wings. They all proceeded in an orderly fashion – at breakneck speeds!

  A shiver ran through her. She’d seen this all before. Something about this time…brought the reality of her situation closer to home. It had been fun, maybe getting to the point of being exciting. But now that she’d have to appear in front of the Council…everything was suddenly magnified. This was not her world. She didn’t belong here. She spun around and closed her eyes.

  There was no way she was going out there.

  She could hardly breathe. She gasped for breath. Levi rushed over. “Easy, Dani. Take it easy. It’s not that bad.”

  Her head shook and the words wouldn’t come out. She pointed out the window. He winced and pressed a button. Instantly, the light in the room darkened as if he’d closed the curtains. Only there’d been no whoosh of material sliding across the window or blinds being dropped.

  “I’m sorry. This is just the same view that you saw on the rooftop garden.” He reached out to rub her shoulder. “The blinds have been closed for the last few days. Milo opened them thi
s morning.”

  “It’s one thing to see that out there when I’m safe in here, but to know that I will be forced to go into that world…to face the Council…it is not easy to be so detached.”

  “I hate the darkened room.” Milo said cheerfully. “Felt like we were living in a prison.”

  His high-pitched voice paired with his words made her turn her head and stare at him. His bright purple air boots shone weirdly in the half light. She wondered if he was as harmless as he liked to appear. She hoped so. He could do a lot of harm to her if he chose. She gazed over at Levi. He was glaring at his brother, obviously not liking his word choices. Then again, neither did she.

  She asked quietly, “Are we already married?”

  “Not fully. We need your acceptance.”

  “But the preparation, the paperwork, the legalities?”

  “All done.”

  She shook her head. “When did you do this?”

  “This morning.” he said quietly. “After I realized that it was the only answer.”

  “After the raid.” She nodded, starting to understand. “After the Council went to Johan’s.”

  “I called Johan to warn him, but he had already slipped away. He told me about the possibility that the Council may have some information I didn’t want them to have.”

  “Why would your name protect me?” She shook her head. “That makes no sense.”

  “Only because you don’t understand how our government works today. We can protect you. But I need the family to help. Once you’re family, they will surround you. Shield you. You can have me represent you in front of the Council as your legal partner. I already have the papers drawn up. Then you’ll be safe.”

  The thought of leaving the safety of the apartment made her feel faint. The thought of facing the Council brought on the nausea. She couldn’t face strangers. Not now. Not yet. She shuddered inwardly. Maybe never. She studied Levi’s serious face. “And will you be safe, too?”

  “Yes. We will be, too.” He nodded.

  “Then your logic is flawed. Because if that were the case, you’d be protected now. You two already have the family name.”

  Milo snorted. “She’s got you there.”

  “No. She doesn’t understand.” He shot an exasperated look at his brother before turning back to face Dani. “The family has been protecting us. But at the same time, Milo keeps crossing the line. This time, there is more than just us at stake. I couldn’t live with myself if anything happened to you. When the family closes ranks around you, we can make all this go away.”

  “You hope…”

  A weird musical sound filled the air. Levi looked frustrated for a moment. He ran his fingers through his hair. “It’s time.”

  “Time for what?” Dani asked, looking around for the source of the music.

  “Time for you to say yes or no.” He took a step toward her. “Please, say yes.”

  She stared at him, confused but realizing that he wanted – needed – the process finalized before she showed up at the Council. Something that mattered to keep her safe. To keep him and Milo safe. She didn’t care about Milo, but she didn’t want anything to happen to Levi. She hadn’t known him long, but what she did know, she liked – a lot. She could fall in love with him. But that could only happen if she agreed to his plan. A plan that was deeply uncertain. But what were her choices?

  None.

  Damn.

  “I need to know something first.” She couldn’t get over the feeling that there was something here that she didn’t know. Something they weren’t coming clean about. And she needed them to. “Why me? I understand that stuff about picking me because I was close, etc. But there had to have been thousands of other women who would do.”

  Milo laughed. “I can tell you the truth about that now that you’re almost family.” He pointed at Levi. “My big brother here carries a picture of a woman around. I saw it a long time ago and asked him about it. It’s originally from our family archives.” Milo’s grin widened. “He told me he didn’t know why, but there was something about the woman’s smile that struck him as special.”

  She turned to stare at Levi.

  Milo beamed. “Show her, Levi.”

  Dani walked closer. “May I see it?”

  Levi frowned, then reluctantly pulled a square metal-looking thing from his pocket. He unfolded it several times before handing it over.

  She gasped. “Where did you get this?”

  “I told you,” Milo said, “From the family archives.”

  Dani stared at the very same picture she’d ripped into little pieces and tossed into the garbage – or would be the same image except that the part with Lawrence had been cut away, leaving just a shot of her face. She couldn’t believe what she was looking at. Coincidence? Fate? Destiny?

  How much had her life changed in what – one day? Two days? She couldn’t tell anymore.

  She lifted her stunned gaze to Milo. “Based on this, you brought me here?”

  “That image was the start of my research. I ran the tests, probabilities, scans, more tests – and you passed – so I figure why not do something for my brother – who’s always doing nice things for me?” He patted Levi on the shoulder. “You were meant to be a gift for Levi.”

  Bells chimed again. Levi looked at her, his voice low, urgent as he said, “Dani?”

  Her gaze went from one brother to the other. Levi had taken the first step with the photo.

  Milo the next.

  This step was hers to take.

  She swallowed, held out her hand, and said, “Yes, Levi. I will marry you.”

  And Charmin, who’d been silent up until now, added, “Finally…”

  The End

  Broken Protocols 2

  by

  Dale Mayer

  The future is a dangerous place…

  To save her skin and the skin of her new lover, Dani Summerland marries Levi Blackburn. That’s the good part. The bad part is that she and Levi realize they’re pawns in a game with no rule book.

  Levi Blackburn can’t believe he’s married – but he’s a lucky man and he knows it. Now he needs to find out who is after Dani and why so they can start their honeymoon.

  As they struggle to find out who’s targeting them and what they want, the danger escalates and people around them start dying.

  It’s a good thing Charmin Marvin, her talking cat, is helping them.

  More protocols are broken and if they can’t win this game, their lives will be broken, too.

  Protocol 2:3:5 – You will in no way use force to damage the life of another – particularly if those actions are to selfishly enhance your own.

  Chapter 1

  Married? To Levi Blackburn? Just like that. Dani Summerland’s sense of humor kicked in. How typical of her crazy life. She couldn’t find a man on her own in the 21st century but was already married after a couple of days in the 23rd century. That was some matchmaking trick.

  And not by choice.

  Well, technically that wasn’t true. The marriage part was by choice. At least it seemed like a great idea at the time. All of five minutes ago.

  Dani Summerland stared suspiciously at the odd looking adornment on her finger. It looked like a ring. It didn’t feel like one. In fact, there was almost no weight to it at all. And given the size of the deep purple rock on top, she thought she’d have noticed. Even the metal was soft – comfortable to wear.

  She held her fingers splayed wide and shifted her hand in the age old movement of women ever since rings were invented.

  “Is it all right?” Levi Blackburn, her new husband, and yet still a stranger in many ways, stepped a little closer to her. The clear glass cube, or what stood in for being an elevator of this time period was almost normal – but there was no way she’d become accustomed to it as it disappeared into thin air when they arrived at their destination.

  She flashed him a quick grin. “Sure. I’m just not used to wearing big rocks that appear to be made of n
othing or that adjust automatically to any size.”

  “It’s the new alloys,” Milo, Levi’s brainy child brother, piped up. “Gold fell from grace when the shortage came about 90 years ago. This was the answer.”

  “And the supersized rocks?” she asked, playing with the rock to make it twinkle in the light.

  “Most are synthetic.” Milo judged his brother in a joking manner. “But not this one.”

  She frowned, pretty sure that the rocks in her day came in a synthetic variation as well. But they still had weight.

  Then she had no time to wonder as they arrived at their destination. “Now remember, just smile,” Levi said. “Hold out your arm when requested to do so, but don’t say a word.” He shoved his arm outward to demonstrate.

  She imitated his actions.

  With a nod, he said, “If anyone asks where you’re from, tell them you’re from Felonia and that you arrived just a couple of days ago.”

  “Felonia,” she repeated dutifully, dread congealing into a nasty ball in her stomach at the thought of anyone speaking to her. “Are you sure I can’t just go home?”

  “I wish you could. But after this, no one will question your presence or your absence in the future.” Levi wrapped an arm around her shoulder and led her forward. For all appearances, he looked like the doting new bridegroom. She shivered inwardly at the remembered passion they’d shared. Now if only they could head off on a romantic honeymoon.

  But apparently not. She managed a warm glowing smile. He was her lifeline right now. And had quickly become the love of her life.

  And for that, she’d even put up with his brother Milo. Whom she had yet to forgive for dragging her into this century. Using an amazingly advanced computer program, he’d gone back in time, snatched her up, and brought her here as a gift for his brother, Levi.

  Talk about a mind bender.

  That he’d also brought Charmin and accidentally enhanced Charmin’s communication abilities, which was originally intended for her, was beyond anything she could have imagined.