Tess Gerritsen - Gravity

Suddenly he sat up straight, his gaze frozen on the monitor.

"Todd," he said. "What's happening to her?"

"What?"

"There's something wrong with her heart." Todd raised his head and stared at the tracing shuddering across the monitor. "No," he said, and reached for the comm switch. "That's not her heart." The high whine of the monitor alarm sliced through Jack's twilight sleep, and he awakened with a start. Years of medical training, of countless nights spent in on-call rooms, had taught him to surface fully alert from the deepest sleep, and the instant he opened his eyes he knew where he was. He knew something was wrong.

He turned toward the sound of the alarm and was briefly disoriented by his upside-down view. Emma appeared to be suspended facedown from the ceiling. One of her three EKG leads floated loose, like a strand of sea grass drifting underwater. He turned hundred eighty degrees, and everything righted itself.

He reattached her EKG lead. His own heart was racing as he watched the monitor, afraid of what he would see. To his relief, normal rhythm blipped across the screen.

And then -- something else. A shuddering of the line. Movement.

He looked down at Emma. And saw that her eyes were open.

"ISS is not responding," said Capcom.

"Keep trying. We need him on comm now!" snapped Todd.

Gordon stared at the biotelemetry readings, not understanding any of it, and fearing the worst. The EKG skittered up and down, then suddenly went flat. No, he thought. We've lost her!

"It's just a disconnect," said Todd. "The lead's fallen off. She may be seizing."

"Still no response from ISS," said Capcom.

"What the hell is going on up there?"

"Look!" said Gordon.

Both men froze as a blip appeared on the screen. It was followed by another and another.

"Surgeon, I have ISS," Capcom announced. "Requesting immediate consultation." Todd shot forward in his chair. "Ground Control, close the loop. Go ahead, Jack."

It was a private conversation, no one but Todd could hear what Jack was saying. In the sudden hush, everyone in the room turned to look at the surgeon's console. Even Gordon, seated right him, could not read Todd's expression. Todd was hunched forward, both hands cupping his headset, as though to shut out any distractions.

Then he said, "Hold on, Jack. There are a lot of folks down here waiting to hear this. Let's tell them the news." Todd turned to Flight Director Ellis and gave him a triumphant thumbs-up.

"Watson's awake! She's talking!" What happened next would remain forever etched in Gordon Obie's memory. He heard voices swell, cresting into noisy cheers.

He felt Todd slap him on the back, hard. Liz Gianni gave a rebel whoop.

And Woody Ellis fell into his chair with a look of and joy.

But what Gordon would remember most of all was his own reaction. He looked around the room and suddenly found his throat was aching and his eyes were blurred. In all his years at NASA, no one had ever seen Gordon Obie cry. They were damn well not going to see it now.

They were still cheering as he rose from his chair and walked, unnoticed, out of the room.

Five Months Later

Panama City, Florida

The squeal of hinges and the clank of metal echoed in the vast Navy hangar as the door to the hyperbaric chamber at last swung open.

Jared Profitt watched as the two Navy physicians stepped out first, both of them taking in deep breaths as they emerged. They had spent over a month confined to that claustrophic space, and they seemed a little dazed by their sudden transition into freedom. turned to assist the last two occupants out of the chamber.

Emma Watson and Jack McCallum stepped out. They both focused on Jared Profitt, crossing toward them.

"Welcome back to the world, Dr. Watson," he said, and held out his hand in greeting.

She hesitated, then shook it. She looked far thinner than her photographs. More fragile. Four months quarantined in space, followed by five weeks in the hyperbaric chamber, had taken its toll.

She had lost muscle mass, and her eyes seemed huge and darkly luminous in that pale face. The hair growing back on her shaved scalp was silver, a startling contrast against the rest of her mane.

Profitt looked at the two Navy doctors. "Could you leave us alone, please?" He waited until their footsteps faded away.

Then he asked Emma, "Are you feeling well?"

"Well enough," she said. "They tell me I'm free of disease."

"None that can be detected," he corrected her. This was an important distinction. Though they had demonstrated that Ranavirus did indeed eradicate Chimera in lab animals, they could not be certain of Emma's long-term prognosis. The best they could say was that there was no evidence of Chimera in her body. From the moment she'd landed aboard Endeavour, she'd been subjected to repeated blood tests, X rays, and biopsies. Though all were negative, USAMRIID had insisted she remain in the hyperbaric while the tests continued. Two weeks ago, the chamber pressure had been dropped to a normal one atmosphere. She had remained healthy.

Even now, she was not entirely free. For the rest of her life she would be a subject of study.

He looked at Jack and saw hostility in the man's eyes. Jack had said nothing, but his arm circled Emma's waist in a protective gesture that said clearly, You are not taking her from me.

"Dr. McCallum, I hope you understand that every decision I made was for a good reason."

"I understand your reasons. It doesn't mean I agree with your decisions."

"Then at least we share that much -- an understanding." He did not offer his hand, he sensed that McCallum would refuse to shake it. So he said simply, "There are a number of people waiting to see you. I won't keep you from your friends any longer." He turned to leave.

"Wait," said Jack. "What happens now?"

"You're free to leave. As long as you both return for periodic testing."

"No, I mean what happens to the people responsible? The ones who sent up Chimera?"

"They are no longer making decisions."

"And that's it?" Jack's voice rose in anger. "No punishment, no consequences?"

"It will be handled in the usual manner. The way it's done at any government agency, including NASA. A discreet shuffle to the sidelines.

And then a quiet retirement. There can't be any investigation, any disclosure whatsoever. Chimera is too dangerous to reveal to the rest of the world."

"But people have died."

"Marburg virus will be blamed. Accidentally introduced to ISS by an infected monkey. Luther Ames' death will be attributed to a mechanical malfunction of the CRV."

"Someone should be held accountable."

"For what, a bad decision?" Profitt shook his head. He turned and looked at the closed hangar door, where a slit of sunlight through. "There's no crime to punish here. These are people who simply made mistakes. People who didn't understand the nature of what they were dealing with. I know it's frustrating for you. I understand your need to blame someone. But there are no real villains in this piece, Dr. McCallum. There are only heroes." He looked directly at Jack.

The two men regarded each other for a moment. Profitt saw no warmth, no trust in Jack's gaze. But he did see respect.

"Your friends are waiting for you," said Profitt.

Jack nodded. He and Emma crossed to the hangar door. As they stepped out, a burst of sunlight shone in, and Jared Profitt, squinting against the brightness, saw Jack and Emma only in silhouette, his arm around her shoulder, her profile turned to his. To the of cheering voices, they walked out and vanished into the blinding light of midday.

The Sea

A shooting star arced across the heavens and shattered into bright bits of glitter. Emma took in a sharp breath in awe, inhaling the smell of the wind over Galveston Bay. Everything about being home again seemed new and strange to her. This unbroken panorama of sky. The rocking of the sailboat's deck beneath her back. The of water slapping Sanneke's hull. She had been so long deprived of simple, earthbound experiences that just the sensation of the on her face was something to be treasured. During the last months of quarantine on the station, she had stared down at the earth, homesick for the smell of grass, the taste of salt air, the the soil under her bare feet. She had thought, When I am home again, if I am ever home again, I will never leave it.