It was a cheery room, despite the toxic medicinal smell which assaulted the senses as soon as one entered it. But one soon forgot that, as the walls were a bright yellow, and there were always fresh red roses on the table, as if to assail the room's occupant from the ravages of the disease which rocked her frail body on a daily basis.

The young woman sat in her bed, writing furiously in a brand new journal. She was pale, her once thick brown locks lusterless and flat. But it didn't matter. What mattered was that her soul had to be poured into these words.

For they would be all that he'd have once she was gone.

"Dear Quinn," began the first entry.

"I've decided that it's important that I keep a record of my thoughts and hopes for you. Much as it pains me to be leaving you...it helps a bit to know that something of me will be left behind, for I don't want you to ever feel alone. So this diary is for you Quinn Mallory. Please, remember how much I love you...and how much I want you to be happy. Try not to grieve too much. I'll always be watching over you...and waiting for the day that you'll join me...when it's time. For after all, everyone has their time to leave. It was my time Quinn. Remember that.

I love you so much.

Wade"

A haggard looking young man entered the room after she shut the book. Worry marks crossed his sleepless eyes, but it was heartening to see how he tried to smile for his dying wife.

"Hi Angel," he said, a catch in his throat, as he bent down to kiss the young woman's cheek. So gaunt now...so pale.

Wade Mallory glanced up from her new journal at her husband with a soft smile. "Quinn," she said in a weak voice, a pleased expression lighting the features that had once been beautiful, and still were to him. "You came home early."

It pained Quinn to think that her beautiful smile would soon be lost to him. That is, unless he could pull off the idea that the Professor had suggested today. He sighed. They'd been working together on advanced physics. Perfecting the possibility of wormholes leading into other dimensions. Last week had been a breakthrough. The Professor's first "slide" as Quinn liked to call it.

Quinn sighed again as he thought of the machine...and the beautiful vortex. He would have gone himself had it not been for fear of leaving Wade alone.

After the Professor had returned from his slide he'd mentioned the idea. The theory was true! He'd gone to another world! Unfortunately the world he'd visited was not as advanced as their own. They didn't even have hover cars. Though the Professor was only on this world for 10 minutes, he surmised that there had to an infinite number of worlds out there -- each with it's own alternate history. Which meant there was a possibility that on one of them, Quinn might find a cure for Wade's disease. He knew how badly his pupil was faring over the condition of his young wife. And he wanted to help.

Quinn sighed again. He would do anything to find a cure for his Wade. But sliding? What if she died while he was in some other dimension? How would he live with himself? And how could he possibly leave her?

On another earth...

Quinn Mallory smiled teasingly at his best friend Wade Welles as she concentrated on the arcade game that they were playing. The world they were on had an infatuation with the eighties. It was Madonna, Michael Jackson, The Smurfs and fluorescent everywhere.

"I am soooo gonna kick your butt Quinn," Wade said as she sent Mrs. Pac-man after another 3000 points.

"Oh ya?" he said innocently raising an eyebrow as he sent Pac-man in the other direction. "Then how come I'm the one that just got the strawberries?"

50,000 points flashed on the screen, and Wade blew her hair off her forehead with a mock sigh of frustration. "That's what I get for playing with a genius," she said, giving him a playful shove. "Geez, Quinn, do you have to be good at everything?"

"Hey!" said Quinn, "I'm not good at everything! Just most things," he joked, laughing at the thunderous expression building on her face. She pummeled his arm lightly with her fists. "I'll have you know, you stink at plenty of things." She began listing things on her fingers. "You can't sing, you can't bet on hockey to save your life, you..."

Quinn laughed again, and gave her a mock bow. "Okay okay! You win. I stink!"

Wade smiled again, placated. She linked her arm through his. "You think Remmie and the Professor are through with their drive yet? I thought Remmie would go to heaven when he saw that Cadillac."

Quinn shrugged. "I dunno," he said. "But they better move it." he glanced at his watch. "Only...1 hour till the the slide."

They found the Professor and Remmie eating lunch at the Dominion Hotel's bar.

"Ah...Mr. Mallory...Miss Welles! I must say, this is a world I will be sorry to leave. They know how to treat a steak!" He rubbed his stomach as he took an appreciative bite from the plate in front of him.

Quinn grinned. "Looks good," he said. "But I think I'll go for a good ol' fashioned cheeseburger, like Remmie."

Wade made a face. "Ugh..." she said. "You guys are such carnivores! I'll have a salad," she said to the waitress that came up to take their order.

"Q-ball, you should seen this automobile!" said Remmie as he bit into his burger. "It was a machine! I am telling you, the Cryin' man was born to ride on the open road, he continued. "This place is great! Course the only drawback was this world was never blessed with the Cryin' Man's talent. "

Quinn grinned as Wade and the Professor both said "We know, your biggest hit was in '79."

Remmie smiled and began to hum, "Tears in my Fro."

Wade shook her head in resigned amusement.

Remmie shrugged. "Well what can I say...when a world don't know great talent, you just gotta protest."

Quinn glanced at the timer, got up and stretched. "Finish up guys, we're outta here...maybe the next world'll be home."

"I gotta say, I will be glad to be leaving this outfit," remarked Wade, glancing down at her Guess Jeans and crop top.

Quinn winked at her. "Oh I don't know," he said as the group walked out of the hotel and around the corner to a back alley. "I used to have a thing for that girl in Flashdance."

He pointed the timer at the wall and activated the vortex. The beautiful clear bluish swirl rippled and formed, waving the air with unnatural currents.

"Oh what a feeling!" yelled out Wade as she jumped through.

"Funny," muttered Quinn as first the Professor, then Remmie, launched into the hole in space time.

Quinn took one last look at 80's world, hummed a little Flashdance, then jumped through himself.

"Ooof!" said Wade as she landed in a pile of leaves. As she saw the Professor heading straight for her, she quickly rolled out of the way.

"Geronimo!" yelled Remmie landing straight on top of the Professor with a resounding thud -- and sending leaves everywhere.

Quinn landed on his feet at a run that sent him colliding into Wade, throwing them both down into the leaves with the Professor and Remmie.

"Plech! Mr. Brown get off me!" said the Professor's muffled voice as he spit out a few leaves.

Quinn groaned and got up, helping Wade to her feet.

"Not exactly what I'd call a Footloose entrance," she said.

Quinn just shook his head.

Then he got a good look around. He sighed dejectedly. "Definitely not home," he said pointing at the buildings surrounding them.

Wade looked up. "Woah!" she said. "Futurama!"

The buildings were tall and silver shaped, most pointing upwards as high as the eye could see in tall needle like structures.

"Intriguing," said the Professor. "Although you know Miss Welles, the theory of cosmic wormholes states we must travel sideways through space time, not forwards, so this definitely not the future."

"Could'a fooled me," said Remmie. "It does a pretty damn good imitation."

"No kidding," said Quinn. "You gotta wonder what other developments this world's got. I bet it's fascinating!"

"Indeed Mr. Mallory," said the Professor. "For once, I too, am most eager to go exploring."

"Hey guys," said Wade suddenly. "If this world's so advanced, you think maybe they've got sliding?"

Professor Arturo stroked his chin. "It's possible," he said slowly.

"Great idea Wade!" said Quinn, his eyes lighting up. "And I know just where to start looking!"

He hailed a cab quickly. "4159 BlueJay Way," he said, quickly noting the familiar driver in the front seat with a smile.

"Ach okay," said Pavel Kurlienko. They all gasped however when the cab lifted in the air.

"Woah! This is so cool!" said Wade. "We're catching air!"

"I think I'm going to be ill," remarked the Professor, as Pavel weaved up and down, and other flying cars joined them.

"Pavel, I gotta tell you, you are the best cab driver in San Francisco," said Remmie jokingly.

Wade elbowed him in the ribs.

"Haf I drove you before?" asked Pavel, eyeing the four passengers.

"Um...yeah," said Wade. "he's got a photographic memory, never forgets a face," she said in way of explanation while giving a dirty look to Remmie.

Meanwhile the Professor was grumbling to Quinn. "Conceited snippet!" he said irritably. "Why do you always assume that your house is the multiversal center of sliding?"

Quinn grinned cheekily. "Because it usually is," he said.

Remmie chuckled as Wade said saucily, "He's got a point Professor."

Part 2

"Sleep my love," said Quinn tiredly as he watched his wife's chest rising and falling, and heard her labored breathing. He bent down and softly kissed her pale cheek. She looked so peaceful lying there, face free of the pain that wracked her small body on a daily basis. While asleep she resembled nothing more than a child, shining bright in her sweet innocence.

He stroked her hair gently and sighed, noticing the way she clutched the brand new journal to her, even in sleep. He'd remembered when she's asked him to buy the book for her two days before. The fatalistic look in her eyes...He shook off the memory. It was too painful. He didn't ask what she was writing in it...really he didn't want to know. It was safer to live in denial and fight against the reality that Wade was dying, than to take the route she chose: that of a peaceful acceptance mingled with sadness at losing him. He knew that the thought of his pain hurt her more than the thought of her actual death. She was like that, he thought grimly. Self-sacrificing.

Quinn sighed briefly, getting up and slowly closing the door behind him. He had many decisions to ponder.

"My word," murmured the Professor as the foursome stepped out of the cab. Before them lay the area of ground where Quinn's house normally lay. But instead of the familiar old Victorian, a mass of shimmering white towers crested brightly.

A sign before the guarded gate proclaimed "MalTuro Labs."

"MalTuro..." murmured Quinn, glancing at his mentor. "Short for Mallory and Arturo?"

"Hmmm..." said the Professor. "I do believe you are right my boy." He chuckled ruefully. "It looks as though our doubles are a good deal more financed than we were."

"Well it's certainly a step up from the basement," remarked Quinn with a smile. He looked thoughtful for a moment. "If this is where our doubles work, then any sliding equipment's got to be here."

Wade looked at the stark white of the buildings which contrasted sharply with the green of the grass surrounding the entryway. The wrought iron gate stood forbiddingly in front of the foursome. She shivered involuntarily. "This place gives me the creeps," she said in a low voice. "It's so...white."

Remmie looked like he agreed with her assessment. "So, we gonna just march in there?" he asked, pointing at the guarded gate.

Quinn smiled. "Well...it is OUR lab," he said.

"Yes," said the Professor, stroking his chin thoughtfully. "But I suggest we remain on the side of caution. After all, we have no idea what sort of experiments our doubles are working on here."

"We've got to check," said Quinn, pacing up and down a bit. "It could be a way home."

"The impetuousness of youth," thought Arturo with an irritated sigh. "I never said we weren't going to check!" he snapped sharply. "I'm simply saying we know nothing of this world Mr. Mallory."

"Maybe we can find out something from the Internet," piped up Wade. "If I could get to a computer."

"There'll be computers in there," said Quinn, pointing towards the building. "I'm going...you coming Professor?"

"Yes...yes..." conceded the Professor with a sigh.

Professor Maximillian Arturo sat in a large overstuffed chair behind his desk in his laboratory office. Pictures of awards and framed honors graced his walls. On the desk lay a piece of paper half scribbled with notes on a theoretical equation. But Arturo paid no attention to his surroundings. He was trembling as he picked up his ringing phone.

"Have you convinced Quinn to slide yet?" asked the scratchy male voice on the other end of the line.

"He'll go," responded the Professor in a low voice.

"Good," said the voice again. "Once he's gone, we can begin."

"You never told me this would involve hurting Wade," said the Professor angrily. "She's dying!"

"Watch yourself Max," responded the voice shortly. "You've already seen what I did to Mrs. Mallory. I can do the same to you." The voice laughed. "Mrs. Mallory is a liability. One that will soon be disposed of."

The Professor winced. Once more promises were being broken. But he was afraid now. Too afraid to fight against powers that were over his head. Powers that were out of his hands. "Quinn will slide," said Arturo in a more subdued voice. "He'll do anything to help Wade. I'm sure of it."

"You'd better be Max," said the voice in a threatening tone. "Your life depends on it."

A confident grin on his face, Quinn led the sliders boldly up to the guarded gate. The guard, seeing four people approach on foot, stepped out of his kiosk for a moment.

"Halt! Who goes there?" he called out. Recognition dawned as the sliders grew nearer.

"Mr. Mallory. I thought you'd gone home for the evening to be with your...Mrs. Mallory?" The guard appeared confused as he recognized Wade's face.

Wade shifted uncomfortably and flushed. "I'm Mrs. Mallory?" she thought incredulously. Quinn caught her eye, and both shared an embarrassed grin. "Um...hi," Wade said finally, growing fidgety at the guard's continued stare.

"Er...hello my good man," said the Professor breaking up the awkward silence. "We've forgotten something rather vital in Quinn's office."

"Professor?" said the guard looking even more confused. "I didn't see you leave."

This put Arturo on edge. "My double must still be inside," he thought, eying Quinn to see if he'd caught the deduction as well.

He had. "Ah well...Professor, why don't you just wait for us here. We won't be more than a few minutes...will we honey?" said Quinn, taking Wade's arm and smiling forcefully at the guard.

"I'll wait here with you Professor," whispered Rembrandt. "Maybe we can pump this guard for more info?"

The Professor nodded slightly. "Good thinking Mr. Brown," he murmured.

"Oh!" said the guard. "Of course!" He opened the gate slowly. As Quinn and Wade started to walk through, he called out. "So glad to see that you're better Mrs. Mallory!"

Wade merely stared at him and continued walking.

The guard turned back to the Professor and Rembrandt and smiled. "What an amazing recovery!"

"Huh?" said Remmie.

"Why Mrs. Mallory...she's been very ill," the guard said conspiratorially to Remmie. "In fact, I'd heard that the doctors had given her only another month at most. I'm so glad to see her on her feet."

The Professor choked a bit at this revelation, but when the guard looked at him curiously he simply laughed heartily and clapped Remmie on the back. "Doctors are fools," he said cheerfully, though his eyes were anxious. "What do they know about real science?"

"Where do you suppose my office is Wade?" said Quinn as they wandered down the hallway. The complex was big! Wade clutched Quinn's arm nervously.

"I don't know but everyone keeps staring at me like I'm some kind of ghost," she said anxiously as another technician walked by and did a double take.

"That's just 'cause you married such a handsome fellow," said Quinn with a silly grin. In actuality he felt uncomfortable with the implications that this world brought up. Joking about it was the easiest way to deal with the situation.

Wade snorted. "Whatever," she said. "Why don't you get that head of yours back into reality and find *your* office."

As they reached the end of the hallway, a nameplate on the door caught Wade's eye.

"Quinn," she stammered.

"Wha-" said Quinn, turning around to see what she was pointing at. "Did you find my office?"

"No..." said Wade slowly. "But I found mine."

"So...uh...Anderson," say Remmie, leaning onto the kiosk where the guard sat facing him. "You say Wade was sick? I'm an old friend, but I uh...haven't been in town lately. Would you fill me in?"

The guard eyed Professor Arturo nervously, but the Professor played along and waved a hand. "Go on my good man, tell him...er...what's been happening here."

"Well..." said the guard. "As you probably know, Mrs. Mallory is one of our top scientists here, along with her husband and the Professor. The Mallorys have been working on some top secret project for the past year. Real hush hush. Lots of military types, you know the drill."

Remmie laughed falsely while eying the Professor. "Ya sure man, we know it," he said.

"Yeah well," said the guard. "About three months ago Mrs. Mallory started getting real sick. Missing work all the time y'know? None of the doctors could figure out what was wrong with her. Finally she didn't come in at all. The project was stalemated for awhile. But the Professor here is working on it now, so we're back on track, or so I hear right Professor?"

"Right...right," said the professor. His brow was furrowed, processing all that the guard had revealed.

"Anyway what with Mrs. Mallory being well enough to come back to work, looks like things'll be even better," said the guard.

Remmie eyed the Professor. This "project" had to be sliding. And if it was, they could go home!

Part 4

Wade and Quinn slipped into Wade's double's office in silence. "Well this is a weird feeling," thought Wade as she made her way over to the computer terminal. "What do you suppose I do here Quinn?" she said, looking around. The small office looked as if its occupant had been gone a few hours, rather than a few weeks. Everything was still lovingly in its place.

The office was painted light blue, and there were some brightly colored Van Gogh paintings decorating the walls. The desk housing a small computer was neat, besides the few papers scattered on it. Quinn walked over and picked one up. On it were a few equations that he recognized. And he also recognized the handwriting. It was Wade's.

"Well..." he said smiling. "I guess your double is a physicist." The thought of Wade as a physicist amused him as well as warmed his heart. It was just one more slide that showed him how capable she was. Far more capable than she even knew, he thought. He gave her a lopsided grin. "Guess your double has good taste."

Wade gave him a playful shove and sat down at the desk. "Let's find out what we've got here," she said with a smile.

The computer was unlike anything she had worked with before. The screen was a flat panel, barely an inch thick. In front of it, embedded into the desk was a plastic looking screen. There was no keyboard -- and no buttons.

"How the heck do I turn this thing on?" said Wade, staring dubiously at the keyboardless instrument panel.

Quinn studied the desk for a moment. "Voice identification?" he suggested.

"No..." said Wade. "We're close enough that my speaking right now would have turned it on."

"Hmm..." said Quinn, looking at the desk panel again. "Try your hand," he said, pointing to it.

Wade shrugged and placed her palm on the screen, face down.

At the contact, the screen lit up with a pleasant hum. "Yes!" said Wade. "We're in!"

A pleasant computerized voice spoke. "Welcome Wade Mallory. Confirming identification." And then a moment later, "Identification confirmed. Files generating."

"See if they've got anything on the sliding machine," said Quinn.

"Okay," said Wade, touching the now lit up screen.

Files came into view one by one, and Quinn shook his head at each one. They were files on sliding, but they were theoretical constructs, nothing concrete. What he needed was the location of the sliding machine...and hopefully blueprints.

A screen calling for a password came into view after the sixth file. "Wait a minute," said Wade as she sat hunched over the terminal. "I think this might be something..." Deftly she touched the screen with precision and within moments, blueprints filled the screen.

"Yes!!!" said Quinn giving Wade a hug in her chair. "That's exactly what we need...now if we can just get a location."

Wade frowned as she began perusing the files more closely. "Well this is weird," she remarked.

Quinn looked at her, his smile fading.

"This is the record of the sliding machine," she said, pointing at a document on the left corner of the screen. "But according to this, there quite a few files missing. Wiped out."

Quinn ran a hand through his tousled hair. "Why would someone erase the data records?"

Professor Arturo got up from his desk and stretched. It had been another long day, and there was still much to be done. He'd managed to alter the sliding equipment as instructed last week. Quinn was so distraught over Wade's illness, that he wasn't working very much. And when he was, he wasn't really there. Arturo knew this. He also knew it was the only reason Quinn had not detected his adjustments to the equipment.

Arturo examined his hands. Hands that were now dirty. Hands that were forced to act against his better judgment, and his own moral code. And hands that were in effect responsible for the suffering of Mallory's young wife. He shook his head. "It must be done," he said, almost angrily. "They'll kill me."

A moment later, a knock resounded outside of his office door.

"Come in," he said, his normally big booming voice sounding troubled even to his own ears.

The man that walked in was in his early twenties. He was of a medium build and Asian descent. His hair was short and clipped. Like Arturo he wore a white lab coat. Unlike Arturo however, he was wearing a button down shirt without a tie.

"Wing, what do you want at this ungodly hour?" said Arturo, glancing at his watch. It was nearly eight o'clock, and most of the lab technicians had headed home over thirty minutes before.

Wing looked nervous. "There's something up boss," he said in a worried tone.

Arturo sighed. "Not another meltdown in the chemical labs is it? If those idiots can't measure out clorium sulfate again I swear I'll--"

"No boss," said Wing, holding up his hands. "It's a way bigger disaster. Wade and Quinn Mallory are in the building."

Arturo looked stunned and he sucked in his breath. "Whaaaatttt?"

He walked over to Wing and grabbed him by the collar. "Where are they?"

Wing winced as Arturo's choke hold on his shirt got tighter. "In her office."

"Damn it man you let her in that office before you came and got me?!"

"I...I didn't know! Jones let it slip only a few minutes ago!"

Arturo released Wing with an aggravated sigh. "This could ruin it all," he said. "If she figures out what we've been up to...the General said she was dying!"

Wing shrugged. "Don't know," he said, "Maybe those military jocks aren't as foolproof as they think they are."

Arturo frowned. "No...something doesn't add up." He glared at Wing. "You call the General. I'm going to try and clean up this mess...and you, my good man, had best pray to God that she doesn't suspect anything yet. It's not just my life on the line here you know."

Arturo strode down the hallway muttering angrily to himself. This slip up could easily cost him everything. The General wanted Wade out of the way. Her death was not what Arturo wanted, but she couldn't be in the labs. Not if he was to alter the equipment. He'd made a bargain -- a bargain with the devil he felt now. But it was too late to stop the chain of events. His hands were tied.

He heard voices coming from within Wade's office as he reached the door. Not pausing to knock, he pulled a plastic smile on his face and strode in.

"Ah Wade!" he said merrily, as he walked over to the petite woman who stared at him in shock from the computer terminal. "I heard you were here! Why this is wonderful my dear! It's a miraculous recovery!"

Wade eyed Quinn in silent desperation. "Uh oh," she thought. "The Professor's double!"

She was mildly flabbergasted as he grabbed her in a large hug. Her Professor wasn't nearly so demonstrative. Quinn shot her a look that said, "We need to get out of here!"

"Um...Professor...it's good to see you too," she said as he released her. The Professor then turned to Quinn. "Ah my dear boy, I can not believe that you have been keeping the news of Wade's good health from me. You know how worried I was about her condition."

"Ah...yeah," said Quinn, thinking fast. "Well...uh...she wanted it to be a surprise. You know my Wade." He winked with a broad grin, though his eyes betrayed his consternation. "In fact," continued Quinn,"I think she wanted to get back to work right away...right honey?"

"Uh yeah," said Wade biting her lip and looking at Quinn like he was crazy. "You know me! Got to get back to the machine! Work work work!"

"Nonsense,"" said the Professor, fighting to control his raging heartbeat. "Do they know?" he thought. "No...I don't think so...not yet anyway."

"You two simply must join me for dinner tonight," he finished.

"But..." began Quinn.

"No buts my boy. Work is for tomorrow. Tonight we celebrate!"

Wade shrugged as she looked at Quinn. They were stuck.

Part 5

Death's Door Part 5

"You two simply must join me for dinner tonight."

The words rang in Quinn's ears like a warning bell. He glanced at Wade uncomfortably. There was no way to turn down the offer.

"Professor," said Wade with a benevolent smile. "Can we have just a moment to gather our things? We'll meet up with you shortly."

The Professor looked strange for a moment. Almost guilty, Wade thought with an inward frown. But she shook it off after a moment. "Stop being so paranoid," she thought to herself.

"But of course Wade," he finally said after a rather long pause. "I'll see you in just a moment then."

The Professor stepped out of the office and closed the door.

"I've got to call the front gate," said Quinn quietly. "The Professor and Remmie are still out there. If Arturo's double sees them..."

Wade nodded. "Call them," she said. "I just want to check something on the computer real quick." She glanced around nervously. "I don't know why, but I've got a creepy feeling about this."

Quinn sighed. He didn't want her to worry. "Calm down Wade. We'll meet up the others later. It's just dinner."

"Yeah," said Wade touching the screen with quick fingers. She didn't meet his eyes. "Maybe I'm just freaked out by this whole marriage thing." She flushed and continued to pull up files. Something was bugging her about those wiped out files. She was determined to find out what it was.

Quinn swallowed and didn't answer. He didn't know what to say to that unspoken topic. Their feelings for each other were the one subject under the sun that he and Wade couldn't talk about. He picked up the phone. "Front gate please," he said softly.

Wade slept listlessly, and Quinn watched her with anxious eyes. It had become an evening ritual -- this sitting by her bedside, making sure she was still...just sleeping. His own sleep had stopped mattering weeks ago, as she got worse and worse, the ravaging disease causing her more and more pain...and tearing him up as he watched her suffer.

The phone call broke him from his reverie. Little did he know that it would also change his life.

When the guard handed Professor Arturo the phone, he immediately knew something had gone wrong inside the laboratory. "I told that boy not go rushing off," he thought anxiously, his blustering attitude masking his hidden worry for the two young people he traveled with.

"Professor it's me. We got snagged by your double. He wants us to go to dinner at his place."

Well aware that the guard was within earshot, Arturo was careful choosing his words. "Yes, well that's unfortunate," he said in a calm tone of voice.

"Go ahead and check in at the Dominion," continued Quinn. "We'll meet you there later."

"There is another matter we should discuss," said the Professor in the same neutral tone.

Quinn sounded worried. "What?"

"Yes...yes," said the Professor winking at the guard, who smiled. "Wade has made a miraculous recovery from her illness. We will have to have her resume her place in the laboratory of course."

There was a rather long pause. "This world's Wade is sick?" asked Quinn, with an uneasy glance over at his Wade. "We thought that might be it...how sick?"

"Very bad...yes that is very bad," said Arturo.

Quinn sucked in his breath. He remembered a time when his own Wade had been deathly ill, not too long ago. The fear that had gripped his heart..."That's why they were all staring," he said softly.

"What is it Quinn?" asked Wade with a curious expression. He looked troubled.

"We have to go Professor, see you tonight."

"Yes...yes I will run in and meet you...of course," said the Professor. Rembrandt watched him. "What's goin' on here?" he thought.

As the Professor hung up the phone, he pulled Remmie aside by the crook of his arm, away from the guard. "We've must go into the complex for a few minutes so that when our friend the guard sees my double come out, he won't also see me."

"Uh..." said Remmie, still looking confused. "So if were goin' in...how we gonna get out? And what about Wade and Quinn?"

"Wade and Quinn are going to leave with me...ah...I mean my double. Apparently he cornered them." He looked at the complex before them. "As for how we will leave...." he pointed to his head, "leave that to me."

"Quinn...what is going on?" Wade repeated as he hung up the phone.

"Not now," whispered Quinn. "He," he pointed to the door, "is gonna suspect something if we keep him waiting much longer."

Wade wasn't satisfied with this response, but she shrugged in concession. She hadn't found any more clues on the missing files within the computer anyway.

They opened the door to greet Arturo's double, who stood beaming over them like a father watching his child walk for the first time. But for some reason Wade couldn't fathom, she felt there was something sinister behind his friendly gaze. His smile was too full of teeth.

"We're ready," said Quinn.

"C'mon then," said Arturo. "Let's be off."

"I just wanted to say I'm so happy that Wade's better." The voice on the other end of the line was Nancy, Quinn's secretary and a friend to both he and his wife.

Quinn blinked. "Better?" he said.

"When I saw you two walk in the labs tonight I was just so pleased!" she continued, oblivious to the questioning tone of his voice.

Quinn felt his heart beat speed up as if a volt of electricity had charged into it. "Walk in?" he said incredulously. "Is this some kind of sick joke Nancy?"

"Joke?" said Nancy. Now it was her turn to sound confused. "No of course not, I saw you..."

"Wade hasn't stepped out of this house in over a month," said Quinn coldly. "I don't know who put you up to this little prank, but rest assured I'll find out."

"But..." sputtered Nancy.

"Good-bye," said Quinn, hanging up on her.

He shook his head in anger. "Why would Nancy do that?" he thought. It wasn't like her at all. She knew how much he was hurting. Everyone knew. Hell he could barely function at work, much less solve the universal field equation. Without Wade there to share in it the discovery of sliding was meaningless. And without Wade life would be meaningless too.

Still, the phone call troubled him. He felt uneasy. There was only one person besides Wade that he was close enough with to share this feeling with. Sighing, he walked over to his hallway closet and pulled on a jacket. He would make a short trip over to Professor Maxinillian Arturo's.

Walking back into Wade's darkened sick room, he gently kissed her forehead. "I'll be less than an hour Angel," he whispered softly.

To be continued...