Chapter Four
Ava
She walked herself to the med bay. Most of the crew were busy on other decks, so no one saw her until she reached the imposing metal doors.
When she walked in, the handful of doctors and medical staff ignored her until she ambled up to one of the beds with a wet, bloody squelch.
“Jesus,” the closest doctor – a human male of Asian descent – sprang toward her. “Are you okay? Is that your blood?”
She replied by digging her fingers under the skin graft and tearing it right off. “Yes.”
“Hey, no, don’t do that,” he snapped as he lurched toward a medical tray and waved it toward her bed.
“It has to come off. There’s nerve damage,” she said impassively.
Though she could still feel the pain, her mind was elsewhere.
What exactly had Shera and Meva been doing? Had Meva been there when Lieutenant McLane had run into Shera, or had Shera specifically gone to get her?
A cold, uncomfortable sensation ran through her gut as she thought.
“What the heck happened to you?” the doctor continued as he waved over another staff member.
“I was in a lift that malfunctioned. Lieutenant McClane and I had to get out of the lift before if fell. We managed to. However, the lift caught my arm as it went past and sliced off a section of my wrist.”
“Hunter? Hunter was with you? Is he alright?”
“He’s uninjured.”
“He’s an old friend of mine. I’m Doctor Chen Ming, by the way.” Ming moved quickly and deftly as he stopped the bleeding and stabilized her arm.
“It’s nice to meet you.”
He stabbed his fingers into his medical scanner and whistled. “You’re lucky to be alive….”
“Ensign Ava.”
“Ava. You’ve lost a lot of blood. I’m not too familiar with Avixans, but you shouldn’t even be walking, let alone talking. Come to think of it, how the hell did you get here?”
“I walked.”
He stared at her in startled amazement. “You walked. From where?”
“Deck 4.”
He paled. “All on your own?”
She nodded.
“What about Hunter? Why the hell did he leave you alone?”
“He was called away by Lieutenant Commander Shera,” she tried to keep her voice even, impassive, unemotional. She couldn’t. Not quite.
What did Shera want?
What kind of game was she playing?
She would know the stakes if she threatened Ava directly. All Ava would need was a scrap of evidence, and the Avixan government would lock Shera in extended stasis for fifty years.
“He shouldn’t have done that. You shouldn’t have been left on your own. What the hell was he thinking?”
“It’s alright, doctor. He did what he was told. And I’m fine. I walked here without incident.”
“Who told him to leave you? Why didn’t someone call the medics?”
“Lieutenant Commander Shera needed him for another task.”
“Well, I’m going to tell the Captain, because that is completely out of line.”
She paused. “… It’s okay, doctor. Lieutenant Commander Shera, as an Avixan, is familiar with our biology. She knew I was in no immediate danger. She made a call, and it was a correct one.”
Chen opened his mouth but closed it with a sigh. “Maybe you’re right. But that was still unnecessary.”
“Perhaps,” she agreed in a dull tone.
Then she shifted her gaze and stared at the floor behind Chen.
She’d just covered for Shera, not out of loyalty to the woman, but out of loyalty for her people.
As of yet, Ava had no evidence Shera had done anything wrong. And she’d need evidence if she wanted to go against the Lieutenant Commander.
As she took another deep sigh, she tried to convince herself once more that this must all be an unfortunate coincidence.
Shera would never make a move against her.
It would just be too costly.
…
Lieutenant Hunter McLane
As soon as he was finished with Shera, he rushed to the med bay.
Every now and then he passed a bloodied footprint, and they sent guilt and fear kicking through his stomach.
By the time he reached the med bay, he was running at full pelt.
He swung through the open doors and almost plowed right into someone.
He looked up to see a shocked Chen. “Whoa? You okay?”
“I’m fine. How’s Ava?” Hunter craned his neck past the lanky Chen. “Ensign Ava. Tell me she got here, right?”
Chen’s expression crumpled, his lips pressing into a tight frown. “Oh, she got here alright. She’s been fixed up and is back in her quarters. But what the hell were you thinking leaving her alone to walk through the ship with an injury like that?”
Despite the fact Chen had just told him she was fine, Hunter couldn’t stop himself from pushing past and checking the med bay with jerked movements. When he was sure she wasn’t there, he turned and let out a trapped breath. A breath it felt as if he’d been holding since that lift had given way.
Chen watched him carefully, the edge of his terse gaze turning into concern. “I told you, she’s fine, Hunter. How she walked here on her own with that much blood loss, I don’t know, though. But she was in good spirits and is obviously pretty resilient. She didn’t even ask for any painkillers.”
“You gave them to her anyway, right?” for some reason Hunter kept stumbling over his words.
“Of course I gave them to her. I know my job, do you know yours?” As soon as he said it, Chen looked like he regretted it.
It was too late, though. Hunter took a stiff breath, blew it through his even stiffer lips, and dropped his gaze to the floor. “I thought I did. But today’s been kind of crazy. Shera gave me a direct order. She said Ava would be fine….” Hunter couldn’t help but trail off. He was cold even thinking about that interaction.
“Well, she was fine. So I guess Shera’s right. Despite Ava’s insistence, however, I’m still going to have to flag this with the Captain.”
Hunter nodded. Even if Chen hadn’t brought it up, Hunter would have done it anyway.
Harvey needed to know something wasn’t quite… right between Shera and Ava. If he didn’t already know, that was. Hunter couldn’t rule out the possibility that the reason Harvey was suspicious of Ava was because Shera had told him to be.
Hunter withdrew into a pensive silence only broken when Chen shot him a pointed look. “Are you just going to stand there blocking the doorway forever? I told you where she is. Her quarters are on B Block.”
Hunter’s brow crumpled with a twitch. “I’m not going to go see her.”
“You burst in here looking for her, running at light speed, and you don’t have the gall to go see her in her quarters? I’m sure she wouldn’t mind. She seems pretty reasonable.”
Hunter opened his mouth. He had no idea what to say to that.
He didn’t get the chance anyway.
His wrist device beeped. Surprised, he shook his head. “These are working now?”
“Sure. B’cal got them up with limited use for senior staff a couple of hours ago,” Chen said offhand as he walked away. “If that’s the Captain – and I bet it is – inform him I will be preparing a report on this incident.” With that, he waved and ducked out of sight.
Hunter took a steeling breath and tapped his wrist device. “Lieutenant McClane here.”
“Hunter. Get to my office. Now. I want you to tell me why the hell one of my lifts is a smoking pile at the bottom of the ship.”
Hunter let out a slow breath. “On my way.”
He twisted hard on his foot. Rather than use a lift to get to the bridge, he settled for sprinting through the corridors.
It took him a full fifteen minutes, but finally, he reached Harvey’s office.
“You chose to walk?” Harvey snapped as soon as Hunter
entered, the doors swishing closed with a hiss.
“Can you blame me? I think I’ll give the lifts a miss for now.”
“Fair enough. Now sit down and tell me what the hell happened.”
Though Harvey looked as though he was trying to control his expression, he was failing. Badly. Stress lines marked his brow, his mouth drawn into such a thin frown it looked like it had been drawn on by a ruler.
Hunter told him the full story from beginning to end, leaving out nothing.
Harvey sat there silently as he either tried to take it in or decide how much to believe. Then he let out a sharp sigh and collapsed his hand over his eyes briefly before letting it drop to his desk. “So you’re telling me I almost lost two crewmembers without even leaving space dock.”
“Almost. We’re still alive, Harv. Nothing happened.”
“Nothing? By the sounds of it, Ensign Ava almost bled out in an access tunnel. How’d she get to the med bay, by the way? You left that part out.”
Hunter stiffened.
He had no idea what to say next.
He’d known Shera for years. She was a close friend of Meva and nearly all the other Avixans he’d ever met.
Apart from Ava, obviously.
But worse – Shera was very much romantically involved with Harvey. Harvey had never told Hunter this, but Hunter wasn’t an idiot.
“What aren’t you telling me?” Harvey pushed.
Hunter winced.
“Just spit it out.”
“You want to know how Ava got to the med bay… she walked.”
“Sorry? I don’t understand.”
Hunter couldn’t control his expression. He knew it was a confused mixture of guilt and confusion. “She walked herself to the med bay.”
“W-h-y?” Harvey asked, enunciating every syllable, his expression becoming dark. “If she was as injured as you claim….” Harvey quickly typed something on his personal computer panel. His expression stiffened even further as he read something. Finally, he jerked his gaze up. “And the medical reports confirm,” he continued in a truly dark tone, “Then what the hell was she doing walking herself to the med bay?”
“… Shera pretty much ordered her to.”
In a single second, Harvey was derailed. His expression went from barely-restrained anger to shock. “What are you talking about?”
“I wanted to go with Ava to the med bay, but Shera insisted I show her where the lift crashed. She said she knew more about Avixan biology, said Ava would be fine on her own.”
Harvey didn’t move a muscle.
Neither did Hunter.
“I see,” Harvey managed eventually.
Really? Because Hunter didn’t.
The more he thought about this, the more he didn’t understand.
He pressed forward in his seat before he knew what he was doing. “I think Shera has a problem with the Ensign.” Maybe he should have chosen his words better – phrased things differently. But he had to say something.
Harvey visibly stiffened. “Why do you say that?”
“It’s plain as day. You should see the way they look at each other.”
“So Ensign Ava has a problem with the Lieutenant Commander,” Harvey concluded, stressing Shera’s proper rank.
“I didn’t say that.”
“You said you should see the way they look at each other. That suggests the problem, if there is one, is mutual.”
“Fine. But it’s not like that. I don’t think Ava’s the problem.”
Harvey drew his arms back and crossed them, a telling move – a move that, if Hunter was in the mood to listen, would tell him to stop.
He wasn’t in the mood to listen.
“Really? Barely a few hours ago you were in here telling me she shouldn’t even be on this ship.”
Hunter couldn’t help but let out a bitter laugh. “Yeah, then I almost died,” he spat, “And she’s the only reason we’re both alive. So that kind of put things in perspective for me.”
He shouldn’t be talking to the Captain like this. But the Captain was being a jerk.
Harvey had one defect, though he’d never admit it – he was too loyal.
“I’ve known Lieutenant Commander Shera for years. She’s a trusted member of my senior staff—”
“And your goddamn girlfriend,” Hunter interjected before he could stop himself.
Harvey stiffened. Heck, stiffened wasn’t the right word. It looked like all the blood drained from his body, and he became nothing more than a plank of bone and hardened flesh. “Lieutenant, what the hell did you just say?”
Hunter clenched his teeth and drew a deep breath through them. “I’m sorry, Captain. I wasn’t speaking as a lieutenant.”
“Well, you sure as hell better not have been speaking as my brother either – I’d hope my brother would have more tact than that.”
Hunter sunk back into his chair, the barbed insult sinking hard into his gut.
“At times I don’t get you,” Harvey spat. “You have everything going for you, but you keep making stupid decisions.”
“Fine. You’re right. I’m an idiot, and I’ll never live up to you. But that’s not the point, Captain. I’m telling I believe Lieutenant Commander Shera has a problem with one of the ensigns under your command. I’m telling you, her understanding of Avixan biology aside, it was damn out of line to make an injured crew member walk themselves to the goddamn med bay,” Hunter’s voice became louder and louder as the injustice of the situation caught up with him.
He shouldn’t have followed Shera’s order. It had been the right thing to do in terms of the chain of command, but the wrong thing to do morally.
For a few drawn out seconds, Harvey did nothing. He said nothing. He didn’t even blink. “Go back to your quarters.”
Hunter shook his head, pressed his lips closed, and rose. “Aye, Captain.” He turned on his foot.
“I don’t know what you think of me, Hunter, but you should know I’m capable of putting my personal feelings aside. I will talk to Shera. I’ll find out her side of the story before I throw away her years of loyalty and condemn her.”
Hunter was damn lucky he had his back to Harvey. If Harvey saw the snide frustration scrunching Hunter’s brow, there’d be a court martial.
“Is that all?” Harvey asked.
“Yeah.”
“Yes, Captain.”
Hunter paused. He wanted to stalk through the door without kowtowing to his brother. A single scrap of reason held him back. “Yes, Captain.” With that, he walked off.
He came across Shera on the bridge. She looked up and nodded at him courteously. “Did everything go okay?”
“Fine.” He forced himself to nod. Then he walked for the door that led back into the hall beyond.
“The lifts are now fixed,” Shera called from behind him.
“If it’s all the same, I’ll keep my feet on solid ground for a while.” He strode out of the doors and into the corridor. Only when he was alone did he allow his expression to crack. And his calm cracked along with it.
He balled up a fist and struck it into the wall. It sent out a resounding, thumping echo.
A few ensigns took that moment to walk around the corner. He straightened up just as they looked around curiously. “What was that?” one asked.
“Probably another problem. We’d better tell the chief.”
Hunter strode past them, locking his hand behind his back as he clutched his fingers in and out.
He wanted to hit something again. Specifically his brother.
What the hell was Harvey’s problem? He was a captain. He was also Hunter’s brother. Did Harvey think such little of him that he’d ignore a direct warning? Or was Shera more important than his goddamn flesh and blood?
Hunter strode through the corridors aimlessly.
He should follow Harvey’s order and return to his quarters.
He didn’t.
Block B. Ava was in Block B. A part of him wanted to see her, a part
didn’t.
A part reasoned that if he’d never met Ava, he wouldn’t be in this position. He wouldn’t have just been insubordinate.
Then again, if he hadn’t met Ava, he’d be a pancake at the bottom of that lift shaft.
His conscience got the better of him. He walked toward Block B.
He didn’t reach it.
Meva found him. She walked up to his side and tipped her head down, a few loose strands of her silky white hair shifting over her shoulders. “You okay?” She kept step beside him, her hands locked behind her back, her head still tilted toward him.
He didn’t want to look at her for some reason.
“Hunter.” She pushed out a hand, her warm fingers curling around his arm.
It was enough to stop him in his tracks.
“I know you. I know that expression. You’re pissed about something.”
He locked his jaws together.
He didn’t want to speak, but when she placed a flat warm hand on his back and sighed, he caved.
She always knew just how to comfort him.
“Just come back to your quarters, and I’ll explain everything,” she said in a hushed tone as she dropped her hands and took a step away.
A few seconds later two hurrying engineers rushed down the corridor.
He hadn’t heard them coming. Then again, he wasn’t an incredible Avixan warrior.
It took him a moment to realize what she’d said. “What do you mean you’ll explain everything?”
“Just come back to your quarters.” She reached a hand out to him.
He was torn as he looked at it. “Meva, what’s going on?”
“Hey, Hunter, just come back to your quarters. I know it’s confusing now, but just trust me.”
On the word trust, he moved.
He followed.
Meva didn’t breathe a word until the doors shut behind him and he walked into the center of his room.
Meva immediately pulled her hair out, grasping the strange clasp she used to hold it back and throwing it on his recliner.
He raised an eyebrow at the move.
As she fluffed her hair up and brushed it over her shoulder, she lifted an eyebrow too. “Don’t get any ideas. I’ve got a shift in half an hour.”
“Then skip to the bit where you tell me what’s going on.” There was an edge to his tone.
She picked up on it as she tilted her head toward him and shook it. “Don’t trust her.”
“What?”
“Ensign Ava,” Meva’s lips moved jarringly around each syllable. “Don’t trust her.”
A cold sensation sank through his gut. “What are you talking about? Why not?”
“I can’t tell you. You just have to trust me. Believe me, if you’re feeling any sympathy for her, she doesn’t deserve it.” Though Meva’s expression was normal, her tone wasn’t. It was bitter.
“What’s going on?” he insisted. “What the hell is so wrong with Ensign Ava?”
Meva stretched an arm over the back of the recliner and shifted until she was looking at him, her glistening hair arranged attractively down her front, a few strands caught in her half-undone collar. “What’s going on, is you need to trust me. As for what’s wrong with Ava… I can’t really get into that.”
“What? For cultural reasons? She almost bled out today,” he found himself snapping.
He knew the rules. He’d been with Meva long enough to know never to ask her about her people.
Now, that didn’t matter. First his brother, now Meva – what the hell was everyone’s problem with Ava?
Granted, he’d convinced himself to hate her on pretty slim evidence this morning. A lot had changed in the intervening hours.
So now he pushed.
Meva stopped arranging her hair over her shoulder. She narrowed her eyes. “I don’t know what she’s told you about me, but don’t believe it.”
“About you? What? She hasn’t said a word about you. We were too busy almost dying. Now, if you want me to trust you, you have to tell me what’s going on.”
She rested her hands on her lap and pushed her back hard into the recliner.
She looked at him, her luminescent blue eyes catching the light. “I would have thought I didn’t have to earn your trust. You don’t have to earn mine.”
Her comment punched through him. He felt his shoulders deflating.
“But fine. I’ll tell you… what I can.”
He looked up sharply, anticipation making the move jerky.
“Ava believes she is better than us.”
“What?” His nose crumpled in confusion.
“She is from a different clan to Shera and myself. In fact, she’s from a different clan to every Avixan on the Mandalay. A clan that assumes superiority over everyone else.” Meva wouldn’t look at him as she spoke. Instead, she stared at the large window behind his bed. “Her people have enslaved us for thousands of years.”
Hunter’s stomach kicked.
“They’ve repressed us, jealous of our power,” Meva continued in a slow cold tone.
He swallowed. He’d never seen her like this, never heard her speak this way.
This wasn’t an act. She believed every word she was saying.
“I can’t tell you much more. Just don’t trust her.”
He took a sharp breath and stood back, reeling. “I… had no idea.”
“Of course you didn’t – it’s a crime to discuss Avixan society with outsiders.”
“But… if your people are still enslaved, you need to appeal to the Coalition. They’ll be able to help.”
Meva stretched her arm along the back of the recliner and tapped her fingers against the fabric. “We can look after ourselves.”
“So… Ava comes from a different clan to you,” he repeated, trying to wrap his head around this new information. “Has she ever directly threatened you? You didn’t interact at the Academy, did you? I’ve never seen you two together.”
“We lived in fear. We still live in fear.” Meva pushed slowly to her feet and pushed toward him, only stopping when she was right before him. “Every day. We live in fear of retribution if we step out of line. They control us, stifle our abilities so we can’t threaten them.” She suddenly looked away, then pushed against him, collapsing her head against his shoulder. “I came to the Academy to get away. So did Shera. Then one of them followed us. So you can understand if we don’t trust Ava. We have good reason.” She nuzzled against him.
Automatically, he wrapped an arm around her. “God, I’m so sorry. But there’s got to be something we can do. Your people shouldn’t have to live like this. If the Coalition find out—”
“They’ll jeopardize diplomatic relations. And they won’t get directly involved in a sovereign state’s issues, anyway. This is an Avixan problem. And don’t worry, we’ll deal with it.”
“What does that mean?”
She nuzzled against him harder, her loose hair bunching against his neck. “I don’t know what I’m saying,” she sighed as she hooked a hand on his sleeve, her face still pressed against his chest. “If I tell myself that, it’s easier to sleep at night.”
“Meva… I had no idea.”
“Don’t beat yourself up about it. I’m okay now. I’m not on Avixa anymore. I’m here with you. And you’ll look after me, won’t you, Hunter?”
“O-of course.”
“Then just hold me.”
He pressed his arms closer around her back and locked his chin over her head.
And with open eyes, he stared through the window.
Harvey had been right. Christ. Of course he’d been right.
Hunter shouldn’t have turned against Shera so easily.
If he’d been in Shera’s shoes, he would have done worse.
Ava was turning out to be the monster everyone kept telling him she was.