Future Prospect (17 page)

He’d brought her a wide assortment of foods, all clearly made by him and not picked up at the dining hall on his way over; biscuits, a small jar of some purplish jelly, a frittata sliced into wedges and filled with herbs and mushrooms, a jug of hot tea, and a bowl of sliced fruit. Her stomach growled at the thought of the bounty, and she passed the enclosed plates to the two men, anxious to serve herself and start to eat. She couldn’t remember her last meal.

“So, what caused it?” Colan asked as he accepted a plate loaded with food. She tried to catch his eye and smile, to show her appreciation for all he’d done, but he kept his gaze on Zashi.

“Same chemical compound as the last two. In the storage closet in a container that could have been there for some time. The building was wide open because of all the last-minute construction. Easy for someone to wander in and place it. We’re just lucky there was no shrapnel included.”

“Who?”

Zashi shrugged his shoulders and ate a bite of egg. Lia focused on her own plate at that point, everything in her craving nourishment as quickly as possible. She needed fuel if she was going to recover and contribute.

“Not the boys. I don’t believe they had anything to do with the earlier blast either.” The security officer poured himself some tea and took a slow sip, watching Colan and waiting for a reaction.

“Someone else wants to sabotage the settlement. They just used the same compound, and it diverted suspicion for a time,” Colan concluded, and Lia put down the biscuit she slathered with spicy scented jelly without taking a bite.

“You think a Pearlite deliberately tried to hurt us?” she blurted out, her voice higher pitched than usual.

Colan finally looked at her and nodded, and Lia went cold. She’d assumed these had been diversionary actions, pranks gone wrong, but the idea someone had deliberately set out to harm was chilling.

“That’s my conclusion as well.” Zashi ate another bite of breakfast, his appetite apparently undeterred by mayhem and murder. “I’m going to question Gina Healy’s boys this morning and find out who they might have spoken with about their explosive. Do you have any information on who might have wanted to cause this? Specific grievances against the new settlers?”

Colan sighed and leaned back in his chair as if he wished he were somewhere else. Of course he did; Lia felt the same. She wanted to be on a shuttle heading away from Gamaliel and the unknown person who wanted her dead.

“A few. But I can’t believe—” He visibly stopped himself and glanced at Lia. “I don’t want to believe anyone I’ve known here would be capable of this sort of thing.”

“Someone had to do it. Would you like to come with me to talk with the boys? They’ll be more comfortable with you there. How about you meet me there in half an hour?” Zashi placed his empty plate down on the table and looked ready to start out immediately. Colan tapped his gloves again and studied the carpet.

With a nod, Zashi rose, politely carrying his debris to Lia’s kitchen before leaving with a wave and assurances he’d keep her updated. This left Lia alone with Colan, and she waited—waited for him to say something to her that wasn’t related to injury or sabotage or work that needed to be done. Even though those were perfectly good distractions which she intended to use as soon as possible.

“How are you?”

“Sore. Sad.” Lia sucked in a breath, and her stomach hurt. “Thank you for your help yesterday.”

Colan stood and shoved his gloves back in his pocket, ready to leave her. “Right. You’re welcome. What are you going to do today?”

“Start rescheduling. Check in on Moca. Meet with Cordon and see what he needs.” Lia took a breath as another realization hit her. “I want to see Tully, before he’s gone. And I’ll pack up his things to return to his family.”

Colan shook his head at her recitation, his eyebrows lowering. “That’s too much. You should rest.”

“I need to work. We need everyone on this now. People are depending—”

“No. You should rest. I’m checking with the doctor.” Colan reached for his datpad, which shocked her almost as much as his personal demands. She couldn’t recall when she’d ever seen him use the thing.

“No. You aren’t. My health is my business.” Anger twisted inside. She knew she was feeling grief and rage at what had happened and the impulse not to take it out on the man in front of her did exist, she just didn’t have strength to resist it at the moment.

“No. It’s my business too since I pulled you out from under that mess and saw you lying there, not moving—”

Colan stared at her, his mouth tight. Lia’s outrage ebbed when she saw how upset he was. She’d had no idea he’d seen her in the rubble; she’d assumed he’d found her later in the clinic and had stayed to check on her.

“I’m hardly going to strain myself by coordinating information and talking with people.” She tried to soften her tone.

“You will if you pack boxes and lift them.” Colan stopped messing with the coil of his datpad as he stared at her. “I don’t want you coming to the blast site either. It’s still a mess, and you could get hurt.”

“You can’t tell me where to go or what to do.” Lia wanted to fight back, but the idea of doing more than making her way to the clinic to see the magistrate and filing some reports was overwhelming. But there was no need to let Colan think she had acquiesced so easily.

“Eat your breakfast. I’m going.” He propped his hands on his hips. Lia took in his worn and torn clothes, the fresh scrapes on his face and knuckles, and another piece of her heart broke off. What this man was going out to face, what Zashi and so many other were going to have to do today, made her want to weep anew.

“Good. I have work to do.”

“I’m checking on you later.” He walked toward her door, evidently sure his point had been made and she would be obedient. Lia hardly felt obedient, but she was sore, shaky, and the last interchange with him had worn out her bravado for the day. Or maybe the week. Fine, Colan Nestor got his way today. Tomorrow she’d be stronger, and he’d lose.

Lia waited in the medical room next to Tully’s swathed body. The other victim, Aline Yao, a woman from Freton who’d been elected group leader, waited on another gurney. She’d only been on planet a few hours when she’d been killed, all her hopes for the future destroyed like the front of the barracks. Lia placed a hand on Citizen Yao’s gurney, wishing she’d met the woman at least once so she could say goodbye properly.

Once the passengers disembarked on the shuttle that had just arrived outside, Lia would accompany her friend to the ship and say her final farewell. Tully had been such a happy and good man, so excited to join her on this expedition to explore a new planet and do some good. Now, his body was going back to his grieving family, and Lia was left wondering if she’d made the right decisions.

She shifted in her seat, soreness creeping into her injured muscles. She’d first visited Moca when she’d arrived in medical. The magistrate was improved and busy with her datpad, requesting additional security and safety personnel as soon as possible. Lia apprised her of the scheduling she’d done, and then she left to hold her vigil at Tully’s side. She didn’t want him to spend these final minutes on Gamaliel alone. She’d double-checked the shipping routes just to make sure Tully and Aline would find their ways home through the galaxy with no delays.

Her datpad pinged with a message from Zashi. He was on his way to help her, and she rose slowly, her joints popping out a protest. The door to the holding area opened, and the security chief entered, silently activating the gurneys and pushing Aline out into the corridor. Lia followed with Tully, the lifters on the bed making the task of moving her friend no effort at all. It seemed as if it should be harder to push him. They exited the building through opened loading bay doors, and the bright sunlight and humid breeze of Gamaliel washed across her like an invigorating balm.

The shuttle gleamed at the center of the new landing deck, and a group of settlers headed toward the new admin building for processing. They had to pass the ruins of the barracks on their way, and even at this distance, Lia could see them pause and look over the destruction. Quite a welcome to their new home. People moved in the wreckage, and construction bots glittered in the sunlight as they lifted debris toward neat piles growing at the edge of the common area. She spared a thought for Colan and wondered if he was there working.

She and Zashi continued on their way directly toward the open hatch in the belly of the ship where a crew member waited. She nodded to them as they approached and checked something on her datpad. Zashi pushed Aline’s gurney up the ramp, and Lia waited in the shadow of the shuttle, her hand light on Tully’s shroud, trying to say goodbye to him again. No profound eulogy emerged from her overwhelmed brain. Tully deserved more from her than a brief ‘I’m sorry.’

“Lia, is that you?” A familiar voice broke into her reflections, and she turned to see Stev Laarsen approaching her. Stev, her former lover from her assignment on Station Ten. Seeing him standing there on the decking wearing a flight suit, carrying a duffle, his auburn hair glinting in the sunlight was so unbelievable she forgot to breathe for a few moments. She felt Zashi return and broke her stare at the other man to nod acknowledgement as the silent security officer took hold of Tully’s gurney.

“Should I come?”

“No, you don’t need to do this. Stay here.” The security officer’s gaze was as kind as she’d ever seen it, and Lia felt tears return to her eyes. She laid her hand on Tully one more time before Zashi moved him away.

“Who was that?” Stev interrupted, and she turned back to him, sniffing and trying not to cry in front of him. She’d done that too much in their time together. And afterward.

“Stev, what are you doing here?”

“I’m your new network engineer.” Lia almost laughed in his face. The absurdity of his statement contrasted with the sad departure of their former network engineer was almost too much to bear. “Lia, what are you doing here? The reports said you were injured.”

“I
was
injured. I still have work to do,” Lia answered as Zashi returned to stand by her side. She made the introduction between the two men and wasn’t too overwhelmed by the oddness of the situation to notice Stev measure himself against the security officer. Typical of Stev, always in competition with someone. Memories of their time together began to intrude, and old resentments bubbled up past her sadness.

“Have you checked in yet?” Zashi asked the other man.

“No, I just got off the ship and noticed what you were doing back here, and then I recognized Lia and couldn’t believe she was standing out here.” Stev took a step her way and touched her elbow as if he was going to hold her up. She was too exhausted by grief to care about his intentions.

“What are you doing here?” Lia repeated, still not clear on how this was possible. “I thought you were on R-48?”

“I was. Priority reassignment here when you lost your guy.” Stev visibly gulped as he realized something. “Was that him, just now, on the bed?”

Lia nodded wearily, missing sweet-natured Tully yet again.

“Oh. Sorry I interrupted. But you’re right. I was on R-48, but they sent me here. My second needed some supervisory experience, so it wasn’t a problem to turn things over to her. I want to help.” Stev radiated good will. Lia remembered other times he’d seemed so sincere and been equally duplicitous. Zashi evidently echoed her skepticism.

“Registration is in the admin building, right over there.” Zashi pointed in the correct direction, implacable in his adherence to regulations.

“Lia, let me walk you to your rooms, you must be tired,” Stev offered instead, giving her a warm look with his bright blue eyes as he touched her elbow again. Before, that look would have swayed her, had swayed her, into giving him too many second chances and offers of forgiveness. Not today. She didn’t know if she was too sore to care, or the distance between them had grown great enough that she was now immune, but she shook her head and drew away.

“No, Stev, you go on and check in. I have other things to do.” He frowned back at her. She shook her arm slightly to dislodge his hand and noticed Zashi take an interest in the interplay. Trust Zashi to be ready to intervene.

“Of course, you have work to do. You always did.” Yes, definite petulance in his tone.

“Stev, please. Not now.” Lia didn’t want to get mired in that conversation path with him yet again.

“Later then. I really want to talk and help in any way I can.” Stev stepped close to her and gathered her up in an unwelcome hug. In the past, contact with his well-muscled body would have made her compliant, but now, he just touched all her bone-deep bruises. She extricated herself as quickly as she could. With a reluctant wave, Stev turned and jogged after the group of arrivals clustered at the distant entrance to admin where Informationist Myklos waited to process them. She should go and help him with his immigration duties as soon as she was done here.

“What sort is he?” Zashi asked as he guided her away from the pallets of supplies being offloaded from the ship.

“The sort with history.”

* * * *

Colan watched Lia and Zashi cross the deck pushing the bodies of the dead. They avoided people as well as they could, and he doubted too many noticed their sad progress aside from him. The spectacle of the destroyed building distracted most people, and the arrival of more new settlers caught the attention of everyone else, so they succeeded in getting the bodies to the ship without too much drama.

He helped clear the rubble, which was nearly done thanks to all the efforts of the new settlers. They’d fallen on the task with enthusiasm, and under Welti’s direction, a few of the skilled workers were even starting repairs as the rest cleaned up the common area. Zashi had completed his investigation, so it was simply a matter of moving debris to the appropriate resting site. Most of the synthboard would be recycled, while damaged furnishings would be compacted and used for fill which was always in short supply in the muck of Gamaliel’s surface.

He glanced up at the shuttle again after tossing some twisted metal to a hovering construction bot and saw Lia waiting at the open hatch with one of the bodies. Zashi must have disappeared with the other. He thought she was probably saying goodbye to Tully, and in an uncharacteristic impulse, he wished he could go to her and offer her some comfort. So much for keeping his distance. Between berating her earlier today and getting up even earlier to make her breakfast, he had to accept his reactions to the woman ventured down an extreme path. He was either going to retreat to a distant volcanic range to escape her or end up kissing her until he was senseless. Either one would be dangerous to his well-being.