“Sure, I go there all the time. They have this great little tavern with some of the best music in the province,” Scott said without even the slightest hint of concern. Andie smiled half-heartedly. “Sounds great,” she tried to enthuse. Inside, her stomach began to twist with more than butterflies, but she forced the feeling away. Going off base in such conditions made her uneasy, but it would never do to let Scott see that. Not if she wanted him to see her as more than a frightened little girl!
Outside the quarters they walked to the garage. Very few of the people living at Dos Cientos had their own personal transports but there still was a garage for those who did. Generally, nobody bothered because Dos Cientos was so far from nearly everywhere. For travel to any of the cities, people just took a shuttle. And if for some reason they wanted to travel into Rhindhol, there was a tram. Clearly they weren’t taking the tram though. In the narrow stall Scott led them to, her jaw dropped.
“What is that?” she wondered aloud.
“It’s a motorcycle,” Scott explained, smiling at her obvious puzzlement.
“A motorcycle!” exclaimed Andie. “I’ve never even heard of motorcycles. Look, it has wheels instead of runners!” She peered closer at the wheels, tapping them lightly. “Is that some kind of rubber?” she questioned.
“Yes,” Scott replied, pressing his thumb to a locker set in the wall, which popped open. “They’re called tires.” Tires. Andie mouthed the word. It was a beautiful machine, sleek and metallic green. Not as graceful-looking as a skiff, but still very intriguing. Suddenly Scott handed her a helmet. “We’re going to ride on it?” she cried enthusiastically, all thoughts of acting like a calm, mature adult thrown to the wind. Scott actually laughed out loud. “I thought we’d take it out tonight for a spin. It’s a replica of a Terran antique, and replacement parts are hard to come by so I don’t ride it that often, but tonight is a special occasion.” He looked down at her skirt and added, “Maybe we should take the tram tonight though.” Andie followed his eyes and realized the problem. “Oh, the skirt,” she laughed. “Yeah, it’s not really the right kind of clothes is it? That’s OK, though,” she said, eager to ride the intriguing little vehicle. “I’ll figure out a way to tuck it around my legs or something.”
Scott still looked skeptical but she could tell that he really wanted to drive the motorcycle, so she reassured him one more time until he gave in. Tucking her hair up into the helmet, she followed Scott as he wheeled it out of the garage. Outside, he swung one leg over the seat and motioned to her. Andie clambered on behind him, yanking the long skirt up to her thighs and wrapping it around her legs as well as she could. Fortunately, she had Kelly’s sheer leggings on underneath so she had some protection from the chilly air. Other than that, her parka and gloves would have to do.
Riding the motorcycle was glorious!
It was nearly as fun as flying in her skiff. Her blood raced with adrenaline, her stomach churning with excitement. She barely even noticed the onslaught of icy wind as they headed down the road. Once through the security checkpoint, Scott picked up the speed, and Andie laughed out loud. Gripping Scott tighter, she gazed over his shoulder as they barreled down the road that led to Rhindhol. It was far bumpier than riding in a transport and much colder than riding in the tram, but when they reached the little tavern on the end of Rhindhol’s main street, she was not quite ready for the ride to be over. At least she would get to do it one more time—they still had to get home, after all.
The tavern was smoky and crowded with people. A man with a grease-smeared apron showed them to a tiny table tucked back into a corner. Loud conversations were going on around them, and a small dance floor had people dancing to loud music with a rakish beat, something Andie assumed was a local favorite. Scanning the crowd, she could see that there were a couple of other people who were probably from the base, but for the most part, it looked like a local haunt. Many of the men were big and burly with darkened skin, sure sign of the mineral dust that ended up permanently caking their skin. Many of the women looked careworn and shabby, but since apparently there was no lack of ale, the atmosphere was loud and raucous. Andie couldn’t quite see what was wonderful about the place.
When her dinner arrived, she realized why Scott had chosen this tavern. The food was simply marvelous. Whoever was in the kitchen was a genius with meat and vegetable pies. And the pudding she had for dessert tasted sweet and tart and fluffy all at the same time. Forgetting that she was on a date and trying to be daintily feminine, Andie took second helpings of everything. While they ate, they mostly chatted about work and the other members of their squadrons. At first Andie had been uncomfortable, afraid of saying something stupid, but she soon relaxed and candidly gave her opinion on her stuffy squadron leader and their solemn-as-a-statue deck commander. Scott regaled her with stories of some of the more embarrassing mistakes her fellow squad mates had made. They laughed together, and then when the last dish had been cleared away, Scott asked her to dance.
The music had switched to something slow and mournful. Not exactly dancing music, but apparently for the miners it was something that passed for romantic, because there were already several slowly swaying couples in the small cleared dance area. Andie nervously gave Scott her hand, wondering if she would remember anything at all from her lessons with Bryar in the QE. It turned out she didn’t need to worry. Scott was a very strong leader. He pulled her close and kept her moving slowly with the music.
“I’m so glad you came out tonight,” Scott murmured, his lips close to her ear. Andie could feel the butterflies squirming in her stomach again, but she tried to respond lightly.
“Me too. I’ve really enjoyed myself. You’ve been great company,” she added, a bit lamely. She wanted to kick herself. Why couldn’t she think of something clever to say? Scott pulled back a bit and stared directly into her eyes.
“Good company?” he asked, his voice thick with implication. “Is that all I am?”
“’Scuse me, I’m cuttin’ in,” a slurred voice boomed in her ear. A stocky man with a thick neck pushed his way in between Scott and Andie, gripping both her arms in his meaty hands. She found herself slowly being steered in a circle.
“Name’s Burlo,” he coughed, his foul-smelling breath turning her stomach. “And what’s yer name? Not from ’round here are ya?” She tried to pull away, looking around for Scott, but she couldn’t see him anywhere in the press of couples who surrounded them.
“Not much of a talker, huh,” Burlo growled. “Think yer too good for me?” Andie shook her head mutely, still unable to find her voice. Her arms were starting to ache where his fingers cut into her skin. Where in the world was Scott?
“It’s hot in here. I need some air,” Burlo rasped, roughly directing her to the front door. Before her frozen brain had ground back into action, he had pushed her outside. As soon as they were outside, Andie had had enough. She drove her sharp-toed boot directly into his shin. He winced and let go of her arm. Immediately, she pulled it back and delivered a sharp blow right to his larynx. Burlo’s hands flew up to his throat, and he gurgled a bit. She didn’t wait to see how hurt he was; instead, she whirled and sprinted down the street without looking back. All she wanted to do was get as far away from that hulking, stinking slug as she could.
Halfway down the block, she slowed and turned back. The street was completely empty and there was nobody standing in front of the tavern. She skidded to a stop, sliding a bit on the ice. Bouncing up and down, she rubbed her arms and tried to decide what to do. For a moment she was tempted to just turn and walk back to the base, leaving Scott to figure out where she was. It was only a few miles, but the wind was picking up, and it sliced through her thin blouse like she wasn’t wearing anything. Already her teeth were chattering. Her coat was still draped on her chair back in the tavern, her trusty flipcomm tucked in the inside pocket. She couldn’t even comm Scott and tell him where she was.
Warily,
she started walking back toward the tavern, ready to turn and flee again if that awful man showed his face. However, the street was utterly deserted. In the distance she could hear the muffled dance music from the tavern. Light spilled from the windows into the street, but she couldn’t see anyone standing around.
Just as she reached the building next to the tavern, the tavern door opened and a crowd of miners spilled out. Andie jumped back into the shadows of the shuttered store and watched them suspiciously as they stood in front of the tavern. Sure enough, she spotted Burlo, his neck a livid red blotch where she had punched him.
“Ah, Burlo can’t even get a woman!” taunted one of the men. “Beat up by a girl!” His drunken voice echoed through the street. All of the men burst into laughter. Burlo’s face was now as red as his neck. Andie pressed herself as close to the building as she could. A humiliated drunken man twice her size and surrounded by his friends was not something she wanted to face alone.
“She ran down the road that way,” muttered Burlo, his voice sullen.
“Ah, better luck next time,” one of the men consoled, slapping him on the back. “We did do our part. We hustled the guy out back like you asked us.” Andie froze. Had they hurt Scott? Was that why he hadn’t shown up yet? She waited impatiently for a few minutes longer while they moved off in a group and then headed to the back of the tavern, keeping to the shadows. “Scott!” she called softly, when she reached the large concrete slab patio that stretched out behind the tavern. She turned slowly in a circle, searching the ground for any sign that Scott may have been out there. Finding nothing, she whipped around to head back out to the tavern entrance when the heel of her boot struck a patch of ice. Her foot slipped out from under her, and her head smacked against a protruding brick on the corner of the building. For a moment she lay dazed, stars blinking before her eyes, and cold seeping into her skin from the frigid ground. Dizzily she tried to raise her head, but the pain overwhelmed her. The world tilted crazily and then went dark, leaving Andie in an unconscious heap on the icy pavement.
6. Scott and Casey
The infirmary was easily one of Andie’s least favorite places, she decided. Several days after her accident in Rhindhol, she sat propped up in her hospital bed staring at the plate of runny goura casserole that she had been served for lunch. Supposedly, this nasty concoction was laced with a whole bunch of special nutrients to help her body recover more quickly, but mostly it was just disgusting. And since Andie had been served this particular dish for the last four meals, she was finding it hard to even eat a spoonful. Maybe if she stared at it long enough it would disappear on its own. She had just resigned herself to taking a bite when there was a knock at the door and Scott swept into her room, flowers in one hand and carrying her coat in his other.
“How are you, Andie?” he greeted cheerfully, presenting her with a dozen, long-stemmed Terran roses. She took them and smiled appreciatively. “I’m doing much better, thank you,” she answered.
“I went back to the tavern and picked up your coat for you. Oh, and they had your flipcom too,” he explained, placing her battered blue communicator on the table. Scott slid into the chair next to her bed and took her hand.
“You had me really worried there, kiddo,” he said seriously. “When I couldn’t find you that night I just about went crazy.”
“I was worried about you too,” Andie admitted. “I heard those men say they had taken you out back. I was looking for you when I fell.”
Scott laughed harshly. “No, those oafs didn’t hurt me. They did force me into the back dining area but as soon as I could break away I searched all over the place for you. From something they had said, I thought you might even be upstairs. It didn’t occur to me to look outside for a while, and then when I did I ended up following that group of drunken idiots down the street.”
Andie sniffed her flowers. They had a very sweet, overpowering smell but they were beautiful. “Well, I’m fine, or I will be soon. Just a couple more days to be sure, and then I can go home.”
“Well, when you’re feeling better I’ll have to make it up to you.” He sat closer to the bed and lowered his voice. “Maybe then we can continue our conversation from the dance,” he suggested, his dark eyes on hers.
Suddenly, they were interrupted by another knock, and a sandy head popped through her door. “Can I come in?” a familiar voice asked.
“Casey!” Andie cried in pleasure. “Please do!” Casey walked in the room, his curious eyes traveling from Scott, who was leaning toward Andie, to the roses that were still laying in her lap. “Am I interrupting?” he asked, his voice unsure.
“Oh, no, I was just on my way out,” Scott declared, rising from his chair. He turned to Andie. “I’ll comm you. Get better, you hear?” Then he gracefully strode out the door. Andie turned welcomingly to Casey. He was staring after Scott with a frown. “Have a seat,” she invited, gesturing to the chair that Scott had just vacated. Casey’s face cleared and he took the chair, pulling it close to the bed.
“What are you doing here?” she asked. “Aren’t you supposed to be in Omphalos?”
“I took a break to come see an old friend who had nearly gotten herself killed,” he said rebukingly. “My mother commed me the other night to say that you had been rushed into the emergency ward. What in the world happened, Andie?” She sketched her night in Rhindhol, leaving out the details of her slow dance with Scott. Usually she felt comfortable telling Casey anything, but, that Scott had seemed on the verge of kissing her? There was no way she could explain that to Casey. She didn’t stop to ask herself why that was so. Instead, she told him how the ugly miner had forced her outside, how she had broken free, her search for Scott, and how she slipped and knocked herself out. Finally she explained how the tavern cook had stepped out back for a smoke break and stumbled right on top of her. They were able to rush her to medical help before the hypothermia could kill her.
When she finished her story, Casey snorted. “That pilot who took you out must be dumber than a rock. Why didn’t he think to look outside for you first? And I would have had the brains to check all around the building for you before chasing down a group of men who obviously didn’t have you with them.”
“That’s being ridiculous, Casey!” spluttered Andie defensively. “Scott isn’t to blame for any of this. He’s been nothing short of wonderful ever since it happened.”
“A few flowers make it all better, huh,” Casey muttered. Andie ignored that. She couldn’t understand what was wrong with him anyway. Like things would somehow have been different if he had been the one at the tavern with her. They sat in silence for a few minutes. Finally she cleared her throat and asked, “So how long are you here?”
Casey seemed to pull himself together with her question. “Just until tomorrow night,” he replied. He grinned lopsidedly. “It wasn’t exactly a great time to ditch my classes.”
“Sorry!” she cringed. He was right in the middle of a term. No doubt he would be behind as a result. She wanted to kick herself again for her stupid lack of balance.
“Hey, don’t apologize,” he reassured. “I’m just glad you’re going to be OK.”
“So how’s that Denicorizen class going?” she questioned. “Is the second term harder?” Soon they were chatting normally, as if nothing had happened. It was one of the things Andie loved about Casey. No matter what changed in their lives, they could get back together and it was as if they had never been apart.
Casey stayed all afternoon until Kelly made her appearance after her shift. He greeted Kelly cheerfully and then promised Andie he would return the next day. With a parting wave at both girls, he strode out the door. Kelly watched him go with a smile playing about her lips, and then she took Andie’s popular visitor chair. With Casey gone, Andie felt a bit deflated. It was if her energy had gone out the door with him. She could barely focus on Kelly’s news tidbits from the pilots’ quarters. When the attenda
nt brought in her nightly ration of goura, she pushed it away petulantly. “I’m so sick of this stuff,” she complained grumpily. Kelly raised an eyebrow. “You know, I would think if eating that stuff is going to help you get released more quickly, you’d be scarfing it down.” Andie didn’t respond. She just stared gloomily down at her heavy heating blanket.
Kelly smiled impishly. “Well,” she declared brightly, “I’ve narrowed down the cause of your moping to two things. Either you still really feel sick . . .”
“I’m fine!” Andie insisted heatedly. Kelly continued as if she hadn’t heard her, “Or it’s a guy.”
“What? A guy!” Andie snorted. But she squirmed uncomfortably.
“And since Scott Johnson personally delivered flowers this morning I can’t see why you would brood about that. It must be because Casey has to go back to the University tomorrow.”
“I’m not brooding!” Andie insisted. She wasn’t, was she? She was just distracted and a little let down.
Kelly just smiled before dropping her bombshell. “I think my roommate is in love with her childhood buddy.” Andie’s mouth dropped open. She sat there stunned for a moment before recovering herself. That was the same thing Jo had accused her of. What made these girls leap to that conclusion?
“That’s crazy,” she protested, her voice a little too high. “Casey’s more like a brother, Kelly.” Kelly just shook her head. “I’ve watched the two of you together ever since we started the Academy. I know he doesn’t see you as a sister. That’s obvious to anyone. And you are a whole different person when he’s around, Andie.” Andie felt the heat rush to her cheeks. Did Casey really think of her that way? Not that it matters! she protested to herself. I’m interested in Scott.
“We haven’t seen each other since I graduated, Kelly,” Andie tried to say indifferently. “I think you’re imagining things.”
“Come on, Andie,” groaned Kelly. “You comm that boy at least once a day, and talk to him live at least once a week! I haven’t bothered my brother with even a text comm since last year.” By this time, Andie was growing too tired to protest. She just shook her head in mute disagreement. Kelly noticed immediately and stood up to leave.
The Legend of Sirra Bruche (Roran Curse Book 1) Page 9