“You just need to trust me. I’m your brother!”
“I know, but that’s not how this works. I have a duty to the ship.”
Cain rubbed his eyes. “I can’t believe this.”
“Were you with anyone when it happened, Cain? Did anyone see you?”
“I…” His voice grew soft, almost shaking.
“What is it?”
“I can’t say. It’s personal.”
“What are you talking about?” asked Seth.
Suddenly, the screen near Cain’s bed lit up, and a woman appeared before a white backdrop. It was Lilith, and she wore a beautiful golden gown, laced with blue ribbon, and had crimson hair falling to his waist. “He was with me.”
“Lilith?” asked Seth, more than a little surprised.
“It’s true he was working on a job at the time, but I was with him. We talked the entire time. I’d know if he sabotaged the equipment.”
Seth took a second to respond. He hadn’t expected Lilith of all people to corroborate Cain’s story. He didn’t even know they were friends. “What about the incidents today? Were you with him for those, too? We have another recording of you at one of the scenes.”
“Didn’t they happen simultaneously?” asked Cain.
“Yes, but with your tech background…”
“Uh…” Cain glanced at the girl on the monitor, and swallowed.
“It’s fine,” she said. “Tell him.”
“But what if it gets back to people? My father won’t appreciate any of this.”
“It doesn’t matter. Seth won’t tell,” said Lilith, glancing at him. “Right? If Cain has an alibi, you’ll drop it?”
“As long as it exonerates you, there’s no need for me to tell anyone, but why don’t you want people to know about whatever’s going on?”
“I was with her,” said Cain, nodding to the screen.
Seth glanced at Lilith. “With her? What do you mean?”
Lilith nodded. “Spending time together. We’re friends.”
“What were you doing together?” asked Seth.
“Does it matter? All you need to know is that we were together,” said Lilith.
“Right, but—”
“We’re friends,” she repeated. “Just leave it at that, okay?”
He glanced back at his brother. “Friends?”
“Yeah,” said Cain, nodding.
“Alright…and I can’t tell the captain about this, because…why, exactly?”
“Adam and I have a complicated history. He might not approve of me spending so much time with his son,” said the woman on the monitor.
“You went to the academy together, right? Was there more to the story?”
“We used to be more than friends,” she admitted.
Seth paused. “Oh.”
“It wasn’t anything serious, but he might not like the thought of us getting close.”
“Fine,” said Seth. “Whatever. I’ll just say you were with a friend. Good enough?”
“Thank you,” said Lilith.
“Any more questions?” asked Cain.
Seth hesitated, but decided not to press it. “No, I think we’re done for tonight. If anything else comes up, I’ll let you know.”
“Can you call next time?” Cain asked. “I could do without any more surprises.”
Chapter 9
Seth sat in his office, tapping the side of his desk, trying to figure out what his next move. After talking with Cain last night, he’d spent the evening debating his next move. He’d hoped for an epiphany this morning, but nothing came. No revelation or brilliant idea. No new evidence. No other leads. Nothing.
If only Uriel weren’t on the bridge, he thought. I could use someone to talk to. Maybe he’d call her later and ask for some advice. Then again, she might be too busy helping his father with the mission, and he didn’t want to cause a problem. Preparing the Eden for the next phase of the plan was vital.
But so was this, he knew. If he didn’t find the one responsible, more people might die. If the wrong part of the ship got hit, the last of humanity would cease to exist.
All of them destroyed. The end.
He folded his arms and placed his head on them, sighing. Maybe he was overreacting. The entire thing could simply be a series of accidents, just like they kept telling him. He might be completely wrong about everything.
His communicator beeped. He touched the screen, and was surprised to see his brother Abel appear. “Seth, where are you?”
“In my office. Why?”
“I went by your room looking for you. Don’t go anywhere. I’ll come to you.”
“You’re stopping by Security?” asked Seth.
“Yeah. Wait for me,” he said, before cutting out.
“Great,” muttered Seth. “Another distraction.”
A few minutes later, Abel arrived with a hurried look on his face. “We need to talk,” he said, quickly taking a seat across from Seth’s desk.
“About what?”
“We had another blackout.”
“When? Today?” asked Seth.
“Less than an hour ago.”
Seth turned the computer on and checked the logs. Sure enough, a report from section thirteen.
“Hey, are you listening to me?” asked Abel.
“Yeah, I am,” said Seth. “Doesn’t look like anyone was hurt.”
“No, they didn’t. No disasters this time, but who knows when the next will be? That’s why I’m here, Seth. I need to know what you’re doing.”
“What I’m doing?” he asked.
“I know you’re talking to people. Have you got anything? The engineers already swept section thirteen, so they’re stumped. No one understands it.” Abel leaned forward. “It has to be sabotage.”
Seth wanted to say he agreed, but kept his opinion to himself. His brother seemed wired. No reason to add more wood to that fire. “It’s hard to say.”
“Have you talked to Cain yet?”
The question took him by surprise. “Yeah, but—”
“Well? What’s the story?”
“He’s clean. He has an alibi.”
“An alibi?” asked Abel. “Does it check out?”
“It’s good enough,” said Seth.
His brother stared at him, waiting. “And?”
“What?”
“Aren’t you going to tell me what it is?”
“I can’t do that. It’s private information.”
“I don’t care what it is. Lives are on the line, Seth.”
“I understand that, but he asked me not to tell anyone. It’s personal.”
Abel laughed. “You’ve got to be kidding me. This is so typical. If he has a good excuse, he needs to come clean with it. He can’t—”
“I’m the ranking security officer on this ship. He told me, and that’s good enough. Father doesn’t have to know the details. Neither do you.”
Abel leaned back in the chair and scoffed. “How can you sit there and defend him without giving a reason?”
“Because it’s my job,” said Seth.
“He’s my brother, too. I’ve got a right to know.”
“Not right now, you don’t. I’m sorry, Abel. He deserves his privacy.”
“I’ll go ask him myself.”
“Leave him alone,” said Seth. “It’s none of your business.”
“Of course it’s my business! Dozens of people are dead. If we don’t do something, that number could rise.” He rose to his feet, knocking his chair on the floor. “You’ve always been soft on Cain. Maybe it’s blinding you to the truth. I’ll go talk to him and see for myself.”
Watching his brother storm off, Seth called after him. “It’s not up to you! You’re only going to cause more trouble!”
But he didn’t answer, disappearing into the hall.
Seth waited a moment, debating whether he should follow or stay put. Maybe I should have told him the truth, he thought. Even though Cain asked me not to, it could have s
aved us all some grief. He felt like he was stuck, trapped in a family of fools.
He stayed at the threshold, but stopped himself from leaving. He had actual work to do—a real investigation to perform. Forget his stupid brothers. Let them have their little talk. Brothers fought all the time, didn’t they?
Cain and Abel were no different.
* * *
Cain stretched out on his bed, staring at the wall. He twirled the soldering iron between his fingers, recalling the conversation he’d had with Seth the night before.
Had Cain done the right thing by telling his brother the truth? What if their father found out? He could almost hear the old man’s voice in his head. What a worthless son. Pathetic. You’re a disgrace to the family name.
He curled into a ball beneath his sheets, ready to fall asleep and forget. Dream of something better.
The computer screen chimed, brightening the room a little, stirring him. He turned on his side, facing the light.
“Are you okay?” asked Lilith. She stood on a cliff overlooking a valley, the wind blowing against her ginger hair.
“I’m good,” he said.
“Are you thinking about last night?” she asked.
“No,” he lied. “I’m just tired.”
“Don’t worry about Seth. He won’t say anything.”
Cain turned away from her, facing the wall. “I wish everyone would leave me alone.”
“Even me?” she asked, frowning.
“No,” he muttered.
“Good,” she said.
“I just don’t want him telling Father. I don’t want another lecture.”
“Neither do I, believe me,” she said.
A sudden knock at the door. He flinched at the sound.
Who could it be this time? Had Seth returned with Father? Cain’s head was already hurting from the inevitable argument. He rolled his eyes, squeezing the soldering pen.
Lilith tilted her head, staring with a blank expression on her face. A second later, she blinked. “It’s not Seth this time,” she told him.
“Who, then?”
“Looks like Abel.”
“Great,” muttered Cain. “Even better.”
“Cain, open up!” barked Abel from the hall. “I need to talk to you.”
Cain leapt off the bed, dropped his soldering pen on the desk, and went to the door. His brother’s face appeared on the screen. Maybe I should ignore him, thought Cain.
“Come on, open up,” said Abel.
Last time I didn’t answer, Seth broke in. No one cares about my privacy.
“I’ll come back with Father if you don’t open it.”
Cain let out a frustrated sigh, then tapped the screen. “One sec.” He glanced at the monitor where Lilith had been, but it was off. She’d left him for now, and he had to remind himself that she didn’t have a choice.
The door slid open, and Abel stepped inside. “There you are. What took you so long?” He looked around the room. “What are you doing in here?”
“Nothing.”
“Look, I’m going to cut right to it,” said Abel.
“Right to what?” asked Cain.
“I know Seth came here last night to talk to you. Tell me what happened.”
Cain stiffened. “What?”
“You were a suspect in an investigation. Did he tell you that? There’s a ton of evidence against you.”
“Seth knows it wasn’t me,” he said.
“So I’ve heard. He says you have an alibi, but he won’t give me the details.”
Cain said nothing.
His brother stared at him. “I came here for answers. I’m not leaving until you start talking.”
“What do you want me to say?”
Abel scoffed. “I want you to tell me what this supposed alibi is.”
“It’s none of your business,” said Cain.
“You’re the primary suspect of a murder investigation that threatens the lives of everyone on this ship. You don’t think that’s my business? Get your head out of the dirt, Cain. Of course it’s my business!”
Cain squeezed his fist, but forced himself to relax. “Why do you even care? I told Seth already. He’s the head of Security. What are you? Just some pilot. It’s not your job to police me, even if I am your brother.”
“I’m a member of the crew and a passenger on this ship. When people start dying, it’s up to everyone else to find out who’s responsible. You think because you gave Seth some ridiculous excuse that it somehow clears you of suspicion? He’s always protected you, ever since we were kids. I’ve got no reason to think he isn’t doing that now. You were there when the explosion happened in bay four, and you were near several of the blackouts, too.”
“I had nothing to do with any of it!” snapped Cain.
“So prove it,” said Abel. “Tell me what you’ve been doing. What’s the big secret you don’t want anyone to know? What could be so embarrassing?”
“It’s not like that!” snapped Cain. “I’m not ashamed of it. You just won’t understand.”
“We won’t know unless you tell me, will we?”
Cain felt a warm flush wash over his face. Every second of this conversation exhausted him. “I’ve been spending time with someone, got it? We talk and play games…watch shows together. It’s not a big deal.”
Abel raised his eye. “You’ve been spending time with…who?”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“You’ll tell me right now, Cain. Tell me or I’ll go straight to the bridge and get Father, then we’ll see what you—”
Cain moaned, exasperated. “Fine!” he yelled. “It’s Lilith. Are you happy?” He glanced back at the blank computer screen.
“Huh?” balked Abel. “You mean the cyberbrain? That Lilith?”
“Yeah, her…and she’s great. She doesn’t judge me or talk down to me about my job. We just have fun together.”
“Are you saying you’re…are you dating a cyberbrain? You can’t be serious.”
“Shut up! You don’t know anything about it.”
He laughed. “This has to be a joke. There’s no way you could be so stupid.”
“You’ve always thought I was an idiot. Nothing new here.”
Abel scoffed. “You understand she’s mostly digital, right?”
“So what?” asked Cain.
“She doesn’t have a body. How are you supposed to—”
“She’s not just a computer. She’s a person. She’s got a physical body the same as you or me.”
“Locked away in a vat somewhere,” finished Abel. “You’ll never be able to touch her. Don’t you get that?”
“I don’t care,” he said.
“This is absurd,” muttered Abel. “I came here expecting an excuse, but it turns out you’re delusional.”
“Don’t pretend this is about me. You’re here because you enjoy this. You love looking down on people. You sit there and judge while the rest of us try to live our lives. Who the hell made you so special?”
“At least the woman I’m with is real,” said Abel.
Cain punched his desk, dropping the soldering pen. It rolled between the two men. “That’s exactly what I’m talking about!” he yelled.
Abel ignored him. “Do you know what people will say when they find out you’re in love with a cyber? You’ll be the laughing stock of the ship.”
Cain picked the pen up. “None of them will find out.”
“Oh, that’s where you’re wrong, Cain,” said his brother. “There’s enough evidence against you to put you away. Seth might not want to admit it, but it’s only a matter of time before people start connecting it. You’ll have to face the crew, and when you tell them about this they’ll think you’re out of your mind.”
“You won’t convince me to stop talking to her,” he said. “I don’t care if anyone finds out.”
“Then you’d better get ahead of it while you can. Go tell Father before someone else does.”
“You know I can
’t do that,” said Cain.
“And why not?”
“Lilith is his oldest friend. They went to the academy together. He’d lose his mind. Don’t you see that? It would crush him, Abel.”
He shrugged. “If that’s what it takes for you to finally grown up, then maybe it needs to happen.”
“I’m not telling him.”
“If you don’t, then I will,” said Abel. “We’re family, and it’s my job to look after you. I’ll be damned if your stupidity ends up getting you thrown into the brig. The last thing you need is to be alienated from the rest of the crew.”
Cain squeezed the soldering pen. His heart raced as a swell of heat rose in his stomach and chest. He didn’t know what to do. If his brother told their father the truth, something horrible might happen. Adam and Lilith had been romantically involved at one point, when they were young, and it was clear the old man still had cared for her in some way. He might not see the situation objectively. “Stop it,” begged Cain. “Abel, please. I know you hate me, but telling Father would destroy this family. Don’t you understand? You’d hurt more than just me.”
“If you weren’t so stupid, this wouldn’t be happening. You’re a mess, Cain. Everything you do. It’s like you don’t understand how to be a normal person. I refuse to have people mock our family, all because you refuse to fix your life.” He turned away. “I won’t let your arrogance and shortsightedness infect the rest of us.”
Cain couldn’t believe the words his own brother was saying. What the hell was wrong with him? Abel always gave him a hard time, but never like this. Abel hated him. He probably had since the start. “What the hell did I ever do to deserve this?” he asked. “Why do you hate me so much?”
Abel said nothing. Instead, he began to leave.
Cain ran to him, grabbing his shoulder. “Wait a second!” he snapped.
Abel swung around and grabbed Cain’s wrist, tossing it aside. “Don’t touch me!”
“Promise me you won’t—”
Abel punched him in the shoulder, causing him to stagger. “Have fun with your cyberbrain girlfriend, freak.”
Cain clenched his teeth. His lungs heaved, deep and fast, and it took everything in him not to scream. He hated Abel all at once, there in that moment, not because of this, and not because of his words, but for everything—all the years of torment and ridicule, all the judgmental looks.
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