by Jim Proctor
The walk to Leon’s apartment building was a bit harder, being uphill the entire way, and Nolan struggled to keep up. Once they were inside, Nolan decided to wait in the lobby, not wanting to watch the parting of best friends. It had been hard enough watching the first mate’s pain.
Carl spent nearly an hour with Leon and Denise while Nolan sat and watched people walk by in their heated suits. People came and went, and it was clear that the cold and snow were as normal to them as sun and sand were to him.
Carl was smiling when he returned to the lobby, but his eyes gave away his sadness. They crossed the street and went half a block north, Nolan leading the way this time. Turning into a building, they went to the basement and took the underground tunnel that would take them back to the Griffin.
* * * *
Carl was excited to see his old ship again. He spent hours that first day walking around, reacquainting himself with the layout.
“You’ve taken good care of her,” Carl said as he walked onto the bridge and sat next to Nolan. “It’s been a long time since I was last aboard, but I still know my way around. I recognize every piece of equipment, except for one. There’s a large, green box in the engine room that I don’t remember.”
Nolan smiled, but he didn’t say anything.
“What, exactly, is an Ion Beam Aiming Module?” Carl asked.
“Oh, it’s just a bit of surplus equipment I picked up a long time ago,” Nolan said.
The following morning, Nolan found Carl standing in the doorway of the cabin where Becca, John, Earl, and Vince had died.
“After all this time, it still hurts,” Carl said.
“I know. I still have nightmares about that trip,” Nolan said. He patted Carl on the back. “Come on, let’s have breakfast.”
Carl nodded. Turning slowly, he walked to the galley.
During breakfast, Nolan steered the conversation away from the deaths of their friends. Instead, he talked about the wonderful times they all had shared. By the time the pair walked back to the bridge, Carl seemed a lot happier.
“I’m sorry, Nolan,” he said.
“What for?”
“I’ve had twenty-five years to deal with the loss of our friends. I thought I was in control of my emotions. But being here, aboard the ship, seeing that room, it all came rushing back.”
“It’s understandable. Don’t worry about it. Believe me, more than once I’ve stopped in that doorway and thought about them,” Nolan said. “I want to get home. I’m going to make a jump.”
“We’re only a day out from Bellansi. You can’t do that,” Carl said.
Nolan smiled. “Watch me.”
“You’ve picked up some bad habits,” Carl said. “You might lose your captain’s papers.”
“Well, Jonas Grumby might lose his papers, but I’ll still have mine,” Nolan said.
“Who is Jonas Grumby?” Carl asked.
Nolan chuckled, and then started singing the theme from an old Earth television show.
* * * *
The Griffin slid through the open door of the hangar and settled to the ground. Nolan had messaged Megan when he came into range of the first hyperspace relay, telling her that he had found Carl and was bringing him home. She pulled the hangar doors closed before running to the ship. After all this time, she couldn’t wait to see Carl again. Entering the code to open the ramp, she bounced impatiently as it slowly lowered. She was on the ramp and running into the ship before it had reached the floor. She was crying and laughing when she found Carl and threw her arms around him. “We found you! I can’t believe we really found you!”
Megan clung to Carl’s arm as they all walked to the house. She and Nolan showed him to his room, and then gave him a chance to unpack while they waited downstairs.
When he came down, he found them in the living room. He sat in a soft, high-backed chair and smiled. “This is nice,” he said. “I’m used to sitting on the bench in my galley.”
Megan smiled. “We want you to feel at home. If there’s anything you want, let us know.”
“Thank you,” Carl said. “I’m sure I’ll settle in quickly.”
“We were thinking we might go into Centralis later this week. Boo and her husband, Devin, have a bar there.”
“It’s more like a pub, now,” Megan said. “Boo’s a good cook, and Devin brews his own beer.”
“Boo does the cooking?” Carl asked. “Nolan, do you remember that time we came here and Boo made grilled shrimp for us?”
Nolan groaned. “Oh, that was bad. We were both sick for days!”
“Never trust a guy who sells fresh seafood in the middle of the desert,” Carl said.
“Okay, we’ll skip the shrimp if she has it on the menu,” Megan said with a laugh.
A silence followed, and Nolan could tell Carl had something on his mind. Finally, Carl said, “I don’t want to be a financial burden on you two.”
“Don’t worry about that, Carl,” Megan said.
Carl smiled as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small notebook. “I’m not worried.”
“What’s that?” Nolan asked.
“It’s a going-away present from Leon. This is a list of numbered bank accounts in half a dozen systems. He had them all memorized, but he wrote them in this book when he was in jail on Ternose.”
“That was a long time ago. The accounts have probably been closed,” Nolan said.
Carl shook his head. “Leon said they’re long-term accounts, so the credits should still be available.” He thumbed through the pages. “It’s a small fortune. When you have time to travel, I think we should visit these banks and collect the credits.”
“I think I’ll ask Boo to come out here and take care of the place. The three of us can take a trip and have some fun,” Nolan said.
“I’d like that,” Carl said.
“Me too,” Megan said.
* * * *
Megan rolled over and reached to put her arm around Nolan, but she found his side of the bed empty. After a quick glance at the dark windows, she stretched, and then climbed out of bed. From the top of the steps, she could see a dim light flickering in the living room. She smiled when she reached the bottom landing. Walking into the living room, she said, “Hey, Skipper, move over.”
Nolan slid over, and Megan sat between him and Carl. She put one arm around each of them and asked, “Marathon?”
“Yep,” Nolan said.
“Which episode are you on?” she asked.
“Season one, episode five,” Carl said.
“Let's see, that's the biplane pilot episode,” Megan said.
“Yes, the first one. Do you want me to rewind it to the first episode?” Nolan asked.
“No, I’ve seen them all several times. I’m fine,” she said.
Carl sighed and said, “I’ve been rescued.”
The End
Other Books by Jim Proctor
The Last Steward – Fantasy Romance
Made in the Stars – Science Fiction Romance (F/F) Short Story
Veronica Phoenix – Science Fiction Adventure – Book 1 of the Phoenix Series
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Epilogue
Other Books by Jim Proctor
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Jim Proctor, Search for the Phoenix: Phoenix Series Book 2