by M. D. Cooper
Kylie nodded slowly.
Kylie placed put her hand on Lana’s shoulder. “You’re looking rather glum. I take it you decided to risk capture by a notorious crime lord just to get off the ship for a bit?”
Lana sighed. “It’s been months since I smelled fresh air. I had to get off and take a walk. Also, a few of the engineers that came aboard saw me when I went to the toilet. Nothing happened so I figured it was safe.”
“Or they’re just lulling us into a false sense of security,” Kylie said.
“Ummm…I guess that could have been it too.” Lana tilted her head forward and rested it on the glass. “Is he going to make it?”
Kylie was surprised she cared so much, or looked so upset about it—though she probably had gotten to know Grayson over the years. “I hope so. I wouldn’t have signed off on the procedure if I didn’t believe in the odds.” A half-truth of a sort but it was the only answer Kylie could stomach.
“I remember him…and you. Now that my head has cleared. I was pretty young when I saw you. Your hair was all different and you came to a party and brought me—”
“A talking teddy bear. They were all the rage then,” Kylie said with a smile. “I had forgotten about it. We hadn’t been married long and your father wanted us to attend. Was pretty much a direct order.”
Lana’s face washed with sadness. “Seems like a lifetime ago. Things were so different then.”
“Sure was; but that’s life, right? Things change. We grow up. Our parents realize they can’t control us—or maybe they don’t—but they’re only human.”
“I hope you’re not making excuses for him,” Lana said, her voice suddenly becoming very hard. “Because if you think I can forgive him for what he did—”
“Uh…no, I think I was talking about my parents more than yours. I wouldn’t presume to tell you what to do or feel. I’m just sorry things have gone the way they have for you.”
“I’m sad, too. For you and Grayson.”
Pain swelled in Kylie’s chest. “He might hate me when he wakes up. This alters the course of his life a lot. I’m making decisions I have no right to make. But if I don’t, we might lose him forever.”
Lana glanced up at Kylie with haunted eyes. “My dad made it so Gray didn’t have a choice. And then Jerrod did too. I just wish I didn’t feel so responsible.”
“You’re only responsible for your own choices,” Kylie said.
“Yeah, except my choices are what brought us all here. This nano. It’s not just in me, it’s in you, and it’s nothing but trouble.” Lana sighed. “Sometimes I feel so strong but other times, like now, I feel weak. Like at any moment, this will all be too much for me.”
“It’s a lot, but I’ll get you through it. Just like I got you out of the Harken’s labs. I didn’t lie then and I’m not lying now.”
Lana blinked and turned her eyes away. Kylie found herself wondering what this young woman thought about her. She couldn’t get a bead on Lana. Did Lana trust her?
Eventually Lana spoke. “And when this is over? When you have Nadine back what happens to me?”
“I don’t know. You’re an adult and you can come and go as you wish. But in a lot of ways, we’re the same, you and I. We have the same nano in our blood. For the time being, it might make sense to stick together. No one is going to be able to watch your back like I can.”
“And vice versa.” Lana sighed. “You gave me a lot to think about. I know you didn’t ask for this, but thanks. Thanks for saving me and getting me this far.” Lana gave a wan smile.
Kylie couldn’t blame her. Her dad had tried to sell her out the very moment he had realized what had happened to her. Kylie’s own parents might’ve been a lot of things, but being a bastard wasn’t exactly her dad’s style.
“I’m going to go for a walk. Enjoy the grass and the sunshine. Maybe even find some birds to watch. I hope he pulls through…for you,” Lana said quietly before slipping out of the room.
Kylie hoped for that too, but she had other things on her mind then as Lana walked away. Sunshine and birds were all fine and dandy, but if Lana was leaving for another reason—because she didn’t trust her—then Kylie needed to fix that right away.
Nothing was more dangerous than going on a mission with someone who didn’t trust you. Right now, they had that in spades.
* * * * *
Kylie hung upside down from a support beam in the engineering compartment, examining the upgrades that Persephone’s crews had made to her ship. She saw a new fuel flow control and grabbed a tool to pull its inspection cover off.
Grayson’s procedure had gone on now for hours longer than it was supposed to. The only thing that could settle Kylie’s mind was working on the Dauntless. Looking over the upgrades, investigating every new hum and vibration, helped pass the time.
Somehow Kylie felt just as at home as ever, even with all the strangers crawling all over her ship.
“Look at you,” Winter said from the deck below as he watched one of Persephone’s engineers work on a monitoring console. “The captain getting her hands dirty.”
“I like to get my hands dirty from time to time. It keeps me busy.”
“I hear you. Feels like this is all taking forever. Nadine’s still out there and time’s wasting.”
Did Winter think that Kylie didn’t know that? “Soon as Grayson’s awake we’re going to ship out. Everything’s almost done here. She’s practically good as new.”
“Brand new,” Winter said in agreement. His eyes followed Kylie as she gripped a beam and flipped down to her feet. “New beginnings, right?” he asked.
“If you’re talking about what happened when you tried to commandeer the ship…”
His eyes narrowed. “So, what if I am?”
“Let your actions speak louder than your words, because the universe knows you’re good at double speak.” Kylie thought about just walking away before they fought, but decided to see what would happen. She grabbed a rag draped over a conduit and wiped her hands before balling it up and tossing it at Winter.
“Clean yourself up.”
“You want me regulation, Boss?”
“Tip top.” Kylie smirked. “Here’s the thing. I like you. Always have—even when I shouldn’t. Don’t make me regret another chance. Two chances, three chances, maybe six. Where do I just cut you off and say enough is enough?”
“I hope never.” Winter twisted the rag, wrapping it tight around his left hand. “Someday I hope I’ll learn not to be so spontaneous. It’s not like I gave it much thought. I just sent a transmission and knocked Rogers over the head…”
“That scares me even more. If you can’t learn to control your impulses…you’re not a kid anymore. You should be in control. Sometimes, we all have to be.”
“And you? Are you feeling better?” Winter asked, redirecting the conversation like he did so often. “Rogers and Lana were sure worried about you earlier.”
“Picture of health right here.” Kylie held her arms out so he could inspect her.
“That backward twist you did off the strut up th
ere? I’ve never seen you do anything like it. You want to tell me what’s going on?”
Backward twist? Kylie thought about her dismount and hadn’t realized anything special had happened. She just wanted to get down quickly and just did. Apparently, she felt a lot more limber and sure of herself, Kylie guessed.
“Go check on him. We can continue this conversation—or whatever it is—later. I’ll think about what you said. You know I don’t really want off the Dauntless, right?”
Kylie did. She gave him a nod before she sprinted off the ship. Grayson was awake, he was all right, and Kylie’s stomach was twisted up with nerves. Maybe he’d be mad at her, maybe he wouldn’t even speak to her again, but at least he was OK.
FINDING FEN
STELLAR DATE: 09.18.8947 (Adjusted Years)
LOCATION: Canton City, Hubei
REGION: Hanoi System (independent)
Yovette rolled her eyes as the call came in. What now? she wondered as Samson let the voice call through. The principal began to speak very calmly, very clearly, but there was an underlining tension in her tone.
“I’m sorry to have to call you like this, Governor. But Fen is missing. Her teacher, Miss Rose, spoke to her over her wrist-comm, but we…the connection didn’t hold and we have been unable to reach her.”
“Missing? What do you mean missing?” Yovette rose from her desk, knocking over her tea, not even noticing as it splashed across her pants. Her eyes turned toward the window, as if Fen would be found right outside on the city skyline. “She’s with you. She’s at school, just as she always is.”
“I’m afraid she’s not, Governor. We’ve called fire and rescue to find her, but where she was last playing….” The principal sighed and Yovette didn’t like it. She didn’t like it one bit. “You better get down here right away.”
Yovette didn’t bother ending the call as she ran from her office. “Governor,” Cecil stood from her desk. “You have a meeting—”
“Screw my meeting!” Yovette hissed as she dashed toward the elevator. An onslaught of worry and heartbreak burst inside her and nearly swallowed her as she signaled the lift to take her to the ground floor. She paced inside its confines as it decended, pounding a fist against the wall to make it go faster.
Inwardly, Yovette thanked him but outwardly she covered her mouth with her hand and drew a shaking breath. All she kept seeing was a vision of Fen’s empty backpack laying on its side and her once sparkling and colorful bedroom, empty and gray.
* * * * *
“Yovette!”
Chen’s voice drew Yovette’s attention away from the window. She whipped her head around to see her husband racing down the hall, loosely taped children’s artwork whipping in wind as he ran past.
“Chen!” Yovette raced to him. They collided, embracing hard, as if they were each other’s lifeline.
“Have they learned anything new? Where is Fen?”
Yovette shook her head. “No one knows anything yet. Her teacher, Rose, spoke with Fen, but something went wrong. Fen was scared.” Yovette’s lips trembled. “The connection…something happened to it.”
“Do they have a last location on her wrist-comm? Can they triangulate? Do they think she’s…”
Yovette shook her head. He’d better not say it. He better damn well not say it.
“She’ll be fine, she’ll be fine! They know she was playing in the tubes on the farmstead. She got lost. They just need to find her and bring her home. That’s all. I called in everyone. I called in every favor I have—.”
Chen’s eyes widened as her words sunk in. “The tubes! You know what they are used for. They transport water, fertilizer…if she’s in there when the farmers use it—”
“We contacted the owner of the farm. He’s shut them down. No one is going to use anything until we find our daughter.”
“There are kilometers of tubes beneath the surface. You know that. How are they going to—”
“Stop it.” Yovette clenched her jaw together. “I don’t need to hear this from you. They’re going to find her. She’s going to be fine and everything will go back to how things are supposed to be.”
“Because you say so?” Chen asked, his eyes widening. “Of course you would, wouldn’t you? You barely spoke to her at breakfast this morning.”
Yovette shook her head. “Don’t you dare. Don’t say anything you’ll live to regret.”
“Maybe I should’ve said it long ago.” Chen cast her the dirtiest look he may have ever given her, and turned his back. He walked away from her, leaving Yovette alone. As if she didn’t already hate herself enough. As if the fear and loathing wasn’t enough to strangle her.
* * * * *
They erected bright lights as evening set in. Before long it was full, night and stars came into view up far above, but Yovette wouldn’t leave the farm. She stood amongst the tall stalks of wheat, pacing at times, wading through them even as mosquitos and other bugs landed on her.
Fen was out here somewhere and Yovette wouldn’t leave. Not until Fen was back and in her arms where she belonged.
Yovette’s insides ached for her again, like they had after Fen had first been born. That first year had been the hardest and those first six months? Yovette’s body felt emptier than it ever had—like something important had been missing. A piece of her soul she had grown for nine months and how Yovette had cherished it.
Yovette just wanted her back. Just needed her back. She began pacing again, not even aware of how she shivered from the cold breeze.
All around her, in a dozen locations, teams were digging where ground penetrating radar had tagged possible locations. Yet each site they dug up only contained hot clumps of fertilizer. Just thinking of her daughter drowning in that was enough to make Yovette nauseous.
Chan crossed the field to her. “Come inside, Yovette. You’re freezing.”
She shivered as she ran her hands over her arms. “I’m not going anywhere until we find Fen.”
He sighed. “I know you’re worried about her but the cold…”
“She’s out there in the cold too!” Yovette raised her hand and gestured to the field. “Somewhere…she’s here. I know it and I’m not—”
Yovette didn’t speak to Chen as he asked her where she was and if she was OK. She took off running, following the marker as it led her through the field to one of the dig sites. A backhoe rested nearby and the underground piping was exposed, cut open by some sort of torch.
A man stepped down into the hole and reached into the tunnel, lifting out Fen’s still form, cradling her like she was a doll.
Yovette felt her heart leap into her throat, as though she was going to choke and die on it.
“Fen!” she screamed, rushing forward as the man handed Fen off to a medic.
Yovette got a good look at Fen they placed her under the bright lights. Her legs and stomach were wet, one of her shoes was missing and her sweater was torn. Fen’s head hung listlessly, like she was dead, like she wasn’t breathing.
Yovette slowed her approach. She didn’t want to know what they found. She didn’t want to know.
“She’s not breathing,” the medic said.
Yovette put her hand over her mouth and screamed. She fell to her knees beside Fen and covered her hand with her own. “Fen, come back to me. Fen!” Off in the distance, she heard the sound of medivac shuttle touching down.
“Breathe, baby,” Chen whispered as he knelt down beside Yovette. She hadn’t
even realized he had followed her. He placed his hand on Fen’s chest as the medic intubated and began gently pumping air into their daughter. “Please, baby, just breathe,”
Fen was so pale, like a wraith, Yovette didn’t know if Fen would ever breathe again.
* * * * *
Fen breathed again, by the stars she did, and Yovette had never heard a sweeter sound. A day later when her eyes had finally opened again, it was as if something magical had bestowed a great gift upon their family.
Her lungs had been filled with water and she’d suffered from hypothermia too long, but thanks to diligent doctors, and an AI that spent the better part of a day carefully repairing Fen’s neurons with nanotech, their daughter would make a full recovery.
The amount of nano that had been used to repair Fen’s body had triggered an immune response, and now Fen lay sealed inside a med-bed that kept her safe as her body rebuilt its own defenses.
She was alive and that was all that mattered to Yovette.
Despite Fen’s surroundings, she appeared relaxed, playing a video game on a holodisplay hanging above her. Fen giggled as something only she could see flashed before her eyes.
Yovette just sat and watched, so in love with her little girl’s face she didn’t even think to ask what her daughter saw. She didn’t really care. All that mattered was what the doctors said: full recovery.
Yovette would thank her lucky stars every day for the rest of her life.
Fen swallowed and leaned her head back down on the pillows, turning to gaze at Yovette. “Momma, what was the name of the AI who found me?”
“May.”
If not for her, Fen would’ve died, but May’s scans of the area, and her analysis of what was more likely to be a little girl in the tunnels versus fertilizer, had saved Fen just in time.
“May,” Fen said, and scrunched her forehead. “I couldn’t move or see anymore but her voice came at me loud and strong. She told me she was sending a signal through the ground that my wrist-comm could pick up, even though it was damaged. She helped me. Told me to hold on just a little while longer. I think I’ll draw her a picture tomorrow. Can I draw tomorrow?”