Bightmares

Chapter Thirteen

Silence settled over the lab. Donna finally spoke. “You were born with brown eyes?”

Sascha nodded. “Yes. My first prosthetics were blue because they asked me what color I wanted. As I grew up, they always listed my eye color as blue.”

Emi swallowed hard. “We need to test this. We need to be sure. On someone who isn’t already infected.” She remembered Eckhart’s stare. He had brown eyes.

She’d love to dose his fucking ass. Let him see what hopelessness felt like.

“Let me go wake Rob and talk to him,” Donna quietly said.

His voice came over the com link a few moments later. “What do you need from me, Emi?”

“I need to test to see if you react. If you do, then we can have John and his guys focus specifically on that factor. It’ll confirm it’s only affecting adult men with brown eyes.”

“I’ll be down in about ninety minutes.”

Emi still felt stunned. Could it be this easy? “Thank you.” She couldn’t help it, she started crying again. “I appreciate it, Rob. I really do.”

“Hey, Aaron and I have had our differences over the years, but I still respect him, and there’s no fucking way we’re going to let this asshole murder him and everyone else down there.”

He closed the com link. Emi sank to the floor and cried. Sascha must have called Aaron because he appeared a few minutes later. He scooped Emi into his arms, soothing her.

“We figured it out,” she whispered against his shoulder. “Brown eyes. You all have brown eyes.”

He looked at Sascha, who shrugged. “Long story. I was born with brown eyes.”

By the time Rob arrived with Donna, Emi had calmed herself. Donna gave her a long, strong hug.

“Hey, this is going to be okay,” Donna whispered in her friend’s ear. “If that son of a bitch thinks he’s fucking with our men, then he’s never dealt with two pissed off women who have access to weapons and pharmaceuticals.”

Emi laughed as she stepped away.

Taber helped Rob get comfortable on the scanner table before hooking the energy shackles to him. Ilse brought him more bread. As Rob ate, Sascha manned the scanner with Emi by his side.

Nearly a half hour later, after he finished his sixth piece, Emi saw the changes start. “Get ready.”

Rob tried to sit up, but the restraints securely held him on the table. Thrashing against them, he tried to bite Taber when he stepped in to administer the sedative after Emi got the results she needed. Donna stood close by, Emi feeling her nervous fear through her very core.

Twenty minutes later, Rob was sitting up and recovered. “How bad?”

“You don’t remember?” Donna asked.

He shook his head. “Not a thing.”

Emi felt another measure of relief. She called John and his men. “It’s brown eyes. That’s the common link. All the infected men have brown eyes. No men who are uninfected who’ve eaten the trigger foods have brown eyes.”

Parisi spoke. “Maybe a protein in the wheat is reacting with melanin?”

“Look at the OCA2 gene,” Donna suggested. “I’d bet it’s there somewhere. Maybe somehow reacting with testosterone or other hormones.”

Parisi sounded excited. “I’ll get right on it!”

Aaron stared at Rob. “You’ve put yourself on the death list now,” he said.

Rob smirked. “If you think we’re letting that fucker win, think again.” He pulled Donna to him and kissed her. “We’ve both got too damn much to live for.”

They couldn’t leave until after daybreak on the planet. That was over four hours away. Emi sent Aaron back to bed. Rob lay down and fell asleep on Ilse’s couch. Emi, wired on coffee and nervous energy, couldn’t sleep. Donna stayed up with her.

They sat at Ilse’s dining room table, sipping coffee and softly talking.

“I never would have pegged you for an action adventure kind of girl,” Donna teased. “You were the one always keeping me out of trouble.”

Emi wouldn’t deny she’d missed quiet times like this, talking over coffee with Donna. “It’s been an adventure, all right.” She smiled. “Graymard said you slugged him.”

“Apparently I didn’t clean his clock as hard as you did. So what’d he put you guys through?”

Emi told her the story of the final scenario and how at the end she thought she was watching Aaron walk to his death. “What’d he do to you?”

Donna’s face paled as her voice softened even more. “Rob didn’t know it was a sim. Graymard pulled him aside inside the sim, gave him his ‘come to Jesus’ talk about their attitude, and made him think he turned him loose again. Rob and the guys thought they were meeting me in real time because Graymard lied to Rob and told him they were done wasting valuable sim time and resources on them.”

She took a deep breath. “Went through a bunch of things, training, bullshit, the usual. A couple of smaller scenarios. Then they sent us on a mission, supposedly with a small ISNC battle cruiser as backup.” She closed her eyes. “I was captured on the planet surface by raiders and taken up to their ship.”

Chills washed over Emi, pimpling her skin with gooseflesh. She remained silent.

“The raiders disappeared across treaty lines into hostile space. Rob and the guys were given a direct order to leave me behind and immediately return to Mars or face court-martial. They were told the ISNC grunts would take care of rescuing me. I thought I was going to die.”

Donna studied her coffee, slowly turning the mug in her hands. “They didn’t hurt me in the sim, but only because the raider leader told me they had plans to sell me off as a sex slave. They also played the communications, let me listen to the orders sending Rob and the guys back to base. They told me I’d never see a friendly face again.

“I couldn’t believe it. I knew under pressure Rob was a by the book kind of guy. But I just couldn’t believe they’d leave me there after what they told me they felt for me.” She took a harsh, ragged breath. “The ISNC ship was destroyed by the raiders’ cohorts. Ambushed in an asteroid belt. The raiders thought that was a real good time to party, and I started thinking about ways to kill myself.

“Then late that night an alarm klaxon sounded. The K-2 was bigger than them and better armed. They destroyed the other raider ship. Then they locked on with a tractor beam and blasted at the raiders, took out their engines. What I didn’t know was that Sam and Gregor waited outside in a small lander. In all the confusion, they’d hooked onto the air lock and blasted through. They found me, literally shot their way through the ship to get to me.”

Tears rolled down her face. “Gregor was shot. I thought he died, but I didn’t have time to examine him. He wasn’t moving. Then, as we dragged him with us back to the lander, Sam got shot. We fell into the lander, closed the air lock, and I remember Rob screaming at us over the com link to break loose so he could tractor us back and jump. A bunch of other raider ships were on the way and closing fast.

“I was trying to do it. I wanted to take care of Sam, he was hurt so bad. But he pushed me toward the console and said do it or we’d all die. That they didn’t risk their asses to lose me like that.” She sadly smiled. “Our sim ended when Rob locked onto us and we were pulled into a short jump with the K-2. I turned around to check Sam…” Her voice broke. “He’d died. While I was working the controls, he died. I didn’t even get to tell him I loved him one last time. Neither of them. Then they ended our sim.”

She studied the table. “I remember opening my eyes, and I was screaming and crying. Graymard made the mistake of leaning in to calm me down, telling me it’d just been a sim. That’s when I punched him. He fell down, and then I was on top of him choking him. Two of the lab techs had to pull me off him.”

She sniffled, but she smiled. “That’s when I saw the guys. I can’t tell you what we said or did next because we were all hugging and crying and you’ve never seen a bigger bunch of bawling babies than the four of us. Then Rob tried to go after Graymard too, but Sam and Gregor held him back.”

Donna took a deep breath and slowly let it out. “Graymard talked to us once we’d all calmed down and quit trying to kill him. He told us why he’d run the sim the way he had, told Sam and Gregor about his talk with Rob. Remember, that happened to Rob in the sim, but Rob thought it was real life. Then he asked if we wanted to be paired permanently. I said, ‘Hell yes.’”

A slow grin crept across her face. “That was almost the last thing I could say for the better part of twenty-four hours. They started out a little modest because in the sim it was usually me with only one of them. That first night though…wow.” She laughed. “They’ve since gotten over their squeamishness over incidental contact. We still have separate cabins even though usually one or two of them sleeps in mine with me. I think I’ve just about gotten them convinced that one really big shared cabin would be a practical use of space.”

“Do you love them?” Emi asked.

Donna blushed. “I was afraid to tell them at first in real life. I didn’t want to get shot down. Wasn’t sure if they really felt like that. Then the guys came to me the day after we were paired and asked if I would consider bonded crew status with them. They didn’t have it already but said they’d do it if I would agree to it. Of course I did. On the way here from Mars, they sat me down and proposed.”

Emi felt the first truly light moment of this entire ordeal. “That’s great! When’s the wedding?”

“When we get back to Mars. Rob said he doesn’t want to risk me coming to my senses and changing my mind.” She laughed. “We’re hoping you and your guys will stand up for us as witnesses.”

“Well, duh!” Emi stood. She rounded the table and hugged her friend. “I’m so happy for you!” Emi had a thought. “You know, you could get married before we leave here. Ilse is a colony governor. She has the authority, or you can use their chaplain.”

Donna’s eyes widened as she brightly smiled. “Fuckin’ A, Emi! That’s what I love about you, girl. Always thinking. That’s why you deserved to graduate valedictorian.”

Donna insisted on going with them to the Petrovis Skye. Emi didn’t tell Rob or Donna about the hypo bolus concealed in her jacket pocket. Emi didn’t know if the Petrovis Skye’s crew included any empaths. If it did, Emi didn’t want to risk them discovering her plan.

She knew Rob had armed himself with a stunner, but Emi suspected the crew would have been warned to expect trouble.

As Rob guided the lander into the cargo bay on the Petrovis Skye, they were greeted by two armed crewmen in cadet uniforms. Before they exited the lander, Emi slipped the loaded hypo up her jacket sleeve. When searching them, the crewmen took Rob’s stunner after apologizing to him about it. They didn’t find the hypo.

Emi calmed her mind as she reached out to the two crewmen with her empathic skills. Neither of them were empaths. They were also very young, very nervous, and surprisingly, she sensed they didn’t like their captain very much.

Good thing to know.

The crewmen politely escorted them to the bridge, where Emi felt a sickening black wave of hatred from Eckhart the moment they stepped through the doorway. No matter what, he would see her three men dead. Probably her, too, even if it meant the deaths of other innocent people.

“Well,” Eckhart said, looking them over. “Have you come to tell me there’s a cure? Or are you wasting your time and mine?”

“There’s a cure,” Emi said before Rob could answer. Rob and Donna both looked at her but remained silent.

Eckhart’s left eyebrow shot up. “Really? Is that so, Dr. Hypatia?”

“It’s an allergic reaction to certain proteins, triggered by the baking process.” She could bluff with the best of them. “It only reacts to postpubescent adult men with brown eyes, because of the melanin.”

Eckhart’s own brown eyes narrowed. “You have proven this?”

“Absolutely. Come to the surface. We’ll show you. We haven’t prepared the final reports yet, but I can demonstrate.”

Emi felt a nearly overwhelming wave of relief from Eckhart’s bridge crew. They didn’t want to kill innocent people, especially not on their first mission. That would also work to her advantage.

Eckhart smiled, but the gesture didn’t touch his eyes. “If you think you’re getting me down to the surface, Dr. Hypatia, you’re crazy.”

“What are you scared of, Captain?” Rob said. “Your mission is officially over, according to your own words.” He glanced at the bridge crew, five men Emi felt would not defend their captain, then back to Eckhart. “Exactly what did you do to the trans-satellite relay anyway?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Emi felt the lie, and Eckhart’s surprise. He didn’t realize they knew about his involvement in the relay’s failure. “My mission ends when I say it ends.”

Rob turned to the navigator. “Your ship’s first jump put you at the trans-satellite relay for this region. Now it’s not working. What happened?”

The man looked stunned. “He said we had emergency orders to do maint—”

“Shut your mouth!” Eckhart roared. “All of you! Do not answer his questions!”

“Who’s the first officer,” Rob asked the men.

They looked at another young man standing on Donna’s far side. The man spoke.

“Me, sir. First Officer Smith.”

Emi spoke up. “Captain Eckhart, in accordance with ISNC and DSMC joint council regulation 10-2, I hereby relieve you of duty on the basis of mental unsoundness. I am declaring you medically unfit for duty and placing this vessel under the command of Captain Robert Elloy of the Kendall Kant, pending a hearing by the—”

“You cannot do that!” Eckhart screamed. “I am the captain!” He reached for one of the guard’s stunners. Before he could get there, Emi intercepted him and jammed the hypo into his arm. He limply fell to the deck with a sickening thud.

She turned to Smith. “What happened to your med officer?”

Stunned, he shook his head as he stared at his captain’s prone form. “Captain said he fell in cargo and hit his head while securing supplies. They were down there alone.”

“Convenient,” Rob snarked. “He was the only other officer on board with any experience and the absolute authority to relieve the captain of his command. Eckhart knew he’d get overruled once we found the connection, regardless of a cure.” He pointed to the guards. “Energy shackles on him. Now, before he wakes up. Take him to the lander. That was smart thinking, Emi.” He turned to Smith. “You answer to me, even while I’m not on board, unless I turn command over to someone else. Do you understand?”

The man nodded.

“Is this your first mission?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Welcome to space, kid. How’d you guys get so lucky to pull a mission like this?”

“Captain Eckhart is our Academy trainer and volunteered us for it. We were doing routine patrol training.”

Rob looked shocked. “You haven’t even graduated yet?”

“No, sir. We’re four months from receiving our official commissions.”

Rob swore. “I didn’t know that. I’ll send one of my men over to relieve you. He’ll be acting captain. Regulations say I can’t leave someone without a commission in charge unless it’s an absolute emergency.”

“Yes, sir.”

Rob shook his head. “No offense, but why did the ISNC let a crew of underclassmen go on a mission like this?”

“I don’t know, sir. Captain Eckhart kept us in the dark about a lot of stuff.”

“Again, convenient for him.” Rob slid into the command chair and tapped into the computer. After a few minutes, the front vid display lit up. “There,” he pointed. The display showed the Petrovis Skye’s journey from the Ganymede sector to the colony, with a stop at the relay. He activated the in-ship com link. “Attention all hands, this is Captain Robert Elloy of the DSMC vessel Kendall Kant. Dr. Emilia Hypatia has formally relieved Captain Eckhart of duty on medical grounds. I am now in command of this ship. We have taken Captain Eckhart into custody and will transport him to the planet’s surface for treatment. We’ve also isolated, identified, and treated the colonists’ infection, so your orders to evacuate and sterilize the planet are hereby suspended. While I’m off-ship, First Officer Smith is in charge until I send a replacement. Elloy out.”

He handed the command seat over to Smith. “I’ve deactivated and locked down the plasma cannon, just for your information. What you guys didn’t know is that your captain has a personal grudge against Captain Lucio and his crew.”

“I kind of suspected there was something going on. I didn’t think a guy could seem so happy about killing people.”

Rob clapped him on the shoulder. “Unfortunately, you’ll see more like him if you stay in long enough, believe me.”

Rob had to go to the K-2 to pick up Sam so he could run him to the Petrovis Skye. “Take these guys and jump back to the relay,” Rob told him. “See if you can get it started again. If you can, send an emergency update to the DSMC and request backup. I want an official stand-down order from them.”

“Right.”

The dose Emi gave Eckhart was more than enough for them to get him to the surface and securely locked down in the colony’s brig. When he finally came to, he immediately thrashed against the energy shackles and started screaming.

Emi stood by the cell gate and stared at him, reading him. “Why did you do this?” she quietly asked.

He sneered at her. “Those lying bastards ruined my life! Their lies got my father murdered! They killed my mother!”

Emi had glanced at Eckhart’s service records while he was still unconscious. “Your mother chose to kill herself. No one is denying that you have suffered horrible tragedy in your life. However, Aaron Lucio and the crew of the Wayfarer Margo didn’t ask to be pulled into your father’s vendetta.”

“It’s all a lie! My father didn’t do what they said he did! They murdered him!”

Aaron walked over and laid a hand on Emi’s shoulder. “Come on,” he quietly said. “He’s crazy. Don’t talk to him.”

He led her away as Eckhart screamed at them. As the hallway door shut, cutting off his angry voice, Emi shuddered. “What’s going to happen to him?”

They stood in the conference room and watched Eckhart through the observation window. Aaron had muted the com into the cell as well as changed the glass to a one-way setting. Eckhart couldn’t see or hear them.

“You, Rob, and I will have to meet with the joint council. We’ll recommend Eckhart lose his commission and be institutionalized.”

Emi watched Eckhart screaming in the cell. Without sound, it was a pathetic pantomime of rage and delusional pathology.

Something bothered Emi. “This is just too coincidental. This is a big frakking universe. How did the guy who hates you and wants you dead, with a ship full of undergrad cadets, get assigned to a mission like this?”

“We’ll figure that out, too. I have a feeling he knew people. More worrisome to me is how a man who is an Academy trainer, not an experienced deep space captain, was assigned to an extremely sensitive security mission from the start.” He sat at the conference table and patted his lap. “Come here,” he quietly said.

She went to him, relieved, comforted. No, they didn’t officially have a cure yet, but she knew with the new information it was only a matter of time before John and his men came through. Sam had a nearly two-day jump to reach the trans-light relay. With Eckhart safely locked up, their worries were over.

She hoped.