by Lily Harlem
But within two minutes he’d finished the arduous and cumbersome task of spinning the valve into place.
“Is it on?” I asked, flicking my attention between Gavyn’s image and the pressure screen.
“Yes. Anything happening?” he asked.
“Not yet.”
“Damn it.”
“Is it as tight as it will go?”
“As tight as I can make it.” He gripped it again, with his left hand, and applied pressure. “Yep, it’s on.”
“I’m sure it’s going to be fine,” I said, sending a quick prayer heavenward, whatever direction that was from space.
It has to be on properly. This has to work. For all of our sakes.
“Give it a few seconds,” Mateo said.
I went up on my tip-toes then dropped down again, unable to keep still as I willed the red lines on the graph to become blue. “Nothing’s happening.”
“Patience,” Mateo said in a slow drawl. “Patience.”
“There!” I clapped. “It’s moving. The reds are all rising and turning blue.”
“They are?” Gavyn said.
“Yes, you’ve done it.” I wanted to punch the air, dance for joy, but I contained myself. “So get yourself back in here, Captain. Now.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He laughed. “Just as fast as a space walk will allow me to and…oh…fuck!”
“What? What is it?”
Gavyn’s image lurched forward. For a second he flailed in the air, not holding on. Then he re-grabbed the rail with one hand, the other he slammed over his visor.
“Gavyn, what’s happened?” I leaned in closer, desperate to see what the problem was.
Silence.
“Gavyn. Talk to me.”
Silence.
“Talk to me, damn it.”
Chapter Thirteen
“What’s happened?” Anki asked.
“I don’t know.” Fear burned in my veins. My vision blurred a little. I forced myself to focus. “I don’t know.”
“Shit.” Mateo jumped up and rushed to my side. “Talk to him again.”
“Gavyn. Are you okay?”
“My visor, something hit it. There’s a…” His voice was quieter than before, as if he were a few light-years away and radio contact was poor.
“There’s a what?” I asked. “What’s happened to your visor?”
“Can you see anything?” Mateo spread his fingers on the screen to zoom in on Gavyn’s helmet.
“Look!” I jabbed the center of the image. “A crack.”
“Shit.” Mateo slammed his hand on the console. A pen rolled off.
My fear intensified, and panic joined it, along with a sprinkle of terror. “Gavyn, get back to the entry hatch, quick as you can.”
“Fuck,” he muttered. “Fuck, fuck…”
“He’s losing pressure,” Mateo said. “There must be a hole, smaller than a pinprick if he’s still talking after impact, but still…it’s a hole.”
“What did it?” I asked. “What hit him?”
“A dust particle, nothing bigger. If it were, he wouldn’t be here.”
Dust particle. Damn it.
“Hurry, Gavyn,” I said. “Stay focused.”
“My ears are ringing,” he muttered. “Pressure…is….dropping…in the suit.”
“Yes, you have time to get back in. Stay focused. Concentrate.”
“Back in?”
“Yes, back into Equinox.”
“Equinox. Yes…right…back in.”
“He’s confused.” Anki said. “He’s not thinking straight.”
“He’s losing oxygen.” Mateo wrapped his arm around my waist. “Keep talking to him, Uma. Stay upbeat and give him real simple instructions.”
I peeled my tongue from the roof of my mouth and licked my lips. “Gavyn, you need to keep putting one foot in front of the other. It’s not far.”
“Far?”
“Yes, it’s not far to the entry hatch. Keep going. I’m here with you.”
“Uma?” He turned, staring out into the darkness, then spinning to the nearest star, a golden orb in the distance. “You’re here with me. Where are you?”
“I’m inside. That’s where you need to be. Get going again. Hold on and put one foot in front of the other.”
“Fuck, he’s not moving.” Mateo rubbed his forehead. “Get him moving before it’s too late.”
“Gavyn you have to walk. Hold on to the rail and walk.”
“I am.”
“No, no you’re not. Come on, or…or…or I’ll come and get you.”
“Yes, I want that… I want you.” His speech was slurring.
“Walk, damn it! Walk and you can have me.”
I held my breath, willing him to start moving along the ledge again. If he did that, if he could get momentum up, then he’d have a chance.
“Come on, mate,” Mateo muttered.
“Captain, you can do it,” Anki called over his shoulder.
“Keep that thing steady, Anki,” Mateo ordered.
“I am copilot, I am.”
“Good man.”
“Shit, what if he…what if we…” My mind was spinning with disaster scenarios.
“Don’t think that, Uma.”
I pulled in a breath. Time was running out. “Gavyn, walk, damn it.”
“Yes. Yes…I will…”
With relief I saw him move first his left foot, then his right. It wasn’t far, but it brought him nearer to safety.
“Hurin must be wondering what the hell is going on,” Anki said. “He’ll be watching it, too, on the monitor by the chamber.”
“He’s the best man to be there when we get him back in,” Mateo replied. “And he’ll know what state he’s in because he’s seen this.”
Yes. When we get him back in, not if.
I rested my hands beside the screen, almost as if trying to channel my energy to him. “Gavyn, that’s it, you’re doing great. Keep it up. You’re nearly there.”
“Nearly where?”
“The hatch into the ship. Keep going. I know it’s hard.”
“Yes, I’m tired…so tired. It’s hard and heavy, too.”
“It’s because you’re running out of air. It’s normal, but you can fight it. Keep going.” I had to carry on talking to him. “Small steps for mankind and all that. One foot in front of the other. And hold on, tight. Nearly there, Captain.”
“How’s he doing?” Anki asked.
“About another twenty feet or so,” Mateo said. “Then he can literally fall in and Hurin will see to him.”
“Not far now,” I said. “Keep holding on, keep moving.”
“I can see something…I can see…”
“What?” I asked. “What can you see?”
“A bird, there’s birds out here. With white feathers, orange beaks, tails so long they’re like shooting stars. Ahh, they’re beautiful.”
“Birds?”
“No, he can’t see birds. He’s hallucinating,” Anki said. “I’ve read about it.”
“Anki’s right.” Mateo gave my shoulder a squeeze. “Ignore his visions, keep him focused on reality.”
“Okay.” I was glad of Mateo’s physical support. My knees were weak, my spine watery. “Gavyn, keep on doing what you’re doing. Keep walking. You’re doing great. You’ll be back in with us soon.”
“These birds are beautiful. You’d love them, Uma. You like birds, right?”
To my horror, he stopped and stared into the darkness. He reached out with his left hand as if to touch something.
“Gavyn!” I shouted. “Leave the damn birds. Get to the hatch.”
“Hatch?”
“Yes, the hatch. To your right, about ten steps. Go, go now or you’ll be dead.”
“Dead?” He said the word in a strange, dreamy voice.
“Gavyn, go, now.”
“Jesus, man, you’re scaring the crap out of me,” Mateo muttered.
“What can we do?”
“I’ll have
to get out there,” Mateo said. “Anki, you got this?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Don’t be crazy, Mateo,” I said. “What if something happens to you both? None of us can land Equinox. That’ll be it for all of us.”
“She’s right,” Anki said. “We’ll all be…toast.”
“Fuck.” Mateo stepped away, dragging his hand over his hair.
I returned my focus to the screen.
Gavyn was moving again, in the right direction. A faint wave of hope washed through me. “That’s it, well done. Nearly there. Don’t let a damn piece of dust kill you. Keep going.”
“Keep going,” he repeated. “Keep going.”
“You’re doing great. One foot, then the next.” As I spoke words of encouragement, I watched the gap close between Gavyn and the hatch. Every inch covered gave me hope, but he was still in great peril.
“Fuck it. I’m going to get him,” Mateo said. “Anki, you got this?”
“Yes.” Anki nodded. “Got it.”
“Good man.”
“Mateo, no,” I cried as he rushed to the door. “What if…?”
“What if all I need to do is reach out and grab him and I don’t?”
My lungs seemed to crush in on themselves, and my breath caught in my throat. I understood what he was saying but I still couldn’t imagine Mateo being out there as well.
I couldn’t imagine losing both of them.
“I’m going to suit up ready,” he said. “Ready to drag him in. Keep talking to him, keep that focus strong.” He paused. “You can do this, he’s listening to you.”
“I will, and if he’s in when you get there, you won’t have any need to even get suited up.”
“That would be bloody fantastic. I hate those damn things.”
Mateo disappeared.
I returned my attention to the screen. “Gavyn I’m here waiting for you. Soon you’ll be back on board Equinox, mission accomplished. You just need to…”
“One foot. Then the other. Keep going…” It was as if he was repeating a mantra. “One foot. Then the other. Keeping…keeping going.”
“You’re nearly there.”
And he was. Another three steps, and all he had to do was flick an access lever and he could tumble into the depressurization hatch. Hurin would shut the door to the vastness of space the moment Gavyn was inside.
“That’s it. Nearly there. Now you see that red lever. Pull it.”
“Red lever?”
“Yes. On your right.”
“Red lever? Is that my birthday present?”
“Birthday present?”
“Yes, it’s my birthday.”
“Is it?” I had no idea. “Happy birthday.”
“Thank you…I think…no, I mean, I don’t thank you, that’s bad, rude actually.”
“No, no it’s not.” I frowned and shook my head. What was he on about?
I have to be the one in control.
“That lever, it’s right beside you now. All you have to do is pull it.”
“This one?” He wrapped his hand around it. “This one, Uma?”
“Yes, that’s it. Now pull. Just pull it.”
I held my breath. I was sure Anki was doing the same.
For a long moment Gavyn was still, as if he’d used up the last of his energy, as though he couldn’t comprehend what he was supposed to be doing. Then, finally, he pulled the lever. It appeared heavy and stiff, but he did it.
The brilliant white light of the hatch shone out in sharp shards that stretched into the void.
“You’ve done it,” I said, wiping a sheen of sweat from my brow. “You’ve done it, now just…”
He fell into it. Within a split second the hatch slid shut and was in darkness again. The umbilical cord disconnected and stuck fast to the side of the ship.
“Is he in?” Anki asked.
“Yes, he did it himself. He’s back on board.” I rushed over to Anki and set my lips over his. “He’s okay.”
Anki grinned. “Yes, you did well.”
“I did nothing.”
“I think you did.” He raised his eyebrows.
I laughed. It was a slightly hysterical giggle that couldn’t be contained. “I’m going to the hatch to see him. I need to know he’s really okay.”
“Yes, you do that. I’ll stay here on the bridge until Mateo returns. It seems like I have this under control.” He laughed. “Hidden talent.”
I looked at the screen. The positions were all perfectly aligned the way I’d expect if Gavyn or Mateo were on the bridge. “Wow, yes you have.”
“Perhaps I will upgrade, move on a rank.”
“Maybe.” I smoothed my hand over his hair. “But even so, thank goodness Mateo didn’t have to go outside as well. That would have been too much for my nerves, to see both of them out there. Captain and copilot, no matter what your hidden talents are.”
“Yes, we can thank the Laird for that.”
I kissed him again, quickly, excitement and relief flooding my soul, then rushed from the bridge.
The corridors seemed too damn long as I ran through them. The thud of my feet on the hard floors echoed, drumming through my ears in a weird rhythm that seemed to further inflame my impatience to get to the hatch.
When I did, Mateo was pacing outside with his hands shoved into his pockets.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“Hurin is still in there, helping him.” He pointed at a screen.
The slightly grainy images of Gavyn and Hurin greeted me. Hurin was in the process of removing Gavyn’s suit, bending and stooping, tugging and shoving.
Gavyn held an oxygen mask over his face and was breathing deep, his lungs inflating to the max and his shoulders lifting and falling.
“He’ll be okay,” I said, to reassure myself as much as anything.
“Of course he will be.”
I glanced at Mateo.
“He will be.” He pursed his lips and blew out a breath. “I’m glad it’s over, though.”
“And it’s fixed.”
“Likely the ship will have to be docked for longer than usual in Madoc. The Athion engineers will want to give it a full overhaul.”
I nodded and returned my attention to the screen. “How long till they come out?”
“Only a few minutes. His saturation levels will be coming back up quickly.”
“Is it wrong that I just want to give him a hug?”
“No.” Mateo rested his hands on my shoulders. “Of course not. You care for him, you care for each other.”
I swallowed down a lump of emotion. “I really do care for him.”
“I know. And that’s fine by me.” He kissed the side of my head. “Gavyn Rivers is one of my favorite humans, and to see you two connect, bring each other happiness, would in turn make me happy.”
I nodded, unable to bring myself to speak as I watched Gavyn strip off his thermal top, exposing his broad, defined chest and taut abdominals. But it was about more than his body, his handsome face, and his captain status. I knew the real Gavyn, what lay beneath the hard veneer. He was a man carrying great responsibility and great loss. And if us being together helped him cope, I was definitely up for the task.
“Anki is still on the bridge,” I said as Hurin attached a blood pressure monitor to Gavyn’s upper arm.
“Yes, he’s doing a great job.” Mateo chuckled.
I turned to him. “What?”
“Nothing, he’s doing great.”
“He thinks he has hidden talents.” I frowned. There was something else going on, I could tell.
“I’m sure he has…when it comes to mimicking the auto-pilot’s response to the stabilizing lever.”
“Mateo!”
“What?” He held out his palms.
“He thinks he’s controlling that.”
Mateo shrugged. His grin stayed in place.
“But he’s not, is he?”
“No.” He shook his head. “You really think I would give
him such a responsibility? The guy is a biologist, not a space pilot.”
“That’s just mean. He thinks he’s doing something useful.”
“Which is what I intended for him to think.” He wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me close.
I rested my palms on his hard shoulders and looked up at his blue eyes. “But why would you do that?”
“Because every one else had something important to do to fix the problem. Except for Anki.”
I tipped my head and waited for him to go on.
He sighed. “I didn’t want him to feel redundant, like he wasn’t a key player in the team.”
“But of course he is.”
“Not when it comes to engineering and flying, he isn’t.”
I couldn’t argue with that.
“Uma.” He swept his lips over mine. “Come on, I was trying to do a nice thing.”
“He won’t think it’s nice when he finds out he wasn’t actually doing anything.”
“And who is going to tell him that?”
I rolled my lips in on themselves as if holding in the words.
“Exactly,” he said. “It’s our secret.” He glanced at the monitor then over his shoulder. “But I really should go and relieve him of his pretend job and lower the magnetic shield.”
“Yes, you should, and Gavyn is going to be fine, we’re going to be fine.”
“Yes, we are.” He kissed me again, harder this time. “I’ll find you later, okay, for some fun.”
“Yes.”
He released me and strode away. For a moment I admired his butt encased in tight white pants, then I turned my attention back to the monitor.
It seemed Hurin was ready to get Gavyn out. His face was up at the monitor, his jaw set tight as he worked the control panel. Gavyn stood patiently behind him, his hair a little ruffled and his cheeks a fraction paler than usual.
My heart beat a little faster. The situation could have easily spiraled out of control. I could have lost Gavyn.
I blinked away moisture forming on my eyelids and swallowed a lump in my throat.
The door opened with a soft hiss.
Hurin stepped aside and let Gavyn pass so he emerged first.
I couldn’t contain myself. I threw my arms around his neck and buried my face against the patch of skin just below his ear.
“Hey, hey, I’m okay, no big deal.” He drew me close, melding our bodies together. “It’s okay.”
