by JN Chaney
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 saved 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.
“Hu
h?” 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.
A lifetime of rage unleashed itself at once, flooding out of him like water from a mountain, and he lunged forward with everything he had.
They clashed together, falling to the floor.
Abel hit him in the arm, but it did nothing. He grabbed Cain’s neck and squeezed, pushing him away.
Cain gagged, suddenly afraid. He gripped his brother’s wrist, clawing his skin, but Abel wouldn’t stop. He wouldn’t let go.
I can’t breathe, Cain thought, trying to speak the words and failing. Let me go! Then, with the soldering pen in his hand, Cain jabbed his brother’s arm with the metal end, forcing him to let go.
Abel screamed, quick and sharp, pulling back his hand as blood poured from his wound. With his other fist, he punched Cain across the cheek, sending him to the floor again.
Before Cain could react, Abel got on top of him, his other palm on Cain’s neck.
Cain wheezed in shock, not knowing what to do. His brother was going to kill him. After all this time, this is how it would end.
Abel raised his bleeding hand, dripping blood onto Cain’s face and mouth, and prepared to strike again.
But before the blow could come, and without another thought, Cain drove the metal pen deep into Abel’s neck and pulled it out, all in one fluid motion.
Blood erupted from the wound, oozing down Abel’s neck and onto his chest. He gagged, staggering back on the floor, gripping his wound with his hand. “He-lp,” he managed to say.
Cain’s eyes widened, and he watched in horror as his brother choked on his own blood. He reached for a nearby towel, then rushed to try and help. He covered the wound, but his hands kept shaking. “I’m sorry!” he said, desperately. “I didn’t mean to! I’m sorry!”
Abel moved his lips like he wanted to speak, but nothing came. There was only the blood, pooling from his mouth, covering his tongue and lips. His eyes drifted slowly towards the ceiling, staring, at nothing in particular.
Cain shook his head, tears filling his eyes. This all must be a dream. He’d wake up at any moment.
Abel’s mouth stopped moving, and his eyes grew still and cold. A long, quiet sigh left him, forming bubbles of blood on his lips. All at once, he was empty.
Everything in him was gone.
Ten
A few hours into the new day, while most of the ship slept, Seth stood in one of the population bays, staring at the body of his brother.
Abel lay on the floor, covered with a large white cloth. One of the engineers had found him here less than an hour ago, broken and crushed by a fallen crate.
Chief Ridwan cleared his throat. “Another power outage occurred between 2100 and 2200 hours, killing the surveillance cameras. When maintenance came to investigate, they discovered the body, buried under a supply crate. Seems to have been an accident.”
Seth crouched next to the body, staring into the white sheet. He touched Abel’s chest, picturing his face, wondering how something like this could happen. The metal box had crushed him, disfiguring his face and breaking half his bones. The crew had no idea who it was they’d found until they activated his communicator and checked his ID.
“How long before Medical gets here?” asked Seth.
“They’re on the way,” said the chief.
The flo
or was covered with pieces of metal from where the crate had landed. Picking up one of the shards, Seth used it to lift the cloth covering the body. He barely raised the sheet before he saw the stains of blood on Abel’s sleeve. In an instant, he dropped the cloth and turned away.
He could barely stomach the sight of it.
When the medical team arrived, they placed the body in a sealed gray bag. Doctor Asari approached Seth with a concerned look on her face. “I’m sorry for your loss.”
He ignored the sentiment. “Will you perform an autopsy?”
She nodded. “It’s standard practice.”
“I’d like the results as soon as you have them,” he said.
“Of course, but I don’t expect we’ll find anything.” She nodded at the crate, which had been moved to the edge of the bay. “Looks pretty clear what happened.”
“Humor me,” said Seth.
“Check back with me tomorrow. I’ll have it done by then.”
Seth watched her leave with the body. He’d have to figure out a way to tell his family the news, if they didn’t already know. News traveled fast aboard the Eden. Lilith may have already told the family. Speaking of, he thought, then tapped the communicator on his wrist. “Lilith, are you there?”
The screen flashed. “I’m here. Are you okay? I’ve been watching the cleanup.”
“Have you told the captain yet?”
“An alert went out. Several department heads have been notified. I delivered the news to your father personally a few minutes ago.”
“So he knows it was Abel,” muttered Seth.
She nodded. “Correct.”
“What about Uriel?”
“She was on the bridge when I told him. I would imagine your father shared the news.”
“Thanks,” said Seth. “Do you have anything else for me?”
“Adam wants you to report to the bridge as soon as you’re done here.”
“Tell him I’m on my way.”
Lilith nodded. “I’ll let him know.” She paused. “I’m so sorry, Seth.”
The call ended, and Seth walked slowly to the hall, his eyes on the floor. After a moment, he stopped and leaned against the wall. He’d never been close with Abel, especially after he’d enrolled in military school. While Seth and Cain stayed home to help the family on their farm, Abel was half a world away preparing for the day he would follow in their father’s footsteps.
