Page 2 of Mistletoe

With her entitled attitude, Hal could already tell this situation would not resolve easily. He’d get written up, a demerit, fewer credits to spend when they finally got to the new world, or whatever punishment the captain decided. No one would dream of penalizing a first-class passenger. The rich always got away with bad behavior. They poisoned Earth until the point it was barely inhabitable, and now they were off to ruin another world.

Maybe he wanted to show the other passengers how disruptive behavior would be dealt with. Maybe he gripped a little too tightly. Maybe he tugged too hard, wrenching her shoulder and causing her to cry out in pain.

The woman drew back her free hand and slapped Hal across the face. Without thinking, he backhanded her.

Her head snapped back, and she stumbled and fell, hitting her head on the edge of the open cryo chamber. She clutched the back of her head.

A moment of silence fell over the scene.

Hal glanced up at the security cameras. They were being recorded, but maybe he could delete that footage before anyone watched it.

Ethan followed his gaze.

The woman pulled her hand away, her fingers bright red. “You barbarian! I’ll get you kicked off this ship. I’ll sue the owners. I’ll?—”

“That’s enough of that,” Ethan said, pressing a hypospray against her neck. Instantly, the woman passed out and slumped forward.

Hal stared, astounded.

“Head wounds bleed profusely. They look worse than they are,” his brother explained.

“Shouldn’t we?—”

“No. We should prepare this passenger for the cryo chamber. Lift her up.”

Hal gathered the unconscious woman from the floor and placed her inside the pod. Then, he felt a pinch on the back of his neck.

“I’m sorry. There’s video,” Ethan said as Hal blacked out.

“He’s sedated.”

“This isn’t a good look.”

Hal woke to voices having a very serious conversation.

“It was accidental.”

“He lost his temper.”

“After being provoked. You saw the footage.”

Oh. His brother and the captain. They were having a very serious conversation about him. That couldn’t be good.

“He has to go,” the captain said.

“The passenger is already prepped for the journey. With the cryo drugs, she won’t remember the event. Why does it matter if Hal is here or not? No one’s complaining.”

“The Folgers have already complained. They’ve invested too much in this project and want him off the ship. I know he’s family, but my hands are tied.”

“There’s no time to vaccinate new staff.”

How very practical of his brother. Hal wasn’t surprised at the lack of an emotional appeal. Ethan wasn’t the sort to get all sentimental.

He attempted to sit up, but his body would not respond. If he could just speak to the captain, explain what happened?—

The captain took a long time to reply. “Fine. Just put him in the pod now. Out of sight, out of mind. At the very least, he’ll lose his compensation package. If the Folgers still have a problem, we’ll deal with it once we get there.”

Silence returned. The only noise was Ethan’s shoes squeaking against the floor and the occasional clatter of equipment.

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