Page 30 of Crash Landing
I nodded. “I’ll get you some. Lay down.”
“But shouldn’t I help—”
I stood and gently pushed her down on the bench, lifting her pack to use as a pillow.
“Rest, Sam. I promise I will be back.”
Groaning, she curled up on her side and shoved her hands between her knees as if to keep them warm. I shrugged my jacket off my shoulders and draped it over her body. On me, zipped up entirely, it was skin tight. On her, it was practically a small blanket. It nearly covered her whole length and with my residual heat still inside the lining, she moaned with comfort.
That sound went straight through me and I stepped back, cocking my head.
“Uh, you just relax,” I said, heading for the door.
Taking a canteen from my bag, I stepped out to retrieve some water. The streams were filtered and fresh, but as an extra precaution, I put a couple drops of purifier into the canteen and let it sit while I ventured further out to look for something in particular. A fruit. One Sam had eaten before when she was with us on Sylos. Maybe being more familiar with the food would help her state of mind.
Kalaha grew on thin trees and hung like little green ornaments from the thinnest branches. It was a treat for small animals, but the twig-like trees didn’t support the weight of larger creatures. I had to hike out a bit to find some, but when I did, I was relieved. I came upon a tree full of ripe green teardrops, but I first skimmed the ground for fallen ones. If they weren’t bug-eaten, they’d be the ripest. I found three in the grass and plucked a couple more from the trees just in case, rinsing them thoroughly in the water before heading back.
Inside the little stone building, I found Sam shivering under my jacket. I knelt in front of her with the canteen and the fruit in my hands.
“Sam,” I whispered, setting the canteen down so I could slide my hand under her head.
Her cheek was cool and clammy and at the sound of my voice, her eyes only fluttered.
“Sam,” I said again.
“Hmm,” she hummed.
“Wake up and eat.”
Her big eyes slowly opened, showing me a glimpse of rich, earthy brown with specks of fruit green, a detail I’d never seen before. She stared at me for a long second before blinking to full awareness and slowly sitting up. I opened my hand to show her the fruit.
“You know these. You ate them on Sylos.”
She nodded and took one in between her fingers, raising it to her lips. It was small enough to pop the whole thing in her mouth, but she took a bite instead. The moment her teeth broke the skin, sweet juice rolled down her chin. I watched her chew slowly and then sigh with relief like I’d just applied balm to a burn. After eating the rest of it, she took another. I couldn’t stop staring at her lips. I had to force myself to look away and put the canteen on the bench beside her.
“Drink. The water’s clean.”
“Thanks.”
She flipped the cap off the canteen and took a few swigs. My eyes escaped me again and I couldn’t help watching the way her throat bobbed with each sip.
What was wrong with me? She was frail and weak and there was no worse time to suddenly start noticing those things about her.
Wiping her lips with the back of her wrist, Sam capped the canteen and set it aside, suddenly realizing the jacket I’d draped over her.
“Oh,” she said, noticing next that I hadn’t put the top of my suit back on.
It would have been more comfortable to do so since it had temperature regulators built in and the humidity wasn’t very pleasant, but I had intended to wash off the wound she’d dressed. Sam took the jacket off and held it out to me.
“You must be cold. Take it back.”
“Keep it,” I said. “It’s not cold. Only you are cold because of blood loss. Eat the rest of the fruit. They’re high in sugar. You need the energy.”
I swiped the dial on my thermo-suit’s hub and the material quickly reformed to the top half of my body, covering my bare skin down to my wrists. I could have covered my hands, too, but I wanted them free to measure Sam’s temperature.
Of course, Ilisa gave me medical supplies. There was probably a proper scanner in in that would have been much more efficient than my hand.
Sam slowly slid her hands into the oversized jacket and then drew her knees up to her chest. Her skin was ashen and her lips looked dry and those damn shadows under her eyes were only getting worse.
