Page 4 of Captain's Treasure
“Anything else? I’m late.” Auvi made his tone purposely cold. Varik could turn any argument. His power of persuasion is what kept them together far longer than Auvi should have allowed. The signs had been there all along.
Silently, Auvi resumed his trek down the corridor. The prospect of searching for a new engineer daunted him, but he could no longer avoid the task. Varik had obviously decided Cyra was the only reason they weren’t back together. Auvi blamed himself for that. By perpetuating the deception, he’d put Cyra in danger.
“I will get you back,” Varik called out behind him.
Not a chance.
The temptation to go to the wet room was strong, but Cyra was likely there and preferred her privacy. He’d gone earlier that cycle in preparation for the ER bridge crossing. Traveling the wormhole while dehydrated was an experience he preferred to never repeat. He returned to his cabin, locked the door, and after taking care of some urgent correspondence, checked the listings for engineers looking for work. Perhaps he could pick up a new hire on Cassan station to complete the delivery leg of this transport.
A yellow light flashed, and an announcement that the ER Bridge crossing was one galactic hour away echoed through the ship.
There—that listing looked promising. A female. Exceptional training. Former captain of her own ship. There was a story there. Auvi would like to hear it. He typed a quick message to send after the crossing. A scratching sound dragged his attention from the video screen. Odd.
Scritch. Scritch scritch.
Of all the noises the ship made, he’d never heard that before.
Auvi stood, scanning his room. The noise came from above.
He shifted his gaze, catching movement as the creature dropped.
Eight pointed legs dug into his soft head.
Chapter4
An incessant chimereverberated through Cyra’s quarters, demanding she wake up. Confused and groggy from the sleep aid she’d taken to deal with the bridge crossing, she had no idea what time it was. No way had she overslept.
“What?” Cyra asked as the door slid open.
“Cyr.” Her best friend, Veda, peered up at her with puffy eyes. “It’s terrible.” Vedanevercried. She nurtured in a stoic, calm manner fit for a physician.
“What’s happened?”
“It’s the Captain.” Veda choked on a sob.
The phantom agony Cyra experienced in the wet room came flooding back. Wide awake, the pain made sense—Captain Auvi. She’d had episodes in the past, when she was much younger, where she’d felt another’s pain, like when her mother gave birth to her siblings. It had only happened with family. “Is he going to be okay?”
“Doc’ll be here to explain everything as soon as he can.” Veda took Cyra’s hand and guided her back in the room, closing the door and setting the lock. “I’ll stay with you.”
Cyra moved but it was as if she was watching herself from above. She shuffled across the floor as if she was floating. The gravity emulator could have been turned off for all she was aware of what was happening. It was too soon to lose Captain Auvi. No one else cared for her the way he did. Her captain had to survive.
Veda pointed to a chair and Cyra sat unaware of how much time had passed until Doc was gripping her hands, sending warmth though her icy fingers. “I’m so sorry, dear.”
Cyra saw the truth in eyes. She heard it in his voice, soft and hesitant. Truth she’d held in since Veda had come to her door—Captain Auvi was dead. Her heart cracked into pieces. “How?”
“It appears to be sudden system failure. He was fine after the launch. He left the deck and returned to his quarters according to several crewmembers, but he didn’t come to the galley for last meal as expected after we crossed the bridge. I had to override his door—” The doctor took a deep breath. His face morphed into a mask of resignation and regret. “There was nothing I could do.”
Tears ran down her face for Captain Auvi and for herself. His death terminated her future. The amount she’d saved wasn’t near enough for her own ship. No way she could remain onThe Treasurewith Varik as captain—him demanding she help him with the launch.
She shuddered.
Never.
“Cyra. Listen to me.” Doc commanded.
She sucked in a breath and gazed into his kind brown eyes.
“Captain Auvi spoke with me a few galactic months ago. He made changes to the title of the ship. Changes no one else knows about. Varik will assume the interim captaincy until we reach the Cassan Space Station. He believes he’ll only need to notify the authorities of the captain’s death, and he’ll be given title to the ship. That’s not the case.” The doctor paused and his gaze drilled into her.
