Page 10 of Surrendering the Skies

“Very good. Do you need any help with the trailer?”

She shook her head. “Nah, we have a nice routine going by now. But thanks.”

Geneva stood nearby and waited for her colleagues to bring their weapons to the appropriate places. Once they were properly stored, the designated team rolled the rack up a ramp and fastened it to a small trailer. After checking the connection at the hitch, Maxwell hopped into the driver’s side of the truck it was attached to, her partner joining her from the opposite side. The vehicle roared to life, its wheels crunching over the dry terrain as she steered it toward the entrance to the garage at the base.

A brief pang of jealousy flitted through Geneva’s mind as she watched her leave and prepared herself for the long trek on foot. “Let’s get going,” she said to the others. “As soon as I find out what’s going on, I’ll let you know.”

They trudged across the field in a haphazard clump. At the base, they slipped into performing the procedures that had become second nature by this point. Geneva hung up her spacesuit and inspected it for damage, paying close attention to the parts she’d landed on when she’d fallen. Everything appeared intact, and she repeated the process on the rest of her equipment. Breathing a sigh of relief, she exited the locker room in search of more information.

Ash met her at the end of a corridor. “Hey, I know you just came in from outside,” he said. “Are you okay?”

She waved him off with one hand. “I took a little tumble, but I doubt I’ll even have a bruise to show for it tomorrow. What’s going on?”

Sighing, he rolled his eyes. “Some young ensign—not assigned to either of our teams, thank goodness—accidentally backed his truck into the main communications tower and knocked the whole damn thing over.”

Her mouth dropped open as she stared at him, incredulous. “Are you fucking kidding me?”

“I’m afraid not.” He shook his head, rubbing his temples with his fingers. “A crew’s been assembled to try to assess and repair the damage, but as of right this moment, everything’s gone dark when it comes to contacting anyone off this planet. No calls or messages in, no calls or messages out.”

Geneva blew out a long breath. “My mother’s going to flip out when she can’t get in touch with us.”

“I doubt mine will be too happy about it, either. Along with Marcus.”

The mention of his name made her wince. With each passing day, the distance between them seemed to grow wider and wider. “There’s got to be some sort of channel that doesn’t rely on the one tower,” she said.

“If there is, someone will find it.” He ran a hand through his hair. “If nothing else, the ship is supposed to return here once the maintenance is done. It’s not like we’re stuck here.”

“A small silver lining, but I’ll take it.” She crossed her arms over her chest, unable to keep the corners of her mouth from turning downward. “I’ve been trying to remain upbeat and optimistic this whole time, but can I finally say I hate the entire planet of Kasarad and this place just plain sucks?”

Ash snorted and clapped a hand on her shoulder. “Yes, you can. Because trust me, I feel the same exact way.”

Chapter Five

Geneva flung her bag onto the bed and spun around in the center of the room, arms outstretched. “Oh, I never thought it would feel so good to be back here!” she said.

Ash followed her inside. “Not even after our other assignments in shitty places? Or after escaping forced vacations with your mother? Or—”

“Yes, even compared to all of those.” She walked around the perimeter of their quarters on the ship, inspecting the closets and furniture to ensure nothing was out of place. “I understand we were doing important work, but it feels like there wasn’t enough of it to keep us distracted from how dull and depressing Kasarad is.”

“And the communications systems not being fully repaired until right before we left didn’t help matters any.” He shrugged out of his jacket and opened the closet door to hang it up. “At least we were able to get out a few quick text messages here and there.”

She smirked. “Admiral Walker probably made it a priority, knowing how my parents might send out an armed fleet of their own if too much time passed before hearing from me.”

Laughing, he waggled the hanger at her. “You know, I’d pay good money to watch a showdown between Walker and your mother.”

“While I died of embarrassment in the corner.”

Geneva unzipped the top of her luggage and dug out her tablet. Holding it up with both hands, she turned around and grinned. “Do you want to unpack first, or should we skip right to making somerealcalls?”

He slammed the closet door and returned her smile. “Unpacking can wait. Turn that thing on and let’s see some familiar faces.”

Clutching the tablet to her chest, she bounced up and down on her toes, pleased with his answer. She moved her bag to the floor and hopped onto the bed, happy to recline against her own pillows. Ash tossed his boots into the closet and joined her as she slid the power switch at the top of the tablet and waited for the device to flicker on.

She scrolled through her list of contacts without asking him his preference. “I didn’t even check the time,” she said. “Do you think he’ll be available or even awake now?”

“Might as well give it a try.”

Several endless moments later, Marcus appeared on the screen, framed by the backdrop of his kitchen. Geneva let out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding and relief flooded over her. “Oh, you’re home! It’s so good to finally see you!”

---