High Flyght – Chapter 7

It’s clear on the ride from the café to the hospital that I might actually be sick. I place my hand on my leg where the gash is, and it’s hot to the touch. Great. Just what I need right now.

My legs shake as I walk to my mother’s hospital room. I have to hold it together until I can get back to the ship or an urgent care center. I would just check myself into the hospital, but that would cost too much money. Hospital care is expensive and mostly for emergencies.

There’s a din of conversation happening in Mom’s room as I approach. I slow down and dip my head to see several pairs of legs under the hanging curtain in the doorway.

“Mom?” I ask as I sweep the curtain to the side.

Worry pulls my frown down, but I see the nurses’ faces and relax. Everyone appears to be in a good mood.

“Ah, this must be your daughter, Vivian.” A nurse in her mid-thirties smiles and clutches her datapad to her chest. She has the air of authority, and I remember seeing her at the nurses’ station last time I was here.

“Hi. Yeah, that’s me,” I say, waving.

“Came to see your mom? I’m Crissy, the head nurse today. Gus and I were just checking on her.”

She steps aside, and a familiar face is at Mom’s bedside, assessing her blood pressure.

Augusto Correa looks up, and his eyes meet mine. It’s a mirror of that moment when he stood in Tomu’s doorway and asked me if I was dating anyone. Even then, in his pajamas, I thought he was handsome, but I was too busy looking for clues about Tomu’s disappearance. I think I dismissed him far too fast. A connection forms between us for a moment, his eyes brightening before his eyebrows draw together to look at Mom, Dad, and me.

“Ahhh,” he says, pulling Mom’s blood pressure cuff off and attaching it to the bedside. “I knew the name looked familiar, but I didn’t want to be nosy.”

Everyone in the room pauses, and the female nurse raises her eyebrows.

“What’s going on?” Mom asks, so I cross the room and sit on the opposite side of the bed.

“Mom, this is your new downstairs neighbor, Augusto Correa. He lives in the apartment under you.”

“Gus,” he replies, correcting me. He turns to Mom with a pleasant smile, one he probably learned in school. “Do you live in my building now?”

Mom is too ashamed to admit it, though. Her lips flatten into a thin line.

“Mom and Dad have moved into Tomu’s flat while they consider what to do with their retirement,” I lie, rather convincingly because the other nurse butts in.

“Oh, how lovely. Is this the daughter that’s taking over your business, then?”

My smile is tight and ready to crack. “That’s me.”

Gus faces the data wall and rearranges some of Mom’s readouts. “We were just doing our rounds and checking on your mom. She’s looking better and better each day.” He closes out a window of data and turns to Mom. “I’m sure you’ll be able to go home soon.”

What he doesn’t realize is that Mom wants to go home, to her real home, not to that tiny place Tomu lived in.

But I like the way he talks to her, like she’s an adult worthy of compassion for her current health situation. He scans a vial of clear liquid, some kind of medication, and asks Mom to look at a datapad that scans her face and identifies her as the recipient of that medication. I’m fascinated with how easily he adds the meds to her IV drip and catalogs everything. Methodical and competent.

Wasn’t Jinzo saying we need a medic onboard?

I reach over for Mom’s hand and take it in mine.

She hisses. “Vivi, your hands are on fire.”

“I’m sure you’re just cold, Mom. I came to have a word with Dad. Mind if I steal him for a moment?”

I look up to check with Gus, and he’s watching me, his eyes taking in every detail. An observant nurse could be an excellent addition to the crew…

I shake my head to clear it. I must be going insane to think of such a thing right now. I have a million other things to worry about.

“Are you feeling all right?” he asks, and I panic. Shit. My poor health must be a lot more apparent than I thought. “You look flushed.”

“Who me? I’m fine.”

This time the lie is not so convincing because everyone, including ten people down the hall, can hear the doubt in my voice.

I don’t have time for this.

“Dad?” I jerk my head at the door. “Can I talk to you in the hall?”

“Sure, Vivi,” he says, and with his hand on my lower back, he ushers me out.

Once we’re in the hallway with the door closed, he brings the back of his hand to my cheek.

“You’re burning up, Vivi.”

“I’ll go to the clinic when we’re done here,” I assure him. “But Dad… Dad.” I put all the seriousness I can muster into my voice. “Does Tomu know about the seeds?”

He shakes his head. “What are you talking about?”

I close my eyes for a brief moment and try to organize the thoughts in my head.

“Does Tomu know about your seeds, the ones you gave me?”

“I heard you, but I don’t understand the question. Why would you think he does?”

I place my hand flat on the hospital wall to steady myself. “There was a box.” I close my eyes again and try to concentrate. My head feels full of water. “Let me back up. There was a woman he was dating. Sonia Kopack. On Rio. He took her money too. Told her about a box he buried on our property.”

“Tomu buried a box on our property?”

I nod and lick my lips; they’re dry, and so is my tongue.

“Jinzo and I found it.” I grasp Dad’s arm and sway. “Dad, it had 100,000 credits and four boxes of seeds. He must know about the seeds.”

I squeeze his arm, trying to convey how important this is. If Tomu knows about the seeds, we’re fucked.

“Vivian, I never told him about the seeds. The seeds were always going to be for you. To bring our family to the next level.” He pries his arm from my grip and grabs my shoulders. “Something’s wrong with you.”

“Need to… sit down.” I pull away from him, lean into the wall, and slide down. “My leg. I hurt my leg.”

He’ll know what to do. Dad was always my caretaker growing up. He was there for every doctor appointment, every vaccination, every childhood fever, cut, scrape, or bruise. He has no fear of blood or vomit. He can triage me and get me on my way.

Once my butt is on the cold floor, he pushes up my pant legs.

“Oh shit.” He jumps up and runs into Mom’s room. “Nurse! Vivian needs help.”

I close my eyes and curse at myself. I couldn’t make it one more hour? The clinic is right outside! This is ridiculous, Vivian. I underestimated just how weak my body has been lately. All of the stress. All of the flying, the sleepless nights, the drinking, the running, and now this scrape on my leg will do me in.

A rush of footsteps approach, and Gus and — what’s her name again? Cristy? Crissy? — hover over me.

Gus’s cool fingers pick up my leg, and I wince from the pain.

“It looks infected. This nanobandage was meant to fix small, clean wounds. Nothing this far gone.”

My face is made of rubber, but I try to grin and reassure him.

“Jin is great with squid but not the best doctor.”

The last thing I remember before I pass out is hearing my mother call from her room to ask what’s happening, and my head falling into Dad’s lap.