Chapter 13

Evan stood, stretching as he rubbed his eyes. He checked the time, surprised to find he’d only spent an hour studying. His Keeper would be back from the bridge any minute, but he probably still had time to test out the multi-dimensional display unit. Alex didn’t know he’d dismantled the setup originally created for their quarters back on the Ascalon, but Evan was certain he wouldn’t mind. They’d both found that filling the entire room with the generated display was invaluable in planning routes and studying sections of space.

His hope now was that they could use it to map the spread of the plague and find some clue to its origin. Evan personally believed the virus had been a calculated attack, made to look and act like an unknown, fast-spreading plague. But the question remained as to who -- or what -- originated the attack, and why. It was hard to imagine a motive behind the attempted extinction of the entire human race.

With a flip of a switch, the main living area of their new quarters was transformed into Scotian space. Evan used the small remote to adjust the clarity, then change the view from a close-up of Scotian’s moon to a wide spread that included every inhabited planet and system. The image filled the living room, placing nearby Scotian in the galley and the farthest reach of Earth just above the couch. Evan studied the display, pleased with the focus and detail. He was just about to flip it off when Alex came through the door, stopping in surprise as he found Cryian II directly in front of his chest.

“Wow!” He stared at the planets hovering around the room, then looked for Evan. “You brought it? Or is this new?”

“I thought it might be helpful so I brought it along.” Evan tossed the remote to the couch and walked into the center of the room, looking at each planet. “With the data we have on the plague plugged into the display, we might be able to find some hint about the spread, if not the origin.”

Alex closed the door behind him and wandered around slowly. “This is fantastic. I didn’t even think to ask about bringing this with us.”

“I wouldn’t have left anything behind that you would miss.” Evan took his pager out of his pocket and called up the data Admiral Rickover had transferred for them.

Alex laughed slightly and moved to the couch, sitting down with a shake of his head. “You know, contrary to what it may seem, I wasn’t completely helpless before you came around.”

Evan stopped what he was doing and looked at his Keeper. “I never said you were.” He could feel his Keeper’s tiredness, but none of the frustration he expected after such a remark. “Has someone else?”

Alex sighed, shaking his head. “No, no one has.” He ran a hand through his hair and leaned back, sinking down into the soft couch cushions. “I just feel guilty sometimes, relying on you for everything.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. Of course you can count on me for everything.” Evan called up the data he was looking for with just a thought. “And if you’re thinking about what Chief Jackson said, don’t. Sara shouldn’t have said anything. It doesn’t deserve another thought.”

Alex laughed again. “No, you’re right, it doesn’t. I did think I was feeling guilty for a little while, but I don’t any more. We’re doing the right thing. We looked after the Ascalon and the crew, they weren’t abandoned.”

“Then what’s bothering you?” Among Alex’s interesting qualities, the ability to hide his emotions wasn’t one. Evan began transferring the data from his pager to the table display while waiting for his Keeper’s reply.

“I was talking to some of the crew this morning, getting a feel for their experience, which isn’t much, by the way. This is a green crew for the most part, young and inexperienced.” He shrugged. “But everyone starts somewhere.” He stood and began wandering around among the three-dimensional planets. “Some of them talked about this plague, and the family and friends they lost.”

“And you started feeling guilty?” Evan assigned each planet a red mark in the order of their exposure to the mysterious catastrophe.

“Not really.” Alex shrugged, watching the red marks appear on the virtual planets around the room. “I started thinking what I would have done if I hadn’t been so lucky. But if we’d been home when this happened, either on or off-world, we would have lived or died together.”

“Exactly.” Evan set a final program notation and closed his pager. “So fretting over what could have been, or might have happened, is -- ”

“Ridiculous,” Alex smiled. “I know.”

“Good.” Evan pointed to the red marks. “I’ve gone according to the exact dates they have recorded for discovery of the plague on each world. Maybe we can find a pattern no one has thought of yet.”

“Well, if there’s one thing we’re good at, it’s doing things no one else has ever thought of.” Alex grinned mischievously.

Evan found that sitting on a stool at the far end of the galley afforded him a clear view of every planet in the display. He got comfortable and ran the program, watching the red marks appear in sequence. Alex, too, found a good vantage point and settled in to study the data. Evan knew his Keeper was at his best when he was obsessed by something, wrestling with a problem or puzzle that appeared to defy solution. Alex wasn’t a man who could easily transition from one project to another if there was a significant delay in between. His mind had a tendency to wander into dangerous territory, questioning his past decisions and fretting about things over which he had no influence or control.

It was both an asset and a hindrance, but something Evan felt he was learning how to deal with and maneuver when needed. One thing he was not going to do was let Alex waste any time feeling guilty about anything. He was a little angry at Sara for having mentioned her husband’s remarks, and was beginning to wonder if she’d had some other motive for it.

Alex waved a hand through the display. “You know, one thing we should do when we get back is add the flight records of all the ships, personal and commercial, and see how they fit into the whole scheme of things.”

“Do you think a ship spread this?”

“It had to get around somehow. If it wasn’t spread by accidental transmission -- something the quarantines should have prevented -- then it was spread on purpose.”

Evan nodded. “Then we need flight records going back before the first detection. The plague could easily have been planted on all worlds prior to activation. Like seeding clouds for rain.”

“Good idea.” Alex stood and adjusted the buckle at the bottom of his jacket. “In fact, this ship has a pretty decent display in the observation deck. When we get back to Scotian, we should set this program up in there so the whole crew can get to work on it. Our assignment is to find answers, and at our disposal is this ship and its crew.”

Evan contemplated the use of an entire observation deck to display the data. It might help to see the universe without the couch in the way of Earth’s only moon. “This is different than trying to find something before anyone else, isn’t it?”

Alex laughed lightly. “Yeah, I guess so. This time I can’t wait until the last minute to reveal a game plan, and there’s no bonus for being the first one to figure it all out.”

Bonus aside, Evan wondered how his Keeper’s ego would handle it. Not that it was likely to become an issue. Anything his crew discovered would be credited to the ship and its commanding officer.

Evan’s money was still on Alex. “I haven’t seen the display in the observation deck. Is it detailed?”

“Come on, let’s go have a look.” Alex put a hand on Evan’s shoulder and led him toward the door. “These military units are state-of-the-art, but I doubt they’re as clear and crisp as this one.”

“Maybe I can fix that.” Evan shut off the display and tossed the remote control onto the couch. “You’ve got the fastest ship in the navy, you should have the best equipment.”

“I don’t know about the fastest, but we deserve the best.” Alex grinned.

“Actually it is the fastest. Granted, with this new drive that might be splitting hairs.” Evan shrugged. “But from what I’ve read, the Defiant tested slightly faster than all the other ships. Admiral Rickover gave you the best one, for a reason, I’m sure.”

“Speaking of fast, we’re going to be docking at Scotian in less than eight hours.” They headed down the corridor to a lift, bypassing one of several ladder tubes. “When I think of the exploration I could do with an engine like that . . . ”

“When we’re finished, maybe you should consider keeping this ship, or having the Ascalon fitted with this engine style.” Evan noticed the looks afforded them from the few crewmen and women they passed along the way. The majority of them avoided his glance completely, but gave their new captain a nod.

“Do you think we’ll ever be finished?” Alex punched the button for the upper level observation deck and the doors closed silently. “Nothing’s going to be normal again for a long time.”

“Maybe not for a long time, but eventually someone will find an uninfected planet we can move the survivors to. Some day a vaccine or cure will be found. And given enough time and resources, we’ll figure out where this plague came from and make sure it never happens again.” He looked at Alex. The puzzled expression he saw on his Keeper’s face made him raise both eyebrows. “What?”

Alex blinked. “You’re just so sure of all that?”

“Of course. Why wouldn’t I be?” The lift doors opened and Evan stepped out, pausing a moment so Alex would realize they had arrived and exit the elevator.

“I just think that’s pretty optimistic.” They entered the large observation deck and found it unoccupied.

“It’s not optimistic, it’s realistic.” Evan watched as Alex walked to the main computer console to the left of the entrance.

“How do you figure?”

Evan watched Alex turn the unit on, then call up the display from the multi-dimensional scopes placed around the large, open room. “You set out to discover Turbidium, and did.” The display filled approximately half of the room’s thirty by sixty open square feet with an image of Scotian and her moons. Evan scrutinized the images hovering around them in three dimensions. “Following that, you decided to attempt yet another seemingly impossible task by locating the source of all Sha’erah. Which you did.”

“If I recall correctly, Maker found us. ”

Evan shrugged. “Regardless, you achieved your goal.” He walked to the computer console and placed his hand over the input pad, quickly and easily finding the program controlling the display.

“And this makes you believe I’ll succeed again, figure this all out and make everything okay again?” Alex laughed shortly. “You know, before you came around, I didn’t always beat the other guy to the goal. Sure, maybe most of the time, but there were contracts I lost here and there. I might have a pretty decent track record, but I’m no superman.”

Evan found what he was looking for, made a few delicate adjustments he was surprised the military people hadn’t figured out, and blinked back into focus so he could examine the results. “Then maybe I am.”

Alex looked around the room and whistled. “Damn, that’s good.” Suddenly he turned, staring at Evan. “Then maybe you are?”

“The catalyst.” Evan shrugged. “The thing you needed to go from ninety-nine percent accurate to one hundred.”

“You know, I can’t even argue with that.” Alex laughed again and looked back at the display.

Before Evan could comment, an officer entered the observation room. When he realized what he was seeing, he stopped and stared, then shook himself and looked at Alex.

“Captain, I didn’t mean to interrupt anything.” The officer didn’t salute, but he did stand considerably straighter as he addressed Alex.

“That’s all right, Keeley. This is the observation deck, after all.”

“Sir.” Lieutenant Keeley nodded once, then looked around at the display. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen this look so sharp and clear.”

“You haven’t,” Alex replied with slight grin. “Evan made some adjustments to the unit. I won’t take away this room’s off-duty function, but I want this available to everyone. We’re going to find out exactly where this plague came from, Lieutenant. With the entire universe displayed clearly, we’re going to include the shipping traffic, all recorded travel and the data on the spread of the virus.”

“I’m sure we’ll succeed, sir. Somehow, anyway.” Keeley hesitated, looking from Alex to Evan to the door and back again. “Sir, I just wanted to mention, if I may . . . ”

“Go ahead.”

Evan watched the lieutenant’s face for any sign of distrust or trouble brewing and found none.

“I was still in the academy when you and the Fifth headed off that attack at Summer’s Cluster. What you did there, as much as they would tell us about it anyway, was an inspiration.”

Evan watched a look of disappointment flash across his Keeper’s face, but it was quickly schooled into experienced understanding.

“Just remember, Lieutenant, no great battles are ever won by just one man. Success depends on having a crew you can count on.”

It took all of his Sha’erah training to keep Evan from rolling his eyes at the pat answer, but Keeley seemed unaffected.

“Yes, sir.”

There was a shift change taking place and Evan could hear more crewmen coming down the corridor, looking for some relaxation in the observation deck, no doubt. The room served as an off-duty recreational room where rank and formality were relaxed.

“All right, we’ve still got work to do.” Alex had taken note of the new arrivals, all looking around in awe at the newly improved room display. “Evan will have the data plugged into this computer by the end of the day, so everyone can get familiar with it.” He nodded at the lieutenant, then at the group standing close by, and started for the lift.

Evan followed, waiting until they were clear of eavesdroppers before speaking again. “You haven’t told me about what happened at Summer’s Cluster.”

“No, I haven’t.” Alex punched the lift call button and looked up at Evan. “You haven’t explained how my new ship’s engines work.”

“It’s complicated.” Evan shrugged and stepped inside the lift. “I could just read the files, you know.”

“I figured you already had.” Alex made a face, then followed Evan inside the elevator. “Are you suggesting I won’t understand complicated engine designs?”

“I didn’t say that.” Evan pressed the button that would take them down three levels to their quarters. “Files only give the facts, I’d rather hear it from you so I could get the whole story.”

“It’s . . . complicated.”

Evan watched Alex, who was trying not to look directly at him, and waited. It had been his Keeper’s idea all along that they shouldn’t have secrets, and finding out exactly what had happened wouldn’t be hard at all, now that Evan had physical access to military records. And knowing Alex, the facts probably weren’t as dramatic as his memory of them were making it seem.

As the lift doors opened, Alex gave in.

“There were pirates raiding a mining colony at Summer’s Cluster. Civilians and local authorities had been taking heavy casualties for months. So, we were sent in to police the sector.” Alex stepped off the lift and they both started walking toward their quarters. “The miners had just hit the mother lode, mining Cesium from the asteroids, so I set up a very elaborate bait and switch with the transports.” He shrugged. “The pirates came out in surprising force and fell for it. But when we flew in to make the capture, they refused to surrender. During the attack, their ships exploded.”

“Exploded?” Evan opened the door to their quarters. “All of them?”

Alex nodded. “I gave them three chances to surrender and be boarded, and they refused. One began an attack, so I ordered my crew to return fire. They were in such a tight formation, when we hit the engines of the command ship and blew it, the others were caught by the energy blast and shrapnel. It set off internal explosions in all four ships, each probably manned by a crew of twenty or so. They were very heavily armed with munitions that I’m sure must have helped tear their own ships apart when the explosions began.” He walked to the galley and dialed up some fresh coffee. “We found their base a week later, completely empty, and figured they’d all come out for this run. There was never another pirate attack in Summer’s Cluster. We had, apparently, killed them all.”

Evan quickly reviewed what Alex had said, and realized he’d been right all along. “That wasn’t anything to be ashamed of. In fact the admiral was right, that was an impressive victory.”

Alex shook his head. “No, to have captured them and brought them to trial would have been an impressive victory.”

“But they refused to surrender. And they fired on you.” Evan failed to see the problem. “Were you reprimanded for their deaths?”

“As a matter of fact, I was promoted after that. They gave me credit for a brilliant plan that resulted in the end of piracy in that section.” He sighed heavily and rubbed his eyes. “I would have preferred it if we’d made arrests, sent them all to trial.”

“Perhaps they didn’t want to be captured.” Evan retrieved two cups from the small cupboard and filled them with the fresh coffee. “You did exactly what you were instructed, stopped piracy in Summer’s Cluster, and saved both the miners lives and their investors money. It’s my understanding that those who choose to break the law have accepted the risks involved.”

Alex grinned slightly and accepted the cup Evan handed him, taking it to the couch. “Like Spencer?”

“Like nearly everyone on Cryian. They’d all made the choice to live outside the law, so they had no recourse when things got dangerous.” He tasted the coffee, then sat in one of the chairs facing the couch. “Do you regret having saved the miners?”

“No, of course not.”

“Do you regret having stopped piracy in an entire section of occupied space?”

Alex sighed and leaned back, resting his head on the couch. “No, I don’t.”

“Both the promotion and the respect that mission earned for you can’t possibly be a bad thing.”

“No, they’re not. I just don’t like thinking about the death of nearly a hundred people as some fantastic act of military heroism. A hundred successful arrests would have suited me just fine.” Alex lifted his head and tasted his coffee, then shrugged. “The rest of my naval career was pretty uneventful after that. It was two years later when I retired.”

Evan was nodding and sipping the hot coffee. “I don’t really understand it.”

“What? My retiring from the service, or the mission?”

“The new string drive.” It wasn’t often that Evan got to be the one in complete control of their conversations, turning the subject back around on a dime. The look on Alex’s face as he tried to catch up was priceless, and Evan wanted to enjoy it for a moment. “It’s very complex physics. I understand the theory, but I haven’t examined yet how it’s being physically engineered.”

“Well, a theory is better than nothing. When I was in the service it was all still ideas and diagrams.”

Evan shrugged. “Basically it works the opposite way a conventional engine works. Where normally you exert energy to push a ship through space, using either propellants or the wind of solar sails, this engine pulls the ship through space. It locates a string of energy along a subspace line that connects one physical point in space -- like a planet or moon -- to another planet or moon. When you locate a string going the direction you want to go, the engine in some way grabs hold of that string and pulls the ship along the path.”

“Like when you’re climbing, using a guide line?”

“Something like that.” Evan nodded, mentally reviewing the specs he’d studied. “Subspace is filled with strings of energy going in all directions at once, and by altering the string you’re pulling yourself along with, you can go anywhere.” It was hard to describe, and quite complex in its design, but Evan was sure in time he’d understand it fully. “The fact that these strings come in one section of the engine, then exit out another, somehow supercharges that one section long enough to give the engine the speed we’re enjoying now.”

Alex finished his coffee and stood. “I’m willing to bet before long you’ll understand the physical aspects of this new drive better than our engineers do.”

Evan raised an eyebrow at his Keeper’s unwavering confidence, but in truth he wasn’t able to deny it. He fully intended to studying the engines and the physics behind them every chance he got.

“In the meantime, since we’ll be at Scotian in less than five hours, I’m going to head to the gym and get in a few miles on the treadmill.”

“I’d like to do some studying, if I’m going to figure the engines out I should start working on it.”

Alex shrugged. “Fine by me, I won’t be long.”

Evan was about to say he’d coming looking for Alex in an hour, but then he remembered the Defiant’s gym had only treadmills for jogging -- something his Keeper truly disliked -- which should send him back in frustration before then. Gone were the days of rock climbing on simulated cliffs onboard luxury cruise liners. He wondered what had become of those attractions, now that all space-faring ships were being pressed into service as refugee living quarters and storage vessels.

It was odd, thinking about all the strange things humanity used to take for granted, now forever altered by circumstances.

# # #

Alex wiped sweat from his face and glanced at the distance meter. He’d gone over a mile and a half, but promised himself two so he pressed on. There was nothing more mundane than jogging on a treadmill, but the size and function of the Defiant prevented a jogging track. While he knew the upper level of any military vessel was commonly used by those who preferred to get somewhere when they exercised, he hadn’t wanted to run into that many other crewmen just yet.

As it was, there were four others in the gym working on various exercise machines and free weights, occasionally shooting him glances and exchanging comments between themselves. He was the new guy. Not only the new guy, but the new boss. There were bound to be rumors about who he was, what his captaining style was going to be. And, no doubt, questions about their new commander.

It was easy to bristle at the thought of his new crew taking a dislike to Evan. Too easy. Alex had to force himself to remain calm and not jump to any conclusions. It was important to start off on the right foot here and project as professional an attitude as he could.

At least to a point. He could play nice and be polite, but ultimately like it or not he was the boss.

When a chime indicated the two mile mark, Alex stopped jogging and stepped off the treadmill, then grabbed a towel to dry off his face as he walked to the shower room. He nodded at the crewmen as he passed and received quick hellos and polite nods in return.

“Captain.”

Alex looked up as he entered the locker room and noticed his navigations officer. “Lieutenant.”

“I was just getting ready for my shift.” Lieutenant Reeve pulled his shirt on and started tucking it neatly in. “We’re on course and making good time.”

“That’s good to hear.” Alex took off his shirt and tossed it aside. With the speed of this ship, and its ability to reach water supplies quickly, it wasn’t necessary to ration their supplies as severely as it had been on the Ascalon, so he was looking forward to an enjoyable shower.

Lieutenant Reeve seemed to hesitate as he reached for his uniform jacket.

“Is there something you wanted to say, Lieutenant?”

Reeve blinked, shook his head, but then shrugged.

“You can speak freely, Reeve. I don’t bite that often. What’s on your mind?”

“Well it’s not just me, sir. A few of us have been talking, and we were . . . That is I was sure if . . . ” Reeve paused to collect himself. “There’s been talk that this plague came from aliens, somehow, in an attempt to wipe out all human life. Granted that’s just talk and all. But some of us were discussing the other day . . . That is to say, sir, the commander . . . he’s not entirely human, is he?”

Luckily for the lieutenant, his stammering delivery had given Alex enough time to realize the gist of his point and clamp down on his inner rage. He used that time to gain some control of his voice, although he still had to speak through clenched teeth.

“The commander is as human as you and I, Lieutenant.” Alex turned to grab a towel before heading into one of the vacant shower suites. “Anyone who tells you otherwise is misinformed.”

“Yes, sir. But there’s been talk, mostly in the bars of course, that whoever created those slaves was killed awhile back. Some say the aliens had a kind of doomsday device, to exact revenge on everyone for destroying their work. And he is one of those . . .”

“Evan is Sha’erah, Lieutenant.” Alex turned to face the man, hoping to put an end to this conversation before he lost the tenuous grasp on his anger. “I can assure you, he is very human. The rumors and stories you’ve heard are all just that, rumors and stories. I trust you’re intelligent enough to know the difference?”

Reeve straightened up and nearly saluted. “Yes, sir. I am, sir.”

“Good, then that should clear things up for you.” Alex hung his pants on a hook outside the door, then entered the shower suite without another word.

Standing under the pounding spray cleaned off the sweat and cooled some of his temper, but an underlying sense of worry continued to nag him. Until now, he hadn’t considered how many Sha’erah had survived the plague. Mostly because he had no idea how many there were to begin with. Surely Evan wasn’t the only one left. No, there were the kids Zane was taking care of. Those six at least. Then there was Thomas.

Had Murcadia been on the list? It had to be. All populated planets had been wiped out, even those privately ruled by spoiled dictators. Alex made a mental note to check the list of survivors for Thomas’s name.

Still, the lieutenant’s comment bothered him. He knew a lot of people believed the rumors that Sha’erah were alien, or at least created by aliens. And while he and Evan had discovered the truth, they hadn’t shared that with anyone. Alex didn’t want anyone knowing what he’d found out about Maker or that madman’s creations. He hadn’t even told Zane all the details, and had no intention of doing so.

But if a handful of his own crew were trying to make some connection between this plague and their belief that Sha’erah were alien -- and therefore suspect -- then it stood to reason plenty of civilians were bound to reach the same conclusion.

If they took one minute to rationally consider it, they’d realize how stupid it was. Why would an alien race create, or help to create, human slaves for the rich, then just decide one day to eliminate the human race altogether? No, it was too easy to blame aliens for everything you couldn’t understand.

“Doomsday device my ass.” Alex switched off the shower and grabbed his towel. Maker was a lot of things, and insane was the biggest, but even he couldn’t have created a plague to launch after his death and destroy the human race.

Alex dressed and tried to force himself into a better mood before leaving the locker room. The fact that Maker had been intelligent enough, and insane enough, to actually pull something like that off wasn’t helping. But that had been over a year ago. Surely someone would have noticed a weapon launched from a burned out moon. One of the nearby systems would have detected something like that.

Unless Maker had already planted his doomsday virus on all the worlds, ready to be activated by some signal. But delivered by what means? What would have set it off if not the destruction of his Sha’erah facility? After all, the plague had missed all space stations, ships and enclosed habitats. No, it didn’t make sense to have something triggered to destroy humanity, but delayed one year after your demise. If you wanted revenge, wouldn’t you want everyone to know who was behind it?

Maker hadn’t done this, the man was dead. And Spencer was dead. Paulson Carpenter was a rich man, but he owed his wealth to society, so he wouldn’t have had a hand in this. No, regardless of what a handful of crewmen might think, and perhaps a few hundred other people, this had nothing to do with Alex and Evan. It had nothing to do with their respective fathers, or anything else related to the Sha’erah.

“That makes for a refreshing change.”

Alex’s attempt to find a bright side was failing miserably. He was frustrated, angry, confused, and more than a little worried about what they were going to find. Add that to his nagging thoughts of Sara and her presence on his ship without her husband and Alex was well on his way to a good headache. Argument with Carl aside, she’s a married woman. She didn’t love Alex, and he didn’t love her. But they had a history that was coming back to haunt him. A history that was familiar, and in times of confusion the familiar could be very comforting.

Why, he didn’t know. Pressure, maybe. Or stress. Everyone was under an incredible stress right now, the likes of which no one could have imagined. His emotions were just reaching backwards for something. At least that would explain why he couldn’t get the smell of her hair out of his mind right then.

Adding to his muddled thoughts was the sight of Sara just then leaving his suite. Alex resisted calling to her and stopped in the corridor until she’d disappeared around the opposite corner. Perplexed by his own hesitation, he shook it off and went to his quarters.

“Hey, was that . . . ” Alex stopped just inside the door. Evan was coming out of his bedroom, dressed only in a towel, hair still wet from a shower.

“Yes, she just left.” Evan walked to the galley and activated the coffee maker, then walked back toward his room.

Alex blinked. Had the Sha’erah been in the shower while Sara was here? “Was she . . . looking for something?” Hadn’t Evan said that his . . . but then Sara wouldn’t . . . would she?

“You could say that.” Evan walked into his room, then came out wearing pants and carrying a clean shirt.

Alex felt his face suddenly grow warm. “And here I told Carl he had nothing to worry about.”

Evan looked at him, eyebrows arched. He shook his head and started to put on the shirt. “She wanted sex.”

The Sha’erah’s way of stating everything in the same clear, obvious tone could really set a man reeling. Alex blinked, trying to understand how he felt about this sudden news and how he was going to deal with it. Or not. He hadn’t decided yet.

“She wanted . . . sex.” He leaned against the galley counter and watched Evan. “She’s a married woman.”

Evan nodded. “That’s what I told her.”

It was one thing to understand as Evan’s Keeper he was in complete control of every aspect of the man’s life. Quite another to manage that life. But if they were going to add Sara to the mix, Alex was going to have a problem.

“So you told her no?”

“Of course.” Evan poured two cups of hot coffee and set one on the counter near Alex. “We’re going to be at Scotian station in an hour, we don’t know what we’re going to find there, and she’s simply reacting to stress.”

“She’s a doctor, she should know how to handle stress.” Alex wasn’t sure what was worse, her seeking out Evan for sex or the idea that -- as the Keeper -- he would have to okay it. The fact that they weren’t going to ask her to stay on as ship’s physician was looking more and more logical. “Sleeping with you is no way to do it.” As he turned to reach for the coffee cup, he realized Evan was staring at him.

The Sha’erah shook his head, looking slightly puzzled. “She wasn’t looking for sex with me, she wanted you.”

Alex blinked.

“She thought you were here. We started talking, and when I realized what she wanted, I told her no.”

“You told her no.”

“She’s married.”

“She wanted to sleep with me, and you told her no?”

“You don’t need the kind of trouble that would cause.” Evan set his cup down and reached for his uniform jacket.

Alex wasn’t sure if he should be amused, angered, or relieved. He settled for confused. “Honest to God, I have no idea how I feel about that.”

Evan sighed, shaking his head slightly as if trying to make the obvious even more clear. Holding up a hand, he began ticking off points as he made them. “She’s a married woman. You would regret it, probably no later than ten minutes after it happened. Neither of you are in love with the other, you’ve said so yourself. She’s married to someone you don’t particularly like, which makes it even more complicated. And we’re about to enter Scotian space and deal with God knows what, so adding that to everything else you’re going to be dealing with would be a serious mistake.”

Not about to let logic ruin his thought processes, Alex shook his head. “Let me just get this straight . . . Sara came here looking to sleep with me, and you told her no.”

“Would you have told her yes?”

“No,” he lied. “I’m just wondering how often this has happened.”

“With Sara, just this once.” Evan shrugged. “I doubt on the Ascalon she would have considered it, with her husband right there.”

Alex closed his eyes and wondered if this conversation was worth the headache. Could Evan had known his thoughts earlier, about Sara and his own potential weakness for a return to the familiar? Of course his own instincts had prevented him from calling to Sara when he saw her in the hallway. Perhaps the Sha’erah really did know his mind on certain matters.

“Okay, this time I can’t argue with you. I want to. God knows, I’m tempted.” Alex shook his head. “But I really can’t.” As the Keeper, he was supposedly in charge of allowing Evan to have sex, regardless of the Sha’erah’s own wishes. But it was getting harder for Alex to tell just which of them was really in charge of things.

“Don’t be ridiculous.” Evan put his uniform jacket on and began snapping the buckles. “You’re the Keeper, of course you can.”

Alex laughed shortly and straightened up, buckling his own jacket so they could head up to the bridge. “Yeah, right. Have you ever tried arguing with a circular brick wall?”

“What?”

He nodded. “Exactly.”

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