Page 14

I immediately synced my wristband to my main screen and opened a window to text with Frank. You awake and at work?

Frank’s response came a few seconds later. I am. Thanks for letting me sleep last night. I would have rather spent time with you, but you clearly knew what I needed better than I did.

I smiled. You’re welcome. Listen, I can’t talk, but I can text. You heard about the whole prayer and meditation thing?

I did. I would imagine you’re not pleased.

That’s an understatement. I added a frowning face for emphasis. It was Hazel’s idea, and I couldn’t really say no. She owes me big-time now though so there’s that.

Are they meditating now?

Yes. First classroom closest to the door. I sent Harry to snoop.

That explains the video. Looks like a Bedouin tent in there.

I haven’t had a chance to watch it yet. That was something I’d prefer to do in my office, but I wasn’t sure I’d get the chance today.

Two more patrons came in, making me think the Ohuli were going to get more of a crowd than I’d imagined. They were dressed in loose, lounge-type clothing and looking around expectantly.

“Meditation?” I asked.

They nodded. I pointed them toward the classroom. “Right in there.”

I went back to Frank. Anyway, you’re never going to believe who showed up. Sten. Does he seem like the type to do meditation?

Sten? Not at all.

That was my thought too, but I figured you knew him better. He was the first one to show up.

This is weird.

I could not agree more.

I have to go. Ship maintenance doesn’t recognize fallow time.

I hear you. Have dinner with me and the girls tonight.

Okay. Sounds good. Meet you there.

I typed out a message to the girls in our group text to let them know Frank would be joining us. I’d just hit Send when more patrons came in. Patrons I recognized for reasons that had nothing to do with the library.

Kent Murakami and Claire Weatherall walked up to the desk. Kent gave me a big Morning News Report smile. “Hello, there. We’re here for the prayer and meditation.”

I nodded and pointed. “First classroom near the front. You can’t miss it. It’s the only one with scarves covering the windows.”

“Thanks,” Claire said.

In the next forty-five minutes, nineteen more people came in.

Nineteen. I had clearly underestimated the curiosity of my fellow staff and crew. Were they really that interested? Or was it because we were in the fallow phase and this was something different? I couldn’t really tell.

A strange smell reached me. I glanced back at Harry, but he was passed out in that sort of dead-to-the-world kind of way that cats seemed to master from birth.

I walked toward the classroom and peeked in, thankful the door was still open. It took my eyes a moment to adjust to the light of just a scattering of rechargeable candles, but I could see well enough after a few seconds.

The tables had been folded up and the chairs stacked in one corner, leaving the bulk of the space empty.

Incense drifted up from a small burner in one corner. Definitely not the rechargeable kind. I frowned, pretty sure that was some kind of violation.

The people who’d come to meditate sat on the floor facing away from me and making full use of the available area. Sten was near the front. Nostromo sat cross-legged at the head of the room with his daughters behind him, all facing the people who’d come in.

The Ohuli had their eyes closed and their hands in their laps, palms up, each of them cradling a pila.

I leaned in a bit to see the people better. They were all holding pila, too. So those were part of whatever this was? Interesting but not information I really knew what to do with.

I went back to work. A few actual library patrons came in, but so did a few more people who joined the Ohuli.

There was nothing inherently wrong with what was happening. Prayer and meditation had been proven to be beneficial for a lot of people. But by lunchtime, they’d been at it for nearly three hours.

To be completely honest, I would have fallen asleep. I ate lunch at the main desk, a nice bowl of pork fried rice washed down with a diet cola, courtesy of the new Instachef.

Afterward, I worked on Harry’s new sweater. The yarn was a lovely soft cobalt blue I’d picked up planetside, although which planet I couldn’t quite remember. My yarn stash was embarrassingly large.

I sat there knitting, watching the door of the classroom and wondering how it was possible that no one had come out yet.

Frankly, it was odd. Unless they had all fallen asleep. I finished the row I was on, put the knitting aside, and went to have a look.

Everyone, including Kent and Claire, was still in the same spots, but a few had changed positions. Not Nostromo or his daughters, however. They didn’t look like they’d moved an inch. The scent of the incense, while not entirely unpleasant, irritated me.

This was a library. It was supposed to smell like books. I frowned and went back to work. As it approached closing time, I started to wonder how I was going to lock up with a room full of meditating people.

I started toward the classroom, thinking maybe I’d make a gentle announcement about it being time to end for the day, when a soft gong sounded. Movement and quiet rustling followed. A few moments later, Nostromo emerged.

He bowed. “Our gracious host. We have concluded today’s meditation and prayer time. Thank you so much. We look forward to tomorrow.”

One by one, the people who’d joined them filed out. Sten was one of the first. He didn’t look at me, just wandered out, a kind of blank blissfulness on his face. They all looked a little dazed, which seemed about right, and all of them carried the pila they’d been given.

The daughters were the last ones out. They stood near Nostromo, who smiled at me. “We wish you well and give you our thanks.”

Then they left, too, their father walking out behind them.

As soon as they were gone, I went into the classroom. Scarves still covered the windows, and the scent of the incense lingered, but it no longer smoldered. And as much as I hated to admit it, there was something else in the air.

A sense of … what, I didn’t know. It was almost like a soft vibration that I could feel. As if the air itself was charged with a different kind of force.

It wasn’t dark or light, good or bad, just a neutral kind of energy. I didn’t know what to make of it, just that stranger things existed beyond the comprehension of the human mind. I’d chalk this up to that until I had a better explanation.

My fingers went to the nebulite pendant around my neck. I could feel its presence strongly today, and I had to wonder if it was because of the Ohuli. In what way it might sense them, I had no idea.

I closed the door, glad to do that much. I went through the closing routine, which wasn’t something I usually did, as I almost never worked the closing shift, but it was the same as opening, just in reverse. Then I gathered my knitting, woke Harry, and we went home.

As I changed for dinner, just jeans and a simple sweater, I knew I was letting the Ohuli get under my skin. They were perfectly nice. There was nothing wrong with their meditation. But I couldn’t help what I was feeling.

Was I really that territorial about the library? Those rooms were for general use. And for everyone. Why did it bother me so much?

I sighed, unable to answer that question.

Maybe I just needed to get over it. I sat on the couch with Harry.

I had a few minutes to spare before I needed to leave for dinner.

“What do you think, Harry? Am I letting this bother me for no real reason? Am I just mad that they’ve taken over space I consider mine? ”

He walked over and plopped down next to me, leaning his head on my leg. “I think your instincts have never let you down before. If you think something’s wrong, it probably is. Just because you don’t know what that thing is yet doesn’t mean it’s not a valid feeling.”

I stroked my finger down his nose. “How did you get to be so smart?”

He pushed one paw against my leg. “I don’t know. Maybe you should ask Frank.”

I smiled. “Maybe I should.” I scooped him up and held him like a baby, kissing his head. “You’re such good company.”

“I know.”

With a laugh, I put him back down and headed to dinner, trying to get over my mood and not let the Ohuli bother me any more than they already had.

Frank stood waiting by the dining hall doors as I approached. Seeing him instantly made me feel better. He looked good, too. Much more rested than he had the day before.

“Hi, beautiful.”

I grinned and kissed him on the mouth. “Hi, yourself, handsome. Thanks for coming.”

“Thanks for inviting me. How was the rest of your day, or shouldn’t I ask?”

“It was fine. Nothing really to report, other than everyone who came to meditate stayed the whole day, which I did not expect.”

“That’s a lot of meditation.”

“Agreed. Let’s get some dinner.”

We got in line, got our food, which was a choice of fried chicken with mashed potatoes, gravy, and green beans or lentil loaf with the same accompaniments, and went to our usual table. We both chose the fried chicken.

Zanya was there, but Benni and Vashti had yet to arrive.

Zanya gave Frank a big smile. “Hi, there. You must be our good-luck charm.”

“Why’s that?” Frank asked as he set his tray down and started to take his seat.

“There’s a kiwi fruit trifle on the dessert station. Kiwi, custard, whipped cream, and sponge cake.”

He stopped mid-sit and straightened, looking at me. “I’ll be right back with two of those. Zanya, you want one?”

“Sure,” she said.

“Three bowls, coming up.”

I laughed. “You’re a good man. Get something for yourself.”

He shook his head as he walked away.

Zanya sighed. “He is so dreamy. I wish he had a brother.”

“There are lots of eligible men on this starliner. Okay, maybe not lots, but there are some.”

“I know, but I’ve yet to meet one who compares to what you’ve found.”

“So you’re looking?”

She shrugged one shoulder. “I’m not not looking. If you meet anyone you think I’d like, I’m open to being introduced.”

“I’ll remember that.”

Frank returned with three generous portions of kiwi trifle, and I considered skipping the fried chicken and eating that first, but I liked fried chicken. And I was an adult, which meant I could do whatever I wanted, but I should probably eat my dinner like a responsible human being.

Life was hard sometimes, a thought that made me laugh and instantly put me in a better mood. Whatever the Ohuli were up to, it really wasn’t anything I should let bother me.

Vashti and Benni arrived, joining us with their trays. We had a great dinner with lots of laughter, and by the end of it, and that first bite of trifle, I was in a completely different headspace.

This was just what I’d needed. Time with my friends. Time focused on something else besides our mysterious guests.

So what if they had a weird creature-ship and liked to meditate all day? It really didn’t affect me. Live and let live, right?

Or, as Harry would say, righto.

My wristband chimed, along with everyone else’s in the dining hall. A ship-wide announcement. I glanced at it, as did everyone around me, and read the message scrolling across the screen.

In thanks for the hospitality of the Athos and the warm welcome they’ve been given, our Ohuli guests have announced that starting tomorrow, they will provide their deep sight services to anyone aboard the starliner who wishes to participate. More information to follow.

And just like that, my bad mood returned.