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E xcept for a few vuums returning to their home stations, the corridors were empty as we made our way to the library. I unlocked the door, and we went in. I left the lights off, except for the security lights, which gave us enough to see by.

Frank had a messenger bag full of supplies and seemed smugly confident that he could rig up a classroom to provide us with plenty of intel on whatever the Ohuli ended up doing in there.

Maybe I was being petty, but a big part of me really wanted to prove that I was right about them. That they were up to something.

I sighed. It was so peaceful and quiet in the library that it only made me angrier to think about it being violated with such nonsense.

Frank adjusted the strap of his messenger bag. “Which room are you going to give them?”

I pointed to the one beside the classroom I’d already allotted for meditation. “The adjacent one.”

“Okay. Is there a ladder in the breakroom?”

“There’s a step stool.”

“Should be enough.”

“I’ll get it. You have a look at the room and make sure you’ve got what you need.”

“Will do.” He headed for the room as I went to the breakroom.

I got the step stool out of the little storage closet and carried it to him. He was in the middle of the room, staring up at the ceiling. “What are you thinking?”

“That I can do most of what I need to do pretty seamlessly.”

“Good. How can I help?”

He smiled at me. “Wouldn’t hurt to have someone making sure I don’t fall off the step stool.”

“I can do that.”

He moved the step stool to one of the corners and climbed up. I stood below him, a firm grip on the frame.

As he dug into his bag for his first gadget, I tried, again, to calm down. I did some breathing exercises I’d learned in a yoga class with Vashti. I guessed they helped.

“I know you’re mad,” Frank said. “You have every right to be. I don’t think anything about this is totally right. They feel shady, don’t they?”

“Yes, they do. But now that FAN has designated them an endangered people, they’re basically untouchable.”

“Unless we get proof they’re up to something.” Frank smiled down at me. “Hopefully, these cameras will do just that.”

I squinted at the thing in his hand. It looked like a thick piece of tape. “That’s a camera?”

“It is. The entire thing acts as a lens. It’ll be connected to another piece that will be the microphone.”

“Is this one of your designs?”

“Yes and no. I didn’t develop the lens. It was originally designed for use in wide-angle interstellar photography, but the size of it just lends itself to, shall we say, subtle eavesdropping.”

I smiled. “As long as you can make it work, it sounds good to me.”

“I can make it work.” He pulled a strip of adhesive off and attached the lens to the top of the wall, right where it joined the ceiling. “Are you going to be able to be nice to them? We don’t want them thinking something’s up.”

I snorted. “Yes, I’ll be civil.”

“I know it won’t be easy.”

“It’ll be easier if we can get some dirt on them.”

He climbed down. “That’s the plan.” He picked up the step stool. “Other side.”

It took him less than ten minutes to get the lens in place, one in each corner. Then he laid a thin microphone wire in the crevice where the carpeting met the walls on the right and left side. With that done, he pulled out a small tablet, tapped it to life, and looked at a readout on the screen.

“Seems like we’re up and working.” He looked at me. “I’m going to go into the reading nook. You stay here and talk in a normal, conversational-level voice.”

“Okay.”

He left, and a few minutes later, I heard him shout, “Go ahead.”

I almost cringed. I wasn’t used to such loudness in here. “Welcome to the library. What sort of entertainment are you looking for today? We have books, audio books, movies, television shows?—”

“Got it,” he shouted. Shortly after, he strolled back in. “We are up and operational.”

“Excellent. There’s nothing you need me to do, then?”

“Just be your usual charming self.” He winked at me as he put the tablet back into his bag, then folded the step stool. “Where does this go in the breakroom?”

“Storage closet. Thanks for doing this, by the way.”

He nodded. “Els, I’d do just about anything for you. But I’m as concerned about these people as you are. I don’t know what their end game is, but something tells me it’s not about reading fortunes.”

“I don’t think it is either, and that’s what bothers me so much. Hopefully, we’ll know soon.”

Starliner Athos Nexus Main Chat

Chattykaffi : Good morning, crew and cruisers!

I have exciting news! Our Ohuli guests have graciously offered their gifts of deep sight to anyone on board who would like a reading into their past or future.

Availability is limited, and I’ve been told not everyone is a candidate, but if you’re as interested as I am, check in with them at the library, where they’ve got a new space set up.

The Ohuli say anyone interested in a reading should try meditation first to see if they’d be a good candidate. See you there!

1001Stories : This is Ellis McFadden, the Athos ’s head librarian. While the library will be hosting the Ohuli in two of our classrooms now, this is a reminder that we are still open for business as usual. We have a lot of great entertainment available, so please stop by.

JaneInSpace : I cannot wait to get a peek into my future! This is so exciting!

I had deeply mixed feelings about the day ahead of me as I got ready for work. I had no desire to watch the Ohuli spin their nonsense tales of what the future held for my friends and colleagues. In fact, I was really hoping no one would show up.

Sadly, thanks to Kaffi’s endorsement on the Nexus, I had a feeling the Ohuli would be booked up.

It was definitely his sort of thing. And I couldn’t say anything that would stop him, nor was it my place, so what was the point?

My real hope was that Frank would capture hard evidence that they were up to something we could use against them. To be fair, I didn’t wish them any ill. I just had this feeling we were being snowed.

For what purpose, I had no idea. Maybe Frank could uncover that, too. Why else would they hide the fact that their ship was so much more than it appeared?

I wore all black with my jumpsuit today. It suited my mood.

Harry wandered into the bathroom as I was finishing my makeup. He jumped onto the lid of the toilet and looked up at me.

“You okay, Mum?”

“No, Harry. I’m not happy.”

“I can tell. Is it because of me?”

I sucked in a breath and put down my eyeliner to give him my full attention. “What? No, baby. I would never be unhappy because of you. You’re my sweet boy. You’re the reason I’m so often filled with happiness. You’re the little light of my life.”

I scooped him up, kissed his face and snuggled him against me. “I’m unhappy because I think there are people on the starliner who might be trying to take advantage of my friends. At the very least, I don’t think they’re honest or trustworthy, and that bothers me.”

He tucked his head under my chin, his purrs vibrating through me. “If you don’t like them, I don’t like them. The people in the library, right? From yesterday?”

“That’s right. Those are the people I mean.” I kissed his head again for good measure. “But you can’t act like you know I don’t like them. We have to be nice, okay?”

“Okay, Mum. I can do that.”

“I know you can because you are the best boy ever.” I smiled at him and his undeniable cuteness.

He slow-blinked at me. I scratched his chin before setting him down. “A few more minutes and we’ll be ready to go, okay?”

It was ten minutes, actually, because I wanted to finish my coffee, then brush my teeth. But I wanted to get into the library a little early, just to make sure all of Frank’s devices were still in place and still inconspicuous.

I grabbed my knitting bag, and we headed out.

Once inside the library, I turned all the lights on and did my rounds, taking extra time to inspect the classroom I’d be handing over to the Ohuli today. I could barely find the work Frank had done. I took that as a good thing.

Then Harry, who seemed determined not to leave my side, accompanied me to the breakroom, where I threw caution and calories to the wind and ordered a large mocha half-caf with extra whip and sprinkles. If ever there was a day for chocolate in my coffee, this was it.

There was a book club meeting in the reading nook at eleven, so I made sure that space was ready, then got my coffee and took it to the front desk.

Just like yesterday, Nostromo and his daughters arrived promptly at opening time.

“Good morning, keeper of the books.”

“You can call me Ellis, you know.” Yes, I was supposed to be nice, but honestly, the whole “keeper of the books” thing was getting a bit precious. I didn’t wait for his answer, just pointed at the classroom next to their meditation space. “That’s yours for the fortune-telling.”

Maybe they called it deep sight, but I wasn’t about to play that game.

He smiled indulgently. Like he was dealing with a small child.

“My daughters’ abilities are not fortune-telling, I assure you, Ellis.

Their deep sight is a gift passed down from their mother and grandmothers.

It is a genuine connection between them and the person seeking great intuition into what lies before them. ”

“That’s very interesting. I understand. Have a good day.” I went back to the desk, totally over their nonsense.

Maybe playing dumb would have been a better tack, but I couldn’t be bothered.