Page 24

I sat behind the desk, finalizing the last of the translated books and getting them into the system while also watching the steady stream of people coming in to join the meditation group or have a reading done.

It was boggling how many people were interested.

I wanted to chalk it up to the fallow phase, people having more time on their hands, and general curiosity about this new thing, but was that all there was to it?

I was starting to think not. What was drawing people in droves? I glanced over my shoulder, wondering if my companion was as interested as I was.

Seemed so. Harry was lying in his bed, but he wasn’t sleeping. He was watching the people just like I was. I wished I could talk to him and have him answer me, but that was a no-go in public, for both our sakes.

I went back to work. It had been slightly over an hour since I’d texted Zanya, and she had yet to respond.

I didn’t know her exact schedule this week.

It was possible she was busy, either in the housekeeping department or teaching an art class to some of the starliner’s students, but she was usually pretty good about getting back to me.

The sinking feeling in my stomach did not help my mood. To make matters worse, I realized that I’d yet to see Sten. He’d been in every day so far for meditation.

Maybe he’d finally gone back to work. I needed to know. I texted Frank.

Have you seen Sten today?

He got back to me right away. No. I figured he was at meditation. Not so?

Nope. Hasn’t shown up yet and Zanya hasn’t answered my text. I stared at the screen for a moment, new thoughts dancing in my head. Do you think it’s possible they’re … together?

Frank sent back a smiling face. It could be. They are consenting adults.

But after one date? That is not like Zanya.

Wasn’t she supposed to be doing things differently?

I didn’t want to think she’d changed that much because of one suggestion from her reading with Luhora.

I also had to acknowledge that hookups happened on board.

It was a fact of life. With this many adults in a confined space, intimate encounters were bound to occur.

But they were frowned upon for the simple reason that bad feelings could often be the result, and in our small world, that could cause real trouble.

Zanya wasn’t the kind of woman to engage in such behavior.

Sure, there was always the possibility that she had a secret side to her that none of us knew, but I didn’t think so.

For one thing, she had a stringent moral code.

For another, she had so clearly expressed her desire for a relationship that jumping into bed with a guy she’d just met did not seem like the next step she’d take.

The sinking feeling sank deeper.

The upside was that I was off again at one and didn’t have to work tomorrow, so I already knew what my plan was. After I left the library today, I was going straight to Zanya’s and checking on her.

I needed to know she was okay. That we were okay.

I didn’t care if Sten had stayed over or about anything the two of them might have done. I just needed to reconnect with my friend and let her know that I was there for her, no judgment about anything.

And if she wasn’t at her place, I’d get Frank to tell me where Sten lived, and I’d go there. Was that overstepping my bounds as a friend? I didn’t think so. Sten seemed like a nice guy, but I didn’t know him.

If Zanya was in any kind of trouble, I wanted to be there for her. In whatever way that meant.

For all I knew, she was sitting on her couch, drinking a bottle of wine, and regretting whatever had gone on last night. Or maybe just regretting that she’d listened to the Ohuli.

Regardless of what had happened, I was not going to say anything to hurt her.

Just listen and be there and reassure her that everything was going to be okay.

Maybe I’d run by La Patisserie and buy a nice selection of goodies.

This seemed like it might very well be a situation that required sugary indulgences.

I felt better for having a plan. A few patrons came in who were, surprisingly, interested in books, not the Ohuli, and the rest of my day went by fairly quickly.

Zanya had yet to respond when Laura arrived to relieve me.

“How are you?” I smiled when I saw her. I very much liked the people I worked with, but fallow phase meant I didn’t see nearly as much of them.

“I’m good.” She made a face at the two busy classrooms before leaning in and slightly lowering her voice. “I kind of can’t believe this is going on.”

“I know.”

“Are they being quiet?”

“Very. That’s not been an issue at all.”

“I suppose that’s something.” She came around the desk and signed in on the computer. “Lots of interest, though, huh?”

“A surprising amount.”

She turned around and grinned at Harry. “Can we just talk about how adorable Harry is? Oh, my gosh, I did not think he could get cuter.”

In response to her kind words, Harry rolled over and showed off the undercarriage of his sweater.

Laura grinned at me. “You made that, didn’t you?”

I beamed proudly. “I did.”

She gave Harry’s chin a few scratches. “You’re so lucky to have such a talented mama, you cute thing.”

She sighed and put her hands on her hips. “I am definitely getting a compdroid one of these days. I just have to decide what kind I want. You know, I had a ferret as a kid. Silliest creature ever.”

“Whatever you pick, you won’t regret it.”

“Well, if you ever want to loan Harry out, let me know.”

I laughed. “I don’t think he’d approve of that.”

“No, probably not.”

I patted my hand on my leg. “Come, Harry. Let’s go home.” I nodded at Laura. “Have a good rest of the day.”

“Thanks. You, too.”

Harry and I walked to the door, where I paused and glanced into the meditation room. There had to be forty people in there. Maybe more. A lot of them were new. I could tell because they had pila setting next to them, and only the new people got those.

I shook my head as we left. I just didn’t get it. Harry and I went to our quarters. I was moving on autopilot as I pressed my hand to the printlock and we entered, my thoughts occupied with Zanya and the Ohuli.

The door swished shut.

“Mum, I’d like to take my jumper off now.”

I looked over at him, already sitting on the couch. “Had enough, huh?” I sat beside him and helped him out of the sweater.

“No, I love it, but I want to save it for work.”

I folded it and set it on the back of the couch for now. “I can make you another one, if you like.”

His eyes widened. “A green one?”

I tried to think about the yarn I had on hand. “I have some teal left over from a sweater I made for Benni and I think some gray in the same weight. I could do teal and gray stripes. Would that do?”

“That would be brilliant. I’d look good in stripes.”

He was so funny. “I’m sure you would. You want squirrels on again?”

“I think birds now.”

“All right, birds it is.” I set the channel up for him, then changed out of my jumpsuit. I just swapped it for jeans and a white T-shirt, pairing it with the same cardigan and shoes.

When I came back out, he was sitting in his bed, paws tucked under his chest, eyes glued to the screen, being so cute I could barely stand it. I didn’t see how Nostromo found the idea of a companion pet, droid or otherwise, so hard to grasp. Pets made life better.

In a way, I felt sorry for the Ohuli not having pets as part of their culture, but it also made me wonder how much they really cared about people. I often thought that the way people treated children, the elderly, and animals said a lot about them.

I was so glad to have Harry in my life. “I’m going out for a bit, baby.”

“Okay, Mum.”

I went over to kiss his head, then left for La Patisserie and Zanya’s, Harry’s perfection giving my mood a lift.

There was only one other customer in La Patisserie.

I was happy to wait. Just standing there, inhaling all the delicious aromas, was a wonderful way to pass the time.

When it was my turn, I decided on two chocolate tarts, two pieces of date cake, something I knew Zanya loved, and four petit fours—two lemon and two pistachio.

I swiped my wristband over the paydeck, took the box of treats, and went down to Zanya’s deck. As soon as I arrived at her door, I pressed the button to announce myself.

I waited a few minutes, then pressed it again. She still didn’t answer. I chewed the inside of my cheek. I had to decide if I was really going to Sten’s. If I was ready for a possible confrontation. For Zanya’s sake, I was.

The corridor was quiet, so I moved to the side and called Frank.

He appeared on the holoscreen, dark lines of wiring tubes over his head. “Hey, there.”

“Sorry to bother you at work. Zanya is either not answering or not home, and I’m starting to get worried. Actually, I’m past that. I am worried. This is really not like her.”

“I can understand your concern. How can I help?”

“Can you tell me where Sten’s quarters are?”

“You going to see if she’s there?”

“That was my thought. You think I shouldn’t?”

“Give me a few minutes. Let me call him and see if I can find out what’s going on.”

“Okay, I can do that.”

“Call you right back.”

With nowhere else to go, I returned to my quarters. I didn’t want to take the box of sweets to Sten’s. If Zanya was there, it didn’t seem like it was going to be a La Patisserie kind of moment.

Harry was asleep when I came in but woke up at the sound of my footsteps. “You’re back soon, Mum.”

“Zanya wasn’t home. Or she wasn’t answering. Either way, I figured I’d drop these off.” I lifted the box to show him. “You can go back to sleep, sweetness.”

“Righto.” He put his head down and closed his eyes.

I tucked the box into the fridge and sat at the dining table to wait for Frank. My wristband chimed.

Frank’s face appeared in the holoscreen. The wall behind him was gray, and the area was brighter. “No answer from Sten. Can you wait a few minutes? I’m about to get off, then we could go together.”

“Okay, that would be good.” I’d much rather go with Frank. If Zanya and Sten were both there, he could talk to Sten while I made sure Zanya was all right. And if Sten was there alone, then it would be better to have Frank with me anyway.