Page 26 of Salvation for the Alien Mercenary

Covak crossed the room in two strides to grab Davis by the shoulders, attempting to pull him away.

"That's enough," Covak said, voice firm but controlled. "Let him go, Tell."

“Fuck off, Covak.” Davis tried to shrug him off, muscles straining against the Vorrtan's superior strength, still glaring at Rann. “This is between me and him.”

Jesh appeared at Davis's other side. Her slim hand closed around Davis's wrist with cybernetically enhanced strength.

"Davis," she said quietly, the single word carrying unmistakable authority. "Release him."

For one terrifying moment, she thought he would refuse. His entire body vibrated with barely contained violence, chest heaving with each breath, and his expression almost feral with rage.

“Whatever.”

Davis released Rann, shoving the pilot hard against the counter before stepping back. His gaze swept the room, landing briefly on her. Something flickered across his features before his expression hardened.

Without a word, he turned on his heel and stalked out of the galley.

Silence descended on the galley, thick and uncomfortable. Rann straightened, rubbing his throat.

"What the fuck was that about?” Ryke demanded.

Covak whistled low. "Well," he drawled, breaking the tension, "that was dramatic."

"Is everyone okay?" Mira asked, her voice small as she looked between Rann and the doorway Davis had disappeared through.

Rann nodded. "Fine. Tell hits like a human."

"Give the man a break.” Covak snorted. “He took an energy bolt to the chest yesterday."

"Speaking of which," Jesh turned to Covak, “how is he healing? He’s human; that shot should have kept him down for a while.”

"Completely healed," Covak replied, returning to his seat. "Never seen anything like it. Applied the new regenerative compound I've been working on, and it closed up by morning."

Mira's mind whirled. That explained the lack of bandages, but not his bizarre behavior.

"I should go check on him," she said, already pushing back from the table.

“No,” Ryke cut in, his tone making it clear this was an order, not a suggestion. "Give him space to cool down. That wasn't normal, even for Tell."

"But—"

"He attacked a crewmate with no provocation," Ryke continued, fixing her with a look. "I need to understand why before I let anyone near him."

Jesh tilted her head, studying her with disconcerting intensity. "Did anything unusual happen during your monitoring shift last night?"

Heat flooded her cheeks. "N-no," she stammered. "Nothing unusual."

Covak's snort drew all eyes to him. The Vorrtan suddenly became very interested in his remaining pancakes.

"Covak?" Ryke prompted. “You got something to say?”

“Nope,” Covak replied, shoveling pancakes into his mouth. "Patient care is confidential, you know."

Mira stared down at her untouched pancakes, appetite gone. Spot chirped at her feet, disconnecting from the power node to nudge her leg supportively.

Ryke's gaze lingered on her for a moment longer before he turned to Rann. "You want to file a complaint?"

“Nah.” Rann shook his head, already returning to the cooking station. "No harm done. I've been dealing with hotheads for years, you included. Tell's got something else going on."