She thumped down the hallway toward her beloved engineering systems that didn’t run off, didn’t claim to be bad, and didn’t leave her aching with emptiness. Engineering systems were her first and last love. Cifer was just a blip.
Chapter 18
Blaize swiped the back of her hand across her forehead. The lighting problem had been tricky to track down, but finally she’d found the problem. Fixing it had involved some contortion and a whole lot of swearing, but the plants were back to basking in the faux sunlight. She tucked the tools away and headed for her quarters. The idea of a shower compelled her to move her tired, sore body faster than usual.
She met Veda in the main corridor. “Blaize. Did you figure it out?”
“I did. There was a crack in the insulation of the main wiring going into the room. I had to rerun a new length of wire and then test everything.” Fuck, she was too tired to explain. “The lights are working. I left them on. Your timer should still work, but I don’t know if you need to adjust the settings for the time your plants were in the dark. I’ll leave that to you. I need to get this grime off me.” She swept her hand down her body, showcasing the patches of filth smearing her coveralls.
“Thank you so much.” Veda clapped her hands together. “Will you join us for last meal? Dez is cooking.”
Eating in? When they were on Cassan? Not that Blaize minded saving some credits. Also, she really should talk to Dez and Cyra about Cifer. “Sure. I’ll be there shortly.”
“No rush. He’s just starting the prep.” Veda flashed a smile and hurried off to her plants.
As Blaize showered, it occurred to her that almost the entire cycle had passed and Cifer hadn’t shown up. Where the hell was he? It hurt that he hadn’t come looking for her. It wasn’t like she was hiding. The ship should have been the first place anyone looked.
Clearly, he wasn’t. She sighed and scrubbed the soap from her hair. Stupid. Again. She shook off the regrets as she finished cleaning up and dressing. At least the last person she’d slept with wasn’t Varik anymore.
“Blaize, how nice.” Captain Cyra was seated at the galley table with Veda, Bodi, and Rhysa.
Blaize plopped into an empty chair between Veda and Rhysa, leaving the one next to Cyra for Dez.
“It’s almost done.” Dez didn’t turn around. He was poised with a heat mitt over his remaining hand and eyes glued to a timer.
“It smells good, whatever it is. I can’t wait to try it.” Blaize tried to remember when she had last eaten. Maybe the crap breakfast Veda made and a couple of protein bars. At this point, Veda’s cooking would probably taste appetizing.
“Thanks for getting the lights working again.” Veda touched her shoulder gently. “What was the real issue?”
“Well, the power was being drawn from cells that charge while the ship is in motion. After we stopped, the cells weren’t charging. I created a failover—well, not really a failover because it’s not an automatic backup, but an alternate source for when we aren’t in motion. You won’t need it often, but it should be seamless. Next time we stop, we’ll know for sure, although technically, I guess since it’s working now, it’s already proven.”
Cyra chuckled. “I guess you’ve been busy.”
Dez put a plate in front of the captain and then quickly served the rest of the crew. He didn’t have to, but he said it made him feel good to take care of them that way. At first, Blaize had been uncomfortable. Instead of wrestling with the discomfort, she made sure to do nice things for Dez as often as she could so he would know she appreciated him.
“We’ll be ready to go in two cycles.” Cyra broke the silence of the focused eating.
“Two more?” Bodi’s jerked her head up, eyes wide.
Dez joined them at the table. “There’s been a delay offloading the Kolben equipment, and Captain and I found a place that will do some intensive training with Princess. We have to spend most of a cycle with her, learning the commands.”
That made sense. Not a good idea to have a protective animal with no training or control. Princess had grown considerably since she was born. Still a cute puppy but definitely showing signs of what she would be like as an adult.
“Where to next?” Rhysa asked.
Cyra glanced at her mate with a soft smile. “A stop at Din’ Gale to see Dez’s parents.”
“Oh. That will be wonderful.” Veda smiled. No surprise their hobby gardener wanted to revisit the jungle planet.
“Then a quick stop on Chalcanth.” Cyra almost swallowed the name of her own planet. “Then we head to Hiargus, as contracted.”
Maybe. Only if Blaize failed to convince them to drop the contract with Cifer. That weird orb he’d brought on board was still in the vent over his former cell. The glow had caught her attention when she’d been working on the lighting issue.
“What’re we doing on Chalcanth?” Rhysa asked.
“Visiting Cyra’s family.” Dez spoke in a tone that invited no further questioning from the inquisitive navigator.
“Well, then, we better go out tonight.” Rhysa looked directly at Blaize.
