Lost in Barbarian Space(54)

“It’s taking so long.”

“I’m sure they’re doing everything they can. Kavon’s worried as well.” Aurina cast a concerned glance at her mate and lowered her voice. “He’s angry that Colm never mentioned this. I think Kavon’s angrier at himself for not noticing it.”

“Colm was hiding it. He’d gotten control down to a fine art.” Her voice cracked.

Footsteps rounded the corner and Niklas Phoenix appeared. He stopped beside them, his face serious.

“Doing okay, Honor?”

She nodded. “I’m hoping they’ll be done soon.” But more than that, she was hoping that there was something they could do to help Colm. She pressed her hands together. He had to be okay.

Nik touched her shoulder. “Well, thanks to you and Colm, I now have a large team down on the moon. They’re working hard to package and preserve all the artifacts from the Valhalla. Even Dr. Behati was feeling well enough to go down.”

Honor was glad the doctor was better.

Nik’s face hardened. “The surviving pirates are not feeling particularly comfortable in the brig.”

She managed a small smile. “That’s the best news I’ve had all day. And T’kon?”

Something dark flashed on Nik’s face. “Also in the brig…with the pirates. He’s had to endure a few interrogation sessions with Nera.” Now a faint smile. “Last time I checked, he asked me to throw him out an airlock.”

Honor knew she shouldn’t feel some pleased about that, but T’kon had brought this on himself. And because of his greed, people were dead and hurt.

Nik touched her shoulder again. “You two did excellent work down there. Let me know when you hear anything.”

After Nik had left, Honor slumped into a chair. “What if they can’t help him, Aurina?”

The woman grabbed her hand. “They will.”

Honor pushed herself to her feet. She couldn’t sit still. She started pacing again. Aurina didn’t really know that. No one knew if the medical team could do anything for Colm.

The minutes drifted into another hour. She paused by the round window at the end of the corridor. She touched the glass, staring out into space. She could just see a tiny glimpse of Markaria off to the left.

“You’re in love with my friend.”

Honor had been so lost in her misery, she hadn’t even heard Kavon approach. She turned to face him. “I am.”

“His actions on the moon…he feels strongly for you.”

She shot him a sad smile. “You warriors aren’t very good at talking about your feelings are you?” Her smile dissolved. “He’s been very upfront about not wanting any long-term entanglements.”

“Because of the nanami sickness,” Kavon said darkly.

“Yes.” But she knew that without this problem hanging over him, Colm had a chance to explore the possibilities of a real life. To decide what he really wanted.

The door to the med bay opened.

Honor moved, her heart suddenly in her throat. She realized that Aurina and Kavon had flanked her.

A tired-looking doctor exited, rubbing the back of his neck. “I’m Dr. King. I won’t lie to you, this has been the hardest procedure I’ve ever done.” He shook his head and looked at Kavon. “Your alien physiology combined with the nanami—” a look of wonder crossed the man’s face “—they are simply incredible, but we don’t know enough about how to work with them yet. I had to make a lot of educated guesses.”

“Is he okay?” Honor asked.

The doctor pressed his hands together in front of him. Dread filled her stomach.

“Well, we managed to restore the balance of nanami.” The doctor smiled. “I wasn’t sure we were going to be able to do it, but we had a breakthrough in the last hour. He’ll no longer have the control issues.”

Honor released a breath, her chest bursting. Thank the stars. Aurina reached for her hand and Honor grabbed it and squeezed hard. He was going to be okay.

“There was one complication.”

Honor froze, a lump forming in her throat. “You said he was okay…”

“Physically, yes. These Markarians—” he looked at Kavon again “— have excellent constitutions.”

Panic rising, Honor wanted to hit the man. “Doc, please—”

“During the procedure, his short-term memory was affected.”

“What does that mean, exactly?” she asked.

“It’s minor, really. He won’t remember your escapades in the ice tunnels of Ansar. He won’t actually remember us arriving. I estimate he’s lost a week or so of his memories, and as far as I can tell, he’s unlikely to regain them.” The doctor smiled again. “Like I said, minor in the entire scheme of things.”