DIRE STRAIGHTS – PART TWO

Simon raced into the infirmary, glanced briefly at the readouts before grabbing a syringe and some stimulants from one of the cupboards. He carefully measured the amount, conscious of the fact that too much could kill his patient. Finally satisfied he had it right, he injected the Captain. His body began to convulse and shake on the bed. After a few moments it subsided and the Captain seemed to relax. The stimulant was dangerous, but given the situation it was all that Simon could do. He needed to operate soon if he was going to save the Captain’s life, otherwise he would bleed to death internally. Simon also knew from experience that his patient would not be able to take another stimulant shot. It would simply collapse his tired heart. “He’s running out of time, isn’t he?” said a little voice. Simon nodded without looking around. He knew River was watching him from the corner, knees up against her chest, arms wrapped about herself. “I hope we can trust Inara with this...person,” said Simon, not sure what to call the client of a Companion. Was he a client? A customer? A pupil? The mind boggled. Simon had known Inara for only a few months and since the start he had had difficulties bringing the two sides of her life together. On the one hand there was this elegant, beautiful woman who was obviously intelligent, so surely other professions could have been available to her, and then on the other hand she was a Companion, perhaps the oldest job in history. Simon shook his head ruefully. Kaylee was right, he thought too much sometimes. “Is he all right?” said a deep voice. Simon turned to face Shepherd Book. “No, not really. I’ve stabilised his condition for now, but it won’t last. He will die unless I can operate.” said Simon, feeling it necessary to tell Book the blunt truth and knowing that he could handle it better than Kaylee. Book simply nodded as if that was what he had expected to hear. He had his bible gripped tightly in one hand, a worn thumb set as a bookmark. “Is he conscious?” asked Book, nodding towards the Captain. Simon shook his head and Book smiled wryly, opening his Bible and moving to the Captain’s bedside. “Good, then he need never know I was praying over him.” Simon could have argued that faith and God had little to do with saving the Captain at this point, but he didn’t. Book glanced up from his bible and gave Simon a knowing smile. “It’s about faith, son.” was all he said, before turning back to his book. Simon had done all he could, now it was up to the others to do all they could. As he started up the stairs his left leg gave a twinge, reminding of what it felt like to be shot. It had been an unpleasant experience and one he did not want to repeat. Above him on the walkway, Inara hurried towards her shuttle, wrapped in a mask of silence. Zoe stood a short distance away, watching the Companion worriedly. The frown disappeared as Simon approached. “How’s the Captain?” she asked. Simon wondered if the weight of leadership was pressing heavily on her shoulders. “He’s stable for now, but it won’t last. Do you know where we’re going?” “You’d better speak to Inara about that,” said Zoe irritably. “I’ve gotta get back to the bridge.” She turned away and then Simon had to ask. “Can we really outrun Braw’s men?” Zoe turned back on the stairs, her face serious and calm. “My husband is the best pilot I’ve ever seen,” she said with a certain amount of pride. “If it can be done, he’ll find a way.” Simon watched her go, again struck by the contrasting sides of her personality. Sometimes he thought Jayne was the only person that made sense. His greed and lust were obvious and always on the surface. There was very little depth to the man. Simon found the thought of Jayne’s simplistic nature strangely comforting at that moment. He glanced down briefly, seeing that Jayne had not moved and was still laid out. Feeling a little nervous, but determined nonetheless, Simon approached Inara’s shuttle. The door stood partially open so he knocked firmly on the edge, already smelling her perfume through the red curtain that covered the entrance. There was no answer. He knocked again and was about to call out when Inara yanked the curtain aside, looking irate. “I told you, its my problem-” she spat before seeing who it was. Her pale features smoothed out immediately and she offered a friendly smile. Simon had never seen her lose control of her emotions so easily. “I’m sorry, I thought you were someone else. Do you need something?” she asked politely. “I just wanted to know where we’re going. I have to operate on the Captain in the next few hours and I’m going to need some fairly sophisticated equipment.” “You will have all that you need, and more,” Inara promised a little stiffly. Something seemed to change inside her and she gave a long sigh. “Please, come in.” she offered holding the curtain for Simon. He stepped inside her shuttle, noticing not for the first time how welcoming and comfortable it looked compared to his own drab quarters. In places like this it was easy to forget you were still on a spaceship. Inara offered Simon a seat which he took while she perched on the edge of her bed. “Where are we going?” “To visit a client, a man named Mackenzie Gower. He’s rich, and he will have everything at his home.” Simon raised an eyebrow in surprise. “He owns a medical research company, and carries out experiments, sometimes for the Alliance, other times for the highest bidder.” Simon noticed there was a slight tremble in her voice. “I can save the Captain, don’t worry,” said Simon confidently, totally misunderstanding her fear. “Are you sure this client will let us use his facilities?” “He will, if I ask him.” Inara said quietly, turning her face away. “I must contact him, if you’ll excuse me.” “Of course.” said Simon moving to the door. He looked back but Inara was closely studying a piece of jewellery. “Thank you for doing this.” he said and she nodded.

Wash proved to be as good as his wife’s word and had lost their pursuers. The damage to the ship was not severe, but Kaylee said it would take her a few hours to repair. The engine was in one piece, but it was the hull that concerned her. She was afraid it could rupture and leave them all breathing space, as she had put it. The Captain had not regained consciousness. Unfortunately Jayne. They had fed him a lie about banging his head from turbulence and he seemed to have swallowed it, although he did glance suspiciously at Zoe when they were eating. As Simon was finishing his meal, he watched Inara slip away. She had been very quiet and withdrawn throughout the meal, not joining in any of the sporadic and somewhat desperate attempts at conversation. Everyone was tense but she was on edge, and maybe even terrified, but of what Simon had no idea. As he headed back to check on his patient he was stopped by River. For once she seemed lucid and living in the present. “You shouldn’t go in there,” she murmured glancing at the infirmary. “Not yet. He’s sleeping but she speaks to his soul and I think he knows. He can hear her through the fog.” “Who?” asked Simon. “What?” “You’re a dummy sometimes,” River chided him as she drifted away. Simon crept closer to the infirmary, glanced briefly around the doorframe and then pulled back. Inara was stood beside Mal’s bed, looking down at him with sad eyes. She was holding one of his hands in both of hers, pressing it to her chest like a treasure she couldn’t be without. Simon moved further away, but her voice carried to where he sat. “Whatever happens, I want you to remember that it’s not your fault,” said Inara quietly. “I made the decision and was willing to accept the consequences. No one coerced me into doing this. I would tell you not to be angry, but it would be pointless. If you must fight, please don’t use a sword, because you really are quite dreadful…and stubborn, pig-headed and…” she trailed off, unable or unwilling to continue pointing out his faults. If she said anything further it was too quiet for Simon to hear and a few moments later she hurried away, thankfully without seeing him. Simon waited a little while before checking in on the Captain. Nothing had changed, his life was still hanging by a thread.

Perhaps an hour later the hum of the engines began to slow as they arrived at their destination. River had rejoined him in the infirmary and although he didn’t want to leave the Captain alone again, he wanted to know where they were and the kind of facilities he could expect. “Go, I’ll watch him again,” said River, sensing his uncertainty. “I won’t be long,” he promised and hurried to the bridge. Zoe was stood beside her husband and Inara off to one side. As Simon came into the room Jayne followed behind, leaving him in heavy shadow. Wash began to swear in Chinese as the home of Mackenzie Gower came into sight. The rest just stared with open mouthed wonder. Simon had lived on the core planets and knew about wealthy people, he had even been on his way to becoming one back on Osiris, but the home in front of him was remarkable by any standard. The house was a vast sprawling structure with several wings and an elaborate topiary maze at the front that made it look more like something out of ancient literature than modern day. The stones looked old and weathered, but Simon was willing to bet the walls were studier than any polyalloy metal plate. Not including the house Simon counted a dozen other buildings of varying size. The whole compound was surrounded by automatic gun towers that made it look very much like a military base rather than someone’s home. “How is it we never came here before?” asked Jayne. Simon could practically see the credits stacking up behind his eyes. The man’s greed was almost tangible. “Land outside the compound, Wash,” Inara advised, pointing at a wide grassy area off to one side. “He’ll send someone out to greet us when he’s ready.” “Simon, get your stuff together, I’ll help you move the Captain,” said Zoe. Now that she had a plan she was starting to give orders instead of making it up as she went along. The frown was still there, but it had diminished. She was coping for now. “That won’t be possible,” said Inara. “He doesn’t allow women inside the compound. Someone else will have to go.” Zoe and Inara stared at one another for a few moments. The bridge was filled with a tense silence. No one was willing to point out the obvious about Inara’s entry. “I’ll help,” said a deep voice. Book stepped into the room, his face grim and set. He glanced briefly out the window and not even a flicker of surprise crossed his features. The spectacle outside didn’t even give him a moment’s pause. “Fine, Shepherd. You go with Simon and the Captain. Jayne, you help Kaylee with repairs to the ship,” said Zoe addressing the room generally. She turned towards Inara. “How long do we have?” “Two hours, maybe a little less,” she replied coolly. Inara waited until Zoe nodded before she left in a cloud of rich perfume and bright colours. Jayne turned to leave but Zoe stopped him as she spoke. “Everyone be on guard,” she said quietly. “Something ain’t right about this place. First sign of trouble, you shout, real loud, then start shooting. Simon, is two hours is enough for you to do your work?” “Yes. It should be, if there are no complications,” said Simon. They began to file out the room and Simon was last to go. He glanced back once and saw Wash put a hand on his wife’s hip and attempt to draw her near. She resisted at first and slapped his hand away, clearly irked by the new rules, ones she didn’t understand or particularly like. Wash persisted and Zoe finally relented, stepping close to her husband and wrapping her arms about him, engulfing the little man. They truly were the most unusual couple Simon had ever encountered, and yet they seemed to fit.

As Simon and Book carried Mal into the cargo bay, the others set about their work. Jayne followed Kaylee outside toting a heavy bag of tools and some metal sheeting. Kaylee barely glanced at Simon as she passed. Her mind was elsewhere and he knew she was even more distressed now that someone had damaged her ship as well as her Captain. Inara descended from her shuttle and a fresh wave of delicate perfume caught in Simon’s nose. She seemed nervous and almost reluctant to go outside, choosing instead to wait with him and Book. At one point while they waited for someone from the house, she glanced down at Mal. A muscle twitched in her face and a brief grimace flashed across her features. Her posture changed immediately, her back straightening and a determined look crept into her eyes. A few minutes later two large men in plain grey uniforms emerged from the house and approached the ship. Both were of similar build and muscle density, identifying them as bodyguards or security. They barely glanced at Simon as they set foot inside the cargo hold, but lingered a little longer on Book as they studied their surroundings. Neither man looked at Inara for more than a second. Once they were satisfied they nodded to each other and one bodyguard gestured for Inara to follow him. They stood on either side of her and set off for the house. Simon was suddenly reminded of how guards used to form up around prisoners being led to the execution chamber back on Earth that was. A terrible overwhelming fear began to creep up from somewhere inside and he looked around for something to hold onto. “Easy son,” said Book. “She can take care of herself. You focus on doing your job for now.” he said glancing down at Mal. Simon nodded and murmured a brief word of thanks, turning his mind towards the operation and the various stages of the procedure. It soothed him running through it and after a few minutes he was able to push away the fear for the time being. Another burly man emerged and this time gestured for Book and Simon to follow. Moving as carefully as possible they lifted the unconscious Mal and followed their silent guide towards a long narrow building off to one side. All of the windows were covered with reflective glass so Simon had no idea if they were walking into some kind of a trap or a real medical facility. His stomach turned over a few times but he ignored it. His apprehension was misplaced as inside was an infirmary akin to one Simon had not seen since his days on the core planets. The room extended on for hundreds of metres but it had all been curtained off with white screens. Despite that he could see bulky equipment and unusual devices peeking over the top. Directly in front of him was all the equipment he would need to perform the operation. Everything was pristine and not only looked clean, but as if it had never been used. A pair of tall reedy men with shaven heads stood ready in hospital gowns and gloves. Their faces were covered with masks and they simply nodded as the others approached. “You should find all you need,” said their guide to Simon. “They will assist you.” He said gesturing at the other two. “Will this suffice?” “Yes. Thank you.” said Simon. Their guide turned towards Book. “You can wait over there,” he said gesturing to a rest area which contained a few comfy chairs and the obligatory water cooler. Book nodded but made no move to head in that direction, choosing instead to stay rooted to the spot and stare out their guide. Simon put it all to the back of his mind as one of the assistants helped him into a gown. None of it mattered right now, not the ship, not their plight, not Kaylee and not even his sister. All he had was the problem in front of him. A man’s life was in the balance and he would not let him die. As Simon went through the familiar process of scrubbing up and being helped into his scrubs, he ran through the procedure in his mind for the hundredth time, going over each step methodically. Finally satisfied he was ready, he gestured at the assistant for the scalpel and went to work. The world around him drifted away and Simon became detached from it as he worked. He was aware of his surroundings but they were unimportant and blurry. He knew Book was still there, pacing back and forth, resting sometimes and watching the operation at others. He knew the two men assisting him were not only watching his work closely but also watching him, but none of it really mattered. At one point there was a lot of loud noises from outside. The sounds could have been weapons fire, great concussion blasts that sent a faint tremor up his legs from the impact, but it was all outside. It was someone else’s problem for the moment. The noises went on for some time and then stopped suddenly. Book went to investigate but Simon didn’t let it distract him, the operation was at a delicate stage. Some time later, how long he couldn’t say, as Simon was coming to last part of the operation, he noticed Book had not returned to his peripheral vision. He glanced around briefly but he was not in the rest area and the front door was closed. There would be time to investigate later and since the others were a lot better at handling the kind of situations that often involved gunfire, he didn’t let it worry him. Simon finished closing up the Captain, something he normally would have let someone else do, but he didn’t trust the men with him. Finally satisfied he had done all he could, Simon gestured that it was all over and the two men just nodded again and began to clean up the equipment. The Captain’s vitals were steady and he had not lost too much blood during the operation, both of which were good signs for his recovery. It might be some time before he was barking orders and getting into bar fights on Unification Day, but now at least he would have that opportunity. “Thank you,” Simon said to the two men, not sure what else he could say. They just nodded again, something he was beginning to find annoying. Was it that they had been implicitly ordered not to speak to him, or were they incapable of speech altogether? Before he could ask, Simon heard more gunfire from outside, a few quick barrages back and forth for a few minutes and then a terrible silence. Simon rushed to the door and pushed it open a fraction, peering out towards Serenity. The crew were all there, kneeling down on the ground with their hands locked over their heads. A short distance away from them lay several bodies, men that had been recently killed, judging by the swelling river of blood. Stood over them were Alliance troops and leading them a tall man with an arrogant bearing. He spoke briefly to Zoe and Simon saw her spit at the man. A moment later he had a gun pressed to Kaylee’s forehead. Simon’s heart leapt into his throat and his mind began to spiral through a thousand plans to cause a distraction. Thankfully when Zoe spoke again it seemed to satisfy the man, as he holstered his gun and gestured towards where Simon was hidden. A half dozen troops began to march on his position. Simon closed the door and moved back to Mal’s bedside, trying to think of something to save himself and his patient. Before he came up with anything concrete, the troops entered and pointed their weapons at him. “Don’t shoot, I have an injured man,” he said, feeling foolish but not sure what else to say. An officer approached and pulled Simon to one side. He stared down at Mal and then spoke into his radio. “Its Reynolds. We have him, Sir.” He said. “Bring him, and the Doctor,” came the reply. “You,” the officer said pointing at Simon. “Make him ready for travel.” Simon was about to argue about moving the Captain but then he saw the look in the officer’s eyes and decided against it. He gathered some medical supplies and basic equipment, put them in a bag and hooked Mal’s drip onto a portable stand. With the help of two soldiers, Simon carefully moved the Captain onto a stretcher. They took up the slack and Simon stayed at Mal’s side, keeping a close eye on his vitals. Outside it was a bright afternoon but the mood in the compound was nowhere near as sunny. The officer directed Simon towards the others and someone pressed down hard on his shoulder. He went to his knees alongside Zoe and Kaylee, noting the unshed tears in Kaylee’s eyes and the nerves twitching in Zoe’s jaw. As the officer conferred with his superior Simon looked around for some kind of explanation. “What’s going on?” Simon whispered. “Who is that?” “Vanya Samuelson,” whispered Zoe. “Something worse than Alliance.” “What’s worse than that?” asked Simon. “A turncoat.” sneered Zoe. As Simon looked around he saw Samuelson was watching Zoe closely. He saw the look on her face and smiled back at her in a knowing fashion. Simon had thought they were in trouble before but now everything seemed ten times worse. They had been captured by Alliance, betrayed by their host and were now in the hands of someone who had an unpleasant history with Zoe. Simon wished the Captain was conscious. He would no doubt be able to come up with kind of a plan of escape because right now, there didn’t seem to be anything anyone could do to help them.

END OF PART TWO