CHAPTER 6 Inara laid in bed, trying not to breathe too deeply, sure that Jantis had broken her rib whilst ignoring her. She had tried everything to get his attention: being subservient, belligerent, indifferent. He had not spoken her name or looked at her directly in days. She wanted to cry, but every breath was accompanied by sharp pain, so she just laid on the bed and let the pillow catch her tears. Had her eyes not been open, she would not have noticed the ceiling tile move. God knows, it made no discernable sound. She could not help but hope it was an assassin come to kill her. Or Mal sneaking in— Her breath caught at the thought of Mal and her vision blurred with stars. He was dead and could not come. When the spots cleared, the ceiling tile had vanished and a familiar face peaked in. “Elle!” she gasped. Elle pressed a finger to her lips, urging Inara not to speak. Inara wondered if she was dreaming, but decided she’d be glad of the company, even if only in her subconscious. Elle looked well for having been killed in a shuttle crash. In fact, there was no sign that she had been. The only blemish on her skin was a fading scar across her neck where it had been slit open. Her chestnut brown locks were secured in a ponytail. Without a sound, she tossed a dark green bag on the bed and lowered herself from the ceiling with practiced ease. “You asked for a physician?” Elle said sweetly, opening her bag. Inara tried to meet Elle’s eyes and failed. Would she be ignored even in her dreams? “Elle, Serenity is gone.” Elle just nodded, pulling a wide, black cylinder out of her bag. Immediately flashing back to Prio, Inara panicked and ignoring the pain, she rolled off the bed and shimmied underneath. Hiding under the bed? This had to be a dream! Elle knelt down beside the bed and lifted the duvet, casting her face in silhouette. Inara squirreled toward the opposite side and froze when Elle spoke. “Inara.” Her eyes shot in the direction of the sound, hungry for more. “Elle?” “Come out, Inara. I can help ease the pain.” Inara could feel her body tremble at the honey-sweet sound of her own name. She reached out her broken hand and Elle took it gently. Now that Elle finally saw her, she had no idea what to say. “Come out, Inara. I’m sorry. I didn’t realize he’d gotten to you so much.” Inara scooted out from under the bed, not letting go of Elle’s hand. In the light, she could see those hazel eyes looking directly at her. When Elle picked up the black cylinder again, Inara tensed. “It’s okay,” Elle cooed. “This is a bone mender.” “Jantis will know you were here,” Inara whispered, terrified. Elle smiled mischievously, tending to Inara’s hand. “It’s easy to hide from a man who sees so little. But you must be careful not to cross him.” “Shen me?” “Now that I know where you are, I can find a way out. Don’t let yourself be moved from here. Don’t let yourself be buried.” “What do I do?” Inara could feel the dread building up in her spirit. “He wants you broken. Not subservient or compliant. Broken. Then he will see you.” Elle stood quickly and put away the bone mender. “Wait,” Inara cried. “It still hurts.” “Of course,” Elle assured. “All I’ve done is stimulate the bone to heal faster. It’s not magic. But I must go.” “Won’t you stay a little longer?” Inara pleaded, reaching out, despite the soreness in her torso, searching Elle’s eyes for mercy. Elle had already tossed her bag through the hole in the ceiling. “Please,” Inara added. Her eyes filled with pity, Elle returned to the bed and helped Inara lay down. The companion had never felt so much like a sick child, but the days of neglect had left her in so much need. Elle sat next to the pillow and leaned against the headboard, gently touching Inara’s shoulder. “Just till you fall asleep, Inara.

*~*

It had been a long time since they’d had a sit-down meal together, and Mal didn’t like it. The way everyone was so relaxed and carrying on, it was as though they’d forgotten Inara may be in mortal peril. The beagles had been in a tizzy all afternoon, even after Kaylee had re-engaged the gravity. Book had sent a private message that afternoon and had cleverly deleted all record of the destination. His secrets were not unusual, nor unexpected, but in light of his stealing off with the shuttle that morning, it made Mal wary. Saskia had joined them, putting on a brave face, but Mal noticed she gripped the table with one hand just to stay upright. Despite Simon’s insistence that she rest, Saskia had been walking around most of the day, helping Kaylee track the electrical problem. For dinner, their visitor had constructed an artful meatloaf from rice, protein, and spices. While Mal appreciated the fine meal, he worried that Saskia may kill herself in effort to make herself indispensable. Jayne and Zoë had hosed off the dogs as much as possible, so while their persistent yapping floated into the mess hall, the smell was somewhat less and the food nearly covered that entirely. Mal’s mouth watered at the flavor of fresh oregano, minced garlic, cayenne pepper, and a hint of Tabasco. His original crew plan had involved a cook. He already knew Saskia could hold her own in a gunfight. If the Doc could patch her up, she’d be a good addition to the crew. At the moment, her jaw was clenched shut in effort to hide her pain, and that made it hard for her to eat. Simon’s eyes were constantly dancing around the table from Saskia to River to Kaylee to Zoë in doctorly concern. The Doc had been busy of late and Mal knew that this run to Siwa would only add to the patient list. Siwa was just far enough from the core worlds to be ignored by them, but too civilized to be a rim planet. It was the original headquarters for Blue Sun, and that worried Mal to no end. The yowling from the cargo bay surged again, drowning out a story Jayne was trying to tell. “You think they finally got wind of our delicious supper?” Wash asked, making sure to direct his compliment to Saskia. “Gorram beasts ain’t stopped yapping all day,” Jayne complained. “You’d think we turned a cat loose on them.” “A cat,” Kaylee repeated distantly. “I thought we agreed, no more livestock,” Wash added, rubbing his temples and plugging his ears. Zoë tugged his hand playfully. “That was cows dear. Weren’t you the one that suggested beagles?” “I now veto any livestock not toilet trained. Size doesn’t matter. They all smell!” Jayne sniggered into his drink, but Mal ignored it. “Did you send word to Siwa?” Mal asked. “Yes,” Wash answered. “No word back. We’re still a week out.” “Hungry,” River whispered a tear in her eye. Mal looked over uncomfortably, noticing Simon place a soothing hand on River’s back. Ever since they’d left Three Hills, ‘hungry’ was the only word River would say. She hadn’t even touched the plate in front of her – she just kept her hands neatly folded in her lap. Occasionally, the conversation sparked a smile that lit across her face, but mostly, she was quiet. Her sad brown eyes gazing more inward than out, she laid her head on Simon’s shoulder and waited for the meal to be over. Mal realized that it was only Jayne carrying on with the story-telling. Everyone else was preoccupied and tense. Probably not thinking about Inara, but Mal appreciated the dour mood anyway. “A cat,” Kaylee repeated, interrupting Jayne’s story just before the climax. The others looked at her in confusion, but with no explanation, she scooped herself a fresh helping of meat loaf and carried the plate out of the galley. The others watched her go, silently willing an explanation from the doorway through which she had disappeared. A moment later, the cargo bay erupted in a fresh cacophony of barking dogs. “She best not be wasting good food on them animals!” Jayne boomed over the din. Unable to take the noise, Wash fled to the cockpit, closing the door behind him. River pressed her eyes shut releasing a fresh well of tears onto Simon’s shoulder. Mal continued eating his fill, trying to enjoy the medley of flavors dancing on his tongue. This was sure to be a trying week.

*~*

Kaylee hardly looked up as Saskia entered the engine room and plopped down on her hammock. Her plate of food sat next to her tool box, an integral part of her new plan to fix the ship. That afternoon, the aft-starboard landing strut had malfunctioned, giving Kaylee a much needed direction for sourcing the damage. She had a hunch for how to stop the malfunctions. “I am so jealous of your hammock,” Saskia mused, one leg swinging over the side. “Caddock never let me have a hammock.” “He was pretty strict I guess?” “Everyone here is so kind.” This time, Saskia had picked up a role of duct tape and was tossing it in the air and catching it. “No wonder you took such a beating on the Neptune.” “Don’t be fooled. Captain’ll shootcha right between the eyes if you get him on a bad day… Or a tight schedule.” “So is that merc of yours a good ride?” Kaylee was so startled by the question that she dropped her pliers. “Jayne?” “Just a thought,” Saskia said dismissively. “What are you working on?” Kaylee stammered a non-sensical response that ended in a request for silence. Her mouth still hanging open in surprise, she picked up the plate and started laying a trail of food right into a little cage. It didn’t take more than a minute before the first bite. “Kaylee, what in the hell are you doing?” Mal ranted, storming into the engine room. “Shhh!” Kaylee held up her hand again, then pulled the Captain to the far side of the engine room to watch. Within a few minutes, a bristling brown hedgehog waddled into the room following the trail of food directly into the cage Kaylee had set up. With a quick snap, Kaylee closed the cage and the frightened creature tucked into a ball. “What is that?” Saskia asked. “A hedgehog. I recognized the bite marks on the landing wire.” “This is our saboteur?” Mal asked. “Sure is.” “That explains why those beagles have been so stir crazy.” “Caged beagles are always stir crazy,” Jayne interrupted, entering the engine room and seeing the prickly puff of caged animal. “Where’d that come from?” “Must have stowed away back on Three Hills,” Kaylee said, poking at the creature through the side of the cage. “We gonna eat him?” “Jayne! No we’re not gonna eat him.” “What does hedgehog even taste like?” “Captain!” “What’s going on?” Wash asked, curiously surveying the party in the engine room. “These brutes want to eat my hedgehog!” Kaylee exclaimed, cooing the animal as it uncurled and looked around. “But we’re not gonna let that happen are we Bristles, no we’re – Ow! Now look, you scared him.” Both Mal and Jayne were laughing at her. “Can’t we just release it into the wild?” Wash asked. “You mean the Black?” Mal said. “No sense wasting good hedgehog,” Jayne drooled. “On Siwa.” Mal shook his head. “Not all wilds are the same. You release this little guy on a strange world, you have no idea what he’ll do to the indigenous life. Or what that life will do to him.” “So we eat him?” Jayne persisted. “Eat what?” Simon asked, crowding into the room. Jayne chose that moment to start picking up food crumbs off the floor and popping them into his mouth. “Hedgehog.” “Did that thing bite you?” Simon exclaimed, noticing Kaylee’s bleeding finger. “He’s just scared.” “Still, he could have …” Simon searched for a word, while motioning Kaylee to come with him. “Rabies!” With a sigh, Kaylee started following Simon to the Infirmary. Then, on second thought, she grabbed the caged animal and took it along. “Come on, Bristles. Let’s get away from the savages.” “What’s with the trail of bread crumbs?” Book inquired, encountering them in the doorway. Saskia chuckled from the hammock, surveying the collection of men. “Baiting animals.”

*~*

When Inara opened her eyes, Elle was gone. The ceiling tile was replaced and sealed as though it had never been moved, and her broken bones still felt sore. Had it been a dream? On the side table, the manservant had left a fresh plate of food. Should she bother eating it? Perhaps if she let it sit, she would appear more broken and Jantis would stop abusing her. Perhaps. Quietly, she whispered her own name and it filled her mouth like sweet water. Jantis had broken her—he’d made her forget she was human. She realized she didn’t even know the name of the man who brought her food, gave her clothing, and was responsible for her care. He was as much invisible to her as she was to him. She had to be better than that. Next chance she got, she would find out his name. A deep breath sent pain rippling through her body and she decided to break into her first aid kit and take a pain killer. That would require water. Looking at the fresh food set before her, she decided to eat. She had gone hungry too many times recently to do otherwise.

*~*

With the saboteur safely encaged, Kaylee was able to repair most of the electrical systems and hook up the new machinery they had acquired on Three Hills. Simon nervously started the ultrasound machine, hoping desperately that he’d be able to interpret the results. He wished he’d taken a longer OB rotation because as of now, his baby delivery count was at “one” and he had not been responsible for prenatal care in that case. He missed core medicine. Between their recent bouts of starvation and the drugs he’d administered when Zoë was shot recently, it was a miracle that she hadn’t miscarried already. The old-fashioned ultrasound only spat out 2-D images, but it was all they could afford out here in the black. Zoë was propped on her elbows, looking expectantly at the readout. Wash danced happily, holding her hand. “That’s him!” Wash squealed, pointing at a blip on the screen. “No, that’s…” Simon stopped. Truthfully, he wasn’t sure. Despite the wealth of texts he had downloaded from the cortex, the academic volumes could not speak experience into his eyes. At seven weeks, an abdominal scan was not the ideal method of imaging the baby, and he did not expect to make out much more than a heartbeat. “That’s him,” Zoë pointed. Simon paused the scan to consider her target. Regular pulsations. Position… it looked okay, but it was hard to tell. With no other obvious options, he decided to go with it. “That’s it,” Simon confirmed. “What? Where?” Zoë pointed again. “Oh, incognito. Right on, little Malcolm.” Zoë’s smile disappeared. “What did you call him?” Wash didn’t respond, his attention rapt on the tiny heartbeat. Simon maneuvered a little, trying to get a better angle on the baby’s position in the uterus. Zoë was adamant. “We are not naming our baby ‘Little Malcolm’.” “We’ll we’re not naming him Little Hoban. Do you know how much I was teased as a child?!” “Simon is an excellent name. Very little teasing.” “What makes you so sure it’s a boy?” Zoë criticized. “You’re right,” Wash nodded playfully. “Maybe we should start somewhere more gender neutral. Like Jayne!” Zoë chuckled lightly. “I think you were closer with Malcolm.” “Zoë, I know we’ve been through a lot, but I never expected you to name your firstborn after me,” Mal commented, entering the Infirmary. “Talk to my husband. Is there a problem, sir?” “Yes. No. Don’t let me interrupt. I just…” Mal held up his hands and backed away, but his eye caught the tiny heartbeat on the monitor and he froze. “Ain’t that something,” he mused, enraptured. For a moment, they all just stared. “It is.”

*~*

Simon was not surprised when River crawled into his bed that evening and snuggled up next to him. The new drug cocktail he was giving her had her sick to her stomach, though he hoped that it would pass in a few days. Along with that, the sound of howling beagles made sleep nearly impossible. Absently, he stroked his sister’s hair, trying to sooth her to sleep. His mind ran through a list of available sleep aids in the Infirmary, but the drug interactions would be too hazardous. “I could eat before,” River wept. “I was well before. Why can’t I have what I had before?” “Before what?” “Last week. What I had last week.” “Last week you were setting fire to everything.” “Only when I saw fire,” River defended. “I saw clearly then. Saw things even before they were intended. I can’t see at all now.” “That’s because your eyes are closed, silly.” “Can’t see anything,” River complained. “Can’t be helpful. A little concerned, but mostly annoyed, Simon propped himself up on his elbows and turned on the bedside light so he could look at his little sister. “River, open your eyes.” River opened her eyes and Simon immediately saw her pupils shrink in response to the light. “Can’t see you,” River said with ghostly terror. She touched his face, then bit her finger. Simon was confused. She was looking directly at him, following his every move. In a brief lull of barking, he could hear her stomach growling. “Can’t see you!” she declared furiously, turning on her side and taking all the covers with her. Simon rolled his eyes and yanked back, causing her to spin violently and fall onto the floor. She could be such a brat!

*~*

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