An. Sorry for the delay in posts. I had some technical difficulties for a while there.

Chapter 5: Worth

River ran her fingers through her tangled hair. She heard her brother’s voice, but it really didn’t mean what it should. He thought she didn’t know about the other one, but she did. She knew all about Thalia. The scientists had talked about her…compared them. They hadn’t made the mistakes with River that they had with Thalia. So many mistakes.

“Are you listening to me, mei mei?”

“She hears. She understands. The outcome is unsure,“ River murmured. Worth. What was it all worth? The outcome could be worth everything or cost everything. River’s head felt heavy. Like it was filled with lead.

“River, should we stay?” Simon was looking her straight in the eye.

She leaned her head against the bed. She could hear his thoughts all the way from the next hall. There were so many lies. They could all drown in those lies, but what about truth? One truth. Worth. What was it worth?

“Steps down the hall.”

Simon sighed. He was worried.

River opened the door to reveal Mal with his hand raised. “Expecting me, Albatross?”

She smiled. “You’ve come to see if I’m going to go crazy.”

Mal laughed. He was worried too. “Are you?”

“No.” She flopped back on her bed. “I want to stay.”

“What about our boss? Should we trust him?”

“It could be worth it.”

The robe. She wanted to wear it, and Mal wanted to see it. Without a care for propriety , River began stripping off her clothing. Purple silk and lace. She’d dance in it, and it would twirl around with her. Mal liked to see her dance. Hands caught her dress before it fell.

“Mei mei, you can try that on later.”

River stared at her brother for a moment. “He wants to see me dance, and I want to dance for him.”

Simon glared at the captain.

“Hey, I ain’t said nothing’ about dancin'." Mal held his hands up.

Not yet, little girl.

"Soon," River whispered

Mal grunted. "I'm gonna go find Zoë"

_______________________________________________________________________ Thalia hated this. She tapped her long nails on the bar impatiently. The drop should have been over with by now. Kyan would not be happy, and when Kyan wasn't happy...neither was Thalia. Keeping her hands busy was key. The temptation to burry one of her knives in the "bartender's" skull was slowly building, but that wouldn't please Kyan either.

The "bartender" handed her a drink, and nodded to a man in the corner. "Your friend over there bought you a drink. It would be polite to go over there and thank him."

Thalia gave the newcomer a quick look. He was thin and rather nondescript, but he was quite good at killing. She was sure of it. The "gentleman's" laser hidden beneath his vest wasn't just a show piece. He'd killed with it not too long ago. Someone had crossed him. He didn't regret taking lives, but he didn't necessarily enjoy it. He moved deftly. He was a man who valued efficiency. This was going to be interesting.

“I wouldn’t dream of being impolite. Perhaps, he has more for me than just a martini?” she inquired as she swirled the liquid.

“Perhaps, or perhaps he doesn’t have a thing for such greedy girls.” The bartender was terrified, and trying poorly to hide behind his bravado. He didn’t trust anyone in this room. Not the bouncers at the door, and certainly not Thalia.

Thalia smiled slyly. “A bottle of your finest, sir,” she said as she slid the key card across the bar. He nodded, and reached for the card, but she slapped her hand over his. ”Before you accept this, know that if I cross this room for nothing ...there will be more consequences than you can imagine.”

Visibly shaken, the bartender took the card. “I understand.”

The man in the corner watched her as she made her way across the room carrying the bottle and two glasses. He was surprised to see her, but he did not dismiss her as threat...not yet. He rose from his seat to greet her. “Good evening, my dear.”

“Thank you for the martini. I hope you won’t think it forward of me, but I thought you might like a drink as well?”

“Certainly not.” He pulled the chair out for her. “I am honored.”

Professionals knew how to play the game, and this man was definitely at his prime. She watched him from underneath her lashes as she poured the wine. “I appreciated fine things,” Thalia said carefully.

He nodded gravely. “Only the finest. My dear, I believe you dropped your purse,”

“How kind of you to notice!” Thalia reached down and picked up the fashionable bag from the floor. The weight and size were right on, and she could tell that he wasn’t going to cross them. Her work was done here. She faked a yawn. “Wine always makes me tired. I hope you’ll excuse me.”

“Of course,” the man said with the slightest twitch of his lips. “Thank you for the wine.”

Back in her hotel room, Thalia tossed the purse on the bed. Not a bad run, but it had still annoyed her. She waived Kyan without the slightest hesitation. Thalia knew that he’d be waiting.

Kyan’s face appeared on the screen looking tired. “How was your evening?”

“It was productive. And yours?”

“I wasn’t surprised, but I did miss you. You know how I can’t stand incompetence.”

Thalia couldn’t stop herself from laughing. "Then why do you tolerate it?"

He sighed. "Just make sure that you're on time tomorrow. You're only surprise number one for this little group. I want to keep things rolling."

"Of course." Thalia leaned back in her seat. "What is she like?"

For the first time, Kyan smiled. "She's amazingly strong. As intelligent and dedicated as I remembered, too."

Thalia rolled her eyes. "I meant River Tam."

"We haven't met. Her brother is a fool, though I am not about to make assumptions based on his idiocy. I am leaving the young woman in your hands. Do what you must."

"Are you sure they stand for it?"

Kyan frowned. "When it all comes down to it, they won't have a choice in any of this."

"Yes, sir."

"Thalia, you know why we are going to do this. If there was any other way, I would have found it by now."

"I know. This is going to be very dangerous for all of us. I only hope that she is as good as he seemed to think she is."

"Knowing our source, I don't doubt that one bit. Good night, Thalia."

"Good night, Kyan."

Thalia stared at the black screen. She trusted Kyan with her life...owed it to him, yet this was uncharted waters. Kyan had better be right about all of this.

AN, Willing to beg for crit....:)