Chapter 17

Harlan was delighted when Scarlet showed up for work bright and early. She showed the new doctor around the clinic, introduced her to the two AEssyrian medics Harlan was training, and finally ended up by introducing Scarlet to the only Kirillian doctor assigned to the clinic, Krull. Krull, for his part, disliked open displays of emotion and was clearly uncomfortable meeting Scarlet. He probably thought the new doctor was a troublemaker because she’d tried to smuggle a blaster on the world. Harlan was starting to think so too.

Krull was about to walk back to the waiting room and get a new patient when Scarlet stepped in his path blocking him. He gave her an impatient frown.

“Did you bring any special equipment with you when you came, Doctor?” Scarlet asked him.

Krull glanced at Harlan who stood there perplexed. “Like what, Doctor Jonson?” he asked.

Scarlet was undaunted by his attitude. Harlan could tell she was very accustomed to dealing with Kirillians. “Like a Kirillian Mindbender.”

“What would you need something like that for?” Harlan asked.

“I want a brain dump of AEssyrian,” she said, addressing both of them. “I’ll need to become fluent if I’m going to be effective here.”

“You could suffer permanent brain damage from such a heavy data encroachment,” Krull said.

“I’m not worried,” she said. “I have complete confidence in you. I’ve read your dossier on the data nets. You have quite the impressive medical pedigree,” she said. Then she paused for a moment and chewed her lip. “I’m so sorry about what happened to your wife.”

Krull frowned deeply and for a moment, Harlan thought he was going to storm off. She’d never seen him react that strongly to anything. A quiet, private agony came over his features, but it was unmistakably there. At first Harlan was angry and going to talk to Scarlet in private, but then something strange happened. Krull looked at Scarlet and a curiously intimate moment passed between them. Then as suddenly as it appeared, it was gone.

“Do you have any objection to the procedure?” Krull said to Harlan. Scarlet and Krull watched her expectantly.

“No,” Harlan said hesitantly, “as long as you understand the risks.” Inwardly Harlan was furious. She hated being put on the spot like that, but what could she say? Scarlet was a doctor herself; she knew the risks. Worse yet, there was a ruthless practicality to what she was asking Krull to do. Harlan reminded herself that if there was anyone she would allow to do such a procedure, it would be Krull.

“Meet me back in my office when you’re done,” she said to Scarlet.

“Will do,” Scarlet replied as she followed Krull into a treatment room.

* * * *

Desmond hadn’t been this emotionally confused since he was a teenager. Scarlet had awoken him in the morning as she dressed for work and he’d never seen any woman as beautiful as her, freshly showered and parading around naked. Then he’d escorted her to the clinic and went off to run some errands. The first of which was to get someone else to baby-sit the attractive new doctor. She’d probably be upset but it was better this way. He didn’t want her getting too attached to him and he didn’t join the army to be some woman’s bodyguard.

He stalked alongside Gavin as the general inspected a new arms shipment from a local craftsman. Gavin was clearly pleased. He gingerly picked up one standard issue saber and sliced the air with it.

“What fucking metalwork,” he rumbled, sounding more like he was talking about a woman than a weapon.

“It’s great,” Desmond said. “I need a favor.” He needed Gavin to assign someone else and he couldn’t think of any other way his father might do it unless it was a favor. Gavin loved to feel a person was indebted to him.

Gavin lowered the saber and stared at Desmond. “What?”

“Assign someone else to the new doctor.”

“Why? She’s quite attractive. I wouldn’t think it was a difficult assignment.”

“It’s not but it’s boring and I didn’t join the military to be a babysitter.”

Gavin gave Desmond a look of mock surprise. “Actually I have always wondered why you joined the military. It certainly wasn’t for any type of advancement or aspirations of greatness.”

Desmond threw up his hands in frustration. “You just can’t let this go, can you? It fucking kills you that your only living son doesn’t want to be anything like you. With the exception of dodging the occasional daggers thrown at me by my loving and accepting father, I am very satisfied with my life and my career. So fuck off.”

“Alright what’s the real reason you want to dump this easy assignment?” Gavin asked, grinning. He had gotten the rise out of Desmond that he’d wanted and now he would leave his son alone for awhile. It was a game they played.

“We slept together last night and I think she’s getting too attached,” Desmond said.

Gavin’s one good eye narrowed suspiciously. “She’s getting, or you’re getting?”

Desmond shook his head and smiled bitterly. “My meaningful relationships are waiting for me in the brothel.”

Gavin replaced the saber and frowned. “You shouldn’t be too proud of that, Desmond. Why don’t you want to explore a relationship with this woman?”

“I don’t want to explore a relationship with any woman. Why can’t it be that simple? Besides, you’re one to play matchmaker with me,” Desmond said unable to stop himself. “The cities and villages are littered with the broken hearts of women you walked away from.”

Gavin fell into a brooding silence. Then he said, “Do you think I used your mother?”

Desmond sighed and rubbed his temples. “I don’t know what kind of internal journey you’re on in your twilight years but just because I get pissed at you doesn’t mean that it’s a reflection of the wrongs I suffered as a child. Can’t you just accept that you’re an asshole? Anyway she never talked about you much,” Desmond said. Old feelings of hurt were coming to the surface and he hated how sore it made him.

“Just to set the record straight, your mother and I used each other,” Gavin said.

“Okay, that’s fine. Everything’s all better. Thanks. What about the assignment?” Desmond said desperate to get away from his father.

“I’ll send a guard to her tonight. Satisfied?”

“Over-fucking-joyed,” Desmond retorted.