Space Rescue One Read online

  ***

  "Are you going to drink as much as you did last night?" Isaac asked.

  "What's the matter, Isaac? Are you going to order me to stop drinking just like you did to Richard?" Shelly responded.

  "Only if it gets out of control or you jeopardize the team. I can't ask, let alone order, anyone to go out on a mission with someone who's undependable. It's not fair to everyone concerned if I let that happen. I take my job seriously."

  "I know you do. Still, a girl has to cut loose sometimes."

  "Sure, we all do. I just don't want to see you turn it into a habit."

  "Okay, I won't. Turn it into a habit, I mean."

  "That's good to hear."

  "I am going to do one thing, however."

  "What's that, Shelly?" Isaac asked.

  She answered, "I'm going to get in tight with Richard. He's hiding something and I mean to find out what it is."

  "You mean you didn't find out when you were in his shower this morning?" he asked.

  Shelly glared at Isaac with fire in her eyes and clenched her fists.

  "All right, I'm sorry I said that. That wasn't nice of me to say. It's just that I couldn't help noticing that you were wearing one of his towels this morning. Then Richard came out of the same cubicle a few minutes later."

  "Well, I . . . I . . ."

  "You don't have to explain yourself. I've already heard about what took place. I'm still not sure how much to believe. On the other hand, I know I really don't have any claim on you. You can see any man you choose, so it's not up to me to question what you do, either," Isaac said.

  "Um, yeah. I suppose so. I'm glad to hear that you're being mature about these kinds of things. However, part of what I'm going to do is to satisfy my own curiosity. Part of it's on your behalf."

  "How so?" asked Isaac.

  Shelly answered, "You said you wanted to know why Richard couldn't be reached. Well, I think I discovered an information source that might open up and reveal everything. I might need your help keeping Richard busy. If you don't do that for me, then don't blame me for what might happen."

  "What?" he asked.

  "I'm not telling you now. I don't want this to explode all over me. It's better if you don't know ahead of time what I might have to do."

  "You're planning on doing something illegal?" he asked.

  "Well, not exactly. It's just that I don't . . . forget it, Isaac. Just forget it. I don't want to discuss this anymore. Just come up with something in the next day or two to keep Richard busy for a few hours and let me know when."

  "I'm not sure I want to know what's bugging Richard this badly. This is beginning to sound illegal, Shelly."

  "You won't be doing anything illegal. Besides, if Richard happens to find out what I'm doing, I'll pay the consequences. Not you."

  ***

  "Okay, so you guessed that I'm in love with Shelly. What of it, Damon?" Richard asked.

  "Nothing. Personally, I think you made a great choice. I've already noticed tonight that she's not drinking out of control," Damon said.

  "Yeah, she just needed to let her hair down, I guess," Richard said without mentioning that he was just as worried about Shelly going down the same path he once tried.

  "Well, she sure let it down. She must have been in agony this morning."

  "She was. No one could talk normally around her until nearly two."

  "Think she learned a lesson?" Damon asked.

  "I think she exorcised some ghosts."

  "How are you on exorcising yours?" Damon asked.

  "Mine? I don't remember telling you about mine," Richard exclaimed.

  "Just a lucky guess based on experience. You don't have to tell me about them. I reckon that you've got them under control."

  "Hardly, but I'm surviving."

  "Sleeping badly again?"

  "Not yet, but I anticipate that the ghosts will come back soon enough. They always do. Damn it, I've said enough. Too much, really. Good night, Damon."

  ***

  Shelly exclaimed, "Damn!"

  "What's wrong, Shelly?" asked Isaac.

  "Richard just left the bar. He's usually here much longer. Can you do something to keep him busy?"

  "Sorry, no. He's off duty. I can't justify giving him something to do without just cause," Isaac answered.

  "Okay, I understand. You just don't want to help me."

  "That's not fair. I really don't have anyway of justifying any work for him."

  "Please?" asked Shelly.

  "Not a chance, Shelly," Isaac answered.

  "Fine, be that way," Shelly exclaimed.

  ***

  Shelly staggered into Richard's room, closed the door most of the way, and then undressed in the dark. She listened carefully for his breathing. For the moment, he appeared to be sound asleep. She hoped she wouldn't be caught by Richard as she tried to go through his chest. She desperately wanted to discover what terrible secret he was hiding. If he caught her, she had only one thing to offer to keep herself out of trouble. Then she could only hope he either believed she was drunk or accepted her offer.

  Working quietly, she found the lock picks in her robe pocket and sat down on the floor just out of Richard's sight, in case he woke up. She hoped she'd have enough time to go into her act. It was the only way she could think of to allay his suspicions and keep herself from being dismissed from the team in disgrace.

  ***

  Richard's breathing became labored. Shelly stopped working on the lock. She was unsure how long she had worked at it. It wasn't as easy as she thought it would be. She listened to him as he tossed and turned, wondering if he was about to wake up. Then he whimpered. Like a child, he whimpered. Startled, Shelly listened to him cry as he tossed and turned in his bed. Carefully, she put her tools back in her pocket and sealed it. Then she stood and moved next to Richard to hear him better. Still, he said nothing as he cried. Then the crying stopped. Richard's breathing stopped for a moment. Long seconds passed. Then he took a breath. More seconds passed before he took another.

  "Richard? Are you all right? Do you need a doctor?" she asked in a quiet voice as she placed a hand out to him. She felt the wet clamminess of his body through his soaked bedclothes. While her hand was upon him, his breathing returned to normal. For a moment or two, she left her hand on him until she became alarmed that she might wake him by doing so.

  Shelly jerked her hand away in fear!

  He didn't awake. Almost immediately, Richard went into labored breathing once more. Amazed, Shelly listened in the dark as he went through the cycle once more. Unsure of anything else to do, she placed her hand out to him once more. Almost as soon as she touched his wet, straining form, he quieted down.

  Shelly paused in wonder as Richard relaxed into normal sleep while her hand remained on him. She gently withdrew her hand only to be startled by the onslaught of another cycle. She muttered to herself, "Well, you really walked into this one royally, Shelly gal. I guess I'm going to become a mama to a six-foot baby now.

  Shelly gently touched Richard once more as she sat down on the edge of his bunk and lay beside him. As before, he quieted down once more into a more normal sleep. She felt his wet clothing against her bare skin and wondered what kinds of beasts were plaguing Richard. Without a doubt, she knew he was afraid of something.

  ***

  Shelly was unsure when she fell asleep. She was sure of the time when she woke. Richard woke her when he climbed out of bed over her naked body. She watched him leave for the showers, his bedclothes still damp from during the night. As soon as he left his room, she bounded out of his bed, unsure of how long he would take to clean up. Glancing at the lock, she reluctantly decided that there simply wasn't enough time for the tools and skill she possessed. Rather than try again, she grabbed up her clothes and scooted out of his room for her own. At least, she'd have her own towel when she showered.

  Shelly stopped dead in embarrassment when Isaac stepped out of his room right in front of her. He cou
ldn't miss seeing that she was naked and carrying her clothes, not to mention that she could have just come only from Richard's room. She said quickly, "It's not what it looks like. I've got to talk to you in private sometime later."

  Isaac said calmly, "Okay, it's not what it appears to be. I'll accept that. I guess I can free up some time to have a discussion. I presume I know the topic of conversation."

  "Yes, now let me by, please."

  ***

  "Richard is having nightmares or something. He sounded like a frightened little boy last night when I tried to get that information. It was just by accident that I touched him and discovered that would make his nightmare stop," Shelly said once Isaac closed the hatch to his cabin.

  "Is that why you slept with him?" asked Isaac as he sat down.

  "Well, I didn't exactly sleep with him. I only slept beside him by accident when I lost track of time and fell asleep. I didn't intend to be there all night. I was just trying to comfort him and ward off that nightmare. After all, he did save my life once before. Something bad happened to him before. I'd stake my life that he drank because of whatever happened to him."

  "What happened to him?" asked Isaac.

  "I don't know, but I intend to find out. If I do that, I bet I can help him and you. You do want Richard to be a member of the team, don't you?"

  Isaac answered, "Well, of course, I do. What else can I answer? Remember, he saved my life twice, but I'm . . ."

  "Yeah, I know. You're not sleeping beside him. Well, you don't have to worry about that. I'm sure that Richard wouldn't care to have you sleeping beside him, either."

  "So, you undressed yourself and got in bed beside him."

  "He was soaked in his own fear-induced sweat."

  "Oh. Well, I can't blame you for keeping your clothes dry."

  Shelly admitted, "Well, I was really already undressed in case he woke up. I wanted him to think that I was drunk, again."

  "Were you going to offer yourself to him, again?" Isaac waited for an answer for several long seconds before he said, "Okay, I see you're not going to answer that. That was a bit crude on my part. Too nosey, too, I guess."

  "You're damn right that you're too nosey with that one," she exclaimed.

  "Would you accept an apology?" Isaac asked.

  "No, I won't. Right now the only thing I'll accept from you is your help in keeping Richard busy and getting me some tools."

  "What kind of tools?" he asked.

  "I need some really good lock picks."

  He exclaimed, "You're trying to pick a lock? That's definitely illegal. The answer is no. No to everything. I won't be a part of what you're suggesting."

  "You're the one who suggested in the first place that I spy on him. Now you want me to give up when I've already walked out on a limb for you? I thought you really wanted to do something good for Richard seeing as he saved your life twice. Now I'm not so sure that Richard wasn't right about you."

  "I do mean well for Richard. It's just that you're asking me to commit illegal acts. I never asked you to break into his quarters in order to spy on him. I figured you'd just let him take you on a date."

  "I tried to bet him a date, figuring that he'd win. He wouldn't accept a date as a bet."

  "I thought you tried to bet him a night in bed?" Isaac asked.

  "No, it was a date. I was drunk and confused when I said the other."

  "You're sure you were only confused?"

  "Of course, I'm sure. I don't really want to go to bed with Richard. That beard of his and those scars on him are enough to turn me off sometimes."

  "What scars?" asked Isaac.

  "He's got a pair of scars running down his left shoulder blade."

  "Really? I don't remember those being mentioned in his personnel record, let alone seeing them on him."

  "Is that so? Maybe those are part of what happened to him."

  "Perhaps you're right."

  "So, are you going to get me the tools I need?" Shelly asked.

  "I'll think about it. This is very risky. We could both be kicked off the team if you're caught. I need a few days just to think about it and get the tools if I go along with you."

  "You're not going along with me. This is just the natural extension of what you asked me to do for you."

  ***

  Isaac waited for Richard to enter the shower cubicle. Then he paused for a few more moments before he entered the same one. Richard's back was to him. The two parallel scars running down the length of his left shoulder blade were difficult to miss. Isaac said, "Excuse me. My mistake, Richard," before leaving quickly.

  Outside the cubicle, Isaac hated himself for spying on Richard in such a manner just to confirm the scars Shelly claimed to see. He didn't feel quite as bad after reviewing Richard's record, but he learned that there wasn't any mention of any scars in it. Admittedly, Shelly appeared to be onto something in what was fast becoming more of a mystery everyday.

  Whatever made Richard so anti-social obviously appeared connected to something bad that happened to him. Chief Dickson wondered just what could have been so horrible to do that to a man. Thinking about that, he realized that he respected Richard just a bit more than he suspected. Richard was rock solid in some ways and very uncompromising. Isaac thought that if Richard was just a bit friendlier, he could easily be the team leader instead of himself. After all, Richard's personnel record indicated that he possessed the training, skills, and service time to be a chief or higher. Isaac suddenly realized that the mystery was deepening, not opening up as he first thought it would. After all, why wasn't Richard already a Team Leader or higher? Was his anti-social bit an act to keep from being promoted? It seemed preposterous, yet it was remotely possible.

  ***

  "Okay," Isaac said, while pausing from eating his lunch. "I'll get you the tools you need to do what you're going to attempt anyway. I'll even try to come up with some sort of excuse to put Richard and the others to work while you take your best shot at it."

  "During our night shift?" asked Shelly.

  "Why during our night?"

  "In case I get caught by Richard. I can claim to be drunk and looking for companionship. I think Richard will buy that."

  "All right. I'll need another day or two to figure out a reasonable excuse to put them to work at night without you."

  Shelly suggested, "Maybe a physical exam?"

  Isaac replied, "You're devious. I guess that might work. Richard's going to be suspicious of this, no matter what. However, I'd rather he think that was the purpose of the odd timing instead of what you're doing. If you get caught though, I'm going to confess my part."

  "Now why would you do that?"

  "Simply because I don't think it should be any other way. It won't take long for someone to figure that I put you up to it. Lately, we've been seen together too much."

  "Okay, do what you want, but I don't intend to get caught or in trouble."

  ***

  Chief Dickson said, "Sorry, fellas. His schedule is such right now that this is the only time he can free up to give us this exam. He took care of Shelly earlier. I guess that's a throwback to treating women differently since they have some different parts."

  "I heard that Rescue Team Two isn't having to do this," Alex said.

  Isaac fixed him with a stare, then said, "I think they're scheduled for later."

  Doctor Heinlein said, "Uh, yes, I believe they are, Chief. Weren't you going to help me coordinate that with Chief Brunner?"

  ***

  Shelly gazed at the chest, knowing that she only had a few hours at most to work on it. She lost five minutes just buying a drink at the bar and drinking only half of it. She deliberately spilled the other half on herself. If Richard came in, he'd notice immediately that she'd been drinking. Maybe he'd believe she chose his room to crash in once more. She slipped out of her wet clothes and placed those in front of the door to act as a wedge. Then she worked on the lock.

  ***

  "That's a nasty s
et of scars you have there. I don't see these listed on your medical records," Doctor Heinlein said.

  "I got them a long time ago. They ought to be listed," Richard replied.