Wintermoon Ice (2010) (12 page)

His surprised smile flashed in the darkness. "If you are sure you don't mind, I would like that very much."

She berated herself all the way back to her room. Waltzing with Tom had thrust her troubles gloriously to one side, but now they came rushing back. He had asked her to trust him, but how could she, knowing that he must play some part in Jack's plan to close Carina?

Suvi remembered the liquor, and why she had insisted that Goodman Scaaf include it in the trade. "Would you care for a drink? I happen to have this poteen..."

An hour later, Tom leaned back in the desk chair and chuckled as he turned the empty bottle over his glass. "What the hell is this stuff? It kicks like a mule. I haven't been this drunk since I graduated from med school." He grinned lopsidedly. "You didn't hear me say that, right?"

"Of course not." Suvi's voice was perfectly steady. "We agreed to trust each other, remember? But I am curious about something. Why did you and Katy come to Severnessa? Does it have something to do with the war?"

"I can't tell you that. It's a big, big secret. And Jack would be very, very, very angry if I did." He leaned forward to emphasize his words and almost fell out of the chair.

"But he isn't here, and I won't tell him." Suvi pressed him, feeling more guilty by the moment.

He straightened with difficulty and squinted at her. "Really? You promise?"

"Yes, I promise."

"Scout's honor?" He inexplicably waved three fingers in her face.

"Sc... Scout's honor." Suvi wondered suddenly what she had become. Despite her words, she could find no honor at all in her actions this night. He opened his mouth, and she waved her hands. "Wait! Don't tell me, Tom. I don't want you to get in trouble."

"Are you sure? 'Cause I will, if you want. I trust you, baby."

"You shouldn't," said Suvi dejectedly, under her breath.

Tom staggered to his feet and reached for his keys. "I better hit the road. Got an early meeting in the morning."

Suvi snatched them away. "You aren't going anywhere, not in the shape you are in."

"I'm fine. Never better." But he swayed as he said it.

Suvi took him by the arm and led him to the bed. "I think you had better stay here with me tonight."

"OK, baby." Tom hiccupped loudly. "Whatever you say."

She lay next to him in the darkness, without touching, both of them fully clothed. Tom closed his eyes, feeling the disconcerting revolution of the bed, and trying to pretend he rode a ship across a gentle ocean. He turned his head so that he could see Suvi's profile. "You are so good. You an' Katy, both. I'm so lucky to have two such wonderful women to look after me."

Suvi's voice carried distantly across the waves, like the melancholy cry of a sea bird. "You love her, don't you?"

His stomach roiled a little, and he belched. The liquor made him brutally honest. "Of course. I've loved her for years and years. But she chose Jack instead of me and she is too loyal to leave him."

"I am sorry."

Tom swallowed, and felt his mouth fill again rapidly. "Don't be. I am used to it. And anyway...." He sat up suddenly. "She isn't the only fish in the..."

Then he vomited all over the covers and onto the floor.

Suvi sighed guiltily and got up. After Tom's stricken apologies she said, "It's all right. You weren't to know, were you? I should have stopped you." Once she had dealt with the mess, she felt wide awake, too restless to sleep. She switched off the overhead light and sat down at the desk, thinking she might as well catch up on some paperwork.

When she reached for the lamp switch, she saw that some dim source of light already illuminated the desk top. It leaked from the edges of the locked drawer like a halo. Suvi removed the prism from its hiding place. Once it lay in her hands, the light suddenly blazed forth, making her clutch it to her chest protectively.

The blankets on her bed stirred a little and a mumbling came from beneath them. "Is it morning already?" Once she had doused the light Tom turned over, hiccupped a couple of times, and went back to sleep.

She could feel the burning pressure of the prism even through her heavy sweater. Abruptly, the light that had left red fringes on her cupped palms and fingers died.

No... it had only
shifted
, from the prism to her.

It nestled in her chest, warm and alive. Suvi knew she ought to be frightened, and yet she was not. Almost immediately, the feeling of the light inside her was as natural as her own heartbeat, her own breathing. Even the room seemed brighter and warmer than before.

She wondered if she ought to tell Tom. He came from off world -- perhaps he understood such mysteries. A rumbling feeling in her chest warned against this. Suvi stretched out on the bed, and curled into the curve of Tom's body and drifted off to sleep. Yellow flowers filled her dreams.

* * * *

When Tom woke, the pain in his head prevented almost any coherent thought. He looked at the ceiling, trying to remember where he was.

Images returned.
Stellaan's. Dancing. That innocuous-looking bottle. Suvi, taking his keys and then leading him to the bed.
What had happened after that?

He turned his head, very slowly, with shamefaced remembrance. She had removed the sodden, smelly quilt and his shirt, and wrapped him in a clean woolen blanket. Then he had passed out as she went to fetch a mop and bucket to clean up his mess.

A sudden growl made him scramble from under the covers, despite the pounding in his temples. Chelah wound round his ankles in a friendly way. Tom regarded her with suspicion. "Where is your mistress?" Suvi's pet ran to her bowl and mewled. Tom scratched his head. "Breakfast? All right, I will see what I can do."

He straightened his slept-in clothes as best he could. His shirt, now somehow clean and dry, was draped over the desk chair. He put it on and then made his way to the dining room. Marja saw him and waved. "Tom! It is a surprise to see you here so early. Did you come to visit Suvi?"

He nodded, wishing she didn't have to shout so over the murmur of voices. Marja's expression looked chary, so he thought he had better come up with something plausible. "I... wanted to borrow her yitar, so I could practice for the dinner tonight."

Teggr, who had been passing by with her breakfast, overheard. "She doesn't have the yitar anymore."

"What? Why not?"

"She sold it, at the Hockit, so the children could have cloaks to wear outside." Teggr's eyes narrowed. "But you didn't hear that from me. She doesn't want anyone to know." The old woman sighed and continued to her seat.

Marja shook her head. "Poor Suvi. She loved that yitar. I guess that is why she seemed upset this morning. I saw her leaving on her pede, just after sunrise."

"Did she say where she was going?"

"No, only that she would be back before the noon meal. Are you all right, Tom? You don't look too good."

He went back to Suvi's room, and dumped a few scraps in Chelah's bowl. The corner formerly occupied by the yitar looked sadly bare. Tom sat on the bed, rubbed his aching forehead and checked his watch. Eight o'clock. Jack would be expecting him in fifteen minutes. If he hurried he could just make the briefing on time.

Tom went to his truck and started the engine, then stared pensively at the steering wheel. Her perfume lingered in the cab, and the sultry sound of her laughter. Tom had been in love before, with someone he couldn't have. But this was different -- he would make it so. With sudden resolve he pointed the truck towards Jaarvik and Scaaf's Hockit.

By the time he made it back to the base with the yitar he was an hour and half late for his meeting with Jack. "Major Bennett will see you now," the secretary purred, with an obliging smile. Tom ignored her. His head still hurt abominably, though he had taken some aspirin he found in the truck.

Jack sat behind his desk, writing furiously as Tom sauntered in. His pencil lead snapped, leaving a heavy black smudge against the paper. He stared at it. "You are late."

"Sorry. I had something important to take care of." Tom pulled over a chair.

"I didn't give you permission to sit, Captain." Jack finally raised his head and Tom saw smoldering fury in his grey eyes. "You will remain at attention until I have finished speaking."

Tom unwillingly straightened his shoulders and raised his chin. "What's eating you?"

Jack pushed the paper across the desk. "This is an account of a punch up at Stellaan's last night. You want to tell me what happened?"

He tried bluffing. "Why should I know anything about it? Is my name anywhere on that piece of paper?"

Jack threw the pencil down. "Captain, when I hear that one man took on and licked four armed Harriers with his bare hands, I don't have to be told his name. Do I?" He smacked his hand down hard, making all the paperweights on his desk jump. "Well, do I?"

Tom shrugged. "Ok, you win. It was me. But so what? They had it coming. One of those jerks tried to dance with..." He fell silent, finally understanding the source of Jack's anger.

"Her name
is
on the paper," Jack said softly. "She is well known in Schippendorff. Now, will you please explain why you were socializing with Suvi Markku?"

Tom pressed his lips together.

Jack stood, his fists clenched. "You disobeyed a direct order, Captain Finn. Give me one good reason why I shouldn't have you court-martialed right now."

He grinned lazily. "Because I am the only one who can catch your knuckleball?"

"Be silent! You don't get it, do you? This operation is far too important for you to screw up." He pushed another sheet of paper over to Tom. "I am reassigning you to the Field Surgical Unit in
Fareniis
Narrows
, effective immediately. Here are your orders."

"What the hell?" Tom staggered, as though Jack had rabbit punched him. "You can't do that."

"I can and I have." Jack's angry expression softened. "You came to Severnessa to help. But you are in over your head, Tom. Leave the intelligence work to qualified people. Go and do what you are good at -- doctoring. Katy says you are by far the best surgeon she has ever worked with. It is plain stupid to waste that talent."

Tom's lips trembled. "God damn you, Jack. How could you do this to me? You must know how I feel about Suvi."

"Get your things packed. There is a transport leaving at 08:00 hours tomorrow. That is all, Captain." Jack couldn't bear to see the anguish on Tom's face, so he turned towards the bank of metal cabinets that lined one wall, pretending to look for a file.

Tom stared at his back, pure loathing in his eyes. His hand slipped towards his boot-top, to the dagger concealed there.

Just then, Katy's voice drifted in through the anteroom, as she made her way up the hall to her husband's office. "Jack? Do you want some lunch?"

Slowly, unwillingly, Tom straightened up again. "You already have her. Isn't that enough for you?" When Jack did not reply, Tom turned on his heel and left the office, slamming the door behind him.