He brushed his hand along his temple then stared at his bloodied fingers in some confusion.
“That’s not my blood.”
“Good.” I cleaned his face with the wet corner of the blanket while he sat still, gazing at me. “Did you...kill someone?”
“A few.” He nodded somberly.
One thing I’d never witnessed in my life before coming to the Dark Anomaly was murder. So many had been killed since. The only thing I was grateful for was that Wyck remained alive.
“Thank God you made it,” I said firmly.
“I had help.”
Did the other errocks finally come to his aid?
“Vrateus helped me get out of there when things got wild at one point.”
No errocks then. It saddened me because I knew Wyck was hurt when his family had turned against him. And it was all because of me.
“So, the captain was out there, too?”
“If he didn’t come, many more would’ve died. He is the captain, the crew eventually listened to him, for now anyway. It helps that he always carries a lot of guns and shoots fast. As a punishment for the riots, he is making the entire crew scrub the sector clean tomorrow.”
“Well, that should keep them busy and out of trouble.” I released a short breath.
Wyck’s frown didn’t ease, however.
“I hope it doesn’t cost the captain another mutiny.”
“Is there a high chance of that?”
“The crew is a volatile bunch. They’re hard to control and quick to get angry. One never knows when an explosion may happen,” he replied, rather enigmatically. “We’re moving out of here tomorrow night, instead of the morning.”
“Why night?”
“It’ll be easier to do while everyone is busy cleaning and doing chores.”
“While they’re all awake and moving about, you mean? How is that easier?”
“Vrateus gave me the code to the lock of the spacesuit storage room. It’s the one that’s next to the vasai farm, very close to here. I’ll get a large crate and a dolly from there to transport you to the ship, pretending I’m doing a task for Vrateus like the rest of the crew.”
As much as I wished to leave this cage of a room, getting out there felt terrifying. Wyck must have sensed my fear and cupped my face gently.
“We’ll be okay, my sweet.”
“We’ll be fine,” I replied, forcing a smile. I was so sick of being scared all the time.
WYCK TOOK A QUICK LOOK inside the ship that had brought me to the Dark Anomaly weeks ago, which seemed like another lifetime, now.
“Come, quickly.” He helped me climb out of the crate I’d hidden in while he transported me across almost the entire habitable sector of the Anomaly. “Get in, now.” He nudged me toward the cut-out that served as the entrance to the ship.
Despite the late hour, the lights were on. Wyck had told me that the lights were never off on the Dark Anomaly. I wondered if the captain knew that someone was always ready to attack, and he wanted to make it easier for everyone to watch their backs.
“Val?” I called softly as soon as I climbed in.
Wyck had gone through the ship before, finding no trace of anyone occupying it. Yet I still hoped that Val would magically appear when I got here.
No one replied. The place stood bare and desolate. The images of the gruesome murders that had happened here assaulted my memory.
“Vrateus promised to keep the crew away from here.” Wyck promptly followed me in, dragging the crate behind him. “But there’s always a risk of someone wandering by unexpectedly. We’ll need to be careful.”
Clinking with his chain, Lesh leaped in through the opening, too, and Wyck leaned a large round slab of metal against the cut-out, blocking the entrance from the inside.
“This is nearly impossible to roll away from the outside,” he assured me. “If anyone wants to enter, they’d have to push it in, and we’ll hear it crash as it hits the floor.”
He stood next to me, turning around to take in the large open space of the common area of the ship—beige walls, the wide control panel far ahead with the six crew seats in front of it; the dining area in the middle; the storage hatch and the medical niche to the left; the wall with the crew cabins behind it to the right. “You said there’re places to hide in here?”
“Yes, the sleeping cabins...” I replied distractedly.
The day of our ill-faded arrival kept replaying in my mind. I wandered over to the spot where Nocc had climbed on top of me before Wyck