Vrateus finds some time to help us. He’s been busy searching for a new room for us.”
“You’re moving?”
She nodded. “We have to. Vrateus is getting increasingly worried that our room may be destroyed with another ship crashing on the Dark Anomaly. It’s always just a matter of time. But since the latest crash, he fears time is running out.”
I worried my lip with my teeth, moving my gaze from Wyck to Svetlana then back again. I liked them both, but would inviting her to live under the same roof be asking for trouble?
“You can move here if you want,” I suggested after a little consideration. “This way, we can fix the door, the capsule, and whatever else needs to be fixed here much quicker.”
“Here?” Svetlana glanced around the main area of the ship.
“Where exactly?” Wyck frowned.
“There is another cabin right next to ours.”
“There is?” Both of them turned to stare at the wall with the door to our cabin. Another narrow slit ran along it, a short distance to the right.
“That’s the one where the male part of our crew used to live,” I explained. “Their cabin is even bigger than the one where Wyck and I are because it was made to house four people instead of two. I can’t open their door, the panel is not programmed for my palm print, but since you know how to disable them...” I turned to Svetlana.
“This might work,” she muttered under her breath, taking a closer look at the wall and the panel.
“It has its own bathroom and a food station. If we make a proper main door, the whole ship would be safer, too.” I glanced up at Wyck, feeling his worry and suspicion. “It may be better for the four of us to stick together. Don’t you think?”
“Vrateus living here would give away your location to the rest of the crew,” Wyck pointed out. “There is already a risk of someone tracking me to this place, no matter how careful I am. With two—” He glanced at Svetlana. “With three people coming and going as they please, someone would figure it out quickly.”
“They would,” Svetlana agreed. “Two women being in the same place will make this an appealing target for everyone.”
“We may need to fortify it even better, then. Maybe all of us could limit our trips outside? This ship is entirely self-contained. We can make enough food and water to sustain all of us for a while, even if we lose access to the food supply of the Dark Anomaly for any reason.”
“And, there is coffee.” Svetlana smiled with a wink at me.
“Exactly.” I grinned back. I really could use a friend in this place. The idea of her and the captain moving in appealed to me more and more.
“I’ll talk to Vrateus,” she assured me then turned to face Wyck. “Trust me we don’t want to jeopardize Nadia’s safety, but it’s just a matter of time until the crew finds out about her whereabouts. In which case, it’s best to be prepared. Together, we’ll be stronger.”
Chapter 20
“I HAVE SOMETHING FOR you.” Svetlana hopped off her seat at the table and rushed to the men’s cabin, which was now her and Vrateus’s room.
Vrateus and Svetlana had officially moved in last night, less than a week after she’d first found me here.
After Svetlana had left that day, Wyck and I talked for a while about the four of us living on the ship. His main concern was safety. Though, he agreed that he would feel better having someone with me while he was gone, even if the someone would be Svetlana.
She had her tasks on the Dark Anomaly, but Vrateus had been cutting them down lately, reducing the amount of time she spent outside of their room. The captain was obviously concerned about the unstable situation with his rebellious crew.
“Are you sure you’ll be okay sharing the ship with more people?” I’d asked Wyck. “It’s not that much space around here.”
He’d only laughed at that. “Sugar, I’ve had nothing but a bunk bed and a curtain to my name, my entire life. And even that I had to share with one pretty large mahdi. Despite my size, I don’t need that much space to be comfortable.”
During their move, Wyck had been civil to Svetlana and even carried a few things from their old room over to our ship for her when Vrateus happened to be busy elsewhere. I still sensed some tension on Wyck’s part toward her, though to