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Chapter 7
Zach Croft: 2053
“Almost done,” the doctor said.
Her hands were cold and sterile as she knitted the clear string through Zach’s eyebrow, patted it with a stinging cotton ball, and wiped an antiseptic ointment over the stitches. Zach closed his eye tight and tried to ignore the pain.
After getting the all-clear, Zach prepared to leave the exam room. He pulled his sweater back on and fixed his hair in the mirror.
“Come back tomorrow so I can check on the swelling,” the doctor said while peeling off her gloves.
“Will do.” Zach hopped off the table, half-expecting his legs to have fallen asleep and gone numb, but they stayed strong.
As he exited the examination room, Zach noticed Jason striding down the hallway toward him. His footsteps punctuated the hustle and bustle of the corridor, where doctors in lab coats rushed by with leather briefcases and thick binders, the sound of their dress shoes echoing off the linoleum floor.
Zach approached Jason with a look of worry etched across his face. “What’s going on?”
As he ducked around a low-hanging light fixture, Jason pulled Zach aside. “Carver’s coming to talk to you,” he said, glancing nervously over his shoulder.
Zach knew it was only a matter of time before someone came knocking, but he hadn’t expected it so soon. What would he tell Carver? It felt like there was nothing he could say.
“What did you tell him?” A note of concern crept into Zach’s voice.
Jason sent another look over his shoulder, then leaned in closer. “The truth. That Ryker faked a seizure, punched you in the face, and escaped.”
Zach let out a sigh of relief. “Carver’s not just gonna let this go. He’ll try to find him.”
“Actually, that’s my job. And, considering Carver doesn’t want to get the cops involved, it’s gonna be pretty damn hard.”
“Good. That’s good. What about the news? Have they said anything about the ship?”
“They’re too hung up with the flare down south. Now, where’s Ryker?” Jason said in a low voice.
“I don’t know. And what flare—?”
Jason ignored his question. “Ryker didn’t tell you where he was going?”
“I said the same thing to Cora: he knows where I live. He’ll find me when he’s ready.” Zach stepped aside, glancing behind him, as a nurse rushed past with a medkit in hand. “Listen, I’ve really got to go check out that flare.”
“Looking at some numbers isn’t gonna do anything for us now. You’ve got to get your story straight. If you mess up when Carver asks what happened with Ryker, we’re both in hot water.”
“I wasn’t planning on messing up.” Then again, Zach wasn’t planning on his best friend rising from the grave either.
And that still happened.
Nicolas Carver: 2053
How long before Zach learned the truth?
It was only a matter of time. Days. Hours, even. What would happen if Zach already knew? Carver prayed Zach was still clueless, not only for his own sake but for the sake of their friendship.
As Carver entered the Medical building, he ran right into Zach on his way out. Noticing the black eye beneath Zach’s ice pack, Carver gave him a pained wince. “That doesn’t look good.”
“It’s nothing. Doc says it’ll be gone in a few days.”
“Great to hear.” Carver walked with Zach out of the building. “Hey, come here for a sec.” He took Zach by the elbow and led him around the corner into an alley. “I need to know what happened, Zach.”
The words spilled out at once. “Okay, first let me say, you can’t blame Jason. I pressured him into letting me see the guy. Don’t take it out on him.”
“I don’t care about Jason. What happened with the prisoner?”
Zach allowed his head to rest against the wall, the frosty ice pack melting in the hot sun. “He kicked me in the stomach, beat up the guard, and ran out. When I tried to chase after him, he knocked me out cold. That’s all I remember.”
“I’m so sorry that happened.”
“No, I’m sorry. I should have listened to you. Thatwas not Ryker. He wouldn’t have done that. Especially to me.”
“No, of course not.” Every muscle in Carver’s body suddenly relaxed. He exhaled a deep breath.
“Do you have any idea who it was?” Zach asked.
“It’s too early to know for sure, but the going theory is that a foreign power may have compromised the Gateway. Russia, most likely. They may have docked to it and tried to commandeer the station. But something went wrong, and they ended up launching the dropship.”
“But…” Zach absorbed Carver’s words, clearly not understanding them entirely. “Why would he have come here?”
“Autopilot. He might not have known how to override it.” Fearing that Zach could see through his lie, Carver quickly changed the subject. “How are you doing? With everything going on.” Carver knew Zach couldn’t be taking this well. Getting beaten up by someone he thought was his dead best friend must have been heartbreaking. “I know how much you were hoping it was Ryker.”
Zach shrugged. “Yeah, well… I’ll get over it.”
“I’m sure you will.” Carver cracked a smile. “Anyway, just a heads up: someone’ll probably come to your office and ask you some questions later. We have to cover all our bases. Just a formality.”
“Sure, no problem. Whatever you need.”
“Thanks, son.” Carver patted Zach on the shoulder in farewell, then walked to the main building, summited the concrete flight of stairs, and slipped into his office. As he melted into his cozy leather chair, he shut his mind off, forgetting the possibility of his career going to shit and allowing only one thought to slip through. A positive thought, one he was deeply grateful for.
Zach didn’t know.
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