She unlocked the door to Rasty’s private quarters, his by right of being the foreman and came to a halt the instant she stepped over the threshold. No one had been in here and the air smelled faintly of his favorite feelgood smoking sticks, his expensive aftershave, which had been a rare indulgence for a hard living cowboy, and coffee. Rasty had loved the real stuff, no synthcaff for him. A half empty cup with mold growing on the dregs sat on the table next to the big recliner in front of the entertainment/holo center.
“I will not cry, I will not break down—there’s no time,” she said out loud through gritted teeth, forcing herself to move to the alcove where the bed was situated. His hat sat on the quilts at the foot of the bed and she picked it up with trembling fingers, placing it on the bureau and blinking back more tears. Rasty had been like a father to her.
She threw herself into the task of changing the bed, ripping off the old sheets and getting fresh ones from the linen closet in the apartment’s bathroom. Through the open door she heard the sound of the guys approaching with Cody and then Jeff came through the door, guiding the lift, with Zach at the rear, Trent and Melly trailing behind. Tamsyn shrank into the furthest corner of the room and watched as Cody was transferred to the bed. He must have been stunned after she rushed to the bunkhouse because he lay limp and unresisting as his restraints were removed and he was stripped of his uniform. She averted her eyes after a quick glance at his muscular frame. He hadn’t asked her to admire his physique and she wasn’t a medical professional so she didn’t feel right seeing too much.
Trent handed over a set of sweatpants and a tee shirt and after a quick wipe down, Cody was dressed and secured to the sturdy bedframe. One of Tamsyn’s ancestors had carved it from a massive tree which had fallen during a storm and it wasn’t going to move or fall apart no matter how hard Cody might struggle in the grip of the virus.
The stun blast was wearing off and he pulled restlessly at the padded restraints, muttering incomprehensibly.
”Trent and I’ll alternate,” Melly said. “I want eyes on him at all times and we’re the only two trained personnel.”
“I’ll help, I can take a shift,” Tamsyn said. “I’ve gotten to be quite an expert at veterinary care over the years. Have to be on an isolated ranch like the Double Comets. Not saying treating a human is the same as caring for an animal but the principles are similar. I can do infusions and injects and whatever else is needed.”
Melly gave her a long, considering look. The captain stayed silent, making it clear the decision was up to the doctor.
“Tamsyn,” Cody said clearly, startling them all. She rushed to the bedside but his eyes were closed and he didn’t respond to her whispered, “I’m here.”
Dr. Jericho nodded as if the remark had been a request from her patient. “All right, three shifts then. Tamsyn will alternate with Trent and me.”
“And there’s to be an armed guard here at all times,” Jeff ordered. “It stretches us thin, what with working on the second APC and guarding the house but I’m not having anyone in here with him without backup. We’ll all have to make adjustments and sleep less until this is over, one way or the other.”
“Fine. Good precaution,” Melly said. “All right, I’m going to start the infusions now.”
Tamsyn noticed she was carrying a medical kit.
“I’d like Tamsyn and Trent to stay and watch me this time, so we can be sure we’re all on the same page,” Melly said. “I need room to work.”
“Zach, you’ve got the duty,” Jeff said. He gave Melly a quick kiss, patted Cody on the shoulder and said, “Get well, brother. Beat this damn thing.”
Chapter Six
At times Cody was confused whether he was in a bed at Tamsyn’s ranch, tied down for his own good and their protection, or floating on the total nerve block in the Sectors military hospital after the explosion decimated his team on the piece of shit planet they’d been deployed to. The two circumstances bled into each other and combined and broke apart again in his mind where he and the virus fought a battle for his soul.
Now was one of those episodes where he was waking up in the bed at the trauma hospital and panicking because he couldn’t feel any part of his body, nor could he move. At the edge of his consciousness he sensed he was fighting the tethers at his wrists and ankles in real life on Randal Four but certainty slipped away as the battleax, gray haired Army nurse came into view with a handful of injects.
“What happened? How are my teammates?” he asked in a raspy voice he didn’t recognize.
“I’m not authorized to tell you anything, sorry, soldier,” she said with a barely there smile he could tell was fake. “The doctors will be in soon to give you a debrief and discuss your case.”
Fuck, it must be really bad. “Am I—am I paralyzed?” he asked, working up his courage to learn the truth.
“No, we’ve got you in a medlock,” she said, patting some portion of him he couldn’t feel, his shoulder maybe. Her gesture made it harder for him to control his panic.
“How long till I can get out of here and rejoin my team then?”
Her eyes were full of pity and his stomach turned. Or at least he thought it did, not being able to actually feel anything. “The doctor will go over everything with you in a few minutes. They’re going to do their best for you, I promise.” She busied herself with whatever she was doing to him, an infusion maybe.
Cody wanted to grab her arm, make her stop and listen to him and his desperate need to know the truth about his situation. It had to be bad to be under a total medlock. His commands to his arms went unanswered and the best he could do was clear his throat and try again. “I need to know the situation now, ma’am, not lie here imagining the worst until this doctor shows up.” He watched her face and added, “I’m not going to freak out or anything. I can handle it.”
She sighed and glanced at the door, then back to him. Leaning close to his ear, sending her scent of crisp starch, antiseptic and a faint touch of perfume over him. “You’ve got the important things—brain intact, sight and hearing, heart, most of your internal organs, an impressive cock and balls, part of one arm, your upper legs…and that’s it. I’m sorry, soldier.”
She moved away while he was struggling to make her words make sense. His mind refused to take it in. “But the doc can stick me in the rejuve resonator and make me whole again, right?” he croaked out, panic making his throat tight and according to the sensors in the room, his heart beat faster.
“Dr. Nessa will go over all the options with you. I hear him coming down the hall now,” she said.
Cody wanted to be sick but with his entire body blocked off and concealed from his sight, he guessed it was all in his mind. He moved his head restlessly against the pillow, glad he could move at least one part of him.
Dr. Nessa was short, sharp featured and intense. Two of his colleagues came into the room behind him and stood off to the side. “Glad you’re finally awake, Sgt. Wayne. We need to talk.”
