“I think they’re done.”
She nodded and sat down at the console to start analyzing the data, her fingers flying across the keyboard. But as interested as she was in the results, she knew she was also using her work as a distraction for her wayward thoughts.
“How long do you think the storm will last?” she asked, trying to sound casual.
“Based on the atmospheric readings, at least a few more days.”
A few days locked together in the small station.
“It’ll be fine,” he assured her, misinterpreting her silence. “We have enough food and supplies to last for weeks, and Phantom and I are here if anything happens.”
“Thank you.” She looked up and met his eyes. “For being here. For helping me.”
“It’s my job,” he said, and she flinched. Why had she thought there was something more between them? “That’s not what Imeant,” he added quickly. “Not that it’s not my job, but that’s not why I’m here.”
She didn’t say anything, but her heart started to race.
“I’m here because I wanted to be,” he admitted. “I didn’t want you to be in a Martian storm alone.”
She couldn’t hide her smile. “Even though I’m reckless and stubborn and don’t listen to your advice?”
“Yes.” The word was emphatic enough that her smile widened as she turned back to her computer.
CHAPTER TEN
Zach settled in the chair next to Cass, content just to watch her work, admiring the intensity of her focus as she began analyzing the lichen sample he’d brought her.
She looked up from her work, her eyes bright with excitement despite the situation. “Look at this, Zach. The lichen you found—it’s nothing like what we’ve been cultivating. The cellular structure is completely different.”
“Indigenous?”
“It has to be. And if plant life evolved here, then the presence of that creature makes more sense. It’s part of an ecosystem we never knew existed. What I don’t understand is why none of the earlier scans ever showed any evidence of organic matter.”
“Maybe it was waiting for us.”
He’d intended it as a humorous statement, but instead of smiling she nodded thoughtfully.
“I wonder if that’s possible. Perhaps the fact that the terraforming process is increasing the levels of water and oxygen has triggered something new—or something old. Look at this.”
He joined her at the monitor to look at the images of the lichen. The alien nature of the lichen was obvious even to his non-scientific eye—strange, intricate patterns unlike any of the Earth-based varieties the colonists were planting on the surface.
A sharp pain in his side interrupted his thoughts. The wounds from the creature’s claws were healing, but slower than usual. Something about the injury wasn’t responding normally to his enhanced healing abilities.
She noticed his discomfort immediately. “You’re hurt worse than you let on.”
“It’s nothing. My nanites will handle it.”
She stood, hands on her hips, suddenly all business. “Let me see.”
“Cass—”
“I have basic medical training. And whatever that thing is, we don’t know if it carries pathogens or toxins that might affect your healing systems.”
He’d never heard of anything the nanites couldn’t handle, but then again, they’d never encountered Martian predators.
“Fine.” He followed her to the small medical alcove at the side of the room and took a seat.
“Take off your shirt,” she ordered, pulling out a scanner from a drawer.
