Brightly Burning(21)
“Oh, hey, Stella,” Orion greeted me from his desk. “Jessa’s been watching a movie, if you want to go down there now.”
I expected a reprimand, but it seemed things were business as usual. I was at a loss. But I wasn’t one to pass up good fortune, so I descended below deck to attend to my pupil. If that axe, indeed, was to still fall on my head later that evening—?perhaps the captain was waiting to do it personally—?I would face it then. For now, Jessa and I had the fall of the Roman Empire to discuss.
It became immediately apparent at dinner that the status quo was sufficiently more luxe when the captain was on board. I smelled it as soon as I walked in. Meat. I took a deep whiff, searching within my mental catalog. Roast chicken with herbs. Meat was in short supply on the fleet, as farming animals took up more resources than could be justified for wide consumption, so there was just one vessel dedicated to animal farming, and only the richest ships were in the habit of purchasing its limited supply of goods. Even the Empire, one of the nicest ships in the fleet, rarely served meat. I recalled having it only a handful of times in my entire life, and only on holidays like Christmas and Evacuation Day.
“I love it when Hugo’s home!” Jessa squealed, going right for the steaming platter of chicken and forking three slices onto her plate. Though I suspected eating the meat would make me ill in a few hours, I greedily claimed four slices for myself, along with a healthy dollop of mashed potatoes. It smelled so good, my mouth watered.
“Is the captain joining us for dinner?” I asked as we sat down in our usual spots—?Orion and Albert facing the door, Jessa and I facing the stars, with a spot next to me where Xiao normally was. But she’d not yet appeared.
“He’s a huge grump and likes to eat alone in his study,” Jessa said between bites of chicken.
“Don’t be rude, Jessa,” Orion scolded halfheartedly.
“But it’s true!”
“Even so . . .”
We devolved into a companionable silence, each of us digging into our chicken like it was the Last Supper. I reminded myself that for me, it still might be. Xiao’s absence was concerning. Was she coordinating my return shuttle? I helped myself to a second serving, just in case.
“Has anyone seen Lieutenant Poole?” Orion asked. “Chicken’s her favorite. Odd she hasn’t come in to steal the rest of the platter.”
“Xiao told me she was sick,” Albert said, stopping me cold, a forkful of chicken poised before my lips. Which was it? Had Lieutenant Poole been on urgent business all day, or was she sick? It occurred to me: the one person aboard this ship with the mechanical knowledge to sabotage the airlock would be the only other engineer on board.
“What’s her story?” I asked, doing my best to keep my tone even.
“She’s been here longer than anyone,” Orion said. “Born on the Rochester—?one of the few—?grew up on board. Trained by her father the engineer to take over the family business. The usual.”
Her origin sounded no different from hundreds of others I’d known. In fact, it was similar enough to mine, had my parents not died. I’d still be on board the Empire, continuing in the family business of repairing ships. Why would she want to destroy her home, I wondered? I couldn’t dwell on the matter any longer—?Officer Xiao finally joined us, looking a bit more harried than usual.
“How is he?” Orion asked, his expression oddly grave.
“As good as can be expected after the long journey,” Xiao replied, making herself a plate and sitting down beside me. “Jessa, he’d like to see you after dinner,” she said, to Jessa’s immediate squeal of delight. “You as well, Stella.”
My heart jumped into my throat. I swallowed down the lump of my nerves. “What for?” I asked. Xiao cast an incredulous look my way.
“He’d like to meet his newest crew member. Why else do you think?”
I was confused and hesitantly hopeful—?but kept my feelings close to the vest. “Of course,” I said with a nod. “We’ll go as soon as we finish eating.”
“Give him until half past eight,” Xiao corrected. “He likes to unwind with a glass of spirits after dinner.”
Of course, the Rochester had liquor on board, too. The place was practically a pleasure cruise ship under the captain’s watch.
Once we’d had our fill, I led Jessa back down to her quarters, where I coaxed her into taking a shower, lest she go to greet the captain with chicken grease down her front. She was bouncing, replete with energy despite her full belly, making it a trial getting her dressed. The bodysuit went on after a frustrating five minutes, but when it came to the pretty yellow pinafore I picked out, Jessa wrinkled her nose in distaste and refused to raise her arms over her head to get it on.
“I’m sick of dressing like a baby. If I have to wear a dress, I want one like yours.” She fingered the stiff bodice of my dark gray overdress, which I’d specially picked out for my second meeting with the captain. I liked the high collar, cap sleeves, and the fact that this one actually had pockets, despite not being a work dress. I was comfortable—?a must, given that I was about to be very uncomfortable in every other sense of the word—?but dressed as formally as my station required.
“These are the clothes that you have, alas,” I said, nudging her in the shoulder with a pointedly raised eyebrow. With a sigh, she acquiesced, and I pulled her pinafore on. “Mine wouldn’t fit you. And don’t be in a rush to grow up. Frankly, I’d rather wear your pinafore than half the things in my wardrobe.”