Gina laid her head back on her pillow, her hair gently spilling out in both directions. Her eyes fluttered as she fought to keep them open, fatigue both physical and emotional settling in to her bones and joints. This was the first real chance they had to rest since she made her discovery in the caverns carved beneath Pluto, and it dawned on her that her life had suddenly become something surreal.
Yet, she realized, she had also caught a lucky break. “I’m alive and not trapped or imprisoned. That counts for a lot,” she thought. “I just have to stay that way.” Her thoughts turned to her parents and the escape plan she knew they had in place. The small island in the middle of the Pacific was a perfect hiding place; the volcano was long dormant, leaving underground passages where equipment could be set up away from prying eyes. The many years of activity before its dormancy had generated an electromagnetic field in the area that generally blocked sensor probing from a distance, and any up-close look by the Omegans would reveal no human habitation.
“As long as they get themselves there, they’ll be alright,” she said softly, her voice barely rising above the hum of the ship. “We’re not the only free humans left,” Gina smiled. “We’re just the only ones who can fly.”
Suddenly an insistent pounding came at her door. “Gina!” More pounding. “Gina!” The voice was half whisper, half-scream, but she realized quickly that it was Kate. Gina rolled out of bed and bounded across the room to open the door. As she did, she saw her friend doubled over in pain, blood running down the legs of her pants.
“Shit!” Gina yelled. “Let me call the Doc!”
“No! No! Just let me in!” Kate replied. Gina moved aside and Kate stumbled forward. She put her arm around Kate and led her inside. Kate slumped down to the floor and curled herself into a ball. “Doc Gray doesn’t need to know about this, okay?”
Gina’s eyes widened. “Know about what? What the hell is going on, Kate? You’re bleeding! You’re bleeding from… oh… oh no.”
“Okay, yes,” Kate looked up at Gina. “I’m having a miscarriage. Happy now?”
“But that’s impossible! No one has had a miscarriage in decades,” Gina replied.
Kate groaned. “You mean no one has had a natural miscarriage in decades. But if you mix up a few chemicals, create an abortifacient…”
Gina dropped to the ground next to her friend. “I… damn, girl. Did you overcook the mix?” Kate nodded slowly. “Come on, let’s get these pants off and start figuring out what to do next.”
“That’s what got me in trouble in the first place,” Kate replied, gritting her teeth through the pain.
“Only you would joke at a time like this, Stinson.” Gina slowly removed Kate’s pants and threw them across the room. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen this much blood in my life, Kate. Are you sure we shouldn’t get you to medlab?”
Kate shook her head. “There would be questions I don’t really want to answer,” she said softly.
“What about stopping the bleeding?”
“I got it under control.”
Gina rolled her eyes. “Obviously.”
“Bitch.” Gina stood and walked across the room to grab some towels, then returned to her friend’s side and began cleaning her up. “I know this is crazy, Gina. I know.”
“I just don’t understand. I mean, yeah, I get it in a certain respect, but why not go to the doc and - ?”
Kate grunted. “No. No medlab.”
“You mean the place where maybe this could have been done without you exsanguinating yourself? Where a qualified physician could have made sure you didn’t overcook the mix?”
Stinson cut her off. “I just couldn’t, okay? He couldn’t know. He. Couldn’t. Know.”
Gina pulled back, confused. “Jack? Why would he care? Are you kidding, he’d probably be thrilled to see you matching him obsession level for obsession level.” Kate rolled over and looked Gina in the eye. As she did, she shook her head slowly. “Oh, no,” Gina said, realizing what Kate meant. “Oh, no. No wonder you hate him so much. No wonder you tried to kill him.”
“It seemed,” Kate exhaled, “like the right thing to do at the time.” A small tear fell down her face. “So did this.”
Gina threw the bloody towels into a pile and laid down facing Kate. “It goes no further than me. I mean, you’re pretty much my best friend you know.”
Kate coughed. “We don’t exactly have a lot of options. You’re kinda stuck with me.”
“Bitch.”
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