Riding on Whispers (the Wolfegang series Book 3) (9 page)

He smiled at me. “I’m twenty-seven. You?”

Five hundred years plus the time I spent awake? “What month is it?” I asked. I’d lost track.

“April, by the standard calendar.”

My birthday had come and gone without me even realizing. I looked off into space as I did the math. “Twenty-two,” I replied, my voice barely louder than a whisper.

I turned to leave, but before I could he spoke my name, my full name.

“Katerina, I—”

I stopped him before I heard something I didn’t want to hear. I was done with all the admissions for the day.

“Let me know if you need any help deciphering that map, sir.”

And I left.

The next morning I took a shower as soon as I woke up, and the hot water felt marvelous. The water swirled down the drain, was purified, and then recycled. That solved the possible problem of running out of clean water in space. I shut off the shower when I was finished and grabbed the towel to dry off. Steam rose from my skin as I patted it dry. My clothes went on next and I wrapped my hair up in the towel. I didn’t enjoy the cold. Wet hair only perpetuated the chill when I was surrounded by metal and vacuum.

I stepped out of the bathroom and looked around. Maybe I could just relax, catch up on some reading. I wasn’t sure what else I’d do that day. The manual Wolfe gave me might be an interesting read.

“Katerina? The captain requests your presence in Command,” Ricky’s voice rang over the intercom.

I sighed. Or maybe I wasn’t going to get any time to myself.

I threw the towel on the floor and yanked on my boots. My hair was going to be crazy and I wasn’t going to care, but it was definitely going to be cold. I grabbed one of my oversized sweaters and pulled it on as I walked up to Command.

When I reached the bridge, Wolfe stood at the helm and faced me with his hands clasped behind his back. Celeste sat in a corner, and Ricky was in the other which surprised me. I had a feeling this wasn’t about catching up on news, or even Wolfe’s map.

“Sir?” I was cautious. Had I done something wrong?

“Kat, I’ve been informed of your…” he paused in thought, “of your lack of ability in weaponless combat. So, I’ve arranged for you to learn from the best.”

Celeste stepped forward.

“Oh, no, no, no. I won’t.” I backed away, laughing at their lunacy. “What makes you think I would want to learn, especially from her?” I was incredulous. Oh, how wrongly they were assuming things.

Ricky must have said something to prompt the idea. I glared at him, I was cornered and unprepared. My hands clenched.

“If you want to be part of this crew, then you have to learn. That’s an order.” Wolfe’s tone made it clear I had no choice.

I stared at the captain, not believing what I’d heard. “Are you threatening me?” I demanded to know.

Wolfe crossed his arms and lifted his chin in denial, being stubborn. “It is not a threat Kat, but if you want to be part of this crew you will follow my orders.”

I laughed, angry and feeling a little betrayed. “I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but Celeste hates me. I’m not putting my life in her hands.”

Wolfe stepped forward, his voice getting deeper as he pressed his point. “You may not want to, but for us to survive, the one thing we have to do is trust each other. Regardless of any other feelings we may have. You need to learn that she may not like you, but she will protect you if the need arises. Celeste also needs to know that she can count on you to protect her. The work we do is dangerous. We’re not just playing house here.”

. My eyes narrowed; I was furious at the implied insult. His order to trust each other was unrealistic. Trust was earned; it wasn’t just given because of convenience or circumstance. I stepped forward too, until I was only a few inches from him, looking up into his pretty green, manipulative eyes.

“What was yesterday about? ‘Make Kat like me enough until I can make her do whatever I want – to use her weaknesses’?” I accused. The words came out as a hiss.

For a second, something crossed over Wolfe’s face, and his voice was gentler. “No, I’m glad we were able to get to know each other better, and I would like to consider you a friend.” His arms uncrossed, his body language telling me he was no longer on the offensive, but trying to be honest. I didn’t want to believe it.

“Katerina, please.” Ricky asked. He looked uncomfortable in his corner. He wouldn’t even look at me.
Wolfe is testing you.
Ricky’s voice slipped through my mind.

How much longer do I have to be tested? When will he just leave me alone?
I thought, knowing Ricky would hear me.

The silence stretched as Wolfe waited for my answer.

Until he feels like he can rely on you. Just because he sees you as a friend, doesn’t mean that he completely trusts you,
Ricky tried to explain.

I didn’t exactly trust Wolfe either, although every part of his Boy Scout personality begged me to. I didn’t need to trust him, but I needed him to trust me so he would give me the opportunity to find Kris, and try to move on with my life.

“Fine, but if she tries to kill me, the deal is off.” And then I would kill her. Anger cracked through me like lightening. Where did this hate come from? I didn’t just go around making death threats, even if it was just a fleeting thought.

What was happening to me? I was losing myself in this hate, anger, and blame. And yes guilt, because my brother wouldn’t be stuck in this situation if it weren’t for me.

“Understandable,” Wolfe agreed. “You’re starting today. We will include the training time along with your lessons on the crystal drive system.”

I felt like I was back in school, except on a ship in space, and I was being taught by aliens. Wolfe wasn’t an alien, but everything about him was alien to me, even if his face was more familiar than I wanted to remember.

I stood there awkwardly, still mad and not sure what to do about it. “Well, I’m going to have coffee first, and then maybe some breakfast. After that, Celeste can toss me around.”

I left and went straight to the galley. I needed hot, strong coffee for this unexpected surprise. I turned on the brewer and then programmed my breakfast, banging things around.

Wolfe was so cocky and demanding, I hated it. The day before, he acted all nice to me; pretending like he really cared, but I doubted he truly did.

I slammed a mug down on the counter and poured the coffee. Then I took my plate and mug to the table. I needed to calm down before working with Celeste, or I would say something stupid, or do something to provoke her. Then it would be my fault. I would be left with nowhere to go, and no way to find Kris. I couldn’t risk messing this up, but my temper wasn’t making it easy.

I drank the coffee black, the caffeine relaxing the jitters so that my hands weren’t shaking as badly.

“What was that back there?” Ricky asked.

I turned at the sound of his voice, and saw him leaning against the doorjamb with his arms crossed, studying me.

I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I have no idea,” I answered honestly.

Ricky crossed the room and sat down with me. “He truly wasn’t trying to upset you. In his own way he’s trying to protect you. In Wolfe’s mind he can’t be there all the time. Something could happen and there’s nothing he could do. The incident on Speed has been on his mind a lot.”

I warmed my hands on the mug as I stared into its depths, hoping for answers. “That incident was his doing, completely self-inflicted. So I took care of the problem. End of story.”

“Katerina, he knows that, and that’s why he feels so bad. He failed to protect his crew, his family, for just a moment, and you were almost killed in a car wreck.”

“I always thought I would go out with a bang,” I joked morbidly.

“That’s not funny.” Ricky glared at me.

“It’s a tiny bit amusing.” I smiled at him. Then I took a breath. “I will try, but it’s not something I’m even a little bit good at. And despite my speech, I don’t trust her.”

“I’ll keep my ears perked, but I don’t think Celeste is going to try anything. The captain has taken a liking to you and she wouldn’t want to ruin his trust in her, or his affections.”

I took a bite of my oatmeal mush and pondered. Somehow I had to get her to not hate me, to like me even a teeny bit, and then to trust me. I couldn’t afford an enemy like her trying to foil my plans every step of the way, even if she didn’t know what it was all for.

“You have your training today, and then the crystals, but if you would like to have tea with me after, I would greatly appreciate it. Wolfe told me about the connection you made with the Sarmatians and the history of Earth.”

“Tea would be nice,” I agreed. “Though one thing I don’t understand. You called it history, not mythology.”

Ricky stood up and smiled in his knowing way. “All mythology derives from truth. What we don’t know is how much of the myth is true.”

He left me to think about that as I finished breakfast.

When I was done I changed into some loose clothes, a baggy t-shirt over my tank top, and some sweatpants. I had only my socks on, not sure if I should wear my boots or not. So I brought them with me.

Celeste was waiting for me in Tier Three, the room that could be anything, and today it was a gym.

She was wearing what she always did, combat boots, tight cargo pants, and a black t-shirt, but today she had her hair up in a ponytail. I’d forgotten to do that to my own hair. It looked like I was going to have to suck it up and deal with it.

Celeste was frowning, her mood obviously grumpy. She seemed as happy as I was about the arrangement.

“Let’s get a few things straight,” Celeste said as she walked up to me. “I do not like you. I do not want to do this. And I think you are hiding something. What you did on Speed is irrelevant. You were looking out for yourself.” She dropped her voice to a hissed whisper. “I will find out what it is you are keeping from us.”

I swallowed nervously. I had to spend the next few hours with her hitting me. I was going to be very sore later.

“Let’s start with the basics,” she said. She stood next to me and faced one of the glass walls. Stars and nebulae sparkled as we passed them. “Stand like this.”

She went up on the balls of her feet with her knees bent, her body pitched a tiny bit forward with her arms up and loose. I tried to mimic her. It didn’t seem too hard.

“This way, if someone comes at you, you will be ready. Watch.” She walked around me, moving my arms to where she thought they should be. Celeste made a slow punch towards my face. “Do you see how when I try to hit you, your arms are at the same height? The easiest way to block is to push my arm aside.”

She had me do it with my right and left hand. We worked on blocks of all kinds. First we went through the motions of how to move and what to do when different strikes came at me, and different punches. Then she showed me how to block kicks, both high and low.

She stopped me when she thought I had the idea.

“There is a form, or routine, for blocks. I am going to show you and we will run through them over and over. Without warning I am going to go out of order and attack at random. All I want you to do is block. And try not to get hit.” The last bit she said with a smirk.

I took a deep breath to relieve some nerves and moved to the ready position. We went through the routine slowly at first, and then she sped up. We did it over and over. Sweat dripped off of me and soaked through my clothes. My breathing was heavy, but I couldn’t lose my focus. Even with the force behind her strikes greatly reduced, I knew if they landed it would hurt like hell.

We went faster and faster until it got easier. Then suddenly she did a low kick to my knee instead of a right hook and it landed solid. I felt my knee give, and a sharp pain shot up my leg.

I fell to my good knee, but she didn’t stop. She threw a high kick at me and I blocked that, followed by an elbow to the face that hit really good, right on my chin. I dropped all the way to the floor, lights sparking behind my eyes. I tasted blood.

I rolled before she could stomp on me. Her foot landed on the floor instead of my back. I kept moving, rolling up onto my knees and then to my feet in a crouch. Her foot swept the ground nice and close, trying to trip me. I jumped up and over until I was back in the fighter’s crouch, facing her and blocking everything she threw at me.