Modified: the Alien's Mate

Chapter Seven

An opportunity to find if the captain could be trusted presented itself in the form of the Chief medical Officer, Albert Reyes. The captain had dumped her on one of the three medical beds and had immediately pivoted on his heels and disappeared out the doors, making some excuse that he had duties to fulfil.

            Left alone, she eyed the salt and pepper hair of the doctor as she watched him go through the motions of examining her. Once he was finished, he had her lay back on the bed and activated the biodome around her entire body, which she thought was strange, but the doctor had brushed off her concern and told her that the captain wanted her to get examined.

            “I can’t believe I fractured my ankle,” she said, staring at the doctor’s back as he went to his worktable across the room.

            He turned briefly. “You were lucky, if you had not been wearing footwear with supports you would have been in trouble.” Reyes sat down at his table.

            The biodome vibrated gently around her, and her body relaxed.

Laying with her arms next to her body, he had told her not to move around. For lack of anything to do, she decided that she should get as much information out of him as she could.

            With only her head able to move she concentrated her full attention on Reyes.  Feeling her eyes on him, he turned. “Have you got something on your mind?”

            Of course, she did. There were plenty things that would give her nightmares, but she did not wish to entertain anything in that moment.

            “Your captain is he a good leader?” she asked.

That was not the question she wanted to ask, but it was what was on the tip of her tongue.

            He turned on his chair and faced her fully. “Are you asking if he is trustworthy?”

Regina nodded a few times. “I guess so,” she answered, her eyes meet his gaze across the room.

            “My opinion of the captain may be biased,” he cautioned.

“That’s true,” she admitted reluctantly. “But you have worked with him far longer than I have known him.” Her eyes went to the goldfish nearby. “And you’re human.”

            He was silent. His gaze lingered on her. “Do you think that because I am human, I’m trustworthy?”

            “Not really,” she admitted, shaking her head. “I was curious about him and feel you could answer some of my questions.”

            His eyes were like lasers as they stared at her. She wanted to shrink beneath those orbs. The doctor made her feel as if her curiosity were interesting to him. He did not seem to be the sort of person who wore a façade.

            She knew she was right when he smiled at her and said, “I can answer some of your questions as long as I feel they don’t affect my moral codes and those of the Space Corp.”

            Satisfied with his forthrightness, she nodded. “Fair enough,” she said. Her voice was slow and deliberate, as if she was thinking what questions to ask him. In the end she said, “How long have you known the captain?”

            “Going on twenty years,” he replied. He met her eyes. “And I have never had a reason to doubt his words.”

            “I see…”

“Edgar is fair to all; it doesn’t matter if the individual is alien or human. You will never find anyone more dedicated to the Space Corp than he is. Everyone here respects him.”

            A small smile quirked her lips. It sounded like Reyes admired the captain a lot more than she expected. She knew she could not gauge a person’s true personality from only knowing them a few hours, but there was a certain pull that attracted her to Edgar Wolfblood.

            “Why does it sound like your captain has nothing other than this job?”

            His eyes swept her. “Are you concerned about Edgar’s wellbeing?”

“Me?” she scoffed lightly. “How could I…? We just met.”

            His gaze was intense as they watched her. “Your interest in him seems a bit…” he said, leaving his unfinished sentence to hang in the air.

            “Nothing like that…” she denied, clearing her throat. “I was just thinking whether I should do what he asked me to do, that’s all,” Regina explained.

            Reyes tugged a few strands of his hair. “It is no secret why you’re onboard the ship Ms Wilde. I can assure you if Edgar promises you anything he will deliver on it.”

            A small part of her knew that. The captain must be a strong character if he had to command a ship she thought. Regina wondered if the reason she wanted reassurance was not because she was hesitant about giving him the evidence. Maybe it was due to the unease he made her feel.

            The bed stopped vibrating. A single beep punctuated the silence. Reyes came towards her and checked the screen which hovered about the biodome. “You’re all patched up, Ms Wilde.”

            “That was quick.”

A smile played on his lips. “We do have the best equipment in the Space Corp,” he said proudly.

            Sitting up in the bed, she swung her legs to the ground and was pleased when there was no pain, but the coolness of the floor seemed to seep into her bare feet, sitting back on the bed she let her foot hover above the floor.

            “I will ask the captain to send you some footwear,” he said, going to the door. The doors opened and an ensign appeared, and he relayed his demand, then came back to her.

            “Is there anything else you wanted to know about the captain, this is your chance to ask?”

            Regina shook her head.

“If you will excuse me, I need to get some work done, the ensign will be back shortly.” The doctor’s amiable demeanour from before had changed and she wondered why the man had begun to tug on the strands of his hair as he walked back to his desk.

            A few seconds passed, as she was lost in thought. Regina wondered how much Reyes knew about her; he did not treat her with any prejudice, and she considered that this may be because he was a doctor.

Reyes must have felt her gaze because he half turned in his chair. “Ms Wilde,” he said. “The captain does not have any females, if you were wondering.”

            She shrunk beneath his eyes. Was the man some sort of telepath? How did he know she wanted desperately to ask that question but did not dare to for fear that it was inappropriate?

            “I wasn’t going to ask that question,” she denied. Her voice coming out shaky.

            “If you say so…” he replied doubtfully.

            Just then the ensign entered.

She handed a pair of midcalf boots to Regina, and she began putting them on. When she was finished, she saw that doctor was still observing her as if there was something on his mind.

            “The ensign will take you back to your quarters.”

Regina licked her dry lips and nodded. She thanked him and followed closely behind the ensign out of the medical room. All the time she wondered where the captain was and whether he would keep her locked in until they arrived at Leesah.

            As they took her through the ship towards her room, Regina combed her ragged fingernails through her short curls and tried to still the quivering in her stomach.