Shadows of Mars (Broken Stars Book 1) I.O. Adler (read people like a book TXT) 📖

looked deflated, but then he rallied. “But they’re not us. Carmen, do as you’re told.”

“This is stupid,” Carmen said. “What difference will a few hours make? If we steal the ship, they’ll come looking for it.”

“This statement is correct,” She Who Waits said. “The Cordice will want their harvester back. The other survivors may attempt to retrieve it as well.”

“None of them came for it when Sylvia Vincent flew it to Earth. From what I’ve heard, the Cordice and these marooned survivors weren’t willing to try to communicate with us about what had happened. You brought this trouble to our doorstep. I’m taking this ship back to Earth. Once we study it, we’ll return it.”

“That wasn’t the deal,” Carmen said.

“The deal was made in bad faith. You want your mom and your sister to have a home they can return to? We don’t have a choice.”

“We have a choice. I can’t give you the ship. Not when we’re this close.”

He drew the pistol from his thigh holster and pointed it at the bot. His hands trembled and he licked his lips.

Crazy. He was crazy. But she didn’t know what to do. She Who Waits didn’t react. Jenna stirred from her couch, her eyes wide.

“Don’t do this,” Carmen said.

Barrett fixed his gaze down the sights. “Don’t make me ask again.”

Carmen disconnected. She drew in a sharp breath as she returned to her own body. The bot went dark.

“How do I take control?” Barrett asked. He turned to face her and repeated the question but she had heard him.

“Use my couch. I disconnected. But I don’t know how you’ll get the ship to listen to you. Try to lie back and focus on the ship. Just put the gun away.”

“Not a chance.”

He went to take her place on the couch. “Move. In fact I want all of you out of this room. This is too important to risk. I don’t want to hurt any of you.”

Carmen backed away, her eyes on the pistol. She Who Waits flashed the diamond sparkles before gliding towards the open doorway.

Barrett had lowered the gun but it was still pointing in her direction. “I’ll figure this out. Once the ship system lets me in, I’ll take care of us. I’ll get us back home. Once we do that, don’t worry. We won’t abandon your mom.”

“I want to believe you.”

“No more time to argue. Get out.”

She backed through the doorway and almost bumped into She Who Waits. The alien radiated heat. But Jenna hadn’t followed.

Barrett looked to Jenna. “You, too. Move.”

Jenna was once again lying back and she had her eyes closed. The bot’s head lit up and Jenna’s face appeared. The Jenna bot began to stride towards Barrett. He spun and fired. The bot’s head went dark as the bullet smashed a hole through it.

Carmen screamed.

But the bot kept moving. It swatted Agent Barrett’s gun hand. He howled with pain and scrambled off the couch, scurrying to avoid the robot as it pursued him. The Jenna bot snatched up the gun. Crushed it.

Barrett had his injured hand pressed against his chest as he retreated to the far wall. Jenna dropped the destroyed weapon, its pieces scattering on the floor.

“I’m sorry,” Jenna said.

“You broke my hand!”

Carmen moved to her sister’s couch. “Pulling your gun was stupid. Jenna, are you okay?”

“I’m fine. I’ve been listening. I’ll take us to Mom.”

“You did good. But we’re going to have to do something about him.”

With little prompting, Jenna created an identical room next door to theirs equipped with a crash couch and water fountain. Barrett didn’t even have to enter the hallway. A new door opened in the wall and the Jenna bot escorted him out.

Barrett was breathing hard and his face was covered in sweat as he nursed his hand. “You can’t keep me prisoner.”

Carmen laid a couple of the food bars on the sink after stuffing one into her mouth. Dry, as advertised, but not the worst thing she had eaten. “We don’t want this either. I’ll check in later. But you’d better lie down. From what I saw, slowing this thing isn’t going to be fun for the passengers.”

They left him standing there. Jenna closed the wall behind them.

Carmen approached She Who Waits. “I don’t know what to say. I can’t speak for all of us, but we’re not like this. At least not all the time.”

Her response lacked any reproach. “All races have their capacity for violence. You’ve experienced mental stress beyond your capacity. I recommend rest and food.”

“I guess we all do need a nap. For what it’s worth, I apologize.”

“Designate Raymond Barrett will require medical attention.”

“Is there anything this ship can do? Or can you help?”

“I don’t have the facilities or resources. This ship is lacking certain key elements to manufacture appropriate pharmacological products suitable to your species. But I can analyze his injury and bring wraps and bandages.”

Carmen didn’t have to wait long. Another drone, or maybe the same one, puttered into their sphere and dropped off another box. Inside were several lengths of a stretchy plastic-like cloth. It would have to do.

“Jenna, open the wall. I’m going to take care of his hand. He isn’t, you know, lurking on the other side waiting to jump me, is he?”

Despite the display on the Jenna bot’s head having been destroyed, her sister spoke clearly. “He’s sitting on his couch.”

The wall vanished and Carmen entered. Barrett’s couch had morphed into a reasonable facsimile of a recliner chair. All he needed was a remote in one hand and a beer in the other. He stared at her with narrow eyes. His jaw was tight.

“I’m going to fix you up,” she said.

She Who Waits joined her at his couch. Barrett offered his arm