CHAPTER 5

It had been awhile since Zoë had treated any wound more serious than a snake-bite. She only hoped that she’d been able to shield Jackson’s eyes in time. Zoë had to cut the charred jumpsuit off of Kaylee, and flushed her burnt leg with water, not caring how much of it spilled onto the floor. Mal tended to Cappy, who seemed to have avoided catching fire, but still had a blistering wound on the forehead. Cappy’s eyes were open, but glazed and unseeing. Still, the merc managed to hold a wet towel to his own injury, and Mal gave him little more than a pain killer before moving on. Zoë kept her attention to Kaylee and cooling down her skin before her blood boiled out. “Wake up, Kaylee,” Zoë begged, running to refill her bowl with water, wishing she had a hose. Mal opened one of the overhead cabinets and pulled a sheet of plastic. “Is it cool?” he cried. “Not yet,” Zoë answered, running another bowl of water over the wound. Kaylee seized, sending the bowl flying across the room, dousing the machines with water. Zoë held Kaylee’s head and shoulders still while Mal doped her, but it was nearly a minute before Kaylee’s body settled. Mal grabbed a fresh plastic sheet and sealed the burn on Kaylee’s leg, then wrapped the wound again with a reflective material. The mechanic’s shirt rolled up revealing a large bruise across her midsection from naval to ribs, but the water had shorted out the diagnostic equipment. Desperately trying to remember field-medicine from her war days, Zoë checked for broken ribs and more burns. “We headed for a hospital?” Zoë asked. “River’s taking us to Angel.” “Angel!” Zoë exclaimed. “That’s right in the middle of You Qian territory!” “River knows what she’s doing.” Zoë looked squarely at Mal, saw the doubt in his eyes, and realized he didn’t have the answers she was looking for. But where confidence in their course was lacking, she saw trust in River. At this point, there wasn’t much more for her to do.

*~*

Rather than landing on Angel, River docked them at an orbiting security vessel – a necessary step in these regions, but Mal worried as Kaylee’s condition was getting worse and security vessels weren’t known for their medical facilities. The thirty-armed guard reception was one Mal had grown jaded to over the years, but he tossed his gun belt aside anyway as a show of goodwill. Mal stayed on the ramp of Serenity; they held their distance at twenty feet. “I’m just lookin’ for a doctor,” Mal explained to the unforgiving soldiers. He briefly wondered if they were printed on cardboard and was tempted to knock one on the forehead and see if he fell over. Angrily, a dark-haired man elbowed his way through the crowd, sharply excusing himself and pushing people anyway. Dr. Simon Tam emerged from the ranks and stomped across the airlock, stopping inches from Mal’s face. “What are you doing here?” he seethed. “I could get shot for this.” Mal couldn’t help but laugh with delight, suddenly understanding why River had come here. “Why Dr. Tam, I never pegged you as the gang type.” “It’s not by choice,” Simon spat, getting so close that Mal nearly took a step back. Nearly. River ignored the spat, squeezing between the two men and taking her brother’s hand. “Come, Kaylee needs you.” Simon pulled his arm away in livid resistance. “River, I told you. It’s over between us. I’m not talking to her.” “Got no need for words, Doc,” Mal said quietly. “She’s dying and you’re our best hope.” Simon’s eyes flashed between fury and concern, landing somewhere near hurt, rejected, and defiant. “Fine, I’ll take a look.” River tried taking his hand again, but he pulled free, stepped to the edge of Serenity’s ramp, and shouted something in Croatian. The thirty guards lowered their weapon, most of them breaking rank to return to other business. With one last heated glare at Mal, Simon stalked across the cargo bay toward the Infirmary.

*~*

After stabilizing Kaylee, Simon had her moved to his Sickbay on the Angel-2 for surgery. His comrades were never keen on helping wayward travelers, but they understood immediately when Simon called them obitelj – family. Exhausted from spending eight hours patching up his ex, Simon reclined in Serenity’s dining room, looking at the circle of former shipmates. Inara and Kaylee were both notably absent from the soirée. “How far are you going?” Simon asked. “Just to Santo,” Zoë answered as if such a trip were nothing. Simon nodded into his cup. “I can take you to the border of You Qian space. It should be a clear shot from there.” “Don’t want to inconvenience your ship any more than we have,” Mal said. “Not my ship,” Simon clarified. “Just me. If I’m with you, you’ll be safe.” “Sure you want to do that, Doc? We won’t be comin’ back this way.” “I can find my way back from Santo.” Mal nodded. “I’ll make sure you’re compensated for your trouble.” The group sat in unhappy silence for a moment, until River, all smiles, broke out a large flask and a handful of shot glasses. Cappy bit back a grin, taking the glasses from River and handing them around the table. “What’s this?” Simon asked. “Kaylee’s starshine liquor,” she smiled, pouring a round. Simon watched as Zoë, Mal, River, and Cappy went bottom’s up and cringed with sensation. He looked uncertainly at his own glass and chuckled, “Let’s throw it on the walls and see if the paint comes off.”

*~*

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