Coincidence - Alan May [56]
“It’s too soon for you to drink anything, but see if these ice chips help a bit.”
Stefano struggled to find the muscles that would open his mouth, that would allow his lips to curve around the ice chips and deposit them on his parched tongue. At this moment, that cup of ice chips was the most desirable object in the world.
The name came to him: Dr. Williams. Sí, that was his name, that’s what Phillip had said, sure. The ice was making little channels of moisture as it melted, forging a narrow path through the forest of fuzz coating his tongue and throat. He swallowed. He took another mouthful, losing less down his chin this time; he let it slide down his throat, then took another. The swallowing was easier now. The cool liquid seemed to be penetrating the fog in his brain, too.
“Now,” Dr. Williams was saying, “suppose you tell me what exactly is going on.”
“You don’t need to know,” a different voice said. “In fact, your services here are no longer needed. Muchas gracias. Now get out. You, too, Phillip.”
Juan was standing at the door.
Anika hated being called “perky.” She knew she was young looking for thirty, and she was enthusiastic and cheerful, she would grant you all that. But perky? No. Perky was for airheads, Gidgets, all those too-cute types.
She had cut off her long blonde ponytail during her second year of grad school in an effort to look professional, or at least less like an incoming freshman—had, in fact, donated it to a program that wove shorn hair into wigs for children with alopecia. Surely that wasn’t something most perky persons would have thought to do. She had tried to dress professionally, too, purchasing tailored slacks and jackets when she had started her student teaching. Now, of course, as a BWA teacher, she had to wear the same outfit all of the crew, teachers, and students were required to wear.
She was wishing she had something considerably more mature and professional looking on now as she made her way across the deck to where Phillip was standing. She’d have felt much more confident in her ability to get him to see the wisdom of her request if she’d been clad in something other than a casual T-shirt.
Oh, well, she thought, taking a deep breath, throwing her shoulders back, and putting on her most self-assured expression. It was a wise request, never mind how she was dressed.
Phillip eyed her as she walked toward him. Cute little thing, that one. Nice, trim figure—and that snug little T-shirt sure showed if off, too. But his thoughts turned almost at once back to Stefano and to Juan. He hadn’t liked the way Juan had looked at him, or the way he’d dismissed him from the first-aid room like that. Like he’d been nothing more than a stand-in, like he hadn’t taken control of a desperate situation and handled it like a pro. Yeah, well, Juan. Juanito. Your big brother would be dead by now if it hadn’t been for me.
The little blonde was coming over to him. She was close enough to touch.
“Could we talk for a minute?” she asked.
“Sure. What about?”
“I’m the shipboard director and I’m resp—”
“Shipboard director? Aren’t you kind of young?”
“I am the shipboard director,” Anika began again firmly, looking him in the eye, “and I am responsible for the education and well-being of the students onboard this ship. There are thirty-two students aboard. The last thing you would want, I am sure, is for those kids to start getting restless.”
She paused for a moment to see how this was going down so far, then continued.
“They’re good kids, every one of them, but you know how it is when teenagers get bored. And these kids are scared besides. They don’t know what to think. They could easily get out of control.”
She gave Phillip the warmest, most conspiratorial smile she could muster.
“I’m sure you wouldn’t want that to happen. The best thing for everybody concerned would be for the kids to go on with their regular routine.”
“And what’s that exactly?”
So far, so good.
“Well, they’re in class several hours every day. They also share in the galley work and the