Transformation Space - Marianne de Pierres [80]
‘You’re really wishin’ that funeral up, ain’t ya?’ Randall belched and stretched out on the infirmary bed.
For a split second Jo-Jo considered lying down alongside her, but he stopped himself. He lurched to his feet and went in search of somewhere to sleep. He found it in one of the upstairs bedrooms: a sandy bed with collapsed legs. Despite it being on a slant, it was the best thing he’d lain on in a long time.
Randall shook him awake a few hours later. Before he could form any words, his stomach had something to say. He rolled onto his side and puked near Randall’s feet.
She stepped sideways and gave a hollow laugh. ‘Thought you could hold yer liquor better ’n’ that.’
Jo-Jo wiped his mouth and glowered at her through blurred eyes. ‘You poisoned me.’
‘Quit whingeing. It’s nearly dark. We gotta look for this fuel cell now, otherwise we’ll get stuck here another night.’
Jo-Jo thought of the bed and the storeroom full of crated food. ‘Could be worse.’
‘A lot worse, if the Extros take it into their headless minds to come after us.’
‘Why would they, if they haven’t already?’
‘Might just be they want to see where we’re going first.’
Jo-Jo groaned and rolled out of bed. The alcohol felt as if it had eaten through his stomach all the way up his throat to his skull. Right now, his brain was swimming in a preservative.
He stood up, then sat down again as the world spun.
Randall laughed again and headed for the door. ‘We could leave you here.’
She said it mildly – jokingly, even – but Jo-Jo didn’t like her jokes. He stood up and followed despite the dark tunnel of threatening unconsciousness. Halfway down the stairs, she turned to him and thrust something into his hand.
He squinted at his palm – dried fruit and more crumbled bread.
He sucked on a fig until his mouth made enough saliva to swallow, then manfully urged his stomach to let the food enter.
By the time they’d left the chalet and were halfway to the beach, he’d eaten the raisins and the bread. At the tide line his stomach stopped lurching and the tunnel of darkness receded.
‘Wait here.’ Randall approached the AiV stealthily, as if she half-expected an Extro to emerge.
When she was satisfied it was safe, she motioned Jo-Jo over.
‘Seems a long time ago,’ she murmured, almost to herself, as he got close. ‘Never thought I’d set foot in this shittin’ place again.’
She sprang up onto the running board with a speed and agility that he couldn’t help but admire. Even gripped by starvation and a host of other deprivations, Randall’s body still performed for her.
He copied her but more slowly, pulling himself up by holding the struts, his muscles protesting against the effort. He scraped a thick layer of sand away and peered through the plaspex. There was nothing inside that shouldn’t be. Following Randall’s lead, he pulled open the passenger-side door and climbed in.
Randall was already fiddling with the com-sole. ‘Amazing,’ she said. ‘It’s still intact. Cell’s good for a trip back.’
‘Maybe we should leave it that way.’
She glanced at him sharply. ‘What d’you mean?’
‘We’ve got two working AiVs. Seems better to me than one. Leave one here as a backup in case things get sticky. We know it’s here. Know it can get us out of trouble.’
She thought about it for a moment or two. While he waited for her answer, Jo-Jo looked around the cabin. There were trails of dry blood across the back seats and a piece of torn cloth. He reached for the cloth and fingered it. He didn’t have to ask Randall to know who it’d belonged to.
‘She tore off some of her robe for a bandage,’ said Randall without being asked. ‘Lat was injured bad. He got pretty attached to her after that. Used to follow her around the ship.’
‘Never noticed,’ said Jo-Jo, surprised at her openness.
‘I did. Used to worry me that he was gettin’ obsessed. Thought I might have to step in and … handle it. Turns out I didn’t.’ Her head dropped a little, and he saw it again, the keen hurt of having lost