Callisto 2.0 by Susan English (e novels to read online .txt) 📕

Naomi. “Two doors down from yours.”

Reaching out to grab the corridor railing to slow my forward momentum, I stopped in front of the cabin door. I opened it, put Pavani’s bag in the cubby next to the door, then stepped back out into the hallway.

“I guess I should get to my lab,” I said as Naomi, then Raven, filed into Pavani’s quarters.

Pavani turned to me. “Thank you, Calli.” There it was again, that flicker of recognition I had observed the day before in the rendezvous area. Or was I imagining things?

“It was my pleasure, Pavani. I hope you like it here.”

“Pavani!” called Naomi, “Come see your room.”

I reached out to touch Pavani’s arm, but she was already turning away, pulling herself through the doorway.

Pushing my way to my quarters, I stowed my backpack in the cubby, then laid down on my bed, strap across my waist. We had about a quarter of an hour until the staff 211

meeting. I stared at the ceiling, mind blank, allowing my body to relax, enjoying the floating sensation of micro-g. I felt strange, almost hypnotized.

I must have fallen asleep, because all of a sudden Annie’s voice was in my head.

“Callisto, I see you are in your quarters. Are you planning on going to the staff meeting?”

Sitting up quickly, I looked at my wrist computer. It was four p.m.! “Thanks Annie, I must have dozed off.”

“Yes, according to your biosignal readings, you were asleep. I hope I didn’t overstep, waking you, but I thought you might not want to miss the meeting.”

“You did good, Annie. Thanks for looking out for me.” I touched behind my ear, breaking our connection. I got up and studied my reflection in my bathroom mirror.

My hair was, as always, a mess, and being in micro-g didn’t help. At least I had cut it recently, so it wasn’t too out of control. I scrubbed my face with a towel, then hurried through the corridors to the observation deck at breakneck speed. Entering quietly, I found a seat at the back, next to Jordyn, who smiled at me.

Kamana was giving a talk about her new generation of bots, but it was difficult to concentrate. Pavani was there, two rows in front of me, sitting between Raven and Naomi. She was still as a statue, focused on Kamana, her long, silky hair wrapped in a bun at the back of her head. I could see her exposed neck, and a few slips of floating hair. It was a lovely neck.

What was wrong with me? I was so distracted. The meeting went on as usual, but it was as if I weren’t there. I was deep in a daydream, imagining myself swimming in a crystal-clear lake, the sunlight playing on the water’s surface, its warmth on my back.

Before I knew it, women were filing out of the room. Olivia was talking animatedly to Pavani, and Naomi was beside them, nodding. Then everyone was gone, and I was alone. Shaking my head, I headed to my lab to try to do a little work before dinner.

Hadley had sent me her edits on our warp drive paper, and from the first line, I was completely immersed in the story. I had played an integral part, and had, in fact, written most of the theoretical copy, but Hadley had woven my work into her narrative, creating a masterpiece. It might not appeal to every audience, but for a physicist like myself, it was a work of art. She had a great sense of timing and drama, and the paper read like a mystery novel. I found myself literally on the edge of my chair, wondering what would happen—would the enigma of the collapsing warp bubble be solved?—even though I knew the happy ending. When I finished, I wrote a comment at the bottom of the paper for Hadley, praising her creativity.

Then I looked at the time—it was almost eight p.m.! I had missed dinner, as my stomach was quick to remind me. “Why didn’t you say something earlier?” I said aloud, glaring at my midsection. “You’ll have to be satisfied with energy bars, then.” I laughed at myself. Was I going crazy? Talking to my stomach, losing track of time, daydreaming in the meeting—though, of course, that was nothing new. What was going on with me?

I pushed my way over to the energy bar dispenser, and took a couple of bars over to 212

the couch, where I sat, chewing mechanically. Then, after popping a few water blobs, I went to my quarters to brush my teeth and change clothes. By the time I arrived at the social, everyone else was already there, talking in small groups or playing games. I saw that Pavani was surrounded by women. Hesitating, I was considering whether or not to try to insinuate myself into her group when Mei Xing called my name.

“Calli, come!” She gestured to the empty chair at the table where she, Gamon, and Olivia were sitting. “We lost our fourth,” she said as I propelled myself toward the table.

“Our little card game isn’t as exciting as the new girl on the block.” She jutted her chin toward the group surrounding Pavani. “Raven abandoned us mid-game.” She laughed good naturedly.

I settled into the free chair and glanced over at Pavani. She was talking intently with the other women. I wondered what they were discussing. But soon I was distracted by our game, and the continuous banter between Gamon and Mei Xing. Olivia and I made a good team, and we laughed and shared inside jokes from the old days. It felt good, like a favorite shirt—a little worn but so comfortable.

Later, as the social wound down, I looked up to see Pavani with Naomi and Raven, making their way toward the door. I tracked their movement with my eyes, then Olivia was waving her hand in front of my face.

“Shambhala to Calli,” she said.

I stared at her.

“Your turn, and I’m hoping you’ll play the correct card, because we’re about to win the game!”

“Don’t count on it,” said Mei Xing, tapping the cards in her hand against the top of the table.

Suddenly I couldn’t remember what game we were playing. I picked a card at random and put it carefully on the upturned pile floating in front of us.

“Aw, that’s not the card I wanted to see!” Olivia said, face crumpling in feigned disappointment.

Mei Xing laughed. “Works for me.” She put her cards in front of her, face up, and Gamon gave her a high five.

I looked again toward the door. They were gone.

◆◆◆

In the gym the next morning I found Izumi running on the treadmill, and quickly changed clothes to join her. I took one look at her expression and my heart accelerated—she was gazing straight ahead, face creased with worry lines, lips pressed together tightly, and her hands were clenched in tight fists. Something was wrong, very, very wrong.

“Izumi,” I said softly, “What’s the matter?”

Izumi shook her head. “We’re having some trouble with the Foundation.”

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I felt my stomach drop. “Is it the corporate espionage?” I ventured.

“Something like that.”

“What can I do?” I reached out and touched her arm. “How can I help? Do you want to talk about it?”

“Soon, I promise, but not yet.” Izumi’s expression was now neutral, unreadable.

“There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you, for you and Diana, and for the Foundation.”

My pulse thundered in my ears. “You are my family.”

“I appreciate that.” She looked down. “Sometimes it’s better to choose your family,”

she said, almost in a whisper. Then she turned to me. “Diana and I love you, all of you.”

“I know.”

“When the time is right, I’ll tell you everything. But for now, I’d like your opinion of the prospective new biologist.”

I knew she wanted to change the subject, but when Izumi mentioned Pavani, I felt my face grow hot. “She’s great.” I fiddled with the controls of the treadmill’s console.

“Yes, she’s at the top of her field, and a charming woman. Diana and I had dinner with her last night.”

“Uh-huh.” I increased the rate on my treadmill, though I was already running at my preferred speed. I needed to burn off my sudden burst of energy.

“Raven and Naomi are smitten,” Izumi continued, and smiled. It was a relief to see her more relaxed. “By the way, I read the draft of your paper. Yours and Hadley’s.

Outstanding work!”

We spent the rest of our workout talking about my warp drive manual, our paper, and Hadley’s incredible talent as a writer. Izumi didn’t mention her concerns about the Foundation again, and I didn’t want to pry. But still, I was uneasy.

At breakfast I found Naomi sitting alone. I went over to her with my bowl of food, pancakes and raisin bread. “Where’s Pavani?” I asked, settling into the chair.

“Oh, she’s visiting Raven’s lab.” Naomi looked at me, and her eyes grew wide.

“What’s wrong? What’s going on?”

“What do you mean?”

“Come on, Calli, your face is the easiest for me to read, you already know that.”

I leaned closer toward Naomi. “Whatever the trouble with the Foundation is, it’s still going on. I think Izumi is really scared this time.”

“Oh, no, what happened?”

I told her about my conversation with Izumi earlier.

“You’re right. Whatever it is, it hasn’t gone away.”

“I don’t know. Naomi, I’m really concerned.”

“Me too. I feel like we’re the children, and our parents are getting divorced and they don’t know how to tell us.”

“But they’re fine, aren’t they? Diana and Izumi?”

“Oh, I didn’t mean to imply they’re having marital problems,” said Naomi. “I think they’re trying to protect us.”

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“Izumi assured me she would tell us everything, just not now.”

“I suppose we have to be patient and trust them.”

“I would trust them with my life,” I said, surprising myself with my vehemence, my absolute and unquestioning loyalty to these two women.

“I’ve got to go. I’m meeting with Pavani in my lab in a bit, then we’re getting together with the engineering team to talk about the possibilities of fabricating equipment for her specialty. Long day.” She stood up and gave me a wan smile. “I’m worried about the Foundation.”

I reached out and took her hand. “Me too.”

She gave my hand a squeeze, then released it, and propelled her way to the door. I sat, staring at my food bowl, deep in thought.