“I don’t know,” she said, starting to cry. “It’s a hard name to say.”
Swift glanced at Drift for help. The younger pilot asked, “Jesco? Hastings? Cordwayne? Villanueva? Gar—?”
Doreen perked right up at the mention of Villanueva. “That one! Villa! That’s the one!”
“Your mother is on the Villanueva colony?” Swift asked, just to be sure.
“Yes, with our grandpa and grandma and our older brothers.”
“Okay. Good. Well, we’ll make sure your mother knows you’re safe,” Swift promised, hoping that he wasn’t making a vow he couldn’t keep. Certain Grim was somewhere scowling and glancing at his watch, Swift looked at Drift. “Keep them safe.”
“I will, sir.”
“You two stay here with Drift and do whatever he says. Understand?”
“Yes,” they answered in near unison.
As he left the S&R vehicle, Swift couldn’t believe the bizarre turn the mission had taken. A sabotaged ship. A pile of bodies on a flight deck. Another stack of bodies in a freezer. Two little kids falling out of the ceiling.
“What the hell is happening?” he muttered as he made his way to the cockpit.
I hope Alys is having a much more boring day than I am.
Chapter Fifteen
“So—how are you enjoying our little get-together?” Hallie dropped down onto the couch cushion next to Alys. She had a cup of punch in her hand but Alys hadn’t seen her drink a single drop of the slightly boozy mix.
“It’s very nice.” Alys had been nursing the same cup of the punch since their luncheon finished. She had never had alcohol before and didn’t want to make a fool of herself. It had been a bit shocking to see it served at a ladies lunch, but it seemed rules up here were much more relaxed.
“And loud,” Hallie said with a rueful look.
All around them women chatted and laughed while enjoying the trays of small desserts and fresh fruit. Children played throughout the room or napped in the nursery where Hallie had made space for her littlest guests.
Both of Hallie’s children played on the floor atop a handmade quilt along with other similarly aged babies. Victor was the quieter of the twins. He didn’t babble much and seemed perfectly content to play alone with his blocks, so long as his sister was nearby. Violet, on the other hand, was noisy and a bit aggressive, especially when it came to her toys.
“Oh! Vi! No!” Hallie thrust her cup at Alys who caught it before any of the punch sloshed over the sides. “Vi! We don’t hit our friends!”
Alys watched as Hallie redirected her daughter with another toy while apologizing profusely to the mother of the little girl who had been playing with Violet. The little girl had dared to snatch a toy horse from Violet’s hand and had earned a whack of Violet’s chubby hand. Now both girls cried while Victor and the other babies looked on with confusion and interest.
Holding Violet, Hallie returned to the couch and took the cup from Alys’ hand. She downed the contents in one long gulp and then set aside the cup. With a tired sigh, she admitted, “I had always thought boys would be harder to raise.”
“Oh, she’s just spirited.” Alys glanced from Violet to her brother who had started crawling toward them. She had seen him toddling along earlier, but he must have decided crawling was faster. When he reached her, he grabbed hold of her long skirt and hauled himself into a standing position. He wobbled a bit and lifted both hands while making a sound that seemed suspiciously close to up. “Look at you! So strong!”
“You don’t have to hold him,” Hallie said.
“Oh, I don’t mind at all.” She hefted Victor onto her lap and gave him a snuggle. “I enjoy children.”
“You have quite a way with them,” Hallie remarked. “Terror could not say enough nice things about you. That may not sound like quite a compliment, but it is. He’s not easy to impress, and he rarely trusts anyone. So, for him to trust you alone with his son? That’s a big deal.”
“Liron is the sweetest boy.” She noticed Victor’s stare and quickly said, “And so are you!”
“Colic is hard.” Hallie’s gaze had drifted across the room to Maisie and Brook, a woman Alys had met earlier. They seemed to be close friends and conversed easily in sign language. “I worry about Maisie, but she looks so much better since you’ve started helping them.”
“She’s finally getting the sleep she needs.” Alys gently took Victor’s hands and led them away from her mouth. She tapped them together and then covered his eyes with them before pulling them aside and whispering, “Boo!”
His high-pitched laughter brought back the best memories of her siblings as babies. There was nothing sweeter than the sound of a baby laughing, and she couldn’t wait to have a house filled with children of her own.
“How are you adjusting?” Hallie rubbed her daughter’s back. The little girl’s earlier angry outburst seemed to be a warning that she needed a nap. Hallie began to comb her fingers through her daughter’s dark curls, gently lulling her to sleep.
“I think I’m getting used to life up here,” Alys remarked, still playing silly games with Victor. “I’m not a huge fan of the fake sunlight, and I do miss birdsong in the morning.”
“That does take a while to get used to,” Hallie murmured. “I still miss the sound of wind rustling leaves, and the smell of wildflowers in the spring.” She nuzzled her daughter’s head and admitted, “Sometimes, I worry about the twins never feeling grass beneath their bare feet.”
“It’s too bad there isn’t a park space on the ship.” Alys turned Victor on her lap and bounced him on her knee. “I read about the small garden open to the public. I don’t see why they couldn’t dedicate a space for grass and a few trees where children could play.”
“That’s an interesting thought,” Hallie murmured. “Of course, I’m sure Vicious and Orion will have some ridiculous reply about battle readiness blah blah blah.” She waved her hand in annoyance. “Not that it’s stopped them from expanding the club spaces, and we both know those have nothing to do with battle readiness.” Hallie glanced at her. “Has Swift taken you yet?”
“To the club?” She shook her head and adjusted her hold on Victor who had turned and crawled up wanting to be cuddled, probably because he was sleepy like his sister. “I know about it, but we haven’t discussed going yet. I’m not sure I’m ready for that,” she admitted, avoiding Hallie’s gaze. “I’m still trying to wrap my head around how different things are here.”
“I was sort of thrown right into it. Vicious took me to a party, and it was....” She laughed uncomfortably. “Well, it was rather eye-opening. I learned more about this new world in that one night than I ever would have in six months hidden away in my new home.”
Alys arched an eyebrow. “Is that your way of telling me to jump into the deep end?”
“Can you swim?”
Alys smiled. “I can.”
“There you go.” Hallie smiled knowingly. “Swift will rescue you if you need it.”