Travelling Light

Posted on Tue Apr 18th, 2023 @ 7:21am by The Narrator & Arlo & Jacy Wright

Mission: Home Sweet Wonderful Home
Location: Three Hills - Infirmary
Timeline: November 17 - Mid-morning

It wasn't clean, but his hand wrapped about his own left forearm had stopped the bleeding for now. A jagged tear in the skin, deep enough to need a few stitches, but nothing that was about to kill him anytime soon. He'd looked sheepish as he'd approached the infirmary, but once Arlo realised Jacy was alone in the room, sorting out supplies and cleaning up after Kindra's exit, he dropped that act.

"Hey, Jacy," he said, tone neutral, though there was warning in those green eyes. "Need you to take a look at this, please?"

As the engineer lifted his hand, blood began to flow again from the ragged cut, rust coloured lines in the outer skin suggesting it had been sustained while fixing something old and Echo-related.

Once Kindra had left the infirmary, Jacy had thrown herself into checking the inventory and making the list to give to Alden, to the captain. In her head she used the man’s name, but anytime she had to mention, or address him, it was always, Captain. It just didn’t seem right to call him by his given name like the others did when she was so new. And she wasn’t sure just how long she was going to be here, either.

She jumped, startled by the intrusion, her blonde head barely missing the open cabinet she was poking through. “Ai Ya!” Her head whipped around towards the male voice, her face falling for a brief moment when she saw who it was.

The first thing she noticed was the warning in his eyes, freezing her into place. A doctor should have noticed the injury, though. The next was how he seemed more like the Arlo she’d met before and not like the one that’d been roaming about the ship. Damn him for being on the Echo!

She blinked a few times, clearing away her thoughts, her gaze sliding to the hand he was holding up. Blood. Certainly he hadn’t intentionally injured himself to have an excuse to have a moment with her? Rising, she studied the cut, it didn’t look self inflicted and that brought a sigh of relief. “Alright.” she stated, gesturing towards the exam table.

“Thanks,” Arlo returned, simply, and he moved to sit himself up on the table as requested. His gaze never left Jacy’s except to swiftly sweep the windows around the infirmary for any sign of other visitors. Nope, all clear still.

“I need you to do a little job for me,” he said, voice quiet and conspiratorial. “I need you to break into the Captain’s quarters and bring me a particular item back.” Arlo’s eyes lingered on Jacy so as to fully gauge her reaction.

The doctor in her couldn’t let her focus on the why’s or what-if’s, as she bent over his arm to get a good look while she worked on cleaning it up. Whatever sense of relief she’d gotten moments before fled as he started talking. Coldness washed over her as her hands stilled on his arm. Of course. She should have known better. This whole injury was an excuse!

Her face paled and something akin to worry etched across her face before her head darted up,her eyes searching his face for any sign that he wasn’t serious. He wanted her to break into Alden’s quarters? She shook her head because surely he must be joking.

Arlo’s furrowed brow and even glare suggested he was entirely serious, but by means of ensuring that the blonde doctor didn’t harbor any lingering doubts about the nature of their boss-minion relationship, he gripped Jacy’s hand and pushed back on her fingers. Hard. "Did you hear me?"

If the expression on Arlo’s face hadn’t let her know that the man was serious, the painful pressure of her fingers being bent in the wrong direction certainly proved just how serious the vile man was. To hurt a woman at that. She let out a startled, painful gasp that she quickly squashed by biting down on her lip. Could she get out of this by calling attention to what he was forcing her to do? Was he working for Drake, or merely using him as a pawn? Would Alden and the rest of the crew toss her out alongside Arlo if she came clean? Could she risk it, any of it? That last one, that was the biggest question.

“Yes,” Arlo said, tone more of a growl now. “You heard me, right.” He let go, checked over his shoulder again, then turned back to lock gazes with the doc once more.

Riley nodded fiercely, yes she had heard him loud and clear.

“Should be easy enough?” Arlo insisted rather than asked. “He’s gonna be flying this junker as well as keeping a close eye on the broken Companion, not so much worried about where you’re wandering. Get in, get out. Easy.” His eyes bored into hers. "Dohn luh mah?"

“Right.” she answered, with a shaky voice. She really didn’t think it would be that easy. But she didn’t think that she’d be asked…no, told, to do something like this either. And certainly not with him on the ship with her.

"Okay," noted Arlo. "So this item, it's gonna be hidden under a floor panel, somewhere near his bunk. It'll be in a small, battered metal box with some bright customs stickers on it, and it'll be lightweight, easy to hide about your person if you get caught. Whatever happens - you get caught or not - do not let him take it from you." The man sighed, a little softer than his manner had been so far, and winced as he moved his self-inflicted injury. "Be careful. Do what you need to do to get out clean, and all's good."

She listened. How could she not? Her hand didn't necessarily hurt anymore, all that was left behind was the phantom, faint reminder. A reminder, she supposed, meant to let her know that Arlo meant business. There was no getting out of this. Maybe if he wasn't onboard, but here he sat. But she wasn't fooled by the sudden change in his demeanor either, and was close to threatening not to stitch up the wound on his arm. But wouldn't that call more attention to this whole mess up situation she found herself in? "And do I give it to you?"

Arlo smiled, an expression that was perhaps a little disarming, but no less geniune for it. "I won't be travelling on Echo with you," he said. "So keep a hold of it, and give it to me when we meet up again. Understand?" She seemed nervous - understandable of course - and a little scared, perhaps? That didn't exactly give Arlo any pleasure, but it did improve his confidence with regards her trustworthiness just a little. Maybe that was misguided, but he was a firm believer in a healthy dose of fearful respect, and he was far from the worst person Riley had to worry about out there.

Riley nodded. She understood alright, but she'd had that hope that nothing would have been asked of her before she gota chance to know the crew. And know more about thecrew. The facts were just that she should have known better, especially when Arlo showed up.

"Look," he said. "Just grab it when you see a chance, get outta there safe and keep it hidden. Easy, right?" Arlo looked from the doc to his own injured arm and smiled gruffly. "Could you fix me up, please," he suggested with a firm politeness.

He made it sound easy. But she knew better. A doctor she was, trained in things that had nothing to do with spying or stealing...Yet, that was the deal she made. Would they give her a chance to explain before tossing her out of the airlock? Riley shook herself from her thoughts, "Yeah. Sure." What she wasn't sure was just what part of everything the vile man said that she was agreeing to.

"Good," said Arlo, then relinquished the tough-guy attitude and exhaled. "It'll be okay," he added, and flexed his arm to remind Riley of her first job in that short list.


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