Across The Universe With A Giant Housecat (The Blue) Read Online Free PDF Page B

your scans, your spine has completely healed,” she said.  
    “Already?” I blinked.
    “It has been two years since your accident.” She cocked an eye at me. “Most people with your injury heal within two to four years.”
    “Right.” I hadn’t thought of that. “Does that mean you are taking this thing off me now?” I asked, knocking on the hard surface of the medical vest as my heart beat faster in anticipation.
    “Yes. I want to look over the scans one more time, but I think we can schedule a removal appointment.”
    “When?” I asked eagerly, sliding from my seat on the padded table to my feet.  
    She selected a time tomorrow and sent me on my way. As I left, I was walking on air at the prospect of seeing my torso for the first time in years.
    As I walked along the pristine halls to my new quarters, I wondered how my chest would look after all this time encased in technology. Probably pretty pale.  
    I touched it gingerly through my clothing. The vest had done its work well, even saving my life. If it hadn’t been for its hard carapace, I would have had several knives end up between my ribs by now. In addition, it had broken my fall and had kept me alive after Trilloque threw me from my ship last year.  
    Unbidden, the memory of that time came to my thoughts. It had been a nightmare—stranded motionless on the surface of a deadly planet and powerless to stop a massive conspiracy no one else knew about. Then there had been the hallucinations of Useia which had turned out to not be hallucinations at all.
    Useia. I missed her. If only I had some way of knowing she was alive and not dead on some remote world. I hoped she hadn’t been discovered by someone keen on revenge, the way Randew Larsen had found me.
    That was a chilling thought. Pushing it out of my head, I decided to wander around a bit.
    Iron Horn Base, like most other bases, had a central shopping and dining area that was always swarming with vendors and customers. Hoping to find Katelyn and Leo, I headed there.
    I found them standing next to a booth where a man was selling quartz necklaces. Katelyn was haggling over price with him, hands moving as she spoke. She had several shopping bags in her arms and several more were somehow attached to Leo, making him her pack animal.
    “Alan!” she said as she caught sight of me. “How was everything? I’ve done some shopping! First time in a year!”
    “I see that,” I observed. “And everything was fine—great, actually. Dr. Kassa wants to take the vest off me tomorrow.”
    “Tomorrow! That means you’re healed? You could go back to military school!”
    “Well, it means I am healed enough, but probably not enough for the rigors of the academy,” I speculated. I glanced at the bags hanging from her arms. “Just exactly how much stuff did you buy?”
    “Oh, not that much. Don’t worry. All the bags make it look like more than it is. It’s just a few outfits and I think one pair of shoes. Alan, you should see this place! The shopping is amazing! I’ve been so deprived in space. You should do some shopping, too. It will get your mind off everything.”
    “I don’t need anything,” I protested. “I have a ship. I have you and Leo. That’s all I need.” Except Useia. I needed her, too, wherever she was.
    “Aww!” She smiled. “But really, you should see what they have here. There’s a shop that makes bubbles out of candy.” She looked me up and down. “You could get some new clothes.”
    She had a point. The clothes I had worn in the desert were ruined, leaving me short one set of clothes. “But what if I’m not wearing civilian clothes for much longer?”
    Her eyebrows shot up. “Then they do want you back!”
    “If they were going to dissect me, they wouldn’t bother with the exam, right?”   I clenched my fists behind my back in frustration. Why wouldn’t Northe just tell me what he wanted? Why did he keep me swimming in guesses like this?
    “True,” she