COLONY MARS COMPLETE EDITION: BOOKS 1-7 by Gerald M. Kilby

Author:Gerald M. Kilby
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Outer Planet Media
Published: 2023-03-04T00:00:00+00:00

4

LIKE AN EVERYDAY GAL

Dr. Jann Malbec looked out the window at the domed skyline of Jezero City. “You know the type of people that we have up here, Mia?”

Mia didn’t answer, preferring instead to let Dr. Malbec do the talking.

“Engineers and scientists—all highly skilled. It’s this way because of our selection process, only the best of the best get to become colonists.” She looked around at Mia. “But you came here on the lottery system. So that makes you one of the eight percent of colonists that are essentially picked at random.”

“So I’m not a scientist, not the best of the best. Is that what you wanted to tell me?” Mia finally found her voice again.

Dr. Malbec sat back down and picked up her slate. “No, you’re not a scientist, this is true. But you do have a unique skill set that no one else up here has. And you’re one of the best in your field.”

“And what field would that be?”

Dr. Malbec swiped her finger across the slate again and tapped on something. “You worked as a homicide investigator for six years before that… unfortunate incident ended your career.”

Unfortunate incident. Mia’s gut churned at the memory. It was something she had tried very hard to bury deep within herself for the last five years. She had left it behind when she strapped herself into the colony ship and departed Earth. Now this bitch was dragging it back up again. Who the hell did she think she was?

“Look, lady. I know you’re something of a big cheese here, but you can’t go trawling through the dirty laundry of a colonist. It’s supposed to be like the French Foreign Legion on Mars, you leave all the dirt behind on Earth, and no one gets to use it. Christ, I thought there was a law against that sort of thing here?” Mia was shocked at her own outburst. She didn’t handle it very well and now she had ruined any advantage she might have gained from her meeting with one of the most powerful people on the planet.

Dr. Malbec quietly placed the slate back down on the table and regarded Mia. “You’re right. While poking into people’s dirty laundry is not exactly against the law here, it is very much discouraged, unless there is a clear need to do so. And I have a need that you happen to be uniquely equipped to undertake.”

Mia had regained some of her composure. She took a few more sips of tea just to distract herself a bit and help her get a grip. “I’m sorry, Dr. Malbec. But it’s a bit of a touchy subject for me.”

“Why don’t you tell me about it?”

Mia pointed at the slate resting on the table between them. “Do I really need to? You already know all about it. You probably know more about me than I do myself.”

“Look, Mia. We all have our shit. Stuff we want to forget, things we wish never happened. But it’s not about the crap, it’s about how we deal with it that matters.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.