Chapter 180: C: Lasting Flame

Calista leaned back into the comfortable chair and gazed at the ceiling overhead for a while.

The only light came from the medical unit control panel, and that was dim, but the ceiling had been enameled in a bright white and her eyes were very good. She had collected very few injuries that had permanently damaged her over the years she had been bound to her contract.

She wondered why she hadn't left when her contract had finally ended. Why she was locked in a small room on one of the planets she had planned to tour. Why she was waiting here while a world shook itself apart.

The questions were just a pointless distraction though. She knew why she hadn't left. It was because she had come to love her husband as much as she loved the children he had given her.