The story of Inara's wounding and recovery; set between 1 year before and at the beginning of Coded in Brown. (Framed just after Inara and Jamie's engagement in Coded in Brown)
Inara curled up in Jamie's arms, both of them sated after they'd...well, after his proposal. She felt warm and safe, and although she knew that much might change in the next few days, she'd always have this moment with him.
His hands were running idly over her; not with any particular destination in mind, but with a simple possessiveness that she knew she should have been annoyed with, but didn't feel particularly perturbed about right now.
His hand ran over a scar on her lower abdomen, and he felt puzzled for a moment; there was a long thin surgical scar next to it. Both were fully healed, but the rest of her body was so free of marks that he wondered for a moment. Then he remembered.
"This's from when you were shot, isn't it?" he whispered.
"Yes. The Doc did a great job putting me back together, but the hole was too big to heal without a scar."
"What's the story on the surgical scar next to it?" He'd never noticed it before; it was smooth enough that it wasn't really visible to the eye, just to the touch; and usually he was too preoccupied to think about a scar when he had his hands there.
Her face paled, and her eyes misted; she hoped he wouldn't notice. "It's a long story."
"Only truth with me, bao bei."
She sighed, turning now to look at him. His heart nearly broke from the sad look on her face. "Don't say I didn't warn you."
The bar on this particular rim world was smokey, rough, and rowdy; it was just the sort of place Serenity's crew had to go to get the job done.
They'd gotten wind that a local land baron had stashed some ill-gotten gold in a safe upstairs of the bar; that gold should be worth quite a bit to the right fence.
xxxx
Inara had on one of her sleeziest dresses; she wandered about the bar, flirting with the customers and distracting the bouncers.
She'd gone to the bar that morning, looking for "work". Kinison, the bar owner, had appraised her; she had on too much makeup, her hair was loose and slightly tousled, and the whorish dress she wore left very little to the imagination. He'd told her she could start that night.
She met Mal's eyes once or twice; she could see the jealousy running rampant in his eyes as she bantered with the wittier drunks at the bar and used her considerable beauty to distract the bouncer near the stairs. She silenced it with her own glare; she had to do this for this job to go down smooth.
Jayne, sitting a few feet away, leered in a most irritating fashion. She realized, though, that of all of them, Jayne was the most comfortable in a setting like this and had the least trouble fitting in. She gave him a coquettish smile and bantered with him for a few seconds; she could see that despite the face he put on, his eyes still expressed concern and worry. Good. She knew he would be dependable backup if a situation came up.
River would normally have taken this position; the girl was a consummate actor, and her insights into the heads of others gave her a sizeable advantage. River was needed at the safe, though, so Inara was the logical second choice. Kaylee wouldn't have a chance pulling off the duplicity long enough, and Zoe would deck the first man who pinched her pi gu.
xxxx
River worked delicately at the safe; it was a tricky one, as safes go, and she had to be careful not to set off the failsafe systems in it. She'd tickled it about halfway open, 3 out of 5 tumblers popped, when she suddenly got a vision of Inara laying on the floor, large hole in her stomach.
She paused, and looked up at Zoe, who was her backup. "They're in trouble." she whispered, then with a single precise tap of her hand on the safe door, popped the lock. Zoe's eyes widened; the girl was always pulling out a surprise or two.
"Grab the gold, then we must fly. Need to help." River said, her control cracking. It had only been 6 months since Miranda, and although her mind was her own again, controlling it was difficult. Tense situations and violence tended to destabilize her.
Zoe and River grabbed the few ounces of gold; hell of a haul, if they could get out with it; then went to go downstairs.
They both froze when they heard a scuffle begin downstairs, the bark of Mal's pistol, the deeper roar of Jayne's Lemat revolver; then a boom from some unknown gun, followed by Inara's scream. They took off down the corridor, vaulting for the stairs.
xxxx
Inara had just made another round of the room, assessing the situation, when Kinison sidled up next to her. "Haven't made a sale yet, huh pretty lady?"
"Still workin' my boys here. Ain't found th' right one yet." she drawled, careful to mask her Sihnon accent. Kinison's eyes narrowed though, and after he looked up and saw Mal glowering intently at him, pulled his big revolver out of its holster, and put it to her head after putting his arm around her neck in a hostage position.
Mal's gun was out in a flash, and Jayne had his hand on his. "Let the lady go, or there'll be trouble."
"Didn't think you'da cared 'bout a lowly whore. Not really yer business, is it?"
"Let her go." Mal growled, hand tightening on the pistol.
The bouncers nearby sprang into action, leaping toward Mal; his aim shifted slightly, and one of the bouncers dropped with a shattered kneecap; another shot dropped one with a shoulder wound. Then it was pure melee; Mal heard Jayne's Lemat go off once, then heard the man roar as he sprang into action.
Kinison's arm tightened around her neck; Inara knew she could get him off her, if only she could get that gun away from her head. "Thought ya were too good ta be true. Figgered ya weren't what ya claimed, but no matter. We'll see how good a whore ya are." he whispered grimly, putting the gun into its holster as he tried to sneak her away.
Jayne roared again, and 3 men that had been trying to hold him down flew off of him, crashing into tables and chairs. Jayne started to charge, and Kinison tried to draw his gun again; Inara chose this moment to move, and deftly escaped his chokehold, moving to debilitate him.
Kinison looked in surprise as he saw her escape and reach for his throat, and the gun shifted position accidentally, booming once, loudly.
Inara felt it as a murderously hard punch to her lower abdomen; she fell backwards, suddenly weak.
Mal yelled something unintelligible, and his revolver was in hand again after he disposed of the last bouncer. Before Kinison could lift the gun, Mal put one right between his eyes.
xxxx
River and Zoe rushed down the stairs to find the fight wrapping up; Jayne was knocking out the last bouncer, and Mal was crouched over Inara, holding his hands over the wound.
"Zoe!" he yelled, panic evident in his voice.
"Here sir. I'll get the Mule."
"Hurry!"
Jayne rushed over, and picked up Inara as gently as a baby. "I've got her, Mal. I'll be right behind ya."
xxxx
Mal paced unwearyingly in the common room, stopping after each revolution to peer into the infirmary, as Simon and River worked unhesitatingly to save Inara's life.
He didn't think he'd ever been this nervous, even when Kaylee had been shot by Dobson. He thought dark thoughts about the huen dahn who'd shot her; he was thankful Jayne hadn't had a chance to kill the bastard before he did.
Zoe approached. "Sir, I 'waved Lee and Chalmers. They're willing to take it for a 50/50 cut."
"Whatever you think is best, Zo'." he murmured distractedly.
Zoe stepped up beside him as he stared into the infirmary. "She'll be alright, sir. Ain't no better doctor than Simon."
"I sure hope so."
xxxx
Simon had just finished up repairing the torn sections of GI tract, when he turned his attention to the next fragment of the bullet. It had shattered upon hitting her, leaving nearly 10 fragments scattered in her abdomen that he'd had to search for.
Simon was too professional a doctor to let his reaction to the damage this fragment had done show on his face, but being that River could read his mind from across the ship, he knew she felt it.
She looked up, sadness creeping over her features.
I've got to remove it, mei mei, or she'll die.
She nodded silently, then began selecting the tools he'd need to start.