Part 8
Nearly an hour had passed since the mayhem of gunfire had broken out in the street below, Beka now stood by the window observing the activity outside with caution, as Harper sat on the cot awaiting the doctor. It was as if nothing had happened outside, as people moved around going about their business, but there was a tense silence in the room, as they waited.
"See anything?" Harper asked to break the silence.
"Nothing to suggest anything unusual," Beka offered. "Whoever fired those shots is probably waiting for us back at the Maru," she frowned.
The door to the office opened, and a man in white lab coat entered and smiled at Beka before taking his seat. "My name is Dr Richter, and you are Seamus Harper, correct?"
"Yeah," Harper answered.
"I would just like to look at your eyes, if that is ok," Richter requested and Harper nodded his head, as the doctor moved forward and place a hand on the back of Harper's head, before placing a scanner in front of Harper's eyes.
Activating the device, the doctor looked into the core of Harper's eyes and took in the damage that had occurred, before moving away and sitting down.
"Your results were positive, and from what I can see here I am encouraged that we will be able to help you regain some of your sight, if not all of it," Richter announced.
"You can?" Harper spoke with shock and disbelief.
"Seriously?" Beka checked, turning her attention to the doctor.
The doctor smiled. "The results show that your retina and optic disks are only mildly damaged in both eyes, but the lens and cornea were badly affected which has resulted in your blindness, but I'm confident that we can fix this for you," the doctor revealed. "We have a technique that can replicate the cornea and lens, and the mild damage to your retina and optic disk can be reversed with a short course of treatment," he continued. "We would need you to be admitted for five days to carry out the procedure."
"Five days?" Harper checked, and then looked out to where he thought Beka was standing.
"If we have to stay, we stay, Harper," Beka assured him. "If they can recover your sight then I'm not leaving."
"Is there a problem?" Richter asked unsure.
"No problem," Beka confirmed. "How much will this all cost?" Beka now asked, as she moved to sit beside Harper.
"It will cost ten thousand per eye," Richter answered.
"What?" Harper almost spat out the words. "We don't have that kind of money!"
"It's ok, Harper," Beka put a hand on his arm. "We don't, but Uncle Sid does," Beka smiled, pulling out the unlimited credit chip that he had given her.
"That's still useable?" Harper asked.
"In emergencies," Beka shrugged, and handed the chip over to the doctor.
"I will just process this, along with the paperwork you filled in during your first visit, and then we'll see about admitting Mr Harper to begin treatment," Dr Richter stated, and left the room.
"Beka, I will repay you," Harper began.
"No, there's no need, it's not my money anyway," Beka dismissed and then sighed. "We're going to have to be alert, just in case whoever was shooting at us returns," Beka then stated.
"Don't leave me, that's all I ask, Beka," Harper then requested, fear in his voice. "I don't like not knowing the layout of this place, I can't wait to be back on the Maru," he added, almost to himself.
"Not planning on going anywhere, Seamus," Beka looked around the room. "Remember we only have each other now, got to look after each other, right?"
"Right, and if I get my sight back, it'll make my part in that easier," Harper grinned.
"Why wasn't Trance able to do what these guys can do?" Beka then asked.
"I think they make it sound a lot easier than it is, I mean five days admittance?" Harper said with some shock. "And they are the leading lights in this stuff," Harper shrugged. "Its how I found out about this place, after Trance did what she could," he finished but Beka noted his sadness at the mention of the Golden alien's name.
"I miss her too," Beka then said, guessing the reason behind Harper's sadness.
"I never thought Trance could die, hell, I never even thought Dylan would, or Rommie," He frowned, and fought back his emotions, as he remembered once more the events of the previous days. "I keep thinking we should be doing something, anything, it doesn't feel right to just accept it, when have we ever just accepted this sort of thing?" Harper asked now with urgency.
"I saw it all with my own eyes, Harper," Beka said with a low tone, and one that suggested she had been haunted by it ever since. "I saw the Andromeda blow into a million pieces, along with the World Ship and the Arkology," she added.
"Sorry, I shouldn't doubt you," Harper said softly.
"I'd feel the same in your position; you need to see it to believe it right?" Beka partially smiled.
"How did we survive?" Harper then asked. "It doesn't seem fair, and I thought Trance had some say or control of destiny, how did she let this happen?"
"You can't blame Trance," Beka spoke sincerely. "Who knows, maybe Trance's destiny was to destroy the world ship, maybe it was destiny that we'd survive?"
Harper rested his head in his hands. "What's taking the doc so long?"
"I don't know," Beka stood up and moved to the door. "My credit is good," she added, before opening the door slightly to look out. "He's talking to someone, seems pretty heated," Beka then closed the door quickly. "They were looking at this room."
"Bad feeling incoming?" Harper guessed and got to his feet.
"This isn't fair, they can help you," Beka stressed, put prepared her weapon just in case. "I'm not going to let whoever the slime balls are behind the bounty on your head ruin your chance to see again."
Harper looked uneasy as he leant against the cot. "I got a feeling the slime balls behind this have already had a major say in my sight, and they won't stop, ever."
"Yussuf and his gang?" Beka guessed Harper's assumption.
Harper shrugged. "You did try to warn me not to mess with Yussuf, I didn't listen," he simply said, and sat back down despondently.
Beka shook her head. "Harper, we can't think like that, what's done is done and what we have to think about now is making sure they don't win."
"They've already won," Harper snapped with anger.
"Your sight is salvageable, Harper, the doc just confirmed that!" Beka snapped back. "And I know you'll regain the use of your hand too," Beka insisted. "You're no longer their slave, you have won, Harper, if we just stay ahead of them," Beka stated strongly.
Harper's eyes looked off into the distance. "I already lost, Beka," Harper simply said.
"How can you say that?" Beka demanded.
"You wouldn't understand," Harper stressed, and the door opened before Beka could demand a further explanation, as Dr Richter walked in.
"I'm really sorry," Richter spoke up, as he handed the chip back to Beka.
"This is good, I have credit!" Beka stressed, snatching the chip back.
"We don't doubt that," Richter was quick to explain. "But it seems that we can not treat Mr Harper."
"Why the hell not?" Beka demanded.
"We have a policy," Richter began, and looked uneasily at Beka. "We do not treat slaves."
"Harper is not a slave!" Beka snapped.
"It's been brought to my attention that he obtained his eye injury whilst working as a slave, we can not risk this establishment's reputation by reversing a punishment of a slave," Richter stressed. "It's company policy."
"Let me say this more slowly," Beka calmly returned. "Harper is not a slave, and I am not leaving until you begin treatment."
"Then I request that Mr Harper remove his shirt, and prove that he is not a slave, or never has been," Richter spoke evenly.
"Forget it, let's go, Beka," Harper got to his feet, and he would have left if he could see to find the exit, but instead he stood uneasily.
"No way, Harper, we stay," Beka stressed, and put a hand on his arm.
"Isn't this humiliating enough, already?" Harper seethed.
"Seamus, we have the money and you need your sight back, there is no good reason why you shouldn't get the treatment," Beka stated firmly, and turned her attention back to the doctor. "He was a slave for less than a week, Doctor, have some freaking compassion and do the job I'm willing to pay you for!"
"I would, honestly I would happily over look this in the name of medical science," Richter lowered his voice. "If there weren't five men outside this room with guns telling me they'll raise this building to the ground if I so much as administer eye drops on Mr Harper."
TBC
