She didn't want to be alone. It was late and everyone was needing sleep but she really didn't want to be alone… not after seeing Inara. Every time she closed her eyes she saw it again and it just hurt too much. After wandering the ship for a while she found Simon, tired and frustrated, in the infirmary.
"Are you okay?" He asked immediately upon seeing her. She shook her head and he rushed over to give her a much needed hug.
"Can't believe she's gone." She murmured into his shoulder as she fought back tears again.
"Me either." He whispered. "This is all just so strange."
"Figure out what happened?" Kaylee wasn't at all certain she wanted to know. Mostly she wanted to wake up and have everything be shiny again.
"Not yet." He said uncomfortably.
She nodded and sighed, reluctantly letting go of the doctor so he could return to his work. He had been scanning text in hopes of finding some answer and she knew that was more important than a futile effort to make her feel better. "Looks like you could use some rest… this bothering you so much you can't sleep?"
"Well, it does bother me a lot that I can't seem to find a reasonable explanation but no, River won't let me sleep. That's not helping find something rational, either." He grumbled and paced as she dropped into a chair.
"She thinks Jerry was telling the truth?"
"She hasn't said as much but since she throws things at me every time I start to drift off, I think she might." Simon sighed heavily and shook his head. "I don't want to overlook a possible solution but I also can't quite believe what he proposed."
"Well, maybe…" Kaylee fell silent as Shepherd Book stumbled in, clutching a bloody shirt to his arm and looking awful pale.
Simon silently strode over and helped Book to the examining chair as the poor guy struggled to stay conscious. He quickly gathered supplies, unbound the arm and set to work. Kaylee watched the two silently, worried all over again. Book looked scared and that was understandable but Simon… he tried to hide it but she could see he was terrified as he worked, carefully cleaning and stitching up the wounds.
"You'll be alright, Shepherd." He said at last. "Just… don't go to sleep."
"What happened?" Kaylee asked nervously.
"This is insane… but just in case." He shook his head as he held Book's gaze. "Think you can stay awake until we figure this out?"
The Shepherd nodded and Kaylee looked between the two. "What happened?"
"Same thing that happened to Jerry." Simon admitted unhappily. "Instead of being cut by the four blades, Book was stabbed by them. One severed the brachial artery but he was able to get here before he lost too much blood. You'll still be weak for a while and I think it would be best for you to stay here until I'm sure you're going to be alright… but it should be fine."
Book nodded and took the pain pills Simon handed him. She watched uncomfortably as the Shepherd lay there being unusually silent. He wouldn't even look her in the eyes and that was unsettling.
"So there really is a dream Reaver?" She asked softly, fear gripped her again as Book nodded.
"Since we have nothing else to go on, I think we should treat it as if the story is true." Simon said carefully. "I'm going to continue looking for other explanations but for now we should probably avoid letting anyone sleep when possible."
"I'll go wake the others." Kaylee said and hurried to the Captain's room. He hadn't been seen since he found out about Inara and no one wanted to intrude while he was upset but if there was anyone who could get away with bothering him, it was her.
She knocked four times before the door opened. Mal looked at her in silence for a moment and stepped away. He didn't tell her to go away or close the door so she considered it good as an invitation. He looked terrible and even if she didn't have a message to relay, he needed a friend. Kaylee followed and sat on the bed beside him. No point asking if he was okay - he wasn't. She just wrapped him in a hug.
"Everything alright out there?" He asked after a moment, his voice was hoarse and she suspected he'd spent much of the day either crying or yelling in such a way as to not upset the crew further.
"Bu hao." She admitted and rested her head on his shoulder. "Simon hates it but thinks the dream Reaver might be real. Wants everyone to stay awake til he can prove otherwise."
"What got him to changin' his mind?"
"Shepherd book got attacked, too. Stabbed with four blades in his arm." She quickly caught herself as he stood and left her unsupported. "He's all patched up now and Simon says he'll be okay."
"Need to see for myself. Go ahead and wake up anyone else sleeping." He said, quickly disappearing through the door. Kaylee sighed and pulled herself up with much less enthusiasm. Why couldn't this be the nightmare?