RVA: Shadow of Doubt, Warnings

Rank having its privileges, Salli was admitted immediately into the V.I.P. suite of Darktail District’s outpatient surgical hospital. Rank having its limits for sensible nobles, Doctor Wirefur gave the same level of care to injured commoners as he did to a countess’ heir, and she was still expected to get to her appointment on time. Which is did, Zaker proving again that she was a competent driver.

Shortly she was signed in, had her vitals checked, and was led to  a comfortable examination chair with a headrest that featured padded clamps to keep her head immobile while it was examined. Doctor Wirefur, a foxen just entering his eightieth year, light red fur beginning to be shot through with white, entered a few minutes later, bowing and greeting Salli politely.

“How are you today, Lady Darktail?” he said.

“Looking forward to having binocular vision again, Doctor,” she replied.

He smiled. “I think I can help you with that. Are you in any pain currently?”

I'm missing an eye, when Ali isn't deliberately avoiding me my mother is trying to separate us, the press is trying to make her into a monster, and my sister-in-law is an ex-pirate who's secrets I have to keep or bring ruination down on my love struck twin brother, Salli thought wearily. Instead she answered, “No, thank you. No phantom pains or anything like that.”

Wirefur smiled and answered, “Good. Let's see what else we can find out. Lay back please.”

Salli did so, settling the back of her skull on the headrest. A touch of a button and the clamps settled themselves around her forehead, immobilizing her above the neck. Dr. Wirefur leaned over her, adjusting a camera on a small mount beside the chair so he could get a detailed look inside her cyber-socket. He muttered semi-audible notes into a recorder, moved the camera back to allow him to poke at her socket with an instrument probe, then finally straitened up, looking satisfied.

“I think you're in good shape, Lady Darktail,” he announced. “There's some cosmetic scratching around the base of the socket thanks to your ham handed attackers, and the interface connection in the socket itself will have to be replaced, but there was no damage to your organic nerves. I can do the repairs right now in fact. Shouldn't take more than a quarter-hour. After that it's merely a case of fabbing a new optical sensor and installing it.”

“Very good,” she replied. “How long should that take?”

Wirefur pursed his lips in thought. “To fab a new eye sensor, about a half-hour. We've got the exact fittings for your old eye on file, so that saves us a bit of time there. Adding in sterilization and a complete round of tests and it will be ready in about a day. Once it's ready, I'd suggest you set aside an afternoon for installation and a thorough checkout. It would be an office procedure, so there's no reason to check you into hospital.”

“Excellent.” Salli sat patiently as Wirefur worked in her cyber-socket, replacing the damaged interface. Once he was through and she was released from the head clamps, she asked, “When is the earliest we can schedule the procedure?”

“By the end of the week, if you wish. I'll have my assistant set it on my schedule.”

“Thank you, Doctor.” Salli got out of the chair and began brushing out her skirts with her paws.

Before she could leave, Wirefur told her, “Oh, and I want to give you a patch to put over your socket until the installation. That sash you had over it left some dust and fiber strands in there. Whoever treated you back on Greenholme should have provided you with one.”

Salli nodded. “That was my doing. I had a patch, but I managed to lose it last night when I fell asleep in my conversation pit. It's probably stuck under the cushions somewhere.”

“All right.” He opened a drawer in his equipment cabinet, rooting around for a moment before pulling out a plain black eye patch made of sterile white plastic. “Here you go. Please remember to wear in the shower or when you're outside. It's important to keep your socket clean.”

“I'll be sure to brush my fangs after every meal too,” she said agreeably. Salli slipped the eye patch on, the smart plastic tightening slightly to make a hermetic seal over her open socket. “Better?” she inquired.

“Much better. See you in a few days, Lady Darktail.”

Zaker stood up from her seat where she'd been waiting in the surgical center's lobby as Salli came out. She gave Salli a lazy salute and asked, “Everything go well, Milady?”

“Agreeably,” Salli reported to her. “I should be ready to get the replacement installed a day or two.”
Zaker began to follow beside her as Salli walked towards the parking garage where their skimmer was parked. “Will you be staying in hospital after it's installed? I'll have to make arrangements for a twenty hour guard then.”

“No, it's to be an in patient procedure. Shouldn't take more than a long afternoon.” Though the temptation to make it an overnight procedure was tempting. Could she use that as an excuse to bring Ali to her side again, in order to provide a full roster of guards?

“Just let me know when it's to be done and I'll be ready.”

“Of course,” Salli replied. Much to her dismay if she allowed herself to think about it, she was finding herself warming to Zaker. The bodyguard had been upfront about who she had worked for in the past, and honest about reporting the reactions of the other servants to Ali's presence. She was not intrusive in her inquires, letting Salli remain silent instead of trying to engage in unwanted conversation. As much as it galled Salli to admit it, if she could not have Ali by her side outside the manor's grounds, Zaker was an agreeable substitute.

They reached the entrance to the underground parking garage and took the lift to the level where Zaker had parked the skimmer after dropping Salli off at the lobby entrance. When they reached it, Zaker opened the passenger side door for her before walking around the front of the vehicle to get into the driver's seat.

Salli looked up from securing her seat belt, to find Zaker standing in front of the driver's door, ears flicked back and frowning deeply. “What's the matter?” Salli asked.

“Milady, you should see this,” the bodyguard answered, her paw reaching unconsciously into her jacket pocket to finger her stunner.

Salli quickly undid her belt and exited the skimmer, walking quickly around to where Zaker stood.

In block letters drawn with blood red marker pen on the driver's door were the words PIRATE LOVER.