Chapter Fourteen
“Ruyn…Ruyn…”
His name and a touch on his shoulder jolted him out of a deep sleep to a pitch-black room. “Michaela?”
“Something’s…something’s wrong. I don’t feel well.”
“Let me get the light.” He rolled toward the bedside table and slapped around until he hit the light button. “Phuk! What happened to you?”
“That bad…huh?”
Her eyes had narrowed to slits in her swollen face, and her lips had ballooned. A rash of hives spread from her hairline to her neck and shoulders, visible over the sheet. “I’m”—she wheezed—“having trouble breathing.”
The food! The phukking food. “I think you’re having an allergic reaction. Let me call somebody.”
His heart rate skyrocketed with alarm, but military training and experience dealing with emergencies kicked in, and he got out of bed and retrieved his data tab. He connected with the front desk.
“Guest Services, how may I help you?”
“We need a doctor. I believe my—” Friend? Partner? Wife? They were incognito. “Michaela Perine is experiencing a severe allergic reaction to something she ate. She needs medical attention right away.”
“I will send the doctor. What species is she?”
“Human.”
“She is in the suite?”
“Yes. Rigel tower, Room 320.” Her breathing sounded worse. “Tell him to hurry. She’s having trouble breathing.”
“The doctor is on the way.”
The call disconnected, and Ruyn pulled on some pants. He sat on the bed, feeling helpless. “A doctor is coming.” He clasped her rash-covered hand. She squeezed his fingers weakly.
“My h-h-heart is racing,” she gasped.
“You maybe shouldn’t try to talk.” His heart raced, too. He’d never been so scared in his entire life. What the phuk was taking the doctor so long?
Finally, a chime sounded. He leaped off the bed and ran to let the doctor in.
A silver-haired female Andrian carrying a black case and wearing a white coat stood outside. “You are having an emergency—”
“Hurry! She’s in the bedroom.” He dragged her into the suite and pushed her into the bedroom.
“What is your emergency—” The doctor broke off at the sight of a wheezing Michaela.
She’d become even more swollen in the short time it had taken him to let the doctor in.
“It appears you are having an allergic reaction. I’m Dr. Adanna.
” She removed a handheld med-device from her bag and scanned Michaela.
“Besides the hives and the facial swelling, what other symptoms are you experiencing?”
“I-I-I’m having t-t-t-rouble breathing,” she gasped. “Itching. All over.”
The doctor peered at the readout. “You’re in anaphylactic shock. You must have ingested something you’re allergic to. This will counteract it.” She removed an injector and delivered a shot to the base of Michaela’s neck. “You should feel better very soon.”
It didn’t seem soon to him, but probably it was only a minute or two before Michaela’s breathing became less wheezy, and the tension in her face relaxed.
“You’re lucky you called me when you did,” the doctor said, and he read between the lines. Michaela’s condition had been very serious. “What and where did you eat last?”
“We ordered room service. We ate the same thing—the constellation platter.” He’d had no adverse reaction. Other than being scared out of his wits, he felt fine.
“You are different species. Didn’t you filter the meals by race?” Adanna said.
“We did,” Michaela said.
The doctor consulted her data tab and frowned. “Hmm…that should have been fine. You are fully human, aren’t you? You’re not a mixed species?”
“Fully human.”
“I’ll file a report with the general manager and the restaurant manager. We can’t have guests going into anaphylactic shock.” She peered at Michaela. “You are looking much better already.”
Ruyn agreed. The hives had begun to diminish, and the swelling was subsiding.
“You will continue to improve over the next few hours. If you are not 100 percent by morning, come by the medical clinic—we’re on the first floor—and I’ll give you another shot. But, I don’t think you’ll need it.”
“Thank you, Doctor,” she said.
“Yes, thank you,” he echoed, grateful to be staying in the main part of the hotel and not in a more remote location on the property.
He let the doctor out and returned to Michaela’s bedside.
“Thank you for getting help so quickly. You were so calm,” she said.
“Only on the outside. You scared me to death,” he said. “Are you too itchy for me to hold you?”
“I think that’s exactly what I need.” She held the covers back so he could climb in. The allergic rash was fading, but residual hives covered her entire body. “The itching has receded quite a bit. That’s what woke me up. The itching.”
He cut the lights, and she curled up against him. “I’m going to be leery about what I eat while we’re here,” she said.
“I remember you scratching during dinner.”
“You’re right. I did. I’d forgotten.”
“Thank the stars you’re going to be all right.” He kissed the top of her head.
“I’ll appreciate Mama Murta’s food even more now,” she said, and he chuckled.
“Until I saw the species filters on the menu, it never occurred to me food could be dangerous. When I joined GAL Friday and traveled to different planets, I assumed some food would be unpalatable, but it never occurred to me it could be toxic.”
A na?ve assumption, but then she hadn’t traveled the galaxy as much as he had. In the space force, he’d eaten mostly military rations, and they’d always been counseled to be careful about sampling local fare.
“It’s strange you had such a strong reaction, but it didn’t affect me at all,” he commented. The menu had said both their races could eat the constellation platter. When they returned to Luturna, he’d insist on a complete review of Starlight’s menu. Mislabeled items put all guests at risk.
“I did some research before I came. Humans and Luturnans share 99.2 percent of the same DNA. We humans are genetically more similar to you than we are to our closest Earthling relatives, chimps and bonobos.” Her comment ended on a yawn.
“Get some sleep,” he said. “If you need me for anything, if you start feeling strange, and I’m asleep, wake me. Don’t wait.”
“I will, but I’m feeling better.” She snuggled against him. Within minutes, he could tell she’d fallen asleep.
He gazed wide-eyed into the darkness. He doubted he’d sleep at all.
* * * *
Ruyn awakened to find Michaela sitting up watching him. “Are you all right? How do you feel?” he asked, noting the swelling was mostly gone, and only a faint pinkness remained of the rash.
“Almost good as new.” She leaned over and kissed him. “Thank you. Your quick action probably saved my life last night. I knew something was wrong, but I didn’t realize what was happening.”
It had been a close call. What if they’d stayed in separate rooms?
If she’d waited any longer to alert him…
He cupped her cheek. “I’m glad I was here, and the doctor arrived quickly,” he added.
At the time, it had seemed to take forever, but she’d arrived within minutes.
She’d been wearing what looked like pajamas under her white coat.
“She’s probably dealt with the problem before,” Michaela said.
“Probably.” He couldn’t fault the doctor’s swift response, but she shouldn’t have been needed at all.
“The menu indicated the constellation platter was safe for you, but it wasn’t.
Starlight Interplanetary Hotels must ensure all the food is correctly labeled and identified so guests don’t eat something toxic to them.
What happened to you could happen to others.
I will insist Korsan order an audit of the food service menu.
” It would be quite a meeting with several items on the agenda. His brother wouldn’t be happy.
“Are you well enough to do a little investigating?” he asked.
“I’m good to go!” she said. “How should we start?”
“Let’s explore the interior and walk around the exterior. Record some holograms on what’s been done. We need to visit the convention center and the pool area. And, I want to see the employee bungalows.”
“Sounds like a plan—my data tab is ringing.”
“I’ll get it. Where is it?” He slid out of bed.
“On the desk in the other room.”
He retrieved the device and handed it to her.
“This is Michaela Perine,” she answered and paused to listen. “Thank you, I’m much better this morning.” She nodded along with whatever was being said. “That’s good to know. I was a little worried.” She paused again, forming an O with her mouth. “Thank you! We appreciate that very much.”
The call ended.
“That was the general manager,” she explained.
“I give him points for customer service. He apologized profusely for what happened. He said the constellation platter has been removed from the menu—even though it should have been safe—and they have reviewed and cleared the remaining menu items for humans. They are going to comp our entire stay—including food.”
“That’s great—assuming you can eat. They said the constellation platter was safe, too.”
“I’ll have to be very cautious. Eat a tiny bit and wait and see if I get a reaction.”
It still made him nervous.