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Urle knew he had to go see Iago.
Besides Hannah confiding in him, the word had come from Zeela Cann; she’d written a concise but thorough overview of his situation, past and present.
He’d been informed on the mission and its aftermath. And somewhere in his mind he’d known that he should keep an eye on Iago. Though, he had also thought he could count on his officers to keep him informed on it – as Zeela had done. It confirmed the trust she’d already built since he’d become the Executive Officer alongside Brooks becoming Captain.
Having reviewed it all, even as he headed towards the man’s quarters, he felt a measure of guilt. He should have checked in on the man his first day. He was their lead Response Officer, after all. What was more, he was also a single parent.
They had that in common.
He approached the door and sent an entrance request. His system saw that Iago received the message, and that he was home.
Then the door opened, and Iago was standing there watching him.
“Come on in, Acting-Captain.”
He looked pale still, with dark and deep rings under his eyes.
But there was more energy in him than Zeela had described. He seemed better.
“Thank you. I hope you don’t mind me dropping by.” Urle entered the apartment, keeping his attention on Iago, while his scanners checked the room and the man.
The room was clean; there was none of the mess that Zeela had described. The lights were dim, but on. His damaged chair was gone, though his new one had not been unwrapped yet. Well, that didn’t seem so odd, he might have wanted to have the room thoroughly cleaned before uncovering it.
“Not at all,” the man said. He seemed stiff, a little uncomfortable. Urle’s scans of him saw his elevated stress levels. It seemed that his presence had caused a spike, from how the chemical alerts were still shifting upward.
Still, that didn’t seem out of line for a man in his situation. He still seemed under control.
“I’m sorry I did not come by to see you sooner,” Urle said, deciding to be honest. “As Acting-Captain, it was my duty to check on one of my officers who was recovering from a traumatic incident.”
“It’s fine,” Iago said. “I know things had to be hectic for you . . . Acting-Captain. I didn’t need any special treatment, except from the doctors. But I’m okay now.”
His biometrics and body language said otherwise, but Urle could tell he was trying.
“What have you been up to?” he asked.
“Cleaning up,” Iago replied.
In the split second where the man paused before continuing, Urle checked the cleaning records; it seemed that after the initial brief cleaning by Zeela Cann’s drones, Iago had set them all to standby.
But the room was clean! It still had a way to go, so perhaps the man was just trying to put himself into an activity to improve his condition?
“Elliot and I have also been taking some walks,” Iago continued.
“Ah, that’s good. Being cooped up too much for too long can make a lot of things harder,” Urle commented. He checked the records and saw that it was true, though his data on body language bespoke still some deeper issues the man was suffering.
Things that he could hopefully work out with time . . . no recovery was instant.
The door to Elliot’s room opened and the boy walked in. He looked surprised to see Urle, but then his face went a little more neutral.
“Hello, Acting-Captain,” he said.
“Just . . . so you all know, you can just say Captain,” Urle noted.
“Just still used to thinking of Brooks as Captain,” Iago said, with a wan smile. “I think we all want him back badly. It just feels wrong having him gone.”
Brave words from him, given that Brooks had ordered him into the mouth of madness. It carried extra weight for it.
“I understand,” he said. “I do, too. But Elliot – if you’re okay talking to me, can you tell me how you’ve been?”
The boy seemed to hesitate, then nodded. “I’m doing fine,” he said.
Urle had not expected much more than that, but watched for signs the boy didn’t want to say something in front of his father. Which he did see . . .
“Do you think I could get some tea?” Urle asked.
It was clear that it was a request for privacy, he could see it in the man’s eyes. But Iago offered no resistance, just a nod and stepped off to the kitchen.
Urle spoke quietly. “Is there anything else you’d like to tell me?” he asked, trying to ride the fine line of firm kindness without being pushy. “Just about your feelings or things that have been happening.”
“It’s been a little hard because dad was upset,” Elliot said flatly. “But he’s better now.”
His tone – hell most of his signs – seemed to suggest it was a lie. But the words were correct, and without hard evidence, Urle had to guess that it was awkwardness. He compared the data of the boy against other times he’d been caught lying – to Urle himself or another officer.
It did seem to match, but not enough for Urle to feel confident in thinking he was lying. He was either trying harder or . . . it was true. Other difficult emotions could easily make his signs seem like lies.
“I’m sorry it was hard, but I’m glad it’s better now, Elliot. If you do feel bad about it, you know you can always talk to someone safely and privately, right?”
“I know,” Elliot replied immediately. “I just don’t want or need to talk to anyone. I’m fine.”
Urle nodded. “That’s good to hear.”
Iago returned with the tea, and Urle took a sip, glad that he’d not covered his mouth today and so could savor the tea without having to use a drinking tube.
He continued to talk with Iago and Elliot for a few minutes. Nothing important, but he gathered more data and tried to figure things out.
But despite the remaining stress on them, he found himself not seeing enough of a pattern, or high enough signs to justify deep concern.
After a few minutes, he bid them goodbye. Thanking Iago, he left, feeling relieved.
It was good to see something turning out all right for once.
Other Terrestrial 