chapter one

       SHE TWISTED AND turned in her sleep, unable to wake from her sleep. Sweat rolled down her forehead, and her breathe came out unevenly. She shook every so often. The sheets were thrown about, twisted up and tangled around her. Her hair stuck to her face, a large mess. Her mouth opened, and she moved about like she was in pain. She swiped at her face with her hand and rolled over, her face half covered by pillows. Her hand moved in front of her face, her breathe blowing hot air over it. Then a scream escaped her lips. She turned onto her back, and screamed again. Her back arched, and she threw her head back. 

       The door slammed open and a man rushed inside. He sat down on the bed, watching helplessly as she thrashed around. He wanted to do something to help, needed to, but he couldn't. It wouldn't help her. It would only make it worse. Tears began running down her face and she turned onto her other side. Her hand went up to her face, and she wiped away the tears, now awake. She looked at the man, her eyes bloodshot and face soaked with tears and sweat. 

       He moved closer to her, giving a weak smile and brushing the hair out of her face. 

"How you doing, Liana?" He asked softly. 

"I feel like shit," Liana said. 

"What was it this time?" He asked. 

"Sahara," Liana said. 

"British Major," He guessed. 

       Liana nodded and pushed herself into a sitting position. 

"I don't know why they didn't kill me instead. He was higher rank. Knew more than me. Had more power than me," Liana said. 

"Hey, don't question it. It's fate," He said, caressing her cheek. 

"You say that about everything, Chris," Liana said. "And it doesn't make me feel better. It just makes you seem crazy."

       Chris sighed, and took both her hands in his. He rubbed his thumb over her ring finger, which was bearing a beautiful ring. A beautiful ring, decorated with tiny gems. One gem was a beautiful red colour, surrounded by tiny, clear gems. 

"Well, meeting you was fate, Liana. I'm glad I met you," Chris said. "And I was hoping you'd come live with me, on Becca's island."

"Chris, I can't. I'd disturb everyone there, and I wouldn't even be able to sleep in the same bed as you," Liana said. "Besides, I have my own job."

"For Eligius, yes, I know," Chris said, sighing. "It was a big ask. I'm sorry." 

       He stood up, letting go of her hand and leaving the room. Liana sighed, rubbing at her face. She tried to keep her thoughts away, tried to stop herself from having her self-destructive thoughts. Her therapist had taught her an exercise to try and help with her thoughts. She closed her eyes, and breathed out. She lightly muttered numbers, tapping her fingers on her thigh as she counted. Her breathing slowed and she felt like she was finally getting control again. Liana opened her eyes, taking in a deep breathe. 

       The exercise only worked sometimes. She usually didn't need it. It was only ever too bad to handle when she woke up, and she usually didn't sleep. It was too hard. She stood up and got ready for the day. Eligius was big on dress codes, but nobody ever stopped Liana from wearing what she wanted. It was usually just a plain shirt and pants, with her army jacket and combat boots. She braided her hair quickly and left her room. The apartment was empty, meaning Chris had already left. Blankets were folded neatly and sitting on the couch, pillows sitting on top. Liana sighed, feeling bad. 

       Chris slept on the couch because of Liana. Because she had joined the army, and because she had nightmares. It was all her fault. Liana closed her eyes again and cast out her thoughts. They were dangerous thoughts. Intrusive thoughts, as her therapist, Elaine Mcloughlin, called them. Often times, Liana just called them self-destructive thoughts. She left the apartment, heading to her car. 

       It was a short drive to Eligius, but long enough for Liana's thoughts to come back, ruining the rest of her day. 

       Liana walked through the building, looking around. People bustled around, doing their various jobs. Eligius II was going to be sent out to mine soon, and they were rushing to get it manned. Ship one was a success, even though it wasn't manned. The planet needed the oil bad, so they needed more hands. Hence, ship two being manned. Liana went into the shooting range, which was already noisy with the sound of gunfire. Her friend, Miles Shaw, was inside, shooting off rounds. When he stopped, Liana headed inside. He glanced back at her. 

"Hi," He said, focused on reloading his gun. 

"Hi," Liana said, standing in the next stall. 

       She loaded her own gun.

"You look like shit," Miles commented. 

"Yeah, I went to sleep last night," Liana said. 

"What else?" Miles asked. 

"I had a small disagreement with Chris," Liana replied, unloading the magazine to look at it. "About moving in with him."

"Ah. The fiance asked you to live with him. And you said no because of your sleeping problems," Miles said. 

"Yep, that's how it went," Liana said. "But hey, I got a full hour of sleep."

"Maybe you should look into that therapy thing Doctor Mcloughlin suggested. It is meant to help you move past your trauma." 

"It's a pile of bs, Miles. If I thought it would help, I would do it in an instant. But it won't," Liana said. 

       She turned to the target and raised her arm to aim. She faintly heard Miles sigh as she fired. She kept pulling the trigger until her gun was empty. Once it was, she lowered her arms and pulled the target forward. 

"You should do something Liana. I doubt it'd be very fun to be married to someone who you can't even sleep in the same room with," Miles said. 

"Nobody asked," Liana said. 

       All eight bullets had gone in the exact same place. Eight in the head. 

"Eight in the head, huh?" Miles said. 

"Judging me?" Liana asked. 

"Wondering," Miles said. 

       The door opened behind them. Liana and Miles both looked. Their boss, Jake Emerson, stood there. 

"You're needed in a meeting," Jake said.