I sighed. I just wanted to go to the bridge, put my leg up, and stop moving, but I said, “Let’s go to the medbay. I’ll have to take my boots and pants off.”

The two Valoffs froze.

“Is that going to be a problem? If so, I’m happy to just head upstairs. I would prefer it, actually.” I started edging around them, intending to do exactly that.

“No, it’s not a problem,” Havil quickly assured me. “But you shouldn’t walk on the leg until I get a chance to look at it. There’s no reason to injure yourself further.”

“I’ve been walking on it for five years. I’m fine. As I already told General Fletcher.”

“Udwist,” Torran muttered under his breath. Before I could ask what it meant—because it didn’t sound like an endearment—he bent and swept me up in his arms.

Now it was my turn to freeze. My breath caught in my throat at his easy strength. My left side was pressed against the hard wall of his chest. And by the time I remembered I shouldn’t let him haul me around like a sack of potatoes, we were already in the hallway.

Torran’s long stride ate up the short distance to the medbay—which he found without direction. I guess he really had studied the ship’s map.

He gently placed me on the examination table and stepped back.

“Thank you,” I murmured. “But next time, a little warning first, please.”

One eyebrow rose. “Would you have agreed had I warned you?”

He had me there. Rather than answering, I hopped off the table—landing on my left leg—and bent to unlace my boots. I stood and toed them off with a wince. Torran remained rooted in place.

I started undoing my belt. “Are you going to stand there and watch?”

He straightened and focused on me. I had the feeling that I’d pulled him from his thoughts and he hadn’t been looking at me at all. I squashed the mild sense of disappointment before it could grow into something unhelpful. Torran turned and left the room. The door slid closed behind him, leaving me with Havil.

I dropped my pants and climbed back onto the table. Nudity didn’t bother me, and my underwear covered everything anyway. The area around my right knee was a constellation of faded white scars against skin that remained light golden tan even in the black of space. The scars were a vivid reminder that I was lucky to have kept the leg.

Havil examined me with the cool, impersonal touch of a medical professional. This close, I could see his eyes. They were deep brown with wide tawny streaks. He had kind eyes, I decided, even if they were distinctly Valovian.

When he was done with the exam, he met my gaze. “What do you know of Valovian abilities?”