“Ok,” Simon said, putting down his pinchers and picking up the scissors to cut off the remainder of the thread. “It’s done.”

“She’ll be all right?” Book asked.

“Fine,” Simon sighed, looking at Kaylee’s beautiful, unconscious, face. “She won’t be able to use her left arm for a while, but she’ll be fine.” He took a sharp breath and pulled his eyes away from the girl and onto the Shepherd. “We should move her.”

“Maybe we should get the Captain’s permission first,” Book said. “We don’t know what’s going on out there, if they found the person who did this or not.”

“Serenity’s not big,” Simon said softly. “She couldn’t have gone far. Besides, she doesn’t know the ship well enough to hide.”

“You sound like you know who did this.”

“I do,” Simon said looking up at the Shepherd. “Mrs. Kubat. She went mad, killed her husband. Kaylee must have stumbled into her, maybe seen the blood on her cloths . . .”

“Did you just say she killed her husband?” the Shepherd asked, horrified.

Simon nodded. “Probably with this knife.”

“Those poor children,” Book said with a hushed voice.

“Well,” Simon mused. “They are now more or less orphans, which is tragic. On the other hand their father was an inattentive rapist and their mother was a homicidal psychopath. So who’s to say they aren’t better off?”

“Doctor,” Book said, a little shocked. “I never figured you for the judgmental type.”

“I’m not judging them,” Simon said, taking off his sanitized gloves. “But I’m not going to ignore the facts. Evangeline was being starved.”

“What? I heard she was sick.”

“She was weak because she was being given just enough food to keep her alive.”

“That’s why you wouldn’t let the mother see her daughter?” Book asked.

“That’s right.”

“And why the girl improved so much under your care.”

“All I did was feed her,” Simon said as he slipped his surgical apron off. “I don’t . . .” he started weakly before his voice faltered.

“Yes?” Book prompted.

“Children should have good parents,” Simon asserted. “Parent’s who love them, who want to protect them.