Aurora Blazing

by Jessie Mihalik

  I thought I’d grown immune to looks and charm, but Rhys was putting that theory to the test. I wouldn’t want him for myself, but he certainly was easy on the eyes.

  “The whipped cream comes first,” I agreed with a smile.

  “How long are you staying?” Ada asked.

  “I jumped twice on the way here, so the FTL drive cooldown will take almost twelve hours,” I said. “I want to be ready to go by then, but you don’t have to stay that long because I’m also going to need to sleep. I’m sorry I woke you all up so early.”

  Surprisingly, it was Loch who waved off my words. “What happened?” he asked.

  I brought them up to speed while Rhys finished the whipped cream and started slicing fruit. By the time I was finished, brunch was ready. We carried the food out to the table on the balcony and sat in the gentle afternoon sun. A light breeze carried the briny scent of the sea and kept the temperature pleasant.

  I ate lightly, my stomach queasy thanks to the headache. Rhys hadn’t been joking—Veronica was an excellent chef and everything tasted amazing. After eating what I could, I sipped coffee, lost in my thoughts.

  Rhys broke the silence. “I haven’t heard anything about your brother’s disappearance other than what’s been reported on the news, but I’ve got a few people asking questions. If it really is the Syndicate then I might get a lead or two. I’ve worked with them before.”

  “Have you heard anything about their upcoming party?” I asked.

  Ada turned to me with a dark look. “Don’t even think about it,” she warned. “They already have Ferdinand. Are you going to serve yourself up on a platter, too?”

  “That wasn’t my intention, no. I’ve been on a Silva ship before.” Ada blanched, but I kept going. “I know how they operate. They are driven far more by money than politics, and I have no problem buying Ferdinand back if that’s what it takes. I just need to track one of them down. Assuming it’s soon, the party is the best option.”

  “It will be a tricky deal to pull off,” Veronica said.

  “I know, but if I don’t try, Ferdinand suffers.”

  “Marcus and I will come with you,” Ada declared.

  “No,” I disagreed gently. “This is not a case where more people mean more safety. And if things really do go south, I’ll need someone who can bail me out. You can’t do that if you’re locked up with me.”

  Ada opened her mouth to argue, but Loch beat her to it. “Bianca is right,” he said. “One or two people can slip in quietly, but take a team and it looks like an invasion.”

  They shared a look before Ada sighed in defeat. “Very well. We won’t go with you, but we’ll be close. And at the first sign of trouble, we’ll bring the invasion.” Her smile was sharp and just a little bit scary. My little sister had changed in the two years she’d been gone.

  “Thank you,” I said.

  We discussed plans and options until I could barely keep my eyes open, but it all boiled down to one hard truth: if I couldn’t find Silva, I wouldn’t find Ferdinand. We talked about contacting them electronically, but in the end, we agreed that tipping them off early would be a good way for Ferdinand to get dead and dumped in an unused corner of the universe.

  When I yawned for the third time in as many minutes, Ada said, “Go to bed. It’s late in Universal and you need sleep. We’ll go down to the beach for a while. It’s been ages since I was last on GCD One and I want to enjoy the water while I’m here.”

  “There are plenty of guest rooms, so make yourselves at home. You already found the kitchen and you’re welcome to whatever is in it. There’s also a synthesizer if you need something I don’t have.”

  “Bianca, we’ll be fine. We are all adults. Go to bed.”

  “Fine, fine,” I said with a wave. She might be an adult, but she’d always be my little sister. “Wake me up if any news comes in. Otherwise, I’ll see you in six hours.”

  “Make it seven,” Ada demanded.

  “Watch it. I have a whole host of baby Ada stories that I’ve been dying to tell someone. Remember the time when you ate—”

  Ada clamped her hand over my mouth. “If you tell that story, I will shave your head bald while you sleep.”

  “Well now I have to hear the story,” Rhys said.

  Ada glared at him before switching her glare back to me. Bald, she mouthed succinctly as she removed her hand.

  “What did she eat?” Rhys asked.

  “If you want to hear the rest of the story, you’ll have to ask her. I like my hair as it is.” I stood and gathered up my dirty dishes. “Oh, that reminds me. Ask her about her time as a self-barber, too.” I dodged away from her playful smack with a laugh.

  “So you decided to cut your own hair?” Loch asked, his deep voice rumbling with amusement. “How did that go?”

  My work finished, I beat a hasty retreat before Ada could threaten me again. I was glad we got a moment to play, because the crushing worry for Ferdinand was never far away.

  I dropped my dishes in the kitchen, then retired to my bedroom. The rest of the suite was open and available to anyone who visited, but my room was kept locked. I swiped my identity chip over the reader and the door clicked open.

  The sea-green room was dominated by a large bed with crisp white bedding. The closet and en suite bathroom were off to the left. On the right, a wall of sliding glass panels led out onto a private balcony and offered an uninterrupted view of the water.

  I admired the view for a second before I lowered the blackout curtains. I switched on a lamp as the room descended into darkness. Because the days were longer than usual on GCD One, most residences invested in quality blackout shades—it was hard to sleep with the sun shining in your eyes.

  The room was a little more shielded than the rest of the penthouse and that, plus the minimal number of signals in this part of Atlantia, meant I could rest in silence. By the time I finally flopped into the bed, it was well after midnight Universal. I was asleep almost before my head hit the pillow.

  I awoke to furious pounding on my bedroom door. “Bianca! Bianca, wake up, dammit! Wake uuupp!”

  It took me a second to recognize Ada’s voice. “What’s going on?” I asked groggily.

  Ada apparently hadn’t heard me over her own shouting, so the auditory assault continued.

  I switched on a lamp and checked my com. It was just after four in the morning Universal Time and midevening local time. I stumbled to the door and wrenched it open. “What?” I demanded.

  “Ian is here,” Ada said. “Grab your stuff.”

  I blinked at her and the words bounced off my tired brain. “What do you mean he’s here?”

  Ada swept past me into the room and began gathering up my clothes and accessories. “He’s here, in the building. Loch spotted him entering the main part of the hotel. He must’ve tracked your ship.” She paused. “Or ours. You never know with that sneaky bastard. Here.” She thrust yesterday’s clothes at me.

  I caught them reflexively and started getting dressed. Ian had tracked me with uncanny speed and skill, which meant that Ada was probably correct and he’d bugged my ship.

  Sneaky bastard, indeed.

  “He must’ve planted an external hardware beacon that I failed to notice,” I said.

  Ada nodded. “Rhys has Scarlett’s crew checking both ships for trackers. We’ll get you sent off clean.”

  “Doesn’t matter. I can’t jump for almost six hours. He’ll catch me in the air.”

  “Not if we disable his ship,” Ada said with a predatory smile.

  “Too risky. Is your ship ready to jump?” She nodded. “If we find a tracker, how do you feel about being a decoy?”

  Her smile morphed into a grin. “I have felt the need to visit the far reaches of the ’verse lately.”

  I put on the smart glasses and tapped into my private view of the hotel’s security feed. Ian was at the front desk, talking to my hotel manager. The video didn’t have audio, but she was shaking her head and holding her ha
nds up in a placating manner. Ian looked annoyed—the manager wouldn’t be able to stall him for much longer, but I made a mental note to send her a bonus.

  Ada and I hurried down to the private hangar. Someone had barred the doors and Rhys, Loch, and Veronica stood next to two loaded-down sleds covered in tarps. Rhys was talking to an unknown woman. She wore dark clothes that accentuated her long, curly red hair. She would be beautiful if she wasn’t so busy scowling at Rhys.

  “That’s Scarlett Hargrove, Jester’s captain,” Ada said quietly.

  “You don’t like her.”

  Ada exhaled audibly. “She was the one who came and got me after Father banished me. She and Loch had a moment.”

  I narrowed my eyes at the hulking ex-con at the bottom of Aurora’s cargo ramp. I’d warned him about what I would do if he hurt Ada.

  “Put away the murder face, Bee,” Ada said, reverting to the childhood nickname she only used when she wanted to get away with something. “They are like family. I realize that now, but at the time I was jealous, and I’m still trying to get over my initial impression. It doesn’t help that she treats me like I’m somewhere between invisible and gutter scum.”

  I swiveled my glare to the woman who dared to treat my sister like scum. “Scarlett Hargrove, you said?” I murmured, mostly to myself.

  “Let it go,” Ada said. “She and Rhys and Loch are friends. Hurting her would hurt them, so I ignore her. You should, too. Please.”

  It was the plea that did me in. “Fine,” I sighed. “Let’s get this stuff loaded while you tell me what you’ve brought.”

  As we approached the group, Rhys said, “We found the tracker but haven’t removed it yet. What do you want us to do?”

  “Bianca needs a few more hours before she can jump,” Ada said. “Attach it to Jester and we’ll play decoy.”

  Rhys turned to Scarlett. “Have your crew transfer the tracker. Looks like you’re stuck with us for a little longer.”

  “At least it’s less likely to damage my ship than your stupid plan,” she groused, but affection underlaid her tone.

  “Do I even want to know?” Ada asked.

  “No,” Veronica and Scarlett said at the same time.

  I climbed Aurora’s cargo ramp and swiped my identity chip over the control panel. The cargo door lifted and I stepped inside. Loch and Ada followed me and the sleds floated along behind them, following their paired beacons.

  Loch parked the sleds in the middle of the cargo bay and started sliding the pallets full of crates off onto the floor. Each sled held two pallets and they looked like they weighed a ton. “I would offer to help, but I’m not actually sure I can move one of those,” I said.

  “Don’t worry about it,” he said with a grin. “I’m almost done.”

  “What is all of this stuff?” I asked Ada.

  “We decided your list was too small, so we added a few things that might come in handy. If you come across anything you don’t recognize, send me a message, but it’s mostly standard stuff like clothes and weapons, combat armor, boots, secure coms. We tossed in a surveillance drone and a handful of bugs and trackers. Oh, and your favorite chocolate and coffee. My treat.”

  “Thank you, Ada,” I said around the lump in my throat. Ada had been gone for so long that I’d forgotten how well she knew me.

  “No worries. Bring Ferdinand home.”

  “I will.”

  Rhys and Veronica stepped into the cargo bay. “I have a clean identity ready, if you need one,” Rhys said by way of greeting. “I just need to know what name you prefer.”

  “Anna White,” I said. Anna was one of my middle names, so it was easy enough to remember, while being generic enough to be hard to search for.

  Rhys typed something on the device he carried, then said, “I need your identity chip.”

  I touched the thumb and ring finger of my right hand together for a long second before I held out my arm. Rhys slid the device up my arm until a beep indicated it was directly over my secondary identity chip. Thicker than a com, the rectangular device had a “Property of the Royal Consortium” label still attached to the side.

  “Do I want to know where that chip programmer came from?” I asked.

  “I’ve found it’s better if you don’t ask,” Ada said. “Plausible deniability.”

  “This identity is only level three—it’s all I had available on such short notice. So don’t go pissing off the RCDF or the police or you’ll have a bad time,” Rhys said.

  Black market identities typically came in five strengths, ranging from level one to level five. Level one identities would fall apart with even the most cursory glance, but they were also dirt cheap. Level five identities would have your own mother swearing that she’d never met you before.

  Level three tended to be a balance between price and performance. The identity included enough background information to pass a midlevel private background check, but if the police started digging, they would spot the inconsistencies.

  This chip already contained two level-five identities that I’d used previously. I’d used one while escaping, but I didn’t think Ian knew about the other one. I still wouldn’t use it unless absolutely necessary.

  The chip programmer beeped again and Rhys pulled it away from my arm. “You’re good to go,” he said.

  “Thank you. All of you. For everything.”

  “Family sticks together,” Ada said. She pulled me in for a hug. “Keep in touch or I’ll hunt you down.”

  “I will. And I’ll let you know as soon as I find anything.”

  “Scarlett suggested we launch together,” Rhys said. “Once you hit space, go dark and put as much distance as you can between you and Ian.”

  I waved in farewell as they left to find their own ship, then I went to get ready for launch. I smiled at the thought of Ian’s face when he found he’d been chasing Ada.

  He really should’ve just stayed home.

  Chapter 8

  The launch went off without a hitch. Once we were out of sight of the ground, Captain Hargrove turned her ship toward the gate while I continued on away from it. Clear of the atmosphere, I pushed Aurora to max velocity. The more distance I could put between me and Ian, the less likely he would guess we’d swapped the tracker.

  Captain Hargrove told me it would be ten minutes before they got a jump point from the gate. I asked to be notified just before they jumped, so I could shut down communications. It wouldn’t be very convincing if I was supposedly somewhere else but still receiving calls here.

  And I expected Ian to call at any minute.

  He did not disappoint. The call came through voice-only and I wondered what he was hiding. I needed to keep him distracted for the next ten minutes, then drop the call in the middle of our conversation. I connected voice-only, too.

  “Hello, Ian,” I said. “Did you enjoy your vacation?”

  “Lady von Hasenberg, you are to return to Earth immediately, by order of your father. Failure to do so will result in criminal charges and the posting of a sizable bounty for your return.”

  My eyebrows climbed upward. “Going to air dirty laundry in public now, are we? What charges do you think you have?”

  “Treason against a High House.” He said it without a hint of humor. Yeah, he was still furious with me.

  “That will never stick.”

  “It doesn’t matter. It’s enough to post a bounty, and Lord von Hasenberg is insistent on your return by any means necessary.”

  “Why?”

  “He didn’t say,” Ian said, unbending enough that frustration crept into his tone. “Perhaps he fears for your safety.”

  I couldn’t help the dismissive scoff. “Have you seen any pigs winging past your window lately?”

  “The reason doesn’t matter. He has ordered you home and you must comply or face the consequences.”

  “Then I will face the consequences.”

  “Bianca, be reasonable. You won’t be able to help Ferdinand if you’re loc
ked up in some merc’s ship. Return to Earth and I promise I will allow you to assist with the investigation as much as I am able.”

  “That’s not good enough.”

  “I am trying to compromise,” he growled. “I can investigate just as well without your help.”

  I let the pause stretch as I debated playing my wild card. What the hell, it might not make any difference, but if ever there was a time I needed an edge, it was now.

  “Did you know, Ian Noah Bishop, that there is no record of you prior to when you joined House von Hasenberg as a bodyguard? Oh, there are a few false trails, extremely well done, level four at least, but they ultimately lead nowhere. You just appeared one day, a fully formed twenty-one-year-old with no history. Why is that, do you think?”

  Dead silence greeted me from Ian’s side of the line.

  “I am uniquely suited to find Ferdinand,” I continued, “but I will be hobbled if I am locked up at home. Persuade Father to let me run with this one.”

  “I can’t,” he said, his voice like gravel. “Believe it or not, I tried. He is adamant that you return.”

  A one-minute warning message arrived for Jester’s jump. “Well, then, I guess I’ll have to dodge you and the mercs. Farewell, Ian.”

  I disconnected the call and put Aurora into deep stealth. All communication ceased and the ship no longer repeated broadcasts or used any sort of signal-emitting technology.

  It was a little dangerous to use deep stealth so close to populated space. First, it would limit the amount of information I could gather about the ships around me, so Aurora’s navigation computer would have to work harder. And second, it made my ship nearly impossible to track, which meant other ships’ navigation computers wouldn’t route around me until the last minute. But as long as I stayed vigilant, the danger was minimal.

  Without communications, I couldn’t check to see if Ian followed through with his threat to put a bounty on me. I had five hours to kill before the FTL drive was ready to jump and nothing to do but watch empty space roll by. I couldn’t even catch up on my sleep because I had to keep an eye out for other ships.