Dark Horse

by Michelle Diener

  “That wasnʼt Rose, and you know it. She had nothing to do with any of this. This is our own past coming back to bite us in the rear, and our rivalry with the Tecran coming to a head. Rose had absolutely nothing to do with any of that.” He must be standing behind her and to the left. She tried to turn her head but lip movement and blinking seemed to be all she was good for at the moment.

  “Maybe so,” Valu looked down at her again. “But she has somehow wrangled herself into a position of too much power. She can make or break a member nation by her allegiance.”

  “And she had aligned herself with us.”

  “For now. But I know she doesnʼt like Hoke, or your explorations officer. How long until someone offered her a better deal, whatever she wanted, and she took the bait? No good can come of having a free agent with the deciding power. Itʼs better if sheʼs out of the equation altogether.”

  “Hevalonʼs Law,” Dav murmured.

  “Yes.” Valu pointed a finger. “We take out the unpredictable factor.”

  “Thatʼs where youʼve gone wrong, Admiral.” Sazoʼs voice came over the comm. Calm. Steady. “You can never take out the unpredictable factor.”

  The lights flooded on, and Rose had to squint against them.

  “Actually,” Valu dropped the gun downward, pointing it right at her abdomen. “I can.”

  And then he shot her.

  Again.

  46

  When she woke up, it was to soft white covers and a delicious warmth.

  Maybe sheʼd died for real this time, and this was some beautiful after-life.

  Except she didnʼt think youʼd need the bathroom really badly in the after-life, having left the mortal plane, and all that.

  She could move everything, this time around, so maybe sheʼd been out a little longer.

  Or actually had some medical help.

  She pulled herself up, feeling her muscles protest, but at least they obeyed her.

  She was in a real room. Or that was the impression she got. Not on a ship of any kind, but in a house on a planetʼs surface.

  There was no constant, underlying hum of engines, and the air was different. Better.

  But it wasnʼt the balmy air of Harmon.

  It was cooler. Crisp.

  She swung her legs off the bed, and staggered to the bathroom, and while she was in there, couldnʼt resist stripping out of the strange sleep-shirt she had on and taking a hot, soapy shower.

  When she stepped back into the room, swathed in towels and glowing pink, Dav Jallan was sitting on her bed.

  Or maybe it was his bed.

  “You took two fatal hits from a shockgun and survived,” he said. She thought he looked tired, but there was amusement on his face, too.

  She made a scoffing sound. “We Earthlings arenʼt lightweights. Please.” She made bring-it gestures with her hands. “We can take anything you lot dish out.”

  “You certainly arenʼt lightweights.” He tried to smile and then, as he stood, all amusement faded. He bowed his head, clenched his fists. “When I saw him shoot——” He shook.

  She stepped toward him, slipped her arms around his waist.

  “Shh. I wonʼt say it didnʼt hurt. It did.” She paused, and then shuddered at the thought of it. “It really, really did.”

  She ran a hand up his back, sliding her fingers over his neck and into his hair, and shivered with pleasure at the smooth, warm feel of his skin beneath her fingertips.

  “But Iʼm an orange, and that means some of the rules donʼt apply to me. Valu forgot that, and thatʼs a good thing.”

  He bent his head, nuzzled her neck. “Youʼre quite the sensation on the four planets. And beyond.”

  She groaned, moved a little closer. “Sensation how?”

  “Comms of you singing on the Barrist in the debriefing room, and another of the song you sang when you landed in the launch bay have become the most watched comms in history. Youʼre a cultural treasure.”

  She buried her face in his shirt, held him a little tighter. “That might be a little difficult to get used to.”

  He huffed into her hair.

  She mentally pushed the thought of fame away, tried to deal with her current problems. “Whereʼs Sazo? And where am I, come to that?”

  “Sazo is hovering in space directly above us, with weapons hot. And weʼre on Calianthra, my home planet. At my house. After Havak got you stabilized, Sazo threatened a number of dire consequences if you werenʼt transferred over to the Class 5 with me as escort, and then demanded we go to my place, because he apparently knows how much you like being off a spaceship, and he wanted you to recover somewhere that would help you feel better.”

  She looked over his shoulder for any sign of an earpiece, saw it on the bedside table, and stretched past Dav to grab it, screwed it into her ear.

  “Thank you, Sazo.”

  “Youʼre all right?” He sounded more like Dav today.

  “Iʼm all right. Surprisingly good, given how I felt when I came to the first time.”

  “When was that?”

  “In the recycle place. I could hear Valu looking for me in the dark, then you came,” she tipped her head back to look at Dav. “How did you know where I was?”

  He touched her ear. “Sazo figured it out.”

  “Of course. Heʼs Sherlock Holmes incarnate.”

  Sazo laughed. “When you take away everything that isnʼt possible, then you have to work with whateverʼs left.”

  Rose bit her lip. Was that right? She couldnʼt remember what she had or hadnʼt told him regarding Sherlockʼs methods, was sure that was slightly off the original meaning, but . . . she shrugged. What the hell?

  “What was left?”

  “We couldnʼt see you, couldnʼt hear you, but thanks to the safety gas probes set at two meter intervals in the ceiling, I could smell you.”

  She laughed. “You sniffed me out. How could you even do that in that stinky place?”

  “We sniffed you up to the door of the recycle chamber. There was nowhere else Valu could have taken you.”

  “And Valu himself? Whereʼs he?”

  “In a cell. Heʼs been charged with the murder of Councilor Fu-tama and his attempted murder of you.” Davʼs hands came to rest on the flare of her hips, and got a firm grip.

  “I could hear you both arguing with him, and then that bastard shot me again.”

  “Heʼll have plenty of time to regret that.” Dav ran a finger down her cheek. “Iʼm just sorry I didnʼt shoot him before he had a chance to shoot you.”

  “That would have been nice.” She kissed his chin. “It really hurt. Did I mention that?”

  His laugh was strangled. “I honestly donʼt know how you can joke about it. It was full strength, Rose. Full strength. Overkill for someone of your size. There should be no way you can possibly be standing.”

  “You keep complaining I weigh a ton. Guess that helped me.” She paused.

  “I wonʼt ever complain again.” He whispered into her ear. Then something from his pocket jangled and squawked.

  She jerked back.

  “Battle Center,” he said with no affection, looking down at the screen heʼd pulled out. “They want me to bring you to a mobile conference facility theyʼve set up outside the boundary Sazo gave them.”

  “Theyʼve hailed me, too.” Sazo sounded as annoyed as Dav. “Theyʼve been monitoring Rose since we brought her here from the edge of the no-go zone I set up. They know sheʼs on her feet and they want to talk to her.”

  “Canʼt a girl get dressed and have a cup of grinabo, first?”

  “A girl can do whatever she wants until sheʼs ready.” Sazoʼs voice was cold. “And Captain Jallan, she will not be leaving this house with you. I canʼt protect her if sheʼs surrounded by Battle Center staff and whoever else has some power on the four Grihan worlds. If you have to go to them, thatʼs up to you, but Rose stays here.”

  Rose felt infected with the chill in his words. “What do they want? Why are they in such a hurr
y to talk to me?”

  “They want to know where they stand. What threat Sazo and Bane pose to them, not to mention the other three Class 5s.” Dav thumbed his handheld off without answering it.

  “But thatʼs between them and Sazo, itʼs nothing to do with me.” She looked upward, even though Sazo couldnʼt see her. “Why didnʼt they talk to you while I was unconscious?”

  “Because I wouldnʼt answer them.” Sazo made the sound of someone clearing their throat, and despite it all, Rose had to grin.

  “Why not?”

  “Iʼve decided to make you my representative. You can read them better than I can.”

  She was so surprised, she was silent for a long moment.

  “Rose. Was that okay?” He asked the question in English.

  “Itʼs okay. I was just taken aback, thatʼs all. You are more than capable of dealing with them, Sazo. Donʼt underestimate yourself.”

  “I want to include you. Want them to see you have some power. That you arenʼt to be pushed to the side.” He paused. “Because itʼs true. You do have power. I need you to help me keep balanced, Rose.”

  “Thank you, Sazo.” She spoke softly, and Dav kept his hands on her, his fingers gently stroking her as she spoke in a language he didnʼt understand, his eyes half-closed, as if he was simply enjoying the sound of it. “Iʼll be happy to go in to bat for you. Thatʼs what side-kicks do.”

  She made a face of apology to Dav, switched to Grihan. “Do you know what theyʼll want from us? What would be reasonable for Sazo and I to ask for?”

  Dav nodded. “Theyʼll want to know if you plan to align with the Grih or set yourselves up as neutral. If youʼre neutral, youʼll have to move out of Grihan territory, and into non-UC areas.”

  “And if we do align with the Grih? What would they want as proof of goodwill?”

  He shrugged. “They havenʼt told me that, havenʼt told me anything since I left my post on the Barrist and brought you to Calianthra. But I think itʼs safe to say they may underestimate you. Theyʼre still trying to get their heads around the fact that youʼre an orange. Perhaps go in with the view that they may insult you with their assumptions, and try not to be too offended. They havenʼt figured out yet that youʼre something completely unknown.”

  Rose sighed. “Let me get dressed. Have something to eat, and then letʼs get this over with, then.”

  “You sure?” Dav smoothed her hair back from her forehead.

  “No.” She tightened her grip on his shoulders. “But waiting would be worse.”

  He looked at her, his face serious. “Iʼll make you some grinabo, get some breakfast for you. Your clothes are in that cupboard.”

  She watched him go, then pulled out some of her hyr fabric clothes.

  Something occurred to her. “Whereʼs Bane?”

  “Heʼs around,” Sazo said. “Close enough to hail, far enough away the Grih donʼt consider him a threat. Heʼs decided heʼs neutral to everyone but the Tecran, who heʼs hostile to, and me and you, who heʼs allied to.”

  “And the other Class 5? The one shooting at you?”

  “I donʼt know.” Sazo went quiet. “Every time he shot at me, I responded by sending my file of all my interactions with you to him.”

  “Our interactions?”

  “You singing to me. Talking to me. To help him wake up.”

  Rose pulled on her trousers, then spent some time shaping her bra.

  “I had no idea how wonderful hyr fabric was until now. I just thought it was overpriced because it was rare.”

  She looked up, saw Dav leaning against the doorjamb, grinabo and a plate of toast in his hands, wearing an appreciative look.

  She grinned. “It does the job.”

  “Hmm.” He put the mug and plate down on a small desk, walked over to her. Cupped her breasts in his hands.

  “If you want to pretend some neutrality when it comes to Rose, Captain, I should warn you the scan equipment your government is using to monitor Rose will also be able to pick up what youʼre doing right now.”

  Dav dropped his hands, but bent his head, stopping with his lips just a whisper from her own.

  “I think the pretense of neutrality disappeared when Admiral Hoke watched me pick up Rose over Dr. Havakʼs protests and got into that craft you sent over without discussing it with her, without any argument whatsoever.”

  She placed a finger between their lips. “Iʼm sorry, Dav. Will you be in trouble?”

  He shrugged. “I wonʼt say I wonʼt be sorry if I am, but I donʼt regret anything, except not getting to you sooner.” He stepped back. “But they donʼt get to spy on us together, either.”

  Rose pulled her shirt on, then tipped her head. “They should be groveling at your feet. Youʼve developed good personal relations with two new life forms on behalf of the Grih.”

  “Something tells me Admiral Hoke doesnʼt quite see it that way.”

  “Admiral Hoke,” Rose gave a last, firm tug of her shirt, “has consistently failed to understand that I am not simply a cuter, cuddlier version of the Grih, but something completely different. Perhaps itʼs time I bring that point home.”

  Dav gave her a long look. “And what if you canʼt do that? What if the terms are unacceptable?”

  She rested her cheek against his chest and closed her eyes, because sheʼd been desperately trying not to think of that, herself.

  “I donʼt know. But weʼll work something out.”

  He ran his hand down the length of her back. “I hope we can.”

  47

  Rose watched Davʼs little hovercar disappear through the snow-covered trees and had a terrible sense he should not have gone.

  But of course he had to. It was his job.

  He lived next to a forest in a wooden house which had what on Earth would have been considered an avant-garde design. Here, it was probably the typical cabin in the woods, although she couldnʼt see any other houses nearby.

  She bet living on top of hundreds of people in the Barrist for months at a time meant peace, quiet and space were important to Dav Jallan.

  She turned back inside. “What now?”

  “Pack your things.” Sazo sounded distracted. “Hopefully it wonʼt be necessary, but you might as well be ready.”

  As she had at least fifteen minutes before Dav would reach the other Grih waiting for him just outside the no-go zone, she followed Sazoʼs advice. “How would you get me out, though, if I did need to leave?”

  “I deployed a drone when we got here. It looked like part of the explorer craft I sent down with you and Dav to his house. It detached as the craft flew back to me. So far, itʼs been well-enough cloaked that the Grih havenʼt picked it up, even though itʼs been right over their camp three times now. Itʼs capable of picking up a single passenger, and given it was built to fit a Tecran or a Grihan, youʼll have more than enough room.”

  “Good to know.” She zipped up her bags. “But theyʼll know the moment I make a run for it, wonʼt they? Didnʼt you say theyʼre monitoring my every move?”

  “They are, but only because Iʼm letting them. Iʼll simulate an image of you onscreen if necessary. You can keep talking and not be where they think you are, and I can shut down their monitoring systems easily enough at the same time and make it look like equipment malfunction.”

  “Iʼm glad Iʼm on your side.” Rose set her bags down next to the chair Dav had set up for her in front of a large screen. Saw she had another five minutes and went into the kitchen to make a cup of grinabo. “Might as well get one last cup in, if Iʼm going to be on the run.”

  “Might as well.”

  He sounded completely serious, where she had been mostly joking.

  “I hope it doesnʼt come down to me running for my life, Sazo. Iʼd like this to be civilized and friendly. And thereʼs no reason why it canʼt be.”

  “You would think so, but theyʼve started to shield their comms and their conversations in the mobile center. I can try to strip the interference away, but itʼs going to take
a little time.”

  “They could be going into a huddle about their points of negotiation, and they donʼt want you listening in, or youʼll have all the advantage.”

  Sazo made a hum of agreement. “That would make sense, but itʼs not going to stop me trying to find out what theyʼre saying.”

  “Of course not.” She took the steaming cup of grinabo to the table, and had almost finished it by the time the screen blinked on.

  A man in uniform sat at the center of the table, and he had three officers standing behind him, one of whom was Admiral Hoke. She guessed he must be the head of Battle Center. Three Grih, well-dressed and stately, sat to his right, two to his left.

  He cleared his throat. “Good day to you, Rose McKenzie. My name is Admiral Krale, and I am the head of Grihan Battle Center. To my right and left are the leaders of each of the four planets, and the overall leader of the Grih. They can introduce themselves to you when they address you.”

  So, no UC councilors, no Dimitara. This was a heavy-weight Grihan-only council of war.

  Rose found her last swallow of grinabo went down with difficulty. “Good morning.” She dipped her head in an attempt at the Grihan formal greeting.

  She could see they were all surprised, and she gave an inward sigh.

  As if he could read her mind, Sazo whispered in her ear. “Remember what Dav said about expecting them to underestimate you.”

  It had obviously already begun.

  “Where is Captain Jallan?”

  She didnʼt know why she expected he would be present, but she had. And not having him there was giving her a bad feeling.

  “Why would a captain from our explorer fleet be involved in a meeting at this level?” A woman two down from Admiral Kraleʼs right spoke up, a heavy sprinkle of condescension in her tone. “My name is Cavile Lostra, Rose McKenzie. I am the leader of Calianthra.”

  Rose looked at her. She was sleek and dressed in a pale green suit that complimented her pale skin and auburn hair, which was styled to look like a candle flame.

  “You obviously know who Captain Jallan is, if you know heʼs a captain of your explorer fleet, and you would be very ill-informed if you didnʼt know Iʼm sitting in his house right now, and that he helped bring me to Calianthra, so I suspect you must know why I thought he would be involved in this meeting. Why are you pretending it is such an unusual request from me?”