Crossfire (Star Kingdom Book 4)

by Lindsay Buroker

  The sergeant nodded, duplicated the action, then slapped Casmir on the shoulder and headed for the towel dispenser.

  “I see you’re making friends,” Kim said from behind him.

  Only then did Casmir realize the clacks of wooden sticks battering each other had halted. He turned to face her, hoping Meister would trundle off now that he’d made his insinuations. Asger was grabbing a couple of towels.

  “Yes,” Casmir said. “The gym is my natural milieu and a place where I enjoy bonding with sweaty men.”

  “Using words like milieu in a gym is a good way to get beat up.”

  “And here I thought it was my scrawny build that made me an enticing target. Can I talk to you about bee bacteria?”

  Kim blinked a couple of times.

  Casmir willed Meister to go away. He turned his head and body toward another sparring match, but he was still close enough to hear their conversation.

  “Here?” Kim asked.

  “Ideally, somewhere with less grunting and clanking of weight machines.” He thought about adding somewhere private, but would Meister find that odd? For the first time, he wondered if there were surveillance cameras around the ship keeping an eye on him. He knew there were security cameras in the common areas, but what about in his new cabin?

  “I want to grab something to eat and clean up,” Kim said. “I also have a report to share with you on that genetic material. Meet me in my cabin in a half hour. Or should I meet you in your cabin?” Her eyebrow twitched. “I understand you have one now.”

  “I do. Ishii promised to give me the same perks he gives you. Such as a bed. And if I’d brought an espresso maker, there would be room to set it up on the desk.”

  “Are you getting paid now?”

  “Uh, I didn’t think to ask about that.”

  “You have odd priorities, Casmir.”

  “Don’t tell me you don’t prioritize having room for your coffee accoutrements.”

  She flicked her fingers in agreement, said, “My cabin,” and headed for the door.

  Asger came over, and Casmir clapped him on the shoulder—never mind that he had to reach up to do that—and nodded toward the door. “Just the knight I wanted to see.” He hoped Asger would take the cue and walk out with him.

  “I’m the only knight on the ship.” Asger headed for the door.

  Meister watched them over his shoulder but didn’t follow.

  “Then it’s convenient that you’re the one I wanted to see.”

  “Were those men bothering you?” Asger pointed a thumb toward the sergeant and corporal—they were now grappling in one of the arenas.

  “No, they offered to beat up people who bother me.”

  “Oh? So I should be careful about appearing to menace you?”

  “They did mention that they could only beat up people of lesser rank, so unless a knight is outranked by a sergeant, I think you’re safe.”

  “We have our own special ranking system, but our pay grades put us on par with officers.”

  “So you make the big money? Why do you need to model for underwear companies on the side?”

  “I’m the lowest rank a knight can be,” Asger said dryly as they stepped into the corridor, “until I prove myself worthy of a promotion by demonstrating leadership abilities, trustworthiness, and the ability to act independently while keeping the best interests of the crown in mind.”

  “Ah.” Casmir decided not to ask if Asger’s relationship with him had put his progress in jeopardy, because Asger had already hinted that it had.

  “And even officers don’t make piles of money. They’ve historically come out of the nobility, so they’re expected to have family money. Which I do not have access to since my father is not—has not always been—pleased with me.”

  They stopped when they reached a lift, Asger perhaps wondering where Casmir wanted to take him. Nowhere, in truth. He’d just wanted to leave the gym without his spy.

  “Why not? You seem like the kind of son every father would want.”

  “I’m not sure most fathers want their sons to be underwear models and pose nude for calendars. Would your father want you to do that?”

  “My father would be flummoxed if I had the ability to do that.”

  “It’s not that hard.” Asger smiled faintly. “You just have to know the poses and how to pump yourself up to improve your vascularity.”

  “Vascularity? Like big visible veins? I’m pretty sure if that happened in my body, it would be due to excess stress causing an increased secretion of cortisol, which increases the glomerular filtration rate and renal plasma flow from the kidneys. Among other things, that increases sodium and water retention. That makes your veins stand out. And then, if you have my special brain, it increases neuronal excitability and gives you a seizure.”

  “That’s impressive.”

  “The number and variety of things that can give me a seizure?”

  “No, that you can spout things like that. I thought medical stuff was more Kim’s venue.”

  “I did take a number of science classes on the way to getting my engineering degree. That’s basic human biology.” Which happened to be rather relevant to him, hence his knowledge on the matter. “But my point is that I’m surprised your father wouldn’t be delighted with you. You’re a good man. And you’re—” Casmir waved vaguely up and down Asger’s impressive height and build, “—manly.”

  “I wasn’t the most responsible teenager, and I had a tendency to get into trouble. My mom suggested sports as a way to distract me from less noble pursuits, but it wasn’t until she passed that I followed her advice. Bodybuilding wasn’t what she had in mind, I’m sure, but I did get into it, especially when there was nobody else around to do things with.” Asger grimaced and looked at the bulkhead instead of Casmir. “The last time my dad and I spoke, he yelled at me and told me to straighten up or he’d do more than cut me off temporarily. He’d name my cousin his heir and leave me with nothing. I didn’t care about that—I don’t even want his damn land or money—but it was just hard because when I was younger, I’d always wanted to be like him. But then he was never home, and it was easy to resent him for that, even if that was his job. Logically, I know that. As an adult. But I didn’t get it that well as a thirteen-year-old kid, angry because Mom had died, and he was never there, and all I had were tutors to lecture me…” He shook his head and returned his focus to Casmir. “Sorry. I don’t know why I’m telling you all that. In the middle of a corridor with people walking past.”

  Two officers strode out of the lift as he spoke, and Casmir stepped to the side with him.

  “Did you say your father is a knight too?” Casmir asked.

  “Yes, one of the ones who gets sent off to other systems for spy missions. It’s been years since he was back home. The one time he was, I was graduating from my squireship and officially being knighted. I’d thought he’d come to see it, but he never showed up. He’s never even given me a chance to show him that I’m not a screwup anymore. At least, I’m trying not to be one.” The expression he turned on Casmir was on the sad side.

  Once again, Casmir felt guilty for having caused him to get in trouble with his superiors. “Don’t worry. We’ll get the gate, and I’ll be good, and the king will have no reason to doubt either of us again.”

  Casmir wasn’t sure he fully believed that, or that he wanted to be the king’s loyal servant, but Asger nodded, appearing heartened.

  “Good.” Asger clapped him on the shoulder. “Thank you.”

  12

  “Did you say bee bacteria?” Kim asked as Casmir entered her cabin. She’d been wondering if she heard him correctly in the gym.

  There was only one seat, a swivel chair locked to the deck in front of the built-in desk, and she waved him to it, then sat cross-legged on the end of the bed.

  “Yes.” Casmir stood and rummaged in his tool satchel before taking a seat. “I got a message from Princess Oku, and she thanked me for my robot bee proposal,
but she said she’d like to seek out ways to help real bees survive on space stations before resorting to the mechanical. I hardly see robots as a last resort, but I am always pleased to help people achieve their goals, even if they differ from mine.”

  Kim thought about asking if he had more interest in helping Oku with her goals than the average person but decided to be supportive instead of snarky. Besides, Casmir was usually willing to help anyone, from what she’d observed.

  “She found a study you did—some bacteria you made—to help with a wing disease rampant among bees in the southern hemisphere.”

  “Oh. That was more than ten years ago. I had just finished my undergraduate degree and hadn’t yet decided to specialize in human-bacteria relationships.”

  “Nonetheless, she was intrigued and wondered if you have any ideas of bacteria that could be produced to help her bees survive in the dubious environment of a space habitat.” Casmir pulled out some kind of gauge or detector and stuck it to the control panel for the cabin’s lights and comm.

  Kim debated the proposal. She did like challenges, and she had been lamenting that she didn’t have a lot to work on while they were en route for days and weeks.

  “I would need all of her data, which I presume she collected from whoever was running the physical bee experiment. There are so many ways the rigors and alienness of space act on the human body. Humans and animals have been tested thoroughly over the last few centuries, and I’m certain there have been some entomological studies, but I doubt they’re as extensive. I’m familiar enough with my previous work on bees that I could come up with some strains for an overall health improvement, but it’s likely some key elements on the space habitat are having a deleterious effect, and while bacteria are myriad and versatile, they’re not a cure-all. It might take genetic engineering to achieve what she wishes, assuming the problem can be isolated.”

  “It sounds like it could be a long project of months and years, especially if you’re doing it on the side around your other work.” Casmir nodded gravely.

  “Give me some credit. Even for pet projects, I can usually at least get some bacteria to the testing phase in less than a month.”

  “But then there’d have to be lots of testing, right? You’d probably have to visit the castle often to confer with Oku. And since I was partially responsible for all this, I would volunteer to come along and assist you as needed.”

  “You were entirely responsible.”

  “Hence my offer of assistance. Maybe I can hold your petri dishes while you two converse.” He smiled wistfully, his eyes growing unfocused, as if he was accessing the network. Or some daydream.

  Kim shook her head, wondering if she would need to start looking for a new roommate. Though she supposed the likelihood of Casmir and Princess Oku wanting to shack up together was low. He’d only spoken to her twice, and as far as Kim knew, she hadn’t given any indication that she fancied him as a romantic partner. She’d probably just given him that keycard as a thank-you for the bee research. Kim decided she would wait until Casmir convinced Oku to go on a date with him before worrying about roommate vacancies.

  “Speaking of petri dishes, I found enough bacteria in your android sample to suggest he came from System Hydra. The water worlds there developed a lot of unique bacteriological life, long before humans arrived in the system, and humanity has since spread it to the various habitats and stations there. I let Ishii know too.”

  “Oh, good.” Casmir beamed a smile at her. “Tork said his handlers had likely taken the cargo ship and the gate back to their base on Xolas Moon. The astroshamans have supposedly drilled a couple of access points in the ice and set up secret underwater facilities there. If you don’t know where they are, you’d have a hell of a time finding them, since there’s too much ice for satellites or ships in orbit to read the energy signatures under the surface. But he said he can direct us.”

  Kim still wasn’t sure it was wise to trust Tork—what if he was leading them into another trap, and he planned to send a warning to his so-called handlers as soon as the warships entered the system?—but maybe it didn’t matter. The astroshamans had to be reasonably certain the Kingdom was coming after the gate. They would be preparing their defenses no matter what.

  She grimaced, uneasy at the idea of going up against a group of people—a very large group of people—that had so easily created a virus that had almost caused the destruction of the warship. Was she the only one who believed they might be in over their heads?

  “Was that hair nothing?” Casmir asked. “Just one that I was carrying around on the outside of my suit?”

  “Actually, it didn’t belong to you, Grunburg, or anyone else on the ship—I checked the medical database here—so I sent it over to the Intelligence department. Maybe they can find a match in a systems-wide database out there.”

  “Interesting. I’d like to know who would lop off an android’s hand and give him orders to self-destruct after his task.”

  “You sound more indignant when you talk about that than when you talk about people trying to kill you for some bounty.”

  “I’m not so much indignant about that as exasperated.”

  “Forty-five minutes to the gate,” a voice announced over the speaker. “Station leaders, make preparations for the jump.”

  “I’ll let the princess know she can send you her data now, before we leave the system and there are big delays in communication. And, uhm, there was something else I was wondering about.” Casmir waved to the device he’d planted on the wall. It was beeping softly. He removed it and nodded. “That’s nice. There don’t seem to be any cameras or monitoring devices in your cabin.”

  “Are there in yours?”

  “I haven’t checked yet, but I figured we should have this next conversation in private.” He put his device away and started pacing. “That Lieutenant Meister you saw talking to me was not-so-subtly letting me know he works in Intelligence and is filled in on the various encounters I’ve had with Rache.”

  “Including the details of the last one?” Kim wondered if Intelligence had figured out that she and Casmir—along with Qin, Bonita, and Asger—had invited Rache to dinner. Since the goal of that dinner had been to convince him to help them stop the terrorists, which they had successfully done, it was irritating that Intelligence would be suspicious of any of their motives.

  She could understand them wanting to bring down Rache for all the crimes he’d committed against the crown over the years, but there was a part of her that felt indignant on his behalf. Oh, she wouldn’t try to argue that he was a good man, or that he had acted against the terrorists because of a change of heart toward the Kingdom, but maybe King Jager and Royal Intelligence should consider that he had helped. Perhaps he could be convinced to help again, and he could become an ally to the crown instead of an enemy. Everyone kept talking about how the Kingdom, if not the entire Twelve Systems, was on the precipice of war. Wouldn’t it be better to find a way to use Rache than to try to kill him?

  Casmir poked her in the shoulder.

  “What?” Kim asked.

  “I answered your question and asked one of my own, but you kept staring darkly at that section of the deck there.” Casmir pointed, then bent low to peer at it. “I don’t see any dust or grime, so it can’t be the reason for your ire.”

  “No, I was thinking about the situation. What was your question?”

  “If you’d done any research on him yet and figured out where he grew up and why Oku was familiar with him.”

  “No. Why would I?” She didn’t mean the words to come out defensively, but they sounded that way to her own ears.

  Because Casmir had nearly fallen over when she’d mentioned that Rache had asked her to have dinner with him someday? And had made it clear the idea horrified him? Maybe that was it. She found herself reluctant to speak of him around Casmir now.

  “Well, he asked you on a date. In this modern age, it’s typical to look up a prospective romantic partner bef
ore going out with him. Did you check his network presence? How many people claim him as a friend? Whether his relationship history appears healthy and normal?”

  Kim scowled at him. “Funny, Casmir. No, I haven’t researched him further, though I’m sure it wouldn’t be difficult with what we know now.”

  She didn’t admit that she’d been tempted to research him, and had only decided against it when she realized she would likely never cross paths with him again. But did that still hold true? She’d assumed she would never leave Odin again, but here she was, heading to another system, in search of the same thing he sought.

  Butterfly wings—or maybe bee wings—fluttered in her belly as she wondered if they would end up stuck in a shuttle together once more. No, only if he kidnapped her again. She hoped he was past that.

  “Let’s pool what we know about him,” Casmir suggested, waving at his chip, “and figure out… I’m not even sure what I need to figure out, but I’m hoping not to have to go into battle against him.”

  “Did someone imply that would happen?”

  “Lieutenant Meister thinks Rache is trying to beat us to the gate. And that there might be a showdown, not just with the astroshamans but with him. If we could figure out what his problem is—his main problem, I mean, since there are probably fifty million of them—maybe we could convince him to… go away.”

  Kim raised her eyebrows. “I had no idea you had such power over him.”

  “I think you might.” Casmir grimaced. “Even if that disturbs me to acknowledge.”

  “I’m not a moral compass for him.”

  “But you’ve proven that he’s willing to keep his word. He said he’d do a favor for you, and he did. Really impressively, I might add. He basically stormed that base himself while I crawled through a duct. I did most crucially deactivate the stealth generator, but I think I would have failed at that if he hadn’t been keeping them busy. Not as the distraction, mind you, but as the main event.”

  Kim snorted. “He said that?”

  She almost admitted that she would have liked to see Rache mowing down a bunch of terrorist bad guys—that was far preferable to when he attacked Kingdom soldiers—but she caught herself, feeling certain that an evolved scientist shouldn’t find any manner of violence appealing.