by K. B. Wagers
He swallowed, looking from me to Rai to Emmory and back again before he shook his head.
I clicked my tongue. “Preston, we have a few problems here. The first and biggest is that you’re in a roomful of people who aren’t very happy with that useless sack of shit calling himself your king. See, he’s involved himself with criminals who’ve killed a whole bunch of my people. Children. My family. My little sister died of ebolenza.
“Have you ever seen what that does to a person? You get a fever and chills, can’t keep anything down so you throw up until you run out of stuff to throw up, but your body keeps trying anyway. Then your organs start to liquefy. You die—usually—from coughing your lungs out. Literally up and out of your mouth.” I gestured with my hands. “Do you have children, Preston?”
He turned sheet-white but still didn’t talk.
“Anyhow, that’s how my sister died. The other one was blown up. So was my niece. And someone poisoned my mother. So you could guess I am very angry right now.
“Rai? He’s angrier, because he said I was safe here, and then you tried to kill me. When he gets angry, that’s when bad things start happening.” I let the locket fall from my fingers and dangle in front of his face. He couldn’t stop the look that flashed through his eyes.
“Rai’s got contacts all over the galaxy. You have to ask yourself: If the criminals your king supported could infect a princess of Indrana with ebolenza right under the noses of her BodyGuards, how easy would it be for a man as powerful as Rai to infect the daughter of some random Saxon soldier?”
I handed Rai the locket without comment and watched Preston’s eyes follow its path.
“Your other problem is, I have places to be, and not a lot of time to fuck around with you playing this closed-mouthed game. Frankly, I’m kind of inclined to leave you here with Rai rather than mess with you myself. Especially if you’re not going to cooperate.”
“You can’t do this. It’s a violation of interstellar law. She’s a child. I don’t care what kind of stories they’re telling about you, you wouldn’t kill a child.”
“Our kingdoms aren’t at war, Preston,” I reminded him with a gentle smile. “You’re a criminal who tried to kill me, surrounded by a whole lot of other criminals who are far better at their jobs than you were. Did I mention that I’m angry?”
I got closer until his eyes filled my vision and I could smell the fear on him. “How. Many. Other. Teams?”
Preston looked at the wall and then back at me and I knew I had him. “Two more at Midway, plus the rest of my team.”
“Who’s in charge?”
“I was, but now Colonel Hume is.”
Nakula, thankfully, kept his mouth shut though I swore I could feel him tense behind me.
“Ah, Colonel Hume. He was looking for my governor.” I let the smile spread across my face and Preston swallowed again. “I found her first.”
31
We left Preston under Zin’s watchful eyes and moved into a room down the hallway so I could talk with the others in private.
“You’re not going to let me cut little pieces off him, are you?” Rai asked.
I snorted and rolled my eyes at him. “Not unless he does something stupid.”
“He already did that, Majesty, when he tried to kill you.”
“Emmory, are you actually suggesting I let Rai cut him up?”
He gave me the Look.
“I’m just asking, because I was bluffing about the whole infecting his daughter with that awful disease. Even with everything that’s happened I’ve only added one name to the list of people I’d like to see die from it.” I would be perfectly happy to sit and watch while Phanin coughed out his own lungs. Wilson I was going to kill with my own hands. “The deal is, he’s more use to me alive than dead, especially if I can manage to convince him he’s on the wrong side.”
“What are you thinking?” Nakula asked.
I glanced at Hao and Rai. “I’m thinking we need to take those Saxon Shock vessels intact.”
Nakula laughed, but it died out when he spotted the look on my face. “You’re serious.”
“Majesty, why?” Emmory asked, his tone more curious than dismissive.
“I’m working on a plan, and they’ll be helpful. We don’t have to have all three of them, but at least one will make things easier down the line.”
Hao was grinning at me. “How do you want to play this, little sister?”
“I was thinking of something along the lines of the job we pulled on Tolen VIII?”
“Your Majesty, with all due respect, you are not going to play at anything.” Emmory had that tight-set jaw that meant I wasn’t going to be able to argue my way past his decision.
Honestly, I’d kind of expected it, and either Iza or Kisah could play my part in the subterfuge just as easily. I was also thinking ahead, and with deliberate precision filed this victory away to use later.
I nodded. “I know, I was speaking generally, Emmory. I wasn’t planning on participating.”
He eyed me suspiciously. I smiled back, keeping my heartbeat and breathing even to hide my lie. It wasn’t really a lie anyway. I was okay with not taking the Saxon ships myself. What I was going to do was take back the Vajrayana ships, and I knew that would present an even bigger fight with my Ekam.
Rai ignored the tension as he thought over the problem with pursed lips. “Give Hao and me half an hour to plan things out, Hail. I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve, and it is my port. I’d rather you not blow anything up.”
“Of course.” I caught Emmory and Nakula by the arms before they could follow. “You’re not going either, Ekam. I want you here.”
Where you’re safe.
“And you are not well enough,” I said to Nakula when he tried to protest. “Go talk to Jia; I want a rundown of all the forces you know of in Canafey to present to Admiral Hassan when we meet up with the fleet.”
He glared at me over his shoulder, muttering as he left, “This is why I became a spy in the first place.”
“What are we going to do with Captain Earnest?” Emmory asked.
I sighed and dropped into a chair. “I don’t want to kill him. Thoughts?”
“You’re right about how much use he could be if we can turn him. Though explaining how he escaped will be tricky, especially if we end up killing everyone else.”
“I don’t expect them to surrender, if that’s what you’re asking.” My smile was cold. “And I’m sure Nakula will be just fine with Colonel Hume finding his way to Valhalla before we head out.”
“I’m going to let Zin work on him,” Emmory said finally, smiling at my curious look. “You didn’t think he was just going to sit there and watch the captain, did you? He’s probably got the man’s bank account numbers by now.”
I couldn’t stop the laughter even though it brought to light a new sore spot from the fight. Pressing my hand to my side, I shook my head. “That man terrifies me. What happened with Fasé?”
Emmory took the seat across from me. “Not much reaction, Majesty. Stasia said she’s been a bit more active in the last ten hours or so, but she’s still unresponsive. I’m going to sit with her when we get under way.”
“Bina said not to talk to her about it.”
“I know, ma’am, but she violated her beliefs to give me my life back. It’s the least I can do.”
“Fine, but I want you to speak with everyone who witnessed it, make sure they know not to talk with her about it. I’ll speak with the Farians when we get on board.”
“I don’t want her to die for me,” Emmory said quietly.
The rare vulnerability hit me right in the chest, and I reached out to thread my fingers through my Ekam’s. “Someone once told me we don’t get a say in what other people choose to sacrifice for us. I don’t want her to die either, and we’ll do whatever we can to keep her alive. I can’t violate our agreements with the Farians though, Emmory. I’ll have to tell them, even if…” I trailed off, unable to even finis
h the sentence.
Emmory squeezed my hand and then let me go. “I know, ma’am.”
We headed back to Midway aboard Hao’s ship and a sleek little transport of Rai’s that bore a suspicious resemblance to one of the Solarian military’s newest fighter prototypes. Two days and six hours later, the acquisition of the Saxon ships went off without a hitch.
I listened to the whole thing over the com link. All three ships had been locked down to the port on Rai’s order, and for further assurance he’d sent mechanics in at night to disable the ships.
To help secure Captain Earnest’s assistance, we’d knocked his team out by shutting off the life support on their ship just enough to put them all out but not kill them. The other two Saxon vessels were supposed to go down the same way, but something had tipped off Colonel Hume, and the boarding parties met resistance.
Nakula fumed at my side the whole time. I’d repeatedly rejected his requests to join Hao. His injuries would have made him a liability. So we both listened as Hao laughed at Hume’s demand that he fight him and instead killed the Saxon with a well-placed shot.
“Welcome to my life,” I said, patting him on the arm and laughing when he glared at me.
“I’m not the empress.”
I grinned. “No, but you’re important, and more to the point you’re still injured. Also, I like Jia, and I don’t particularly want to see her crying because your stupid ass got killed on some revenge trip.”
“I’ve never met anyone like her,” Nakula murmured, glancing over his shoulder at the closed door that separated us from where Jia was hard at work detailing what she’d seen of the Saxon forces on Canafey Minor. “You should have seen her, Majesty—”
“Will you call me Hail? For Shiva’s sake, it’s just weird for that to come out of your mouth. At least do it in private, Nakula, for me?” I said before he could protest.
“Fine, Hail.” He stuck his tongue out at me. “When I first rescued her, they’d been interrogating her for hours. She was beaten to shit. The first thing she said to me was I should take her head and dispose of it. Her voice was as calm as if she’d asked for a cup of tea.” He closed his eyes as though he still couldn’t believe it. “I dragged her through hell and back. Not a single complaint. She kicked my ass a few times when I even dared assume she wasn’t capable.”
“Not all us nobles are pampered and useless.”
Nakula laughed, dragging both hands through his chestnut hair. When he looked up at me, his heart was in his eyes. “She’s the world, Hail. My whole world. How do I even compete when we get home? She’s a governor. I’m nothing. I don’t even know who my mother was.”
“You can start by not thinking of it as a competition, idiot.” I punched him lightly in the chest. “You really think she gives two shits who your mother was? Don’t put her on a fucking pedestal, Nakula. Treat her like a person. Pay attention to the way she looks at you and stop worrying so much about what you should do as far as Indranan society is concerned.” I grinned at him. “I hear there’s a new empress in town and things are changing.”
“Your Majesty,” Indula said over the com link. “The ships are secure. Rai says it’ll be about an hour before they’ll be ready for takeoff.”
“Good to hear. We’re going to dock.”
“Yes, ma’am. Iza wants to know what to do with the prisoners?”
“Put them in lockdown. Separate them between the ships.”
“Acknowledged,” Indula said, and the com clicked off.
“Dailun, come up to the bridge, please.”
My newest recruit appeared a few minutes later. “Hai, jiejie?”
“Go get the War Bastard ready for departure. Take Nakula and Kisah with you. I’ll send you coordinates when we get away from here.”
Dailun nodded. Nakula got to his feet and smiled at me as he followed the kid to the door.
“You’re a hell of an empress, Hail. Don’t let anyone tell you differently.”
I snorted with laughter and waved him out the door, but there was no denying the warmth in my chest at his words. It felt like I was—slowly—getting the hang of this.
I brought the ship into dock and spent a few minutes shutting her down. Satisfied, I got up and took the stairs two at a time to the lower level intent on going to the medical bay to check on Gita, who had suffered seven broken ribs from Captain Earnest’s kick.
“You look like shit.” I whistled at Hao, who was coming up from the cargo bay.
“I don’t care what your Ekam says, next time you get to go,” he teased. “I’m fine. Most of it isn’t mine.” He tossed me something covered in gore.
I bobbled the blood-covered device with a look of horror. “Bugger me. Hao, what the shit?”
“Hume’s zhù. I figured you needed it. Now I need a shower while we’re hooked up to Midway’s water system.”
I swallowed back the bile that threatened as I looked down at the smati hardware in my hand. “Take your time, Rai said it would be at least an hour to get crews together for those ships.”
Hao nodded. “Then we’re headed to meet up with your admiral. Do you have your plan together for retrieving these mystery ships of yours?”
“Still working on it. Why?”
“Been thinking about it myself, but I don’t have all the details. If you’re willing to share, you want to go over it once we’re under way?”
“Sure.” I edged by him. “Go clean up, you smell like a carrion house.”
His laughter followed me down the hallway and I was smiling when I came through the med bay doors.
“Majesty,” Henna said with a nervous little bow. “Your people get hurt a lot.”
“Hazard of the job, I’m afraid.” I handed her the hardware. “Will you clean that up as best as you can? Be careful. We need to see if we can get any information from it.”
“Of course, Majesty.”
I headed for the sink and vigorously washed my hands. “How are you, Gita?”
“Fine, Majesty.” Her voice was breathy with pain and I rolled my eyes at her.
Henna was less silent with her disdain. “Not fine. She would have been better off getting kicked in the chest by a Hanover elephant. I’m still amazed none of those ribs punctured a lung.”
“I don’t need platitudes, Gita.” The reprimand was gentle, but she still flushed and looked at the bedspread.
“I’m sorry I failed you.”
I perched on the edge of the bed and rode the wave of pain I knew was going to come with my words. “You know, Jet said something similar to me, right after he’d saved me from being killed. All because I’d gotten shot in the process. That Saxon was waiting for me, and you were right where you needed to be—between me and him. Don’t beat yourself up over the fact that he moved faster than you. Find a way to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Now rest. You’re out of the lineup until we meet with Admiral Hassan and can get a Farian to heal you.” I looked through the glass windows to where Emmory sat by Fasé’s bed.
“Still not talking,” Henna offered, anticipating my question. “Better though. Readings improved. Life coming back. Here’s your brain chip.” She handed me a little bag with the hardware inside.
“Emmory told me about your conversation with the Farian back home, ma’am,” Gita said. “Is it really that bad?”
“It could be,” I replied.
“What are you going to do, ma’am?”
“I don’t know. It’s out of my hands.” I hated saying it, but it was the truth. I could object to a decision to end her life and plead Fasé’s case with them, but the Farians were our allies and I couldn’t risk that for just one woman. I gave Gita and Henna a final nod and crossed through into the other room. Alba got up from Emmory’s side as I came in the room.
“Alba, I’ll need you in a moment. I just wanted to check on Fasé.” I rested a hand on Emmory’s shoulder. He had his hands wrapped around hers, her pale fingers
so tiny in his grip. I put my hand over the top, wishing I could just will her better.
“How did everything go?”
“You didn’t listen in?” I asked, surprised.
Emmory shook his head. “I thought it would be better to be focused on her. There wasn’t anything I could have done anyway.”
“The ships are ours. Colonel Hume is dead, along with most of his team and all of the other team. They took Captain Earnest’s team alive without firing a shot though, and Hao got this.” I waved the bag and Emmory’s eyebrows shot up.
“Is that—”
“Yeah. I’m not even going to ask him how he got it out.”
“Give it to Zin. Hopefully he can retrieve something off it.”
“I’ll have him coordinate with Dailun. I sent Nakula and Kisah with him to get the War Bastard prepped for departure.”
Emmory nodded. “Go find Zin now. I’ll catch up with you in a little bit. The faster he gets into that, the better chance we have of not dying when we attempt this insanity.”
32
We delayed our departure so Dailun could run back from the War Bastard and help Zin get the colonel’s smati working. I paced in the background as they worked until Hao got in my way.
“Sit.” He raised a copper eyebrow in perfect harmony with mine. “Your patience hasn’t improved at all, sha zhu.”
“Neither has your bossiness.” But I dropped into a seat, crossing my arms over my chest and resisting the urge to tap my foot.
“See what you’ve gotten yourself into?” Hao said in Cheng to Dailun.
“I’m sure it will be okay, honored brother,” Dailun replied with a laugh.
“I can understand you two.”
“I should hope so. I’d be disappointed if your Cheng went to shit after only a few months of easy living.”
“Oh hush. You call that easy living? People were trying to kill me.”
“Such is life.” Hao took the seat nearby. “Spill your plan, little sister. Let’s see where it takes us.”
“Right now the Vajrayana ships are dead weight. When the lockdown went into effect it shut down everything: navigation, engines, life support, gravity, the works.”
