“We’re not leaving our daughters,” Mr. Quetzali said, wrapping an arm around his wife. Their faces were determined as each reached for a hand of their daughters.
There was a pregnant pause before Braedon spoke up. “We’re family now, Iz. We’re in this together.”
Trix nodded, and the others murmured their agreement.
Iza’s heart swelled, seeing the determination on their faces. On her own, she was stubborn, and that sheer force of will had been enough to get her by in life. Now, though, she needed her team’s skills and their emotional support. She was stronger with them. She never thought she’d admit it, but knowing they were counting on her as a leader made her try that much harder. Together, she knew they could accomplish anything.
She gave a resolute nod. “Then it’s decided. I’ll keep Arvonen distracted while you get our people.”
“We won’t know until we get in there if Joe and your cousin are being held in the same place,” Viper said. “What if it comes down to us only being able to get one?”
It was a valid question and one Iza wasn’t ready to answer, except in the vaguest of terms. “If things go my way, we won’t have to choose.”
“I don’t believe Joe would like your plan,” Trix said. “There is far too much risk to you.”
“Yes, he probably wouldn’t if he were here, but he’s not. Any other objections?” Iza asked.
“Not an objection really, just a word of advice from the son of a madman,” Braedon said. “He’ll destroy anything that gets in the way of his domination of the Gate and our worlds.”
“Why, what does he hope to gain?” Mr. Quetzali asked.
“Something he thinks he’s never had. Relevance,” Karter said. “There’s a reason he’s working with my mother. The Lower Dynasty families are little more than business leaders. High Dynasties get a seat at the big table and make the decisions that affect us all.”
“He wants to sit at the table,” Mr. Quetzali said nodding in understanding.
Braedon shook his head and smiled. “No, he doesn’t want a seat. He wants the whole table.”
Karter nodded in agreement.
“Destroying our worlds isn’t going to help him,” Mrs. Quetzali said, her eyes hard as stone.
“Arvonen isn’t the one destroying our worlds,” Iza corrected. “His pursuit of this Gate has brought unwanted attention from an alien race that would like to keep as much separation between us as possible. It’s an entirely different problem, but we’ll avoid them if we can. I’d rather not have them kill me, too.”
“Why would they want you?” Mr. Quetzali asked.
“It’s a long story, but suffice it to say, it’s a family dispute.”
Iza looked up at Skyler; she nodded, though her arms were now crossed over her body. The others sat in silence taking it all in.
“Any plan that involves you being bait is too risky,” Karter spat.
“That’s a risk I’m willing to take,” Iza said. “Once we have Joe and my cousin back, we’re going to want to be on the good side of the TSS. That’s why Joe’s sister is here.”
Iza gestured in Skyler’s direction with one hand and they turned to look at her, but it was Trix who spoke.
“I have to agree with Karter, as much as it displeases me. Sacrificing yourself is no guarantee of your success,” Trix said.
Iza knew that, but she didn’t have a quick retort or anything light to say. It was true; she was bait for both the Gatekeepers and Arvonen, and everyone knew what happened to bait. Iza closed her eyes and focused on her breathing as a tremendous weight settled into her chest. She let out a long exhale and met their eyes. “It’s only a sacrifice if you don’t do exactly what I say. My plans don’t include getting killed, but I didn’t want to preclude the possibility in case you were wondering if I was insane.”
“That’s still up for debate,” Viper said.
“This is madness,” Karter said. “Though, I think you got the best deal you could in the circumstances. However, I could offer you something more substantial and immediate. We are still contractually engaged. I know I don’t have anything, but perhaps if we made it official, we could—”
“You already know I’d rather die than actually marry you, but thanks for the offer.” Atano growled under his breath at the perceived infraction echoing Iza’s sentiments.
He reached across the table and grabbed both her hands in his soft warm ones.
Iza saw Becca stiffen beside him, but she clamped her mouth closed on whatever protest she was about to make. Is he putting on a show for her or me?
“I’m serious,” Karter continued. “You don’t have to do this. We can find another way. The losses would be too great to overcome if you fail.”
He was right. If things didn’t go according to plan, not only would Arvonen have her, they could wind up being dragged into some kind of power struggle with the Gatekeepers. They’d already taken her father and killed her aunt and probably her mother. But when she thought of the alternative, leaving Joe and Jaidyn on their own—leaving the outer colonies defenseless against the transformations… She pulled her hands away from Karter’s. She wasn’t willing to give up.
“This is happening, and if you don’t want to get your pretty face injured, now would be a good time to take Becca and go.”
Karter glanced at Becca and firmed his lips. Something invisible passed between them that Iza couldn’t decipher. Then, he squared his shoulders. “I’ll stand with you.”
Skyler unfolded her arms. She seemed satisfied now that everyone else had spoken up.
“I still think we should wait for TSS backup to arrive.”
“Look, we don’t sit around waiting for the TSS to save us. You want to know why?”
“They never make it on time,” Trix finished for her.
“They arrest you like a criminal even if you’re just an innocent bystander,” Braedon continued.
“They get in your way,” Viper added.
Iza stared back at Skyler with an eyebrow raised in challenge.
“This is my brother we’re talking about,” the Agent said. “Not to mention, the galactic-scale implications if things go wrong. We’re not going in there without a plan.”
“We do have a plan,” Iza said as she stood up from her chair and placed her hands on her hips.
“What you have is a hunch,” Skyler countered. She bowed her head in frustration. “You don’t know what you’re doing, marching in there making demands while the rest of us sneak in. Too may things could go wrong. We need back up.”
“That’s why we have you.”
“There’s only so much I can do. We don’t even have a shuttle, so we can’t pick Joe up even if we wanted to. We’ll have to rely on Arvonen to not only release him but to deliver him to us. Besides, you’re betting a lot he’s going to want you and your cousin more than Joe.”
“It’s a fact that he does,” Braedon said. “It’s not ‘betting’ when you’re certain you have the advantage.”
Iza nodded. “Exactly. I’m what Arvonen needs to complete his plan, not Joe. Braedon and Viper have hacked the Arvonen One before. Plus, he has no idea you’re with us. All things considered, things are stacked in our favor.”
“If Arvonen wants you so badly,” Skyler said, “then he would be chasing you instead of the other way around. He knows he’s got you as long as he holds my brother.”
“It’s all a game to him. You’ll have to trust me, Agent Anderson.”
There was an electric current of energy flowing between them, but neither woman was willing to back down.
“We’ve almost reached the coordinates of the Arvonen One.” Trix said moving for the door and breaking the tense silence in the room.
“Last chance to save your own butts,” Iza said as she glanced around the galley one more time. No one spoke up; they’d made their decision.
It was time to make a move, and she had to be the one to do it.
—
They d
ropped out from subspace in the middle of nowhere at the edge of the Taran Empire. The nearest planet wasn’t even fit for habitation. Only the magnified image of the Arvonen One broke up the endless starscape on the front display.
Skyler stood at Joe’s tactical position, fuming. Things hadn’t gone her way and she wasn’t happy about it. She’d just have to get over it.
Iza hadn’t become the captain of her own ship so she could do someone else’s bidding. She didn’t answer to the TSS. They were using her to get to Arvonen and the Gatekeepers, so she was going to fulfill her obligations on her own terms. Arvonen was the enemy she knew quite well, and he’d do anything to get her on board his ship, including a trade for Joe. In fact, she was so sure she was willing to bet her life on it. But, as Braedon said, it wasn’t a bet if you held the advantage.
All non-essentials and civilians were banned from the flight deck. Viper had stormed off several minutes ago; she was still just a kid. A genius for sure, but she was too young for this fight, and with her parents on board, Iza didn’t want anything to happen to either of their daughters. Karter had protested, too, but she didn’t need the businessman on the flight deck. His bad blood with Arvonen would only be a distraction. It was enough his son would be sitting at the helm. Cierra was in the infirmary prepping for casualties, as instructed.
Trix stood on Iza’s right. Atano moved to the captain’s chair and sat waiting for Iza to sit down.
“Why aren’t they responding?” Iza asked again when the Arvonen One had yet to acknowledge their communication attempt.
“I’m not sure, but I know they’re aware of us. They brought their weapons online almost the moment we arrived,” Trix said.
“Can you get into their system?” Iza asked Braedon.
“No, they’ve revamped everything since our last encounter. It would take ages to figure it out on my own.” He was hinting at including Viper, but Iza was determined to leave the girl out of it.
Iza stood up to pace.
“Captain, you’re distressed,” Trix said. Iza noted she hadn’t led with her vitals and that was a nice change. “You need to relax so you can be clear headed when they do signal us.”
“Any sign of the Taran Super-slow Service?”
Skyler pursed her lips as if tasting something fowl. “Not yet, but they’ll be here.”
“I’m sure you won’t be surprised if I don’t wait,” Iza said. “Braedon, can you send a message back through the line that Raquel used?”
His head snapped up and he turned to look at her confusion in his eyes. “Why would you want to contact her? She’s most likely with my father.”
“I’m counting on it.”
“I hope you know what you’re doing, Iz,” Braedon said loud enough for her to hear.
“I do, and it’s going to take everything I’ve got and more to get it done, so do as I say,” Iza said with a glance to Skyler. “Let me know as soon as she answers.”
“She’ll do whatever my father wants, you know. I hope you don’t think you can turn her.”
“I’m not trying to turn her,” Iza said keeping her eyes on the front display.
“Captain, she’s responding. Putting it through now,” Trix said.
Iza waited with anticipation for the video feed overlaid on the front viewport to resolve. Raquel’s face appeared; her eyes were hollow, and her brows drawn together. When Raquel saw Iza standing on the Verity’s flight deck, she took in all of them and then she spoke in a low growl to Iza.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
“Arvonen appears to be busy. I’d like you to arrange a meeting for me.”
“What? Are you out of your—” Raquel’s voice rose jointly with her frustration, but she quickly recovered. “He’s going to ask me questions about how you got my transmission signal and our location. You were supposed to run. Other than the Gate, the only other thing in this universe he wants more is you.”
Iza raised an eyebrow. That statement confirmed at least one thing.
“Tell your boss, I’d like to meet with him to discuss a trade. Let him know I have something he’s been looking for.”
“Izzy, don’t do this.”
“Don’t call me that, ever,” Iza insisted. “Tell Arvonen I’d like to trade.”
“Fine, but do you think trading your life for Joe’s is the answer? You can’t be serious.”
“Will you relay the message or not?” Iza kept her eyes steady on the holodisplay.
Raquel hissed, “I gave you the map as a warning, not get you all killed.”
“Braedon prepare to end transmission,” Iza said with a wave of her hand.
“Wait.” Raquel glanced over her left shoulder then back at the camera and sighed. “Fine.”
“Excellent, have him on screen as soon as it’s convenient.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Iza grew impatient as she waited for Arvonen to speak with her directly. A full seven minutes had gone by without a word from him or the ‘digger’, as Braedon called Raquel. Instead of sitting in her seat, Iza worked off the excess energy by pacing back and forth across the flight deck. Braedon was again tapping a mindless beat on his knee and Skyler drummed her fingers against the console. The only ones unaffected were Trix and Atano. Iza stared at the Arvonen One’s specs on her console, going over the potential locations they might be keeping Joe.
“There’s a gravity shift in the area off the stern of Arvonen’s ship. It could be a stealth ship,” Trix said.
“TSS?” Iza asked with a glance at Skyler.
Skyler shook her head. “Believe me, you’ll know when they arrive.”
Iz frowned. “Any sign of that stealthed ship heading for us?”
“Not at this time,” Trix reported. She came to attention. “Captain, we’re getting an incoming call from the Arvonen One.”
“Keep an eye on that stealth ship—or whatever it is—for any changes.” Iza worried her lip, and she made the conscious effort to stop. Then, she squared her shoulders and sat down with the dog on her lap as if she hadn’t a care in the world.
“Put the call through to main display.”
A breath later, Victor Arvonen himself stared back at her. It never ceased to amaze her how different Braedon’s features looked on his father. The hair streaked with white and the wrinkles around his hawk-like eyes, which didn’t miss anything. She saw the disdain in them as he took in her crew one by one before landing on her.
“Captain Sundari, to what do I owe the pleasure?”
“Pleasure? I certainly hope not.”
“I’m a very busy man. Is there something I can do for you?”
“Yes—”
“Dad, listen.” Braedon jumped in. He stared up at his father’s image. “This obsession of yours has gone too far. You have my friend on board that ship, and we want him back.”
Iza resisted wiping a hand over her face. This was not at all how this was supposed to go. She’d planned to broach the subject, after a bit of banter and insults. Though it had knocked her out of her flow, his interruption had also thrown his father.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Victor Arvonen answered. There wasn’t even a shift in his eyes when he lied, Iza noted.
“Memory going already, old man?” Braedon sneered. “Let me remind you. You have Joe Anderson, a former TSS Agent, on your ship, and you’ve been torturing him for information on Iza and the sphere. I gave you several chances to step away from this.” Then it was as if his next words were stuck in his throat. “Mother, she wouldn’t—”
Arvonen’s finger came up in front of his face, pointing at Braedon through the screen. “Don’t you dare, speak to me about her. You don’t have the right.”
Braedon rushed to his feet, now unable to stay seated.
“I will speak of her! One of us has to. Just because you’ve forgotten what kind of person she was doesn’t mean I will.”
“I’ll never forget your mother. She’s the reason I’m
doing all of this.” Arvonen spread his arms wide to either side. “She always wanted you boys to have more than we had. A real chance at a High Dynasty life. I can give you that now. Not running around on some hauling ship with a people who are beneath you.”
Iza opened her mouth to speak, but again Braedon cut her off.
“Mother would be ashamed of you.” Braedon spat the words, and his father flinched as if he’d been slapped.
Uh oh, we’re losing him. Iza needed to get this back on its original trajectory, but how?
Karter stepped onto the flight deck and walked over to stand beside Braedon as if she’d summoned him.
“Karter!” Iza hissed. This was all wrong. What are they doing? It was like some kind of conspiracy against her. Didn’t they understand making him angry wasn’t going to get them any closer to Joe? Karter ignored her, speaking directly to Arvonen.
“You can’t just make yourself High Dynasty. If it was that easy, don’t you think I would have tried that already? Your son is right. This pursuit is damaging your reputation beyond repair. There is no place for you in real society circles anymore. You just can’t come back from what you’ve done.”
Then, as if she’d been waiting for Karter to speak, his mother stepped into view beside Arvonen. Karter flinched but didn’t waver. Iza watched with one hand half covering her face. It was like witnessing a horrible Sensationals reenactment of what not to do during a negotiation.
“And what would you know about society circles?” Phaedra asked. The same look of disdain that Arvonen wore mirrored on her face. “You’ve done everything you can to avoid them.”
“Phaedra,” Karter said not taking his eyes off of his mother. “I see you’ve aligned yourself with this madman as well as threatening the future of your own dynasty. That doesn’t bode well for business relations.”
“How dare you speak to me of my dynasty when you would go out of your way to squander your own? Being engaged to that girl isn’t at all what I wanted for you, and you know it. She’s too important. I thought you understood that.”
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