Chapter Eight
Stefan Hayden leaned back in his seat, conscious of a feeling of satisfaction. He glanced around the interior of the flyter—the array of monitoring equipment, the lockers full of weapons and armor. The cot he had slept on had been crammed into the space made by removing a row of seats. Spending a few days in cramped quarters was a small price to pay to secure Francesca’s future.
At his console, Hiram Toth tapped the location indicator for the transponders, then turned toward Stefan. “They did pretty well today, sir. They’re about sixteen kilometers from the western border of Hayden.”
Pleased, Stefan nodded. His plan was working. Francesca and Ran-Del must be operating as a team to have come so far so quickly. Doubtless by now Ran-Del had demonstrated his survival skills and impressed the already smitten Francesca. “They should make it over the border by noon or so tomorrow. We might pick them up as soon as tomorrow afternoon. Have the flyter ready, will you, Hiram?”
“Yes, sir. Does D’Persis know about this new expedition?”
“I’ve kept her up to date. Don’t worry; she won’t give you any grief for not reining me in.”
Hiram grinned at him, his eyes thinning to slits and his teeth very white in his brown face. “She always gives me grief about that.”
“She’d give you more than grief if you’d let her,” Stefan said. “She’s still nuts about you.”
Hiram shook his head. “It’s over. It’s been over for a long time. She just doesn’t want to admit it.”
“Too stressful having a relationship at work?” Stefan suggested.
Hiram raised his eyebrows, his expression bland except for a hint of amusement in his eyes. “You don’t seem to have a problem with it, sir.”
Stefan laughed. Hiram was a third-generation Hayden employee who had grown up in the Hayden compound. The friendship the two of them had forged as boys had survived the other man’s employment as Stefan’s guard. “No, I don’t. But then I’ve managed to keep it pretty quiet, thanks to you.”
Hiram nodded. “I’m pretty sure Alyssa knows about it, too. She said something once, right before we broke it off ourselves. Made me think she must know about you and Nisa.”
Stefan shrugged with unconcern. “D’Persis can keep her mouth shut. She wouldn’t be my security chief if she couldn’t.”
The monitor behind Hiram beeped rapidly. He whipped around to study the readout, but after several seconds he shook his head. “Heart rate and respiration were very rapid for a few minutes there, but they’ve leveled off again.”
Intrigued, Stefan came over and scrutinized the readout himself. “Damn, that was quick. It was too brief to mean anything happened. Not even Francesca can work that fast.”
Hiram frowned, his amusement gone. “I still don’t see why you’re setting her up like this, Stefan. She could have anybody she wanted. Why stick her with a nobody from the woods?”
Stefan hid a smile at his guard’s antipathy. Hiram had been protective of Francesca since she was small, and not purely for professional reasons. “Ran-Del has useful talents. He also has absolutely no connection to anyone in the city—no loyalties, no debts, no history at all. Right now, that’s what Francesca needs.”
Hiram shook his head. “But you're trusting her life to a wild man!”
“Ran-Del swore he wouldn’t hurt her,” Stefan said, complacent. “And I trust a Sansoussy true oath more than an iron-clad contract with any cartel in Shangri-La.”
Hiram’s eyes still held unease. “Well, I’ll feel better once we get her back again. You never know what could happen out in the wild.”
Stefan glanced at the readouts again. “Not as much as I had hoped, apparently. But you’re right. It’ll be best to pick them up tomorrow.” He grinned at his personal guard. “It’ll be interesting to see what kind of relationship they’ve developed after a few days in trying circumstances, don’t you think?”
The Sixth Discipline Page 20
