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Th-thank y-you, she stammered. She took the bag with shaking fingers. Her teeth rattled together so hard he feared she might break one of them. Would you like a sedative? There s still time to administer an injection before we lift off from the surface. N-no, she said with a determined shake of her head. I just need a mo-moment. He held her wide-eyed, panicked gaze. You ll be fine. Take some deep, calm breaths. I ve heard some people like to close their eyes and count silently. That might help. She shot him a grateful smile. Thank you. In the next instant, the light in the passenger area turned bright-green. The ship vibrated and gained speed. Next to him, Penny squeezed her eyes shut and gripped the puke bag. Across the aisle, Raze eyed her with some concern. Menace second-guessed his decision to offer the sedative. He should have just given it and asked forgiveness later. When they reached outer space, she squeaked. He expected her to blow any second, but she got a hold of herself and managed not to lose it. Twenty minutes into their three-hour trek to the Valiant, she d calmed enough to relax. Half an hour into it, she worked up the courage to speak. You were part of the Connor s Run Grab? Menace nodded. Yes. You re happy with your wife? Very. Danny told me all about the woman he was taking the bag to, she said with a gentle smile. From what I gather, she s really amazing. Yes, Menace said softly. She is. Penny laughed. I bet she wasn t afraid to climb on a ship like this and fly into space. No, Menace agreed. I don t think she was afraid of the flight. He didn t mention that she was more terrified of him. Penny seemed to understand. It s not an easy thing, leaving behind everything you ve known to make a new life with a strange man. Especially when that strange man belongs to the race that filled the grim tales of your childhood, she added. You know, go to sleep or the sky warriors will snatch you away and make you their slave. Stay out of the woods or the Harcos will find you and take you to one of their ships where they ll use you as a guinea pig. While Menace wondered how the hell his people s kindness toward the people of Calyx had been twisted into such gruesome tales, Raze asked, What is a guinea pig? It s a small animal that existed on Earth and was used in experiments by the scientists and doctors there. Our ancestors who fled the world of science experiments gone awry wrote about them. Raze frowned. We don t experiment on humans. You would say that, wouldn t you? Her teasing smile made Raze chuckle. Yes, I guess I would. Raze unbuckled his harness and rose. I ll be in the back with Cipher. Still smiling, Penny opened her bag and took out a small square wrapped in white paper. It s a sweet bread. Would you like a piece? Menace held up his hand. No but thank you. Penny nibbled silently and sipped from a metal bottle she had retrieved from her bag. Watching her eat left him feeling uncomfortably aware of the ways he had failed Naya on her trip to the Valiant. He hadn t even thought to offer her a drink or something to eat. After running and fighting him, she had probably needed both. No, he had been more concerned with getting her to be quiet and sit still. Rubbing the back of his neck, Menace stretched out his legs. This experience with ferrying Penny to the Valiant was proving more pleasant than the transport ship ride he d shared with Naya. There were no weeping brides and no sex-starved males tapping feet and drumming fingers on armrests. Are you friends with the man I m joining? Menace glanced at Penny. Not really. Oh. She looked surprised. I thought I owed him a debt of honor. Picking you up and bringing you to him without incident is my way of settling that debt. Um& I guess that s nice. Menace chuckled. That s one way of describing it. She returned her items to her bag and closed it up. He realized that she was fishing for information on her potential mate. I believe our pilot, Zephyr, is familiar with your soon-to-be mate. Once we reach cruising speed, I can see if he d be willing to speak with you about him. I d like that. An hour into their flight, Menace walked her to the front of the ship and showed her an empty seat behind the two pilot chairs. Zeph, this is Penny. Fully aware of the pilot s Lothario reputation, he clapped the man on the arm. Remember she s taken. Unlike you land corps boys, we sky corps men don t go around stealing other men s wives. Menace let the zing about the Arctis bust-up slide. I ll be in the cargo bay with Raze. Buzz me when she s done. Will do. He found Raze and Venom sorting through the items packed into Naya s bag. He scanned the bench where they d laid out her things. Clothing, a small notebook, a pair of boots, a belt& and a gun. Venom must have seen the shock register on his face. It was loaded but I ve rendered it safe. Menace picked up the small pistol. It had been a long time since a weapon like this had been in general circulation. His grandfather had used these in his first campaigns but they d been phased out of the military by the time the old man had retired. Menace had a few of these old models in his personal collection and fired them for fun on occasion. I have to confiscate it. Venom gestured toward the weapon. Normally I d hand it over to you since that s your purview, but I thought you d like to avoid a conflict of interest issue. Understood. He inspected Naya s sidearm. She d kept it clean and ready for use. He spotted the T scratched into the metal. A little lower an N had been etched into it. Realizing the weapon had sentimental value, he said, I ll petition to have it returned. I m sure she ll want it back since it belonged to her father. Raze flipped through the notebook. Photographs fell out and drifted to the floor. Menace knelt down and gathered them. They were pictures from her childhood. He couldn t help but smile at her gap- toothed grin and wild hair. She looked so happy, so carefree. What had happened to that little girl to make her into the wary, mistrusting woman he knew? I can t make heads or tails of this. Raze handed it to Cipher. It s in code. Cipher thumbed through it. Yes, it is. What do you think, Menace? Do you want me to crack it? The idea of reading Naya s secret communications left him feeling uneasy. No. She s just paranoid enough to code her day-to-day diary entries. What she s written in there is none of my business. Unless it is, Raze replied carefully. That man is part of the Red Feather, their dissident group, and he called her his friend. If she was a member of that group and if this book details her work with them, I m sure Terror will want to know. Menace snatched the book from Raze s hand and stuffed the pictures inside. The Red Feather is on the neutral list. They re not our enemies. I won t go digging through my wife s diary entries, entries she s gone to great lengths to keep secret, to give Terror more homework. It s going into my report, Menace. I have to cover my ass. Cover away, Menace said and began packing away her things. The rest of the bag was cleared? Yes, Venom confirmed. The firearm? Menace handed it over. Make sure it goes into the safe in the armory or the one in Vicious office. If that s taken, I can t replace it for her. I will. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ] |