Alisa suspected she should back away instead of eavesdropping from the middle of the corridor where anyone could stumble across her. She would be surprised if Abelardus did not already know she was there. Still, it was hard to think of backing away when all she wanted was to run in there and kick Alejandro in the shin. Or perhaps someplace higher.
“Unless you stay on this ship with her,” Abelardus added. “She might be your best bet to find the prince.”
“What makes you believe that? And don’t think I can’t sense you trying to manipulate me.”
Abelardus laughed. “With words only. I’m not that gifted at mind manipulation. I might be able to temporarily convince you of something, but it wouldn’t stick. As for the rest, my brother apparently kidnapped her daughter.”
“What does that have to do with the prince?”
“Durant is thoughtful and academic. If he took the girl, he had a reason. He may have figured out long before I did that she’s descended from powerful Starseers. Alcyone, very possibly. I don’t know enough about the Staffs of Lore to be certain that they’re keyed to certain dynasties, but it does seem possible, especially now that I’ve watched Alisa touch it and bring it to life.”
“If you think I want some Alliance-loving rebel’s kid to have access to that staff, you’re spaced.”
He had all manner of adjectives for her, didn’t he? Alisa glowered at the wall to his cabin.
You can come in and join the conversation if you wish
, Abelardus said dryly into her thoughts.
I might kick Alejandro if I did.
I wouldn’t object. It would be nice to see you unleash your temper on someone else.
I only unleash my temper on people who deserve it,
she growled in her mind.
I do apologize for that. Sometimes… sometimes when you want something badly enough, you don’t realize you’re influencing those around you to get it.
“Are you listening to me, Abelardus?” Alejandro asked.
“Yes, Doctor. My point is that my brother may know more about where the prince is than you do. Didn’t you say that he’s with Starseers?”
“I didn’t, no, but I suppose you know everything that’s in my head.”
“I learn what I wish to learn.”
“Leonidas is the one who said he’s with the Starseers, some that were friendly to the empire. That’s all he knows. The Alliance is offering two hundred thousand tindarks for that information.”
“They might be wiser to put out a bounty on my brother. He always sided with the empire.” Abelardus grunted. “He may even be with the prince now. Alisa’s daughter could be too. He could have been the one to collect both of them. Perhaps others too. Other children who might become powerful enough to change the course of history.”
Alisa rested her palm on the cool metal wall, hardly able to process his words. Powerful? Jelena? A girl who could barely get a volleyball over a net?
“You said you don’t know where your brother is,” Alejandro said slowly, “that he hasn’t responded to your messages.”
“This is true, but I know where he was last seen. And we’re already heading in that direction.”
“Cleon Moon?”
“Cleon Moon.”
A touch on Alisa’s shoulder made her jump. She spun, putting her finger to her lips before she caught herself.
Leonidas stood in the corridor, wearing his loose exercise togs and holding two mugs. He tilted his head back toward the intersection. She blushed at having been caught listening, but was glad he did not say anything and give her away. Abelardus hadn’t mentioned her presence, judging by Alejandro’s comments. Not that the good doctor held back that much when she was actually in the room.
Alisa followed Leonidas to the mess hall, where he handed her one of the steaming mugs of coffee.
Though her mind was reeling from listening in on that conversation, she took a moment to smile at him and say, “Thank you.”
“Was your eavesdropping fruitful?” he asked.
“More like disturbing. And don’t pretend you and your enhanced cyborg ears have never eavesdropped.”
“Hm.” He eyed a few chicken feathers scattered on the deck and sat at one end of the table.
The ancient, powerful, and mysterious Staff of Lore lay atop it like a toy someone had forgotten to put away. It wasn’t as if anyone on the ship didn’t know about it, so Alisa supposed there wasn’t much point in squirreling it away.
“The problem with eavesdropping,” Leonidas said, “is that you sometimes hear unpleasantries that you might have been happier not hearing.”
“Is that the only problem?” Alisa wondered how long he had been behind
her
, also hearing that conversation.
“One might also list the questionable morality as a problem.”
“But only if one was particularly sanctimonious, right?” Alisa started to sit across the table from him but decided to be cozier since they had the mess hall to themselves. She slung her legs over the bench and sat beside him.
“Probably.”
She leaned her shoulder against his and sipped from her mug. “Ah, good. Strong. Coffee and chocolate shouldn’t be diluted.”
“I agree.” He sipped from his own mug.
She wouldn’t have minded if he had slipped an arm around her waist, but maybe it was better to keep touching to a minimum, since nothing could come of it.
“The ship is heading to Cleon Moon,” she said. “Have you looked to see if there are any cybernetics facilities there? I know it’s not an overly modern and industrialized world, but there are some research outposts, if memory serves.”
“There aren’t any facilities.”
“Ah.”
“I have been contemplating finding a fast ship and kidnapping Admiral Tiang.”
Alisa almost choked on her coffee. “Truly?”
“Would you object? Because he’s an Alliance officer now?”
“I… don’t know. He used to be an imperial officer, right? If he flip-flopped that easily, he’s probably not that loyal to anyone.”
Of course, if
she
went along on his kidnapping mission, she could get herself in trouble with the Alliance. Again. She strongly believed Tomich’s involvement was the only reason she had been allowed to fly away from Alcyone Station. If she ever ran into any of the officers who had been involved in the attack on the Starseer temple, they would likely shoot her on sight.
“He’s loyal to his research,” Leonidas said. “Some people don’t care who’s in charge, so long as they can pursue their passions.”
“Then when they realize they
can’t
pursue those passions, it’s too late to do anything,” she grumbled.
She reached out and laid a finger on the staff. Once again, the orb lit with a soft glow. She sneered at it. Had it been a fluke when it lit up at her touch before, she would have been happier. She wouldn’t need to be wondering about her heritage now or worrying that Jelena would become a pawn in some power struggle. She just wanted to find her little girl. Was that too much to ask? She already felt like a horrible mother for traipsing around the system when she had no idea where her daughter was or even if she was all right. It frustrated her that she barely knew where to start looking. Would Cleon Moon lead to anything? Or was it simply a place that her daughter’s kidnapper may have visited months ago?
Growing aware of Leonidas gazing at her, Alisa pulled her finger back. The orb on the top of the staff went dark again. All of her concerns about him condemning her for having Starseer genes came back to her, and she cursed her thoughtless gesture.
“Apparently, this mighty artifact’s main use is as a nightlight.” She waved dismissively, hoping he would forget what he had seen—and also that she had been the one to open that door.
“For you.”
“So it seems.”
“How long have you known you have Starseer genes?” he asked, his tone neutral.
She shrank into herself, now wishing she had chosen to sit on the opposite side of the table. Then she could more easily climb under it and hide from his sight.
“Not long,” she said. “A few days. When you brought that blood back for Alejandro to analyze, his DNA sequencer was already set up, so I stuck a drop of my own blood in there. Something Abelardus said had made me wonder.”
“Abelardus,” Leonidas said, growling into his coffee mug.
“Yeah. Did you attack him spontaneously back in that airlock?” she asked, pleased to change the subject. “Or was it his idea?”
“He told me to. For veracity. I didn’t mind going along.”
“I imagine not.”
Alisa clasped her hands around the warm mug. She could understand why he disliked Abelardus, and he had little reason to like any of the Starseers he had met in their temple, but would he consider her… tainted?
“Does it matter?” she asked softly.
“What?”
“That my father might have worn some of those black robes.”
Leonidas tilted his head. “Did you know him?”
“Not in the least. Whatever role he played in my mother’s life, he was gone before I was born.”
“He may have simply carried the genes without having any talents. That’s how it is for most people with the mutations.”
“Yes, that’s true.” She eyed him sidelong. “But if he did have those kinds of talents… would it matter?”
“To whom?” He frowned slightly, truly seeming puzzled.
“You.”
“Why would it?”
“You’ve made it clear that Starseers and cyborgs are mortal enemies.”
“The empire and the Alliance are mortal enemies too,” he said dryly.
And he was still sipping coffee with her. Right. She supposed that had been a foolish concern. She might have laughed that she had worried about it, but she found her thoughts distracted. He was smiling slightly, his eyes drooped to half-mast as he regarded her.
“If I didn’t know you better,” she said, “I would consider that a come-hither look.”
“A what?”
“You know, a silent way of telling me that you want to relocate to your cabin for hot sex.”
His eyes flew open in surprise.
“How young did you say you were when you signed up for the military?” Alisa asked, suddenly wondering if she was having coffee with a forty-year-old virgin cyborg.
“Not
that
young,” he said, catching her drift. “I was actually a precocious youth, if you must know, but it’s been so long since I’ve even…” He lifted one hand, groping in the air for a word or a way to explain. “It’s just hard to remember what it was even like. Noticing innuendos. Or caring about sex.” He lowered his gaze to the table, and she thought she caught a hint of shame in his eyes.
Alisa winced. She hadn’t wanted to embarrass him or hurt his feelings.
“Then it’s settled,” she said, hoping to distract him from the discomfort she had caused.
“What is?” He regarded her warily.
“The kidnapping scheme. First, we find my daughter, and then we go and kidnap your admiral.”
“Technically, I believe he’s
your
admiral now.”
“Something I’ll appreciate you not pointing out to him while you’re doing the kidnapping. But I’ll hold the rifle on him while he performs whatever surgery you need. To make sure he doesn’t do anything shifty while you’re unconscious.”
“I would appreciate that,” he said.
He slid his arm around her waist. She smiled and leaned closer to him. That was nice. It would do for now.
As he took another sip from his mug, Beck and Mica walked into the mess hall from the direction of the cargo hold. Judging by their clothing and the sheens of sweat on their foreheads, they had been exercising.
Alisa thought about leaning away from Leonidas and striving for a modicum of professionalism, but he did not lower his arm. She supposed a freighter captain could fraternize with her crew. This wasn’t a military ship.
Beck stumbled a little when he noticed them sitting together. Mica didn’t bat an eyelash as she veered toward the coffee dispenser.
“I think he’s getting his thigh touched again,” Beck whispered, grabbing two dented mugs from a cabinet.
“Are you still bitter that nobody touched yours?” Mica asked.
“It was more the implication that my thigh wasn’t useful that embittered me.”
“Not every limb can be as versatile as an oscillating multitool.”
“I can oscillate.”
“You really know how to woo the women, Beck,” Mica said, taking her mug and sitting across the table from Alisa and Leonidas. “Are we still heading to Cleon Moon, Captain?”
“We are.”
“Good. There are a ton of moons orbiting Aldrin, some with substantial populations. Someone’s sure to have challenging and rewarding work for an engineer. I have my résumé ready.”
“You’re leaving us?” Beck asked, bringing his coffee to the table to join her. “Isn’t the pay good enough?”
“There’s pay?”
“Uhm.” Beck looked at Alisa.
“We never did discuss your payment rate for security officers,” Leonidas said.
Alisa poked a finger into her coffee. “I’ve heard of this before, that uncomfortable moment when your employees compare salaries. Did you know that some of the people on this ship
pay
for the honor to ride on such a fine craft as the
Star Nomad
?”
“I wonder if there are any culinary angel investors on those moons,” Beck said, his expression turning wistful.
“You better wonder if there are any White Dragon operatives,” Leonidas said.
Beck groaned. “Can’t the captain wave her new staff and magic them away? It glows for her.”
Alisa eyed the staff distastefully. “I don’t believe it works that way. And it’s not mine. You’ll have better luck asking your new colleague for help.”
“My new what?”
“Your fellow security officer.” Alisa laid a hand on Leonidas’s biceps. “Were you not there when we made it official?”
“I—what?”
“I outrank him, right?” Leonidas asked.
“
What?
” Beck set his coffee mug down with a clunk.
“We’ll figure it out along the way to Cleon Moon.” Alisa’s gaze fell to the staff again. “We have a lot to figure out.”
THE END
Afterword
I hope you enjoyed
Relic of Sorrows
. I plan to have the fifth book in the Fallen Empire series out in August 2016.