Shades of Dark (38 page)

“Everything he knows about Burke and the lab ship, he downloaded to the
Karn,
” Sully continued. “I double-checked. Other
Kyi
gates,
Ragkir
contacts, the few
Kyi
besides us. He’s trying to make amends.”

“Will you be angry if I admit I don’t trust him?”

“No. I think someone
must
have taken away his wubbie-toy as a child, so now everything he sees is his as compensation. That, and the fact he’s a Serian. What did he tell me yesterday? ‘I am a prince and I shall walk among kings.’” Sully shook his head. “I was raised on Sylvadae where that’s not an uncommon mindset. But I also know it’s not a functional one, especially in this situation.”

“Do
Kyi
lovers really shoot each other for pleasure?”

“I thought it was an exaggeration. Evidently not. Let’s not try that again, though, okay?”

I gave him a wry smile. He answered with that trademark Sully-grin.

“So,” I said. “He was trying to, what, get some kind of sexual thrill by provoking me?”

“We’re—he’s very attuned to emotions. It’s like listening to a symphony. The more intense the music becomes, the more you enjoy it.”

“Threatening to kill someone?”

He sighed. “Chasidah, your emotions run very deep. When you get in that angry-but-protective mode, it’s such a mixture of the masculine and the feminine properties. An invincibility. A belief in what’s right. You have that like no one else I’ve met. And it’s…don’t laugh at me, but it’s exciting. Arousing. Your entire aura just shimmers. I call it your ‘captain in charge’ mode.”

“You get hot when I play captain?”

Hooded eyes met mine. “I get very hot when you play captain.” He moved closer, draping his leg over my thighs, showing me just how hot he did get.

“Well, in that case, I may have to ask for a raise.” I lifted the sheet. “Oh, look. I already got one.”

I made it onto the bridge with barely three minutes to spare before the start of my duty shift.

This time when we prepared to exit the
Kyi
gate, Sully had me work navigation with him. Del was at the helm—two days without a whisper or even a wink, amazing!—and Marsh at engineering. Philip sat weapons. Verno took communications and would work bogey check with Philip as soon as we hit realspace. Ren and Dorsie were peeling more vegetables and cooking up something else she wouldn’t tell me about, but only smiled and promised I’d like it.

I felt/saw the edges of the gate as we approached, felt/saw its strength, knew by a sensation that was almost a hot-cold when we were on a true course to exit and when we were off, even slightly. Sully resonated with the gate markers. That’s the best way I can explain it. It was not unlike music, not unlike a symphony.

The
Kyi
recognizes a part of its own,
he told me.

This was an orchestra he belonged to. I didn’t, but I could still appreciate the skill and the music.

We slipped flawlessly through the gate, Del’s hand sure at the helm, taking his cue from Sully. I could feel their link but it was light now, even lighter than when Sully linked with Ren. I guessed someone has constructed a filter, but no one confirmed that.

“Bogey check, bogey check.” Philip’s resonant tones filled the bridge. He’d been stopping everyone on board from calling him “admiral” the past two days. But damn, if he still didn’t sound like one.

And that wasn’t a bad thing. Sully was my wild passion, my celebration of life. But my friendship with Philip was a solid rock I knew I could always lean on.

I even came upon Philip, Sully, and Ren playing cards in the galley yesterday, and trading the usual male jibes and epithets. Life had just swung from horrible to honestly decent. I still felt Thad’s loss, acutely. I shed tears in the shower the night before because it was cleansing in more ways than one. But life was unfolding, if not as it should, then at least not totally as it shouldn’t.

“Got a positive,” Verno growled and there was the usual flurry of activity, confirming the bogey’s ident. A tri-hauler, sluggish and slow, lumping along overburdened.

The
Karn
proceeded, sleek and armed to her teeth, but with no shuttle. I’d never live that down. “Most women just want jewelry,” Sully had grumbled at some point.

We were in Baris, not far from Garno, heading for the A-B and Dock Five. Back where we began, in a great many ways. But Five was a hub of information. Always had been. Another reason Fleet never shut it down.

Out of jump, we needed to go back to regular duty shifts. We’d stay off the major trafficked lanes, yes. But we were in Baris. One sector away from Aldan and the heart of the Empire.

I resigned myself that I’d have to sit duty with Del. I didn’t trust him, plain and simple. I sent Marsh, Verno, and Philip—with much grumbling—off the bridge. Next shift would come on duty in six hours, with Ren on a swing shift always available in between.

I retired to the ready room. I didn’t have to be on the bridge on the
Karn.
She was a good-sized luxury yacht but still small enough that I didn’t need to have my ass glued in the pilot’s chair the entire shift.

Which helped. I still needed distance between Del and myself. Even if it was only ready room to bridge distance.

I sat in Sully’s seat at the table, facing out the doors to the bridge, and pulled up the deskscreen. We were no more than ten, fifteen minutes from an Imperial GA-7 data beacon. Time for the former pride of the Sixth Fleet to play hacker. I picked up the signal, initiated a grab, and waited for the information to flow.

The news headlines weren’t good. More reorganizations in Fleet, headlines said. Reorganizations, my ass. Dafir Command and Baris had been gutted. I didn’t recognize any of the names of the new admirals, and the few old that stayed on…I’d suspect Philip would say Tage was welcome to them.

I keyed in a search for news of Jodey Bralford and the
Nowicki.
Data was still coming in, but that was something I knew Philip would want to know. I wanted to know. I suspected that was another reason Philip grumbled as he was leaving the bridge. That suspicion was confirmed when he showed up at my elbow a few minutes later.

“You’re off duty,” I told him.

He grunted and sat next to me, bringing up his own deskscreen. “I need to know what’s happened to my people.” He shot me a glance that held an emotion I’d never equate with Philip Guthrie. It was tinged with despair. “I survived. Many didn’t. Don’t think that won’t haunt me for the rest of my life.”

“Then make your survival count,” I said quietly.

“I intend to.” He brought up the same news feeds I had coming in, keyed in his own search parameters, then sat back and read the headlines and abstracts, tagging one now and then for the full article, as I did.

Sully appeared in the doorway to the bridge. “Transmits in?”

“Just coming in now.”

“Anything from Drogue?”

We hadn’t heard from the affable monk in over a week. That was worrisome. Everything was worrisome, now that we were back in realspace. Funny how jump was such an insulator, though not without problems of its own.

“I’ll let you know.” I scanned the list, my heart warming when I saw Drogue’s personal transmit code. It was addressed to me. “Yes, there is.” I opened it. It was text not vid, sending condolences. “Just letting us know we’re in his prayers,” I told Sully.

Sully nodded, his dark gaze sweeping over me, over Philip. He glanced over his shoulder to where Del sat at helm then stepped further inside the room, leaning his hands against the back of the chair opposite us. “Guthrie.” His voice was clear but quiet.

Philip looked up.

“A request. Suggestion. Don’t answer me now. Think about it. When we hit Dock Five, any number of a dozen things could go wrong. Likely will, as long as you’re with this ship. Consider permitting a link with me and Chasidah. For safety. Yours and ours.”

Philip started to speak, stopped, then leaned back in his seat. “That would make me very uncomfortable, even beyond the obvious reasons. But you could do that?”

“I can establish a mental link with anyone. It doesn’t have to be a deep bond. I don’t need their permission. But I’d prefer to have it.”

“I can see its efficacy in combat,” Philip admitted. “But even then…”

“We have time before Dock Five. Just give it some thought.”

I nudged Sully mentally.
You could have asked me first before volunteering my mind,
ky’sal-
mine.

A distinct wince.
Chasidah, I didn’t…it just seemed reasonable. I’m sorry. God, I…would it bother you?

I took my few seconds’ enjoyment at watching him squirm. It was worth noting we’d only been together as a couple for a little over three months. Three tumultuous months, but it was not a long time. We were still adjusting to each other. Sully’s penchant to act first and ask forgiveness later was an adjustment we’d have to work on.

Someday,
someday
you will remember to ask me first. I think it’s a great idea for when we hit dock. But learn to ask. The captain has spoken.
I sent a rainbow.

And you know how I feel about the captain…

Get back to your station, Mr. Sullivan!

Philip darted a glance my way as Sully left.

“Private conversation,” I told him.

“That’s what worries me.”

“It shouldn’t. They all can go narrowband or broadband. That’s why I can’t always hear everything going on between Del and Sully. Or why Sully can shut Del out from me.”

“What comes out of my mouth is filtered. What goes through my brain is not.”

“It’s like talking to someone in a crowded room. I’d mostly hear the thoughts you wanted me to. The rest is just so much buzz in the background.”

“I’ll worry about that later. Right now,” and he tapped the screen, “let’s see what new crisis Tage has created.”

I shunted the news feed headlines to him, including my highlighted selections. I wanted to check the rest of the transmits. There was likely something from Marsh’s family. He and Dorsie would want that.

I saw Marsh’s messages come through, cleared them for his personal in-box and Dorsie’s. The next line caught my eye and I grabbed Philip’s arm. “Jodey,” I said. “To me, but…”

I opened it quickly. The transmit quality was bad, the image grainy. Something that can happen when layers of secure coding are added for security reasons. But it was Captain Jodey Bralford, unshaven and looking tired.

“Chaz, I’m hoping this reaches you. I’m sure by now you know what’s going on. Tage has decimated Fleet, disbanded the Admirals’ Council. The rest of the ministries are in total disarray, unless you’re a Tage supporter.” He barked out a harsh laugh then sobered. “Philip managed to send me a warning. It took all of ten seconds for my crew to know what we had to do. We’re safe but I’m not going to say where right now for fear of interception. But, Chaz—” and he halted, wiping one hand over his face. “Philip’s missing. Reported dead. I don’t know if that’s true. But I though you should be prepared. Maybe you’ve already heard but if you haven’t, I thought it best coming from me. I hope to God you’re safe. Contact me if you can. Philip had some last wishes. If it comes to that, you need to know.”

He signed off.

I looked at Philip, more than slightly surprised.

He pursed his lips but color dotted his cheeks. “I’m alive,” he said after a moment. “It’s moot.”

“I think Jodey needs to hear from you.” I smiled. “Was it a lot of money?”

“Almost as much as I lost to your husband last night.”

I chuckled then realize what he’d called Sully. My husband. Oh my. “How do you think he pays for this ship? I don’t think there’s a card room on the rim or Dock Five that doesn’t have a chair with his name engraved on it.” Whatever name he was using for wherever he was.

“But he loses to Ren.”

“Baffles me too. He refuses to explain.” I poked his forearm with my index finger. “Answer Jodey. Use my transmit code.”

He did, giving Jodey a basic recounting without getting into particulars that could threaten either the
Karn
or the
Nowicki
.

I cleared another transmit to Marsh and Dorsie—they had a large family. The next transmit packet was unfamiliar and code-sealed. And it wasn’t a code either Sully or the
Karn
knew. But it was marked for Sully’s attention.

I sent a mental nudge.
Sully? Something odd in the in-box.

On my way.

It took only a few seconds, then he was swiveling around the seat on my left, peering over my shoulder. He nodded. “It’s for Del. We’d put out some feelers. Shoot it to the bridge.”

He left and I heard his deep tones and Del’s mixing over the beeping and occasional trill of the bridge comps. Then, “Chaz!”

Sully. Excited, but a good excited.

I pushed out of my seat and sprinted to the bridge, Philip on my heels.

Del had swiveled the chair at helm around and was leaning back, arms folded triumphantly over his chest. He was grinning smugly. “We’ve got a lead on Burke’s gen-lab ship. Right here in Baris.”