“It is and even more so when two High Houses marry. The duty usually falls to younger sons and daughters, those far down the inheritance hierarchy. It pays to have a spy in your enemy’s House, as well as a tiny bit of influence. Plus the contracts are dense with concessions from both sides, and sometimes marriage is the only way to get treaties signed. But neither side actually wants the two Houses to combine, so heirs are not married to rival High Houses.”
I shrugged and continued, “If I’d signed the marriage contract Richard proposed, I would belong to him, both in his eyes and in the eyes of the Consortium. It wouldn’t matter that it was coerced. If I broke the contract, Rhys and Veronica would die. If I killed or escaped him, I would be shunned by the entirety of the Consortium, including my own House.”
Loch looked furious but Rhys didn’t seem shocked. I wondered again about his background. I decided to pivot the conversation back into safer waters. “Where are we jumping?”
“Back to Sedition on APD Zero,” Loch said. “Veronica’s kid and nanny are there. Plus we can drop off this worthless bastard.” He jerked a thumb at Rhys.
“This worthless bastard managed to get his partner out of the Santa Celestia and back to this ship without either of us getting shot,” Rhys said. “How did that work out for you?”
Loch scowled at him.
I turned to Veronica. “I saw video of you and Rhys being walked off the ship and again once you were in your cells. How did you get out?” I asked.
“Loch got us out before he went to get you,” Veronica said. “We went on ahead, dressed like crew, to try to secure Polaris and as much alcubium as we could find. Unfortunately, Rockhurst’s actual crew found us out before we could get the alcubium on board. We retreated and prayed you two would make it.”
The ship chimed. “We’ve got a jump point,” Loch said.
“How long until the FTL is ready?” I asked.
“Ten minutes.” He tapped on the screen. “Looks like it’s good we got here when we did, because Rockhurst is trying to overload the gate with requests. That’s why it took longer to get a jump point.”
“If I sit here and wait for ten minutes, I’ll drive myself crazy,” I said. “I’m going to see if the soldiers found the stuff I hid.” I stood with only a minor wobble. Whatever Loch had given me for the pain was wearing off, which made my balance better but tiny daggers stabbed down my arm when I jostled it.
On top of that, the regeneration gel had started to kick in. I schooled my expression so no one would worry.
“I will help you,” Loch said. He followed me out of the room. “How’s the arm?” he asked after the door closed behind us.
“Still attached,” I said. When he frowned at me, I continued, “It hurts like the devil has decided to jab me with his pitchfork every time I even think about moving.”
“Pain meds wearing off?”
“Yeah. If it gets worse, I’ll take something.” That wasn’t technically a lie. It would just take extreme values of worse to make it true. Unfortunately, I had a feeling I’d be there before too much longer.
I pressed my right hand against the control panel for the captain’s quarters. The door slid open. I stumbled inside. Sweat dotted my brow and trickled down my back. Maybe I’d lie down until the regeneration gel did its thing.
“Are you okay?” Loch asked.
I nodded then immediately shook my head. “It’s the regeneration gel,” I said. It had been a decade or so since I’d needed to use it, but the side effects remained burned in my memory. True to its name, regeneration gel healed even major wounds quickly. But in return, it was hell while active.
“Shit, I should’ve brought extra anesthetic,” he said. He led me to the bedroom and helped me lie down. “I forgot how some people react to the gel. You probably know this, but you’re about to be in for a bad time.”
He stood and went to the intercom. “Rhys, I’m going to need you to pilot. Veronica, can you get me some anesthetic, both local and general?”
“Sure thing,” Rhys said. “Veronica’s on her way down to the medbay. Everything okay?”
“Ada’s regeneration gel is kicking in. She’s feverish.”
“Good luck, friend. Let me know if you need anything. I’ve got the ship.”
I closed my eyes as a wave of nausea rolled over me. I’d like to think that Loch was overreacting, but based on how I felt right now, he might be underreacting. My arm burned like liquid fire.
Time stretched. I focused on breathing through each second without screaming. The doorbell broke my concentration, and I whimpered.
“Hold on,” Loch said. “Veronica’s here with the painkillers.”
Loch disappeared and returned with Veronica. She frowned at me. “You should’ve told us you were in pain earlier,” she said.
“It wasn’t this bad,” I gritted out.
Loch injected me with something that took the fire from an inferno to a smolder. My arm still ached, but now I could think around the pain.
“Remind me not to get shot again anytime soon, okay?” I said. My stomach dropped as the FTL drive kicked in. We would be on Rhys’s planet soon. “Any idea how long it’ll take until I’m healed enough for my arm to stop feeling like it’s burning off?”
“With a small wound like that, probably half a day,” Loch said.
The fact that a missing chunk of my arm was something Loch considered a “small wound” was telling. “Any reason I shouldn’t move around?”
“You’re not feeling it, but you’re still feverish. Your body will be weaker than you expect. And you’ll be loopy from the anesthetic. So long as you don’t try anything crazy while feeling invincible, you should be okay.”
“Does that sound like something I would do?”
“Yes,” Loch and Veronica replied at the same time.
“Ada, if you’re awake, I’m going to land us in one of my hangars,” Rhys said over the intercom. “It’s more secure than a public spaceport and you know Richard is going to look here.”
“Thank you,” I said. “How long until we’re on the ground?”
“Looks like about forty minutes,” he said. “I’ll give you a heads-up before we enter the atmosphere, but it should be a smooth ride—this ship is fantastic.” I beamed like a proud parent. I may’ve stolen Polaris from Richard, but the ship was mine now.
I sat up. My arm burned, but it was a distant pain. The painkillers had worked their magic. I stood up and my pain didn’t increase, but I was a little shaky.
I opened the closet and got a nice surprise—my extra clothes were still inside. Hopefully that meant my com, necklace, and cuff were safe. I’d hidden them in a concealed drawer in the top of the closet. I’d only found it on accident while looking for a hiding place, then it had taken me five minutes to figure out how to open it.
“Could one of you help me?” I asked. “There’s a hidden drawer, but it requires two hands to open. There’s a button in the far back corner that you can barely feel. You have to press it and pull on the front at the same time.”
Loch popped the drawer open then handed me the contents. I put on the cuff and necklace, though I didn’t bother arming them; I’d wait until I was alone.
I’d locked the com before I stored it, which meant it needed my real identity chip to activate—the chip in my left arm. I made it through the series of hand motions required to activate it with barely an additional twinge of pain. Whatever painkiller Loch had given me was good.
I held the com to my identity chip then went through the verification process. I immediately sent my sister a quick update. I hadn’t been lying to Richard about the consequences of failing to contact her.
It was only after I’d sent the update that I checked the news.
House Rockhurst had declared war on House von Hasenberg. Father had responded in kind. House Yamado remained neutral for now, but the various lower houses were already choosing sides.
“We’re at war,” I said, as if voicing the words would make them feel real. The last full-scale war between High Houses spanned two decades, claimed nearly ten million lives, and resulted in one less High House in the Consortium. Since then, we’d been at peace for more than five generations.
“Who declared?” Veronica asked.