Fain inclined his head to the larger of the two bodies lying on the floor. “I’ll take fat ass,” he said to Hauk, “if you can grab the other.”
“Uh-huh, give me the bloody one while you get the broken neck. Thanks, big brother.” Groaning in protest, Hauk took his by the legs so that he could drag him toward the hallway while Fain threw the other body over his shoulder.
Zarya started to ask them about waiting for investigators to inspect the bodies, but then reconsidered. It wasn’t like they didn’t know what had happened.
While Kerste tended Darling, she followed the Andarions outside. As soon as they had the door closed, the brothers started searching the assassins for credentials and information.
Hauk took the hand of the one he’d carried and put the dead man’s index finger against his mobile. After a few seconds, he cursed. “Not a pro team. This one is… or rather, was a mechanic.” He reached for the other man’s hand and scanned it. “This was an out-of-work programmer.” He glanced at her over his shoulder. “I think they belong to you, Princess.”
“How so?”
He handed her his mobile.
Zarya scanned the man’s file, then winced. They were both Resistance fighters. Newly recruited. She tried to use Hauk’s device to access Resistance files so that she could find out more about them and their mission, but someone had blocked her access.
So she went to the bounty sheets. Since those were public, she had no problem finding the contract out on Darling’s life. It made the one for Kere look like a joke.
“This is ridiculous.” She handed the mobile back. “Who is this Hector?” And how dare he lead her men.
Hauk slid his mobile back into his pocket. “No one can find out anything about him. And I do mean no one. We figure it’s an alias. But we can’t link it to anyone.”
Yeah and neither could she. Yet there was something about it that was niggling in the back of her mind. Something familiar.
What was it?
Before she could think of an answer, blaster fire sounded from outside, in the yard below.
Deafening alarms rang out everywhere.
I’ve got to do something to stop this. It didn’t matter who Hector was. She was still technically the Resistance leader. And this Hector knew it as well as she did. Why else continue to use her name to call their people to action?
Her mind whirled with possibilities and courses she could take. But no matter what, she kept coming back to one simple fact. If she could get the Resistance to fight with Darling against the gerents as they should, then the gerents would have no choice except to accept him as their governor.
Easier said than done. Neither side trusted Darling. Nor were they trusting her at the moment either.
But if she were to show up without Darling…
Maybe she could talk some sense into them.
She left Hauk and Fain to their cleanup while she went to her room. As she paced the floor, planning, she could hear the news from Darling’s room.
“Since the governor was pulled out by his security during the meeting”—Could they get anything right?—“the Resistance forces have been setting fires and vandalizing corporate buildings. Entire staffs are staying inside their offices like prisoners since they’re too scared to even attempt to leave while under this latest round of protests. As a result, the gerents are begging for League intervention to quell the rebel protestors and bring Governor Cruel into line. Maybe even dethrone or assassinate him.”
Her heart pounding, she tried not to hear any more. This was such a disaster.
Unfortunately, there was nothing she could do about it tonight. Darling would never agree to let her go to the Resistance alone and if she took one of his people with her, or worse, him, they would never believe she wasn’t under his influence.
No, this was going to take careful planning and execution if it was to work.
And time was running out…
“While the League refuses to comment on whether or not they’ll intervene, we did hear from a source who doesn’t want to be identified that the League is rallying their soldiers and assassins for an attempt on the palace.”
She could hear the seconds ticking away. If she didn’t persuade her people to see the truth, Darling was going to be fed to the wolves.
God help him.
To save his life and his throne, she was about to throw herself straight into the heart of his enemies.
She placed her hand on her stomach as she considered the baby Nero had told her about. She still didn’t have any symptoms at all.
Darling will kill me when he finds out.
If anything happened to the baby, she would never forgive herself.
But what choice did she have? There was no way she could stand by while he was attacked repeatedly because of her.
They’d been lucky this time. His eyesight had been normal when the assassins struck. But what if she’d been with Maris and they’d attacked an hour ago?
Darling would be dead.