CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

VESPER

"T hirteen dead, and more than three dozen injured," Aldrich growled. "The estate's defensive shield is still down, and Esmina, Pollux, Leland, and the mercenaries have vanished."

He tossed a tablet down onto his desk and started pacing back and forth, his wing tips snapping out a quick, furious rhythm. Verona stood nearby, her hands clasped together, her gaze never leaving her husband.

Siya and Rigel were also in the library, standing stiffly at attention in front of the lord's desk, while Beatrice and Wendell were sitting in chairs off to the side. Zane was leaning a shoulder against the wall, while Asterin was lurking a few feet away from him. I was cloistered in the corner all alone.

Two hours had passed since the mercenary attack on the Collier estate. The wounded were being tended to, as were the dead, and we had all gathered in Aldrich's library to figure out what to do next. Well, everyone else had gathered here to figure out what to do next. I already knew exactly what I was going to do: find and rescue Kyrion.

I'd already sent Daichi all the information about the attack, and I was hoping he could figure out where Esmina and Pollux were headed. He had to figure it out.

I had to find Kyrion before it was too late.

Zane looked over at me, and I glared right back at him. It was his blasted fault I hadn't been able to save Kyrion. Zane quirked an eyebrow as if he knew exactly what I was thinking.

A soft chime rang out.

Everyone glanced around, and Verona raised her tablet. "It's mine. We've just received a video-chat request—from Leland."

Verona swiped her finger across the screen, and a hologram of Leland popped up and flickered in the air.

"Hello, Verona, Aldrich," he said in a smug tone. "In case you haven't guessed, I'm contacting you to formally tender my resignation."

Aldrich stepped forward, his hands clenching into fists. "Why did you lower the shield? Why did you betray House Collier?"

"Betray House Collier?" Leland sniffed. "I didn't betray you, Aldrich. I simply got tired of swallowing the table scraps of power you deigned to dole out. I should have been running my own House instead of toiling away as your chief of staff. I would have been running my own House, if not for Urston Armas's mistakes. That idiot cost me everything."

Asterin jerked forward, her body tense. "What do you know about my father?"

Leland sniffed again. "I know he was a grand fool, just as you are, my dear."

Asterin started to ask another question, but Verona laid a hand on her daughter's arm and shook her head.

Leland looked at Aldrich again. "Consider this my last duty as your chief of staff. Who knows? Perhaps our paths will cross again someday. But in the meantime, I'm going to enjoy a much-needed vacation funded by my new friends."

Leland grinned, then disappeared. For a moment, the hologram went dark, but then another familiar face appeared: Esmina.

"Greetings to House Collier. I hope you all enjoyed my little surprise party," she purred. "I certainly did, watching the House of Collier take such a great fall. It reminded me of old times."

Aldrich's fists clenched a little tighter. "What do you want?"

"I have Kyrion Caldaren, and if you want him back, you will follow my instructions exactly," Esmina continued. "Bring one hundred million credits on unmarked currency cards to the designated location at sunset. Otherwise, I'll start cutting off pieces of Kyrion and delivering them to you."

The hologram flickered, and Kyrion appeared. His head was slumped down, and he was clearly unconscious, but his body was propped upright, and his chest was encased in some sort of stone that anchored him to a wall. Given the oily sludge coating the bond, I hadn't been able to sense if the mercenaries were hurting Kyrion, and seeing that he was more or less okay unwound a tiny knot of tension in my chest.

Still, I couldn't help but wonder why the mercenaries had kidnapped him. Esmina had plenty of credits, power, and influence as the head of Serpens Corp, and she had no financial need to ransom Kyrion back to anyone. What was this really about?

Esmina held up a finger. "One more thing. Vesper Quill has something I want—the solution to fix a powerful new weapon. Vesper will bring that solution to me, or Kyrion dies. Vesper will come alone. If I see any Hammers or House Collier guards, Kyrion dies. Basically, if any of you do anything I don't like, Kyrion dies."

I could hear what she wasn't saying: Kyrion was going to die anyway, even if we all did exactly what she said.

"But let's go back to the beginning. I've made my demands absolutely clear, so let's hope there are no messy mistakes on your end and that history doesn't repeat itself," Esmina said. "The ransom site has been geotagged in this message. If I were you, I'd get busy. See you soon, Vesper."

She grinned at the camera, then slashed her hand across her throat. The feed cut off, and the hologram winked out.

Aldrich spun around to me. "What weapon is she talking about?"

I sighed, but the time for hiding the truth was over. Esmina had made sure of that. "When I was working at Kent Corp, I designed a new hand cannon, but Rowena Kent secretly turned my idea over to the Techwave."

"So what?" Siya asked. "Every corporation, Imperium and Erzton alike, is always designing new weapons."

"The Techwave scientists modified my original design, and they've created a new hand cannon that is strong enough to cut through defensive energy shields. But the true value of the weapon is that it can wound—kill—even the most powerful psions, Arrows and Hammers alike."

A stunned silence dropped over the room.

Aldrich raked a hand through his hair. "Our spies had heard the rumors, but we were hoping they weren't true."

"Believe me," Zane muttered, rubbing a hand over his heart, "the Techwave cannons are very, very real."

Siya looked at me. "Do you have one of these cannons?"

"Yes. I grabbed one of the weapons when I escaped from a Techwave production plant on Magma 3 a few weeks ago."

At my confession, Aldrich jerked his head at Rigel, who rushed out of the library. Where was he going?

"What's wrong with the cannon design?" Verona asked.

"After a few blasts, the cannon overheats and fries itself, rendering it useless."

"And Esmina thinks you know how to fix that problem. Is she right, Vesper?" Siya demanded.

The weight of everyone's gaze settled on me like a spaceship about to land on and crush my chest. "Wendell and I worked on the cannon in Asterin's workshop earlier today, but we didn't come up with a solution."

That was as much of the truth as I was going to share, and I wasn't about to mention that I thought sapphsidian was the key to stabilizing the weapon. I glanced over at Asterin, who also knew about my sapphsidian theory. My friend chewed on her lower lip, her gaze flicking between her mother and her stepfather, both of whom were frowning at me.

Aldrich clasped his hands behind his back, then started pacing back and forth behind his desk again, as though the quick steps were helping him formulate a plan of attack. No one else moved, and more than two minutes ticked by in charged silence.

Footsteps sounded, and Rigel rushed back into the library carrying the Techwave hand cannon I'd left in my suite earlier.

Anger surged through me, along with a growing sense of dread. "You broke into my suite? And went through my things?"

"Technically, it's Lord Aldrich's suite, and the cannon was lying in plain sight on a table." Rigel placed the weapon on Aldrich's desk.

The lord studied the cannon, then shook his head. "It doesn't matter if Vesper can fix the cannon or not. We can't afford to let it fall into Esmina's hands. You saw what she and Pollux did with their mercenaries. If they ever got their hands on more advanced weapons that can cut through defensive and psionic shields . . ." His voice trailed off, but we all knew how devastating that could be.

"What do we do?" Verona asked.

"We ambush her," Siya replied in a grim voice. "Esmina told us when and where to meet her. We get there early, wait for her to arrive, and then move in with enough Hammers to take her down. It's long past time we brought her to justice for her crimes."

Aldrich looked at Rigel, who nodded.

"It's our best option," Rigel agreed.

I stalked over to the desk, my hands balling into fists. "No. Esmina will kill Kyrion if she even thinks the Hammers are closing in on her location. You won't surprise her with an ambush. Not with her precognition. She'll be expecting you to attack, and she'll find some way to escape—or worse, kill everyone you send after her."

Aldrich stiffened with anger. "I am well aware of the dangers, but the other Houses already view everything that's happened to House Collier over the past few days as a sign of weakness. Once word gets out about today's attack on the estate itself, our position will be even more precarious. We must strike now." He nodded at Siya and Rigel. "Go. Prepare the guards, along with the Hammers. I want you ready to leave as soon as possible."

Siya and Rigel both bowed and hurried out of the library.

I looked at Verona, hoping she would convince Aldrich to listen to reason, but she shook her head.

"I'm sorry, Vesper," she said, an apologetic note in her voice. "I know what you are at risk of losing better than anyone, but we must protect House Collier."

Verona went over to Aldrich and slid her arm through his in solidarity.

No help there, so I looked at Asterin, who was still standing in the open space between Zane and her parents, a no-man's-land if ever there was one. Asterin bit her lip again, clearly torn, and I swallowed my plea. My friend had already done so much for Kyrion and me. I wasn't going to ask her to side against her family too.

Besides, Aldrich and Verona weren't completely wrong, even if their actions might end up costing Kyrion his life—and destroying mine in the process.

" Fine ." I ground out the word. "While the Hammers and House Collier guards ambush Esmina and Pollux, I'll figure out some way to find Kyrion and save him myself."

Aldrich shook his head. "No, the stakes are too high. You will stay here at the estate, in your suite, until further notice."

White-hot fury raged through my body, and my fists clenched even tighter. The lord was treating me as though I was a naughty child who needed to sulk in the corner and think about her actions.

"I don't belong to your House," I snapped. "And I'm not a member of the Erzton. I am a Regal lady, an Imperium citizen, and you have no authority over me ."

Aldrich's face hardened, and anger flared in his hazel eyes. "As long as you are under the protection of my House, then you will do as I say."

"Then I reject the protection of your House." I spat out the words. "I would rather die trying to save Kyrion than sit here and twiddle my thumbs while the lot of you blunder straight into Esmina's trap."

Verona's face paled, and Asterin sucked in a breath. Beatrice and Wendell were also shocked by my harsh words, but Zane nodded, as if I'd done exactly what he'd expected.

Even more anger flared in Aldrich's eyes, and he straightened up to his full height and peered down his nose at me. "If that is what you wish," he said in a cold, clipped voice. "Consider the protection of House Collier revoked." He stabbed his finger at me. "But if you try to interfere with Siya, Rigel, and the Hammers in any way, you will be taken into custody, and I will ship you back to the Imperium and Callus Holloway the first chance I get."

It wasn't an idle threat, and he meant every word he said. Well, me too. Esmina was playing yet another deadly game with the Colliers, even if they were too stubborn to admit it. I might only have the smallest chance of saving Kyrion, but I had to try.

"Very well," I replied, my voice just as cold as Aldrich's. "I will return to my suite and pack my things. I'll be gone within the hour."

"No," he replied. "You will stay in your suite until the Hammers apprehend Esmina and Pollux. Then you can do whatever you want. Is that understood?"

"Understood, Lord Collier." I tipped my head to him one scant inch. "Good luck with your hunt, even if it is a fool's errand."

I glared at him a moment longer, then whirled around and stormed out of the library.

I didn't even get halfway down the corridor before a couple of House Collier guards appeared. I marched past them, but the two men followed me, their hands on their shock batons, ready to subdue me if I did anything they didn't like.

I ignored my watchers and strode from one corridor to the next, leaving the main castle. I entered the guest wing, went to my suite, and locked the door behind me.

The first thing I did was whip out my tablet and message Daichi and Tivona, telling them what was happening. But my friends were on the other side of the galaxy, and there was nothing they could do to help me.

I would just have to help myself, the way I always did.

I didn't believe for one second that Esmina would be at the geotagged location she'd sent the Colliers. She was too smart for that, but she still wanted me to find her and bring her the fixed Techwave cannon. Esmina had to have left some clue behind in her crowing confrontation with Aldrich in the library, and thanks to the spy camera hidden in the House Caldaren sigil in my jacket, I had a recording of the whole thing.

I stripped off my jacket, placed it on a holoscreen embedded in the table in the corner, and downloaded the camera footage. I played the recording, but I didn't see any hidden clues in Esmina's words, just her mocking derision and supreme confidence that she had already won. I also studied the image of Kyrion, but he was anchored to a stone wall that could have been anywhere.

I paced back and forth, watching the video again and again. No new information revealed itself, but the answer to where Esmina wanted to meet was in the footage. I knew it was, although it wasn't going to do me any good if I couldn't figure it out. And if I didn't figure it out, Kyrion would die anyway, no matter what Siya, Rigel, and the Hammers did.

My heart seized at the thought, but I forced myself to turn off the footage. Whenever I was stuck on a project in the R&D lab, it always helped to take a break and return to a problem with fresh eyes, so I went over to the permaglass wall that overlooked the topiary garden. Many of the trees and hedges had broken branches, scorched leaves, and other battle damage, but I looked past them, studying the chasm that dropped away from the edge of the estate.

I don't know how long I stood there, staring at the landscape without really seeing it, but Esmina's voice started whispering in my mind, and I thought of all the odd little things she'd said to Aldrich—things that had no place in a ransom demand.

Watching the House of Collier take such a great fall . . . It reminded me of old times . . . Let's go back to the beginning . . . Let's hope there are no messy mistakes on your end and that history doesn't repeat itself . . .

I thought Esmina had just been mocking Aldrich and Verona, but what if there was another meaning to her words? But what would House Collier and great falls and history repeating itself have to do with where she was holding Kyrion?

House of Collier . . . great fall . . . history . . . Esmina's smug voice whispered through my mind again, although this time, it was followed by Aldrich's regretful tone. She lured Micah to the waterfall where he had saved her and shoved him off a bridge . . .

My eyes widened. I knew exactly where Esmina wanted to meet. Of course. She had been camped out under the Colliers' noses all along, and I could have smacked myself for not seeing it sooner.

Esmina was at the underground mining museum, at Stardrop Falls, where she'd killed Micah, severed their truebond, and taken his magic all those years ago.

Leland must have told Esmina that I knew what had happened at the waterfall, which was why she'd dropped all those little hints into her mocking message. With her precog magic, Esmina had known just what to say for me to figure out her location.

According to Asterin, the mining museum had long been abandoned, making it the perfect place to hide. Esmina probably appreciated the irony and loved thumbing her nose at the Colliers, even if they didn't realize she was doing it.

New determination blazed through me, and I marched into the bedroom and sorted through the gear Kyrion and I had brought to the estate. My stormsword was hooked to my belt like usual, and I grabbed Kyrion's sword and a few other things I thought might come in handy, then stuffed them all into my duffel bag.

Five minutes later, I was ready to leave, but I couldn't go out through the main suite door, since the two guards were waiting outside. So how was I going to get from this level down to the ground?

My gaze zipped over to the bed. I went over and shoved the mounds of unnecessary pillows aside, revealing the thick blankets and fine sheets. A grin spread across my face.

"The classics never go out of style," I quipped, then got to work.

I stripped all the blankets and sheets off the bed and knotted the ends together. Next, I tied one end of my makeshift escape rope to a heavy wooden nightstand. I jerked on all the blankets and sheets several times, making sure the knots would hold, then opened a glass door and stepped out onto the balcony. No one was watching my suite, so I tied my duffel bag to the end of my makeshift rope and lowered the bag to the ground. Then it was my turn.

Staring down at the fifty-foot drop from this angle made me dizzy. Kyrion was right to be worried about falling from great heights. My heart ached at the thought of him, but I grabbed hold of the rope, swung my legs over the balcony railing, and climbed down.

Well, I didn't climb so much as slide from one knot to the next, but I made it down to the ground. I glanced around, but this section of the estate was empty, and no one had seen my improvised escape—

"I thought climbing down bedsheets to be reunited with their true love was something people only did in ridiculous romance serials," a familiar voice drawled.

I whirled around. Zane pushed away from one of the columns, stepped out of the shadows, and sauntered over to me. He'd changed into a fresh Arrow uniform, and his stormsword was dangling off his belt, but my gaze zoomed in on the large cannon strapped to his back—the same kind of Techwave cannon Rigel had taken from my suite.

"Where did you get that?" I demanded.

Zane smoothed his hands down his pale blue jacket. "This old thing? Fergus, the House Zimmer tailor, makes uniforms for me in bulk. The poor man. I'm probably responsible for every one of his gray hairs, given all his exquisite clothes I've ruined over the years."

"The cannon," I growled. "Where did you get the blasted cannon ?"

He gave an airy wave of his hand. "Oh, I took it off the Techwaver who infiltrated the summer solstice ball. I thought it might come in handy one day, even if I'm afraid to fire it for fear of blasting off my own hand. Why? Do you need it for something?"

Zane knew— he knew —I needed that cannon to save Kyrion. No doubt my brother wanted me to beg for the privilege, but I wasn't about to play his stupid mind games.

I huffed out an aggravated breath, grabbed my duffel bag, and stalked away, heading around the side of the guest wing.

I mentally reviewed the estate layout in my mind. Around the next corner, a path skirted around a small topiary garden and ran right by the transport garage. With a little luck, I could break into the garage, steal a vehicle, and leave the estate before anyone realized what I was doing.

Footsteps sounded, and Zane fell into step beside me. We walked in silence until we reached the garden path.

I stopped and whirled toward him. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Isn't it obvious? Helping you save dear Kyrion."

"You hate Kyrion. Why would you want to save him?"

" Hate is a strong word. Perhaps despise is better."

I snorted. " Despise is just a fancy and polite way of saying hate ."

Zane shrugged, neither agreeing nor disagreeing. I didn't have time for this. I didn't have time for him .

I poked him in the chest. "What are you really doing here? Why are you following me? And how did you even know I would climb down my balcony?"

He shrugged again. "Because it's what I would have done. And I'm following you because you're going to get yourself killed if you take on Esmina and Pollux alone."

Anger spurted through me, and Esmina's voice whispered through my mind. You're the weak link.

I crossed my arms over my chest. "So you think I need a babysitter."

"No, I think you need help."

"Would you still be saying that if Kyrion was here and I was the one who'd been abducted?"

"Absolutely," Zane snapped, frustration creeping into his voice. "Kyrion wouldn't want you to be reckless, and Kyrion certainly didn't rescue you from Crownpoint all by himself. Asterin, Daichi, Touma, Tivona, and Leandra helped him do it. Back then, Kyrion knew he couldn't save you alone, and I think deep down, you know you can't save him by yourself right now."

As much as I hated to admit it, he was right. Esmina would let me walk straight into her trap, snap it shut behind me, and then Kyrion and I would both be caught. But I still felt like there was more to Zane's sudden benevolence than met the eye.

"Why are you really doing this?" I asked in a sharp voice. "Why do you want to help me? And tell me the truth , not some stupid quip about how you want to lord your prowess over Kyrion by rescuing him."

Zane sighed. "Because it will break my father's heart if you go rushing off without any backup and get yourself killed." He paused, an uncomfortable look on his face. "And it would greatly vex me as well."

"It would vex you? Seriously?" I rolled my eyes and spun away from him.

Zane reached out and touched my arm. Wary, I faced him again.

"This hasn't been easy for me either," he said. "Realizing what Beatrice did to you. Trying to come to terms with the fact that she kept you a secret from my father and me for all these years. Remembering my own shitty behavior when you first came to Corios. I've been angry and regretful about all of it, including my own actions. More than you know."

I let out a bitter laugh. "Yes, being cast aside like a piece of trash by my grandmother and then repeatedly mocked by my brother has greatly vexed me as well."

Zane sighed again, the sound a little louder and deeper. "Beatrice's machinations aside, the simple truth is this: I can't un-know that I have a sister. Like it or not, the two of us are connected. Our father already loves you as much as he does me. Wendell has since the moment he learned about you."

For once, he was being completely serious, which was shocking in and of itself. Even worse, his words made that annoying spark of hope flare up in my chest, but I forced myself to ignore it.

I threw my hands up into the air. "See? That's the problem. You and me and Wendell never had a choice in any of this. Beatrice and Nerezza made their own choices and took away ours in the process. Well, I have a choice now, and I'm going after Kyrion—alone."

Zane stepped a little closer, a dangerous light flaring in his eyes. "You either take me with you, or I'm going to make enough noise to get every guard on this estate to come running. Siya, Rigel, and the rest of the Hammers will stuff you right back into your suite, and you'll never get to Kyrion."

Even more anger pulsed through me, along with a tiny bit of grudging admiration. Zane might pretend to be an arrogant idiot, but he was also clever and ruthless.

"You would actually blackmail me into taking you along?"

"Absolutely." He grinned. "Now, what do you say, sis? Shall we play the part of the cavalry and ride to dear Kyrion's rescue?"

My hands balled into fists. Zane was absolutely infuriating , but I was going to need all the help I could get against Esmina, Pollux, and their mercenaries. Zane was a strong psion and an Arrow with years of battle experience, and he just might mean the difference between my saving Kyrion and both of us dying.

" Fine ," I growled. "But if you do anything to endanger Kyrion or me, or if this is all part of some elaborate trap to drag us back to Corios, then I will kill you myself."

Zane lifted his hand and snapped off a cheeky salute. "Whatever you say, sis. Now, let's go rescue your beloved Kyrion." He paused. "Before I change my mind and leave the broody bastard to rot."

I rolled my eyes again and headed toward the small garden. Zane fell into step beside me.

For the first time in my life, I had backup in the form of my brother. I still wasn't sure how I felt about that, but I would figure it out later—after we rescued Kyrion.