Even though Jeth could guess the answer already, he asked, “Did Hammer kill them?”
Dax nodded. “Except my youngest brother, who was only five at the time. Hammer spared him because I came back and let him implant one of these things.” He touched the back of his skull again. “The only reason Hammer continues to spare him is because I stay and do what he wants me to do.”
Jeth didn’t say anything. He didn’t trust his voice to speak. In the back of his mind, he remembered how Dax had called him “test baby” when they’d first met. He understood the term all too well now.
Even worse, Jeth didn’t have any trouble imagining Hammer doing the same to the people he loved. I’ve never been afraid of doing what needed to be done, he heard Hammer saying. Images flashed through Jeth’s brain, of the starving man on Peltraz, the dead, hopeless look on his face, of Trent Danforth, unrecognizable, little more than a machine, and of himself, broken and beaten when they’d placed him on that operating table.
“So,” Dax said, his voice far too casual for the topic of conversation, “I’ve been in your place before, and I learned the hard way that if you try to deny Hammer, your loved ones will pay for it in the end. But if you submit to him now, you’ve got a chance of saving them.”
Jeth wanted to scream and rage and beat his fists against the wall. He hated being so helpless, hated being so trapped. So owned. But he would hate watching Lizzie die even more. He would do anything to spare her. And the others, too. They’re all my family.
“And not that it should matter to you,” Dax said, almost as an aside, “but if I fail to bring you and the Aether Project back, Hammer will kill my brother first and then me. It’s that important to him.”
Jeth forced his hands to his sides, keeping his voice calm. “I could just kill you now instead.”
Dax nodded. “That you could. And Hammer might just leave my brother alone. But if you kill me, you lose your best chance of finding your sister.” He tapped his wristwatch. “Better make your decision soon. It might already be too late as it is.”
Jeth drew a breath and released it slowly. “So, I help you get the Aether Project while we’re rescuing my sister. Then what?”
“Simple,” Dax said, crossing his arms. “I turn a blind eye while she and your uncle and whoever else disappear into the unknown. We can tell Hammer they got killed or whatever you like. So long as you come back to Peltraz and so long as we can give Hammer the Aether Project, I don’t believe he’ll ever go hunting for the rest of them.”
Jeth thought hard, his mind churning. Then he spotted a new problem, one he should’ve realized earlier. He couldn’t just hand the Aether Project over to Hammer, not with all the information it contained about Cora and Lizzie. No matter what Dax believed, Hammer would pursue Jeth’s sisters to the end of the universe if he found out about their value.
Then he remembered that Milton already had a copy of it. A copy that Sierra could modify, deleting all the dangerous information off of it like she had planned to do before selling the original to her buyer on Olympia Seven. If Jeth could get back Renford’s copy of the Aether Project, it would be a simple thing to switch it out with the modified one before turning it over to Dax.
Satisfied by this part of the plan, Jeth turned to the other part, the one where he would willingly return to Hammer. Bleak and terrible as it was for him, it would be better for everyone else.
And that’s okay, he decided, finally giving into the urge to touch the hole of the implant architecture. It was starting to hurt less, his nerve endings adjusting to its presence. He’d known he was damned from the start.
“What about Sergei?” Jeth said.
Dax tilted his head. “Where is he now?”
“Unconscious and locked in a cabin.”
“Good. We’ll keep him right there until we’re done. Then once we revive him, I’ll smooth things over. I’m sure I can come up with a story that he’ll swallow. And don’t worry.” Dax winked. “He may be the general, but he was never the golden boy.”
Jeth didn’t smile as unease settled into the pit of his stomach. He didn’t want to trust Dax, despite believing his story. Dax was still Hammer’s man. And yet he’d given up everything to save his little brother. Not so different from me, Jeth realized. And he has a line on Lizzie. For the moment, that was all that mattered.
Jeth stepped toward the cage. “Okay, it’s a deal. But you’re not getting your implant back.”
Dax grimaced. “I’m afraid that’s impossible. If I don’t put the implant in, Hammer will know something’s wrong. He won’t wait long before sending someone to find out what happened.”
“But won’t he know what we’re planning when he reads your thoughts?”
Dax shook his head. “It doesn’t work that way. I’m Brethren, not Guard. I can turn the communication link on and off, and I control what information I send him.”
Jeth thought about it, remembering what Hammer had said about wanting his Brethren to retain a measure of free will. “But how will I know what you’re sending along and what you’re not?”
Dax stared at him, unblinking. “You won’t. But I gave you my word to help you. That’ll have to be enough. And obviously Sergei won’t be doing any communicating while he’s unconscious. I’ll tell Hammer we ran into a little bit of trouble at Moenia and that he got injured. Wouldn’t be the first time.”
Jeth gritted his teeth, hating the risk involved. But what choice did he have? “All right,” he said. “But just remember, this is my ship and my crew, at least for the time being. If you even think about betraying us, somebody will shoot you, I promise.”
Dax grinned. “I hear you, Captain. Now let me the hell out of here so we can find your sisters.”
CHAPTER
28
IT TOOK LESS THAN AN HOUR.
“Are you sure that’s where they are?” Jeth said.
“Yep. We can get there in a single jump,” said Dax. “Assuming they don’t go somewhere before we’re ready.”
Sierra leaned over Dax, examining the screen. “Can you tell anything about the environment off that trace?”
Dax nodded and entered a command. An image displayed on the screen. “It looks like a . . .”
“C-ninety-three Strata,” Sierra said.
“Yeah, that’s right. How’d you tell so quickly?”
“Because that’s Renford ship.” She looked at Jeth. “It’s called the Northern Dancer. It’s black ops, with more than two hundred crew on board and enough firepower to blast a crater in a moon. It’s not going to be easy getting in there.”
Jeth winced at the doubt in her tone that suggested it wouldn’t just be hard but a feat of miraculous proportions.
“I thought Stratas were luxury cruise ships?” Celeste said.
“Normally, yes,” said Sierra. “That’s one of the reasons why it’s so effective for black ops. Most spaceports and passing patrols take one look at the Northern Dancer and deem her harmless.”