“Oh. Right.”
Milton shook his head. “The architecture may not be permanent, Jeth. It’s possible with the right equipment I might be able to remove it.”
Jeth gulped, the idea of being free of it making him heartsick with longing. Only it wasn’t an option. Not now. “No. Dax says if I go back willingly with him that Hammer won’t come looking for the rest of you. I’ve told him I will. At least this way I might have a chance at some kind of life. And it’ll give Lizzie and the others a chance at something even better.”
“You’re going to take the word of one of the Brethren on that?” Milton said.
“I have reason to believe him.”
Milton rubbed the scruff of gray beard on his chin. “Well, that might solve the threat from Hammer, but what about the ITA?”
“You’ll have to rely on Sierra to help with that. She’s already proven how far she’ll go to keep Cora safe. But it’ll be on you to protect all of them. It’s the least you can do.”
Milton flinched. “I’m sorry,” he said, “for starting all this. I never should’ve gambled the ship, and I never should’ve stayed.”
Jeth didn’t say anything. There wasn’t anything to say. If he told Milton it was all right, that he wasn’t responsible, it would be a lie. Now didn’t seem the time for lying. All of them were responsible, and none of this was all right.
“Do you know why your parents named her Avalon?” Milton asked, looking around at the common room.
Jeth nodded, his throat tightening with painful memories. “Because she was their paradise, their otherworld, like the Avalon in First-Earth mythology. The land of apples and eternal summer and youth.”
“That’s right.” Milton exhaled. “And when they died—when I believed Marian was dead—I hated this ship. Hated it for what it was supposed to be and what it wasn’t. But when I lost Avalon in that card game, and to a tyrant like Hammer, I couldn’t just walk away. This was all I had left of your mother. She was more than my sister, you know. With our age difference, I practically raised her. She was like my daughter.”
Jeth bit his lip. He’d known Milton cared for his mother, but he’d never realized it was like that. He never talked about her. “Well, Avalon’s yours again. Just take care of her and Lizzie and Cora.” Jeth turned to leave, feeling the weight of despair press down upon him. He was leaving his ship. Maybe forever.
Milton grabbed his shoulder, stopping him. Jeth turned back and reluctantly met his uncle’s gaze.
“You’re not going back to Hammer just to keep him off our trail, are you?”
Jeth shook his head. Of course Milton would guess his secondary motive, the one so deep and secret inside him, he’d been afraid to give thought to it until now. “If I go back and have access to Hammer’s resources, I might find a way to rescue Mom.”
Milton swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing in his throat. “But you have most of those resources here with this crew.”
“No. Lizzie and Cora have to be safe. And I’ve already put everybody in enough danger as it is. As much as I want to rescue her, I know Mom would want me to take care of my sisters first.”
Milton sighed. “You’re right. That’s exactly what Marian would want.” He paused. “You’re so much like her sometimes.”
Sadness squeezed Jeth’s chest even tighter. “I’ve got to go.”
“I know,” Milton said. “Be careful.”
Jeth nodded and then strode for the door. He paused just outside and glanced back at Milton. “Make sure you keep an eye on Lizzie’s cat. Until she gets back.”
Milton smiled. “Of course.”
Jeth turned and left the room, hoping the dread he felt was wrong, that this wouldn’t be the last time he saw his uncle.
And as he walked down the corridor to his cabin, he trailed his hand along the walls of his ship, whispering goodbye, and hoping, praying, this wasn’t the last time he saw his Avalon either.
CHAPTER
29
EVEN WITH THE STEALTH DRIVE ENGAGED, APPROACHING the Northern Dancer was risky. Celeste had to keep their speed low enough that the other ship’s radar wouldn’t pick up their movement. They crawled along, moving annoyingly, impossibly slow.
Jeth had never seen Celeste so focused. She sat as rigid as a statue behind the Citation’s control column while he stood behind her, silently watching. Sierra sat copilot, using her knowledge of the Northern Dancer to help them. They couldn’t rely on the autopilot for this, as Celeste had to keep making adjustments to their path to ensure they lined up successfully with the Northern Dancer. She could only make a change a fraction of a millimeter at a time. Several times, she pushed it a little too hard, and Jeth held his breath, certain they would be spotted.
More than an hour after starting their approach, they finally reached the Northern Dancer. The massive ship looked the same as any other luxury liner Jeth had seen, fat and cumbersome, as unthreatening as the manatee Hammer kept in his menagerie back on Peltraz. It was hard to believe it housed the kind of firepower Sierra claimed, and yet he didn’t doubt her. He knew well enough from Hammer’s enterprise that you shouldn’t trust the outward appearance of any ship. Still, Jeth supposed the ITA had made a good choice in using it for black ops. If weaponized, a ship as large as a Strata would carry a devastating amount of firepower—enough to vaporize a ship as small as the Citation.
Once they were close enough to be out of range of the Northern Dancer’s radar, Jeth placed a hand on Celeste’s shoulder. “Have I told you lately that you’re amazing?”
She ignored him, her focus as rigid as ever.
“There.” Sierra pointed out the window. “Get as close as you can beneath that wing, but don’t break fifty meters. Even with a stealth drive, you’ll set off the proximity alarm.”
Celeste’s answering nod was so slight Jeth thought he might’ve imagined it.
“I’ve got a read on Lizzie’s position,” Dax said, looking up from the comm station monitor. “Looks like L Deck, stern.”
Sierra rose from the copilot’s chair and walked over. She examined the screen, then swore.
“What is it?” Vince asked, standing up from the nav station. He did it slowly, his face pale and pinched from the effort. He’d lost a lot of blood from the gunshot wound in his side. Sierra had wanted him to stay on Avalon, but Vince insisted on being near her. Especially if you’re going in there, Jeth had overheard him saying during the argument.
“That’s the brig,” Sierra said, pointing at the screen. “Why would they put Lizzie in there? I was expecting her to be on one of the passenger decks. It’s not like she’s dangerous.”
“She is with a computer,” said Jeth, coming over to have a look.
“And she knows how to be a pain in the ass when she wants to,” said Shady, standing just to the side of the comm station.
“Or maybe he’s expecting us,” Vince said, pressing a hand against his side as if each word hurt. “How detectable is this tracer you used?”
Dax looked up at him. “Not very, unless you’ve got the right equipment and know where to look for it.”
“Then it is possible he knows we’re coming,” said Jeth, a bad feeling crawling across his skin. “That soldier might’ve noticed when you shot her with the tracer.”
Vince touched Sierra’s shoulder, his face drawn with worry. “This could be a trap.”
She shrugged him off. “Maybe, but Renford can’t know about the stealth drive, so he won’t know we’re here right now.”