The guard at the entry ramp was doing her best not to stare at Bradamont, as was the shuttle pilot waiting inside. Drakon gestured for Bradamont to enter, then followed her into the passenger compartment, seating himself next to Bradamont.
As the hatch sealed, she took a sudden breath. Glancing down, Drakon saw one hand tightly gripping her armrest. The last time she was locked in with someone like me she really was locked in. A prisoner. Now she’s back around the same kind of people, having put herself totally at our mercy. “Do you know what snakes are?” he asked.
Bradamont nodded. “Both the reptile kind and the human variety.”
“The human-variety snakes were almost completely eliminated in this star system. We’re hunting a few hidden remnants.”
“Colonel Rogero told me.” She nodded again, still tense. “I hope you understand there is a difference between knowing that and accepting it.”
“I do,” Drakon admitted. “I still have trouble with that myself. But it is in our best interests to treat you right, Captain Bradamont, and I intend making sure you are treated right.”
Bradamont looked right at him. “No escorts for us on this shuttle?”
“You’re a guest. Why would we need guards?” Drakon studied her as the shuttle undocked and began the transit and descent to the planet below. “Colonel Rogero has worked directly for me for some years. He’s one of the best officers I’ve ever had.”
She met his eyes. “And?”
“If you’re wondering why he wasn’t the one who met you, it’s because I wanted to size you up in person. You almost got him killed, you know.”
“Yes. I know.”
“But he was an equal partner in that,” Drakon continued. “All I care about is whether we can work with an Alliance officer. From what I’ve heard, you did all right on Manticore.”
“I was mostly an observer, there for the legal niceties,” Bradamont said.
“I recognize some of those ribbons you’re wearing, Captain. You didn’t earn them observing things.” He pointed to one, with red, green, and silver bands. “I know that one. It’s for Ajatar, right?”
“Yes, sir. How did you know?”
“One of those intelligence summaries,” Drakon explained. “I didn’t really need to know what all the Alliance ribbons and badges stood for, but that one caught my eye because I was at Ajatar. On the ground.”
Her eyes met his again. “Ground forces? The second planet.”
“Yeah. We got our butts kicked pretty bad.”
She shook her head. “Our ground forces people were saying afterward that they couldn’t believe you held out until a Syndic flotilla arrived that was strong enough to drive us out of the star system.”
Drakon shrugged, looking away as memories flooded into his mind. “It wasn’t easy. There weren’t a lot of us left by then. I was a… you’d call the rank major, I guess. I arrived on the planet with a battalion. When we finally got relieved I had about a platoon’s worth still alive.”
“It was bad in space, too. I was just an ensign on a heavy cruiser. The Sallet. We got shot to pieces. About forty of us made it off in escape pods before the power core blew.”
“Damn. Funny you were on one of the ships dropping rocks on my head. Small galaxy, isn’t it?” Drakon sighed, then shrugged again. “I’m glad it’s over.”
“Is it?”
“Nah. We’re all still fighting, aren’t we? The enemies have just changed. But I like to pretend.”
“That can be a bad habit in senior officers,” Bradamont observed.
The blunt observation could have upset him with its borderline insubordination, but instead Drakon found himself smiling wryly. “A very bad habit, especially when planning operations. I think I’m beginning to see what Colonel Rogero sees in you and why Black Jack picked you for this assignment.”
“Will I be… General, this is a purely personal question. Will I be allowed to see Colonel Rogero?”
“Allowed? You’ll be required to see him. He’s going to be your official handler though he’ll retain his primary job as one of my brigade commanders.”
Bradamont swallowed, eyes wide. “Thank you, General.”
“I did it for him,” Drakon said, feeling uncomfortable at her obvious gratitude. “You’ll have some guards assigned to you, but they’ll respect your privacy. Remember what President Iceni said. Anything you say in public or on a comm line will probably be overheard.”
“I thought the snakes were gone,” Bradamont said.
“Most of them. We’re certain there is at least one snake operative hidden among the citizens or the military. But snakes aren’t the only ones who tap into conversations. You know how that is.”
Her gaze back at him was perplexed. Clearly, this Alliance officer didn’t know how it was. “General, are you talking about official or unofficial snoops?”
“Both. Internal politics and competition for promotions can get really hardball.” She had to understand that aspect of things.
“Hardball,” Bradamont repeated. “You mean politicking?”
“No, I mean blackmail, spying, and assassinations.”
She stared back at him. “I’m waiting for you to say just kidding.”
“That doesn’t happen in the Alliance?” Drakon asked.
“No. I mean, in rare cases. But it is rare.” Bradamont looked down, her expression concerned. “Some of the things Colonel Rogero said to me. I assumed I’d misinterpreted them.”
“You didn’t.” Drakon gave her his sternest look. “You need to know how things work here. How things have worked because I always hated that junk and will do my best to stamp it out. There’s a reason why officers always carry sidearms, and it’s not because we expect an Alliance invasion at any second. There’s a reason why I often have bodyguards around me. I’m going to do my best to keep you alive, and I’m sure that Colonel Rogero will do the same. But you need to know what’s going on so you’ll stay alert for trouble.”
“I… will do that, General.” She looked up at the large display mounted on the front of the passenger compartment. It was now displaying a single external view of the planet below them as the shuttle dropped ever lower. “It’s beautiful.”
“I’ve seen a lot worse planets,” Drakon agreed. “Are you going to be all right, Captain?”
She switched her gaze, and he saw an Alliance battle cruiser commander looking back at him. Tough. Smart. Not just competent, but skilled. “I’ll be all right, General.”
He had wondered what could have led Rogero to fall in love with an enemy prisoner of war. Having finally met her, he found that Rogero’s fall wasn’t all that surprising. “We’ll land next to my headquarters complex. Colonel Rogero is standing by there. He doesn’t know why, by the way.”
“He’ll have seen the news reports—”
“No, he won’t. As far as Colonel Rogero knows, you left with Black Jack’s fleet.”
She smiled. “You’re an evil man, General.”
“Most people who have said that really mean it, you know.”
“I doubt that. General, may I make a request?”
Colonel Rogero tried not to look as aggravated as he felt. It was not by any means the first time he had been pulled away from his unit on vague orders from General Drakon. It also wasn’t the first time he had been escorted to a secure conference room in the main command complex to await the General and a briefing on orders too sensitive to be passed on by any other means.
But he had been sitting here for hours, alone in a conference room that was not just secure but also sealed. He hadn’t been able to access any comm lines, hadn’t been able to check on alerts or current events or anything else outside the four walls confining him. I wanted to see the former enigma prisoners arrive. There were rumors that the General would be at the main orbiting facility for that. Why am I a virtual prisoner in here when there is so much going on outside?