“It’s nice to think that you don’t want anything to happen to me, but giving me orders—”
“I can’t make you see sense, and I can’t make you follow my orders, but I know I don’t have to.” Iceni nodded toward him. “You’re smart enough to know that I’m right.”
Drakon looked away, frowning. She’s brilliant. Openly praising me for being smart enough to know she’s right, so if I argue, I’ll be acting like I’m not so smart.
Colonel Malin cleared his throat. “Sir, Colonel Gaiene has conducted at least one boarding operation.”
“He has?” Drakon pondered that, grateful for the out that Malin’s suggestion offered. “He would be good for this operation. It calls for his talents.”
“Colonel Gaiene?” Iceni asked icily. “His talents? Does the operation involve consuming large quantities of alcohol and the attempted seduction of any female who comes within groping range of Gaiene?”
Drakon shook his head at her. “Conner Gaiene knows where to draw the line. He’s also good at exactly what this operation will require.”
“I find that hard to believe,” Iceni said.
“You know why he’s like he is. You also know how he did on Taroa.” Drakon rested his fist on the table between them. “I will not sideline Colonel Gaiene.”
She eyed him for a long moment. “Because he would not last long without responsibilities to tether him to some semblance of the man he once was?” Iceni finally asked.
Drakon hesitated, then made a deliberately vague gesture. “Because he can do it, because he’s the best officer for the job.”
“If Colonel Rogero were here, I might still argue the point. What about Colonel Kai?”
“Colonel Kai,” Malin said, “has no experience in space operations.”
Iceni looked downward for several seconds, then nodded. “All right. Gaiene can command.” She leaned close, her eyes on Drakon, and spoke very softly. “You have too many walking wounded on your staff, General.”
“War does that to people,” Drakon replied in the same low voice.
“Does that include you?”
“Hell, yes.”
She sat back again, her eyes on his. “This has to be my decision.”
“Why?”
“It’s mobile forces. If we do this, it involves a lot of your people. But ultimately, it’s a mobile forces action. It’s my responsibility to make the call.”
Drakon smiled crookedly. “You didn’t learn that while becoming a Syndicate CEO.”
“Taking responsibility for my decisions? No. I didn’t learn that from the Syndicate.” Iceni sighed. “I say we go with it.”
Drakon turned back to Malin. “Get in contact with Colonel Gaiene. Tell him a substantial part of his brigade has to be ready to lift yesterday. Full combat gear and supplies for two weeks. How much troop lift do we have?”
“We have plenty of shuttles,” Malin said.
“Have we told the freighter to remain in orbit?” Iceni asked Togo.
“Yes, Madam President.” There was no telling what Togo thought of the plan that had just been decided upon. “It was supposed to have left for Kahiki in another hour, but it was told to hold off departing. The freighter’s executive has registered a protest.”
“Oh, dear. A protest.” Iceni laughed. “Tell the executive that freighter has just been chartered, and the executive can either accept the charter with grace and the chance of reward, or . . .”
Togo almost smiled. “The executive will certainly understand the consequences of refusing an offer from the President.”
“General,” Malin said, looking up from his data pad, “if we load in less than eight hours, the freighter should be able to reach the gas giant with less than a day to spare.”
“Then let’s see how many troops we can pack into it in eight hours,” Drakon ordered. “And get everyone and everything off the freighter that we don’t need.”
After Malin had left to pass on the orders, Drakon held up a hand to forestall Iceni. “Can we talk privately?”
She looked toward Togo and pointed at the door. Togo hesitated, then nodded and walked out. “What do you need?”
“I need to know what the problem is the last few days. Did someone tell you I planted that bomb at your desk?”
Iceni smiled humorlessly. “Of course someone did. I have no evidence to support that charge, though.”
“It looks like you believe it,” Drakon said, his voice sounding rougher than he had intended.
“I— Why are you saying that?”
“The way you’re acting toward me,” Drakon said bluntly. “Look, I understand that you don’t like me. If that’s the way it is, fine. But I thought we could work together.”
Iceni looked back at him, perplexed. “You think I don’t like you?”
“I’m not a fool.”
“On that point, we may be in serious disagreement, General Drakon.”
“What?”
She sighed, looked upward as if beseeching aid from the deities they had been taught not to believe in, then back at Drakon. “I don’t don’t like you.”
“What?” Drakon said again. “You don’t don’t like me?”
“That’s what I said.”
“Can you explain what it means?”
“It means we can work together,” Iceni said, looking exasperated. “Artur, you can’t be that big an idiot!”
Is she trying to make me angry? Something clicked in his head. “Hold on, if you don’t don’t like me—”
“Ancestors!” Iceni cried, looking upward again. “Save me!” She glared at Drakon. “I must be a bigger idiot than you are!”
His anger grew in response to hers. “What in the hell are you talking about?”
“Perhaps you’ll figure it out before one of us is dead! Now, if you’ll excuse me, we have a battleship to save!”
Iceni swept out, leaving Drakon sitting there, mystified.
“I should do it,” Morgan complained.
“Gaiene can handle it,” Drakon replied.
“Him and that brat on the battleship?”
Drakon rested the left side of his chin on one fist as he looked at her. “You don’t like Kontos? I understood that you’d been sending him long, chatty communications.”
Instead of acting guilty, Morgan just grinned. “I’m flirting with him like crazy.”
“‘Flirting’ is a fairly innocent term,” Drakon observed.
“Maybe it’s a bit more than flirting, then. I want the kid interested in me. I want him willing to do what I want, what you want, with that battleship of his.”
“You’re trying to turn Kontos against Iceni?” Part of him, the part that looked at cold reality and its demands, saw the merit in such tactics. Another part of him, the part that knew Gwen Iceni, rejected the idea of undermining her authority with a mobile forces officer.
On the other hand, if Morgan can turn Kontos, Gwen needs to know that. Gwen has been acting like I annoy her no end, but she still deserves my support, and I still need her support.
“How’s your plan going?” Drakon asked.
Morgan made a diffident wave with one hand. “It’s a work in progress. If I can get him alone, he and I together, I think I can make the innocent young lad forget all about Her Royal Majesty the President.”
Drakon shook his head, trying to mask the reaction her words created in him. “I’m uncomfortable with those kinds of tactics.”
“Kontos won’t actually get any,” Morgan said with a grin. “It’s holding out the possibility that makes men do really stupid things.” As if realizing that Drakon might take that as a derisive reference to what had happened at Taroa, Morgan’s smile abruptly vanished. “Besides, I don’t sleep around, no matter what that worm Malin tells you.”