She had no answer for that, choosing to stage a tactical retreat instead. She headed for the safety of the suite, knowing the presence of others would keep her from doing anything unwise.
In future, she'd need to avoid moonlit terraces. They seemed to bring out the incautious side of her.
Her steps faltered when she caught sight of Finn and Solal waiting.
"Did you enjoy the show?" Kira asked.
"It was certainly an interesting one," Finn said.
Kira shook her head and moved toward the door.
"I don't think I recall the commander ever being so obvious when making his interest in a woman known," Finn said. "Do you, Solal?"
His voice was neutral, but Kira suspected he was laughing at her.
"Never. He usually lets them pursue him," Solal said. "He is very particular."
Kira didn't respond, prowling toward the door.
"And I've never heard him share even the barest details of his past with any of them," Finn murmured.
Kira's head turned toward him slightly. Her mouth firmed. No, she wasn't going to get drawn into this, even if curiosity was a bitch.
She stepped into the bright lights of the common room of the suite, the source of what had interrupted their moment immediately obvious.
Graydon's minions were arranged in various poses of relaxation around the room. Two were in the center playing some type of game involving daggers and juggling.
They flung the weapons at each other almost faster than the eye could see, each one catching a dagger before flinging it back at the other.
Kira counted. There were five daggers in play.
Dangerous game. It was impressive there was no blood or holes in the furniture.
As she watched, someone standing to the side tossed a dagger to one of them. Isla caught it, sending it spinning toward her opponent in one smooth movement.
There were shouts of encouragement and jibes as those watching tried to break the players' concentration.
"They'll go until one of them dodges or draws blood," Graydon murmured, coming up behind her.
Kira didn't jump, having sensed him seconds before he spoke.
"Whoever lasts the longest wins. The more daggers you can keep in the air, the more impressive," he continued.
"That seems like a good way to put someone out of commission," Kira said blandly.
Graydon shrugged. "They need the danger to burn off their excess energy. Better this than pointless duels because everyone is irritable."
Kira turned to look at him.
He arched an eyebrow. "There are consequences to our gifts. I suspect you already know what I'm talking about."
Kira's expression remained neutral.
Jin lowered from the ceiling where he'd been watching the proceedings. "That would explain so much about you."
Kira glared at her friend.
"If we'd known that, maybe you wouldn't have decided to tangle with the strigmor eels and razor ash and we'd still have a working ship," he said, ignoring the signals she was giving him to shut up.
