"Alright, alright, I know," she said, giving in. "That's going a little far."
Jace was their friend. Having the Tuann break Raider out of the brig wasn't really fair. And would have permanently blown up Raider's career. Not to mention put a black spot on Jace’s at a time where he couldn’t afford to look weak.
"I think I've earned a little trust from you," Jace said softly.
There was a faint note in his voice that said her actions had hurt him. Kira tried not to feel too bad. What she'd done had been necessary. She'd always believe that.
"You know the value of operational security. Some things—they only work if as few people as possible know about them," Kira pointed out.
Anger touched his face. "You don't get to lecture me on the meaning of Top Secret. Even if I wasn't fully aware of how important this is, Raider and Blue are under my command. You had my own people deceive me. Do you not understand how bad that is? Be grateful for our history, Phoenix. It's the only reason I'm giving you a chance right now."
Jace stalked off, leaving them looking after him in silence.
"That could have gone better,” Raider noted.
Kira glared at him, still a little angry that he’d spilled her secrets.
He shrugged at her. "I made a judgment call. The best one I could make at the time."
Kira couldn’t really blame him for that.
Raider cast a glance at Odin. "I’ll wait for you in Jace's ready room. Don't keep him waiting too long."
Graydon joined her as Raider walked away. "I don't remember your admiral being quite that fiery the last time we met."
"Then you weren't paying attention."
Jace's call sign may have been White Knight, but he'd always been quick to anger. Unlike Raider, he tended to hold onto it longer too. The man held a grudge like no one else.
"What was with your interest in his subordinates?" At Kira's questioning look, Graydon smirked. "I know it was something, coli."
She stared, not letting anything show on her face.
"Ah," he said softly. "I doubt they're the forty three. That leaves me with only one other guess."
"What makes you say that?"
He leaned over to whisper in her ear. "You weren't angry at their presence, but worried." He straightened and smiled at her.
Sometimes she hated how observant he was.
"They looked more human than I expected," Graydon noted.
"They are human."
At least partially.
Kira ignored Graydon to glance at her seon’yer. "What about our friend?"
"Safely secured and under guard. Talon is standing watch with Devon and Joule."
Finally, something that had gone right.
"Your admiral was most perturbed when he learned what we had in custody," Wren continued.
Yes, she supposed he would be.
Kira fixed her gaze on Odin. "You're up. Don't disappoint me."
