The knock came precisely when I’d requested. Vax’s sense of duty had always been impeccable.
“Enter.”
He stepped inside, his posture rigid, his eyes alreadyshifting to that wary orange that meant he knew this wasn’t a routine meeting. “Lord Rezor. You summoned me.”
“Close the door.”
He did, and I watched him carefully as he turned back to face me. Twenty sun-cycles we’d worked together. Twenty sun-cycles of trust, of loyalty, of him standing at my back through every crisis. I’d thought I knew this male better than almost anyone.
Apparently, I’d been wrong.
“I need to ask you about something,” I said, keeping my voice level. “About the underground power chamber.”
His eyes flickered. Just once, barely noticeable. But I saw it.
“What about it, my lord?”
“How many people have access?”
“Aside from you?” He paused, calculating. “Myself. Zelana. Three senior engineers. The council members, technically, though most haven’t been down there in cycles.”
“Were you aware that someone entered that chamber and tampered with some vital connections?”
He had gone completely still. It was the kind of control that took effort. “Tampered, my lord?”
“Don’t.” I stood, moving away from the window to face him directly. “Don’t insult both of us by pretending you don’t know what I’m talking about. Cleo found evidence of intentional tampering in the power distribution system. It was haphazard and sloppy, but it would have caused system failures over time.”
“Perhaps the human made a mistake in her assessment—”
“She didn’t.” My voice hardened. “I had Venith verify herfindings independently. The damage was deliberate. Someone went into that chamber and altered the connections to create problems that would look like they were caused by the sky people’s presence.”
Vax said nothing. His jaw worked, but no words came out.
“It was you.” I made it a statement, not a question. “You’re the only one with the access and the motivation to do this.”
The silence stretched between us. I could see him weighing his options. Deny and risk my wrath when the truth inevitably came out. Or confess and face the consequences now.
He chose confession.
“Yes.” The word came out flat. “It was me.”
Something in my chest cracked. Even though I’d known, even though the evidence was clear, hearing him admit it still hurt. “It’s no secret that you want the three sky people gone, butwhy?”
“To protect the valley.” His eyes flashed red with conviction. “To protect our people from the disaster those sky people will bring.”
“By nearly destroying our food supply?” Anger surged hot in my veins. “By sabotaging the systems that keep everyone alive?”
“The damage was never meant to be catastrophic.” Vax’s hands clenched into fists. “Just enough to create problems. To make it clear that their presence was causing harm. To give you justification for exiling them before it was too late.”
“Too late for what?”
“Before everything changes!” His control finally cracked. “Can’t you see what’s happening, Rezor? The storms are getting worse. They’re encroaching into the valley. Our protection is failing, and instead of focusing on that, you’re distracted by three aliens who fell from the sky.”
“Cleo has been fixing our systems, not breaking them,” I said coldly. “She saved the water purification facility. She’s been working herself to exhaustion repairing the systems from that lighting strike.”
“And what happens when she leaves?” Vax challenged. “When she and her people find their crew and return to the stars? We’ll be dependent on technology we don’t understand, maintained by someone who won’t be here.”
“So you thought sabotage was the answer.”
