“Our ship blew up. They’re upset.”
“We did not blow up your ship.”
“Unfortunately, someone did. And until that is determined, the Terran Empire will blame you.”
“While we are trying to bring peace, we need to solve this mystery?”
Bianca rubbed her head. “I don’t know. Maybe. Possibly. Something to prove it wasn’t what it looked like.”
“What did it look like?”
“It looked like we were fired upon.”
“Not from my perspective.” Harbin thought about it for a moment, remembering where all the ships were. “Bahram would have had the best view of what happened, from his position. When we get back to Sol-3, we can find out what truly happened.”
She sighed. “Unfortunately, I have a pretty good idea of what it was.”
He blinked. “Do you want to share this intel?”
“It doesn’t matter. I am guessing it’s part of the Emperor’s desire to win the war. A sneak attack of some kind to help prove to the Senate and the rest of the Terran Empire that war must escalate.”
“That is a lot of assumptions.”
“I have slept with the man for a decade. The bastard talks in his sleep.”
Harbin paused. “Is he your husband?”
She shook her head.
“Then what is the relationship?”
“I am known to be his mistress. A wife in every way, but in name.”
He paused. “Why does he not marry you?”
“Because it is his image—the idea that Empress Fallon was his one true love and that no one else could ever fulfill her place in his heart.”
“Is that truly why?”
“No. It looks better if he is a grieving widow than if he remarries.”
“Would he marry you if he did?”
She shook her head. “I am the mistress. Men do not marry their mistresses.”
“It is my turn to not understand.” The nuances of Terran existence are a tightly woven knot, he was learning.
Her shoulders fell. “Why would he bother if I am willing to spend the night with him, have sex with him, and take care of his daughters without the legal binding of marriage?”
“What is the difference?”
“You really do not know anything about Terran connections, do you?”
“It seems they are very complicated and entangled.”
“They are, Harbin, oh they are.”
“Before, when we were still on Orlicia, we had mates. When you found your mate, your passion ignited in the Craving, and you knew, as soon as you were around her, that she was the one for you. Then you both agreed to be mated, and it was done.”
