I’m sorry, Red secretly says to me through our link.Is it considered rude to bring rodents to a Maran party?
I lift an amused eyebrow at Red. He just shrugs, but the edge of his mouth lifts too.
Before me, the nobles’ taunting banter quiets as they stare at him in stunned silence. Tomm’s and Pira’s sneers drop. Even Gabrien’s smug smile fades under the hard eyes of the Skyhunter. The sight of the blood draining from his face sends a quiver of satisfaction through me.
Red doesn’t bother to wait. He gives them a bow of his head so deep and proper that I immediately know it’s sarcastic, and then pulls me from their group and ushers me down the corridor. I find myself feeling grateful for the now-familiar heat of his hand. Every conversationaround us fades away. Behind us, the Senators exchange shocked whispers.
“That’s him,” one says. “The prisoner from the Federation!”
“The Skyhunter?”
“Yes. He’s the one who massacred the entire Federation offensive at the warfront!”
Red gives me a sidelong look.I thought you could use some help, he says to me through our link.
I don’t know whether to feel relieved for his help or annoyed at his comment.You could have said something to me through the link, warned me you were coming.
I didn’t want to disrupt you during such a tense exchange.
Suddenly I remember that he can tell when I’m angry or anxious, that he must have known how the Senators’ conversation made my heart contract. Can he also sense the way I’d admired his evening look? The thought burns my cheeks.Have you been to formal events before?I ask instead.You seem so comfortable here.
My father used to attend formal functions back in the Federation, he replies.I know enough about how they work.
I’m ready to ask him more, but then we reach the banquet hall, where the Speaker is in the middle of giving a toast. I stop and look away from him, trying to ignore the stares that follow our every step.
I heard Adena dressed you tonight, he says after a beat.She did well.
I search for sarcasm on his face.Are you making fun of me?I ask, irritated.I’m not in the mood tonight.
He frowns at me.I’m complimenting you. Is that not it? You look decent.
Decent. Maybe some things are lost in translation, even through our bond. I glare at him, wishing Adena was here so she could hit him with one of her customized weapons.
We step into the warmth of the banquet hall. Near the front of thechamber, the leader of Mara stands leaning over his table, an arc of his Senators on either side of him. Even Aramin has switched out his Striker uniform tonight for something more luxurious, a vest and coat of white and gold that highlights the subtle gold that lines his eyes. I relax slightly at the sight of Jeran, resplendent in his formal jacket, as he and the Firstblade talk in low voices. Beside him, Adena waves at us. We exchange brief smiles, then without a word turn to face the Speaker.
The Speaker pauses in his toast at our arrival. I’ve seen him before, but always from a distance. This close up, I can see the exhaustion behind his expression, the droop of his skin and the age in his watery eyes. His gaze skims first over me before darting away in disinterest, the edges of his lips thinned into a grimace. His attention settles on Red. “Well,” he says, his voice laced with sarcasm. “Our guest of honor.”
There’s a shuffle as everyone around him shifts, jockeying with one another to be in the best position to observe the man that their Speaker has focused his attention on. Red stands stiffly beside me, but on the surface, he seems to accept the attention without complaint.
Jeran leans closer to me. “I’ve warned the Firstblade against provoking Red to the point of triggering his most powerful state,” he signs, “but the Speaker will want to see a little of what you both can do.”
I nod slightly in return, unsurprised, but the thought still makes my heart leap. We all know so little of Red’s capabilities. What if this goes wrong? It doesn’t take a link between us for me to sense Red’s stiffness.
The Speaker waves a hand at the room. “A word with my Senators, please,” he says with a curt nod.
The elites need no second bidding. They file out of the chamber in a hush of footsteps, but not before I hear them murmuring as they pass us by. Most of them step around Red as if he might lunge at them, while I merely get some hostile stares. I ignore the looks. Before long, the room has emptied, leaving us with only the Senators, the Firstblade, and theSpeaker. Guards at the entrances close the glass doors leading out into the courtyard. The noise from the festivities suddenly muffles.
I say nothing as we turn to face the Speaker. The silence stretches on for a moment as he studies us with suspicious eyes.
Finally, he looks at Red. “The Firstblade tells me that you almost singlehandedly destroyed two of the Federation’s patrols at the warfront,” he says. “Along with some of the largest Ghosts we’ve ever fought.”
Red waits for Jeran to translate, then nods once. “Yes, sir,” Jeran says for him.
“Is that true?”
“Yes, sir.”
He glances briefly at me, like he might say something about the rumors that float around me too. How I’d been the only one capable of approaching Red in the middle of his rage.
