Chapter Twelve
When they got back, Kodran sent his men out to search for Darfan’s ship. Rosamund went straight to her own room, showered and changed.
Then she went to find Kodran, who was standing in the foyer exchanging angry words with Prenzal.
Prenzal flashed Rosamund a dirty look as she approached.
“I assure you, I had nothing to do with it. I would like to return her to Agora as soon as possible, for all our safety,” he said coldly.
“Watch yourself. Do not ever speak badly of her. I will be happy to challenge you right now.” Kodran’s expression was murderous.
“I am not speaking badly of her. I am simply stating facts.” Prenzal’s eyes blazed with anger as he met Kodran’s furious glare.
“Nobody is challenging anybody on my behalf!” Rosamund called out, hurrying up to them. “What’s going on?”
“Somebody has sabotaged the faster-than-light drive on our starcruiser,” Kodran said. “It will take several days to fix it, at least.” He saw the look on Rosamund’s face. “I want you to stay here more than I want to breathe, but I promise you, I did not do it.”
Rosamund felt a lump in her throat when he said that – because she knew he meant it. She swallowed hard and blinked away the hot tears that sprang to her eyes.
“I see,” she said as Prenzal turned and hurried off. “Why does Prenzal think my being here is making everyone unsafe? Or is that something else you can’t tell me?”
“He thinks you are drawing unwanted attention to…us. He is wrong. The attention was already there,” Kodran said, brows drawing together in a frown as he watched Prenzal stalk out the front door.
“Did you find Darfan’s ship yet?”
“No. They may be using some kind of cloaking device. That means they didn’t come here in a warship, which I suppose is good news. Cloaking devices only work on the smallest of ships. At this point, we do not know if they are still on this planet or if they’ve left. However, the clan has been alerted. They will not come near you again.”
She nodded, and they stood there for a moment in awkward silence. Then he reached out and tried to grab her hand. She stepped back. She wanted it too much; if he touched her, she might not be able to pull away from him. Ever.
“Rosamund. I want you here. You belong here.”
“I want to be with you too,” she said miserably. “But you know I can’t unless you tell me what you’re really up to, and you can’t – or won’t. Can you…can you send me and Dot-R back by transporter?”
He shook his head, his expression weary. “I cannot. We have not yet built a transporting station here. And without the FTL drive, the journey back to Agora would take centuries.”
“Well…I’d suggest having Starcrossed send an FTL cruiser for me, but after what happened with Darfan, I’m a little hesitant,” Rosamund said. “I know Lukan and Talia would never harm me, but they’re busy and distracted right now, and they can’t come here themselves, and… I guess I can wait a few days.” She felt her heart clench painfully in her chest. Being near to Kodran like this was torture. Leaving would be torture.
“Wait a few days for what?” Nelka swept into the room, her ankle-length gown flowing. Dot-R, and Dot-R’s serv-bot chaperone, and Ferenc, and Lina followed her. “You mean the ball? That’s tomorrow night. We didn’t think you’d be back until tomorrow.”
“After the attack on Rosamund, I think she needs some time to recover. We will cancel the ball,” Kodran said, avoiding Rosamund’s gaze.
His mother’s lip quivered and her eyes grew huge. “But…it’s traditional.”
Ferenc frowned. “It is the next step in the Lamori,” he pointed out. “Cancelling it might be bad luck.”
Dot-R surveyed Rosamund with a critical eye. “She appears to be fine,” she said. She waved her hand in front of Rosamund, then nodded. “Her vital signs are within the normal range. I detect no damage. Also, I want to go to the ball.”
“Does not compute,” the serv-bot chaperone intoned.
“That’s all she ever says! I’m sick of her!” Dot-R glared at the serv-bot, who stared back at her unblinkingly.
“Does not compute,” the chaperone repeated.
“Notify everyone that the ball is cancelled,” Kodran insisted.
“But I’ve never been to a ball before! Why does nobody ever think ofmyneeds?” Dot-R’s voice rose to a high pitch.
Rosamund gave her a skeptical look.
