Zodiac (Zodiac, #1)(41)

He nods. “How?” I ask, awed.

“’Nox and I like to invent things,” he mutters, growing distracted by something on a screen.

His green-gold eyes start to wane, as if his attention were literally fading from the present moment. But before I can press Hysan, Mathias injects in a suspicious voice, “It’s unusual for a diplomat to carry such a specialized shield.”

“I like my privacy.”

There’s a finality in Hysan’s tone that makes me drop the subject. I’m glad to know the three of us are protected, but Ophiuchus could use a Psy attack to hit Virgo or Gemini at any time, in any way, from anywhere. This trip is feeling more hopeless by the moment.

“I’ll have to convince the Houses to cut off communications with the Psy . . . somehow,” I muse.

“Your enemy attacked our ship because he means to silence you,” says Hysan, frowning, piecing together what he can.

“We can still turn back,” offers Mathias.

“No, we can’t. Not when the Houses are at risk.” If Mathias actually believed me, he’d understand.

“What Houses?” asks Hysan.

“All of them. Virgo and Gemini will be next.”

Hysan listens without moving, then turns and speaks to his ship. “’Nox, set an immediate course for Libra.”

Mathias instantly countermands the order. “Gemini’s our destination.”

“My duty is to warn my own House about this threat,” says Hysan, rounding on him.

Mathias draws himself erect. “And Gemini gets no warning?”

In a low voice, I say, “Hysan.” At the sound of his name, he turns and looks at me. “I need to warn Gemini and Virgo. They’re in the most danger right now. After that, we can go to Libra. Okay?”

His chin tips up, and I realize his pride is so great he might disagree.

Instead, he bends forward in a low bow. “As you wish, my lady.”





15


TO SETTLE MY MIND, Hysan locks my black opal and our three Rings in his strongbox. We even drop in my Wave with the tutorial Ephemeris, to be extra safe.

It seems impossible, but Ophiuchus has discovered how to bend Psynergy to his will, so we’re shutting ourselves off from everything that could tether us to the Psy. I even make Hysan and Mathias promise to avoid sending or receiving holograms, at least for now. So we’re flying dark. And with no news from the outside world, worry is starting to infect my every thought.

Our zigzag flight during the attack took us far out from Gemini, but we’re speeding back, and the constellation already fills our view. Even now I can’t forget Mom’s drills on the Double.

House Gemini has two colonized planets. The largest one, Hydragyr, is an airless cratered rock, but its mountains hold a trove of rare metals. The smaller planet, Argyr, has been terraformed to support a vast forest. The chief point Mom drummed into me was that Gemini is a House divided. The rich live in splendor on Argyr, while the vast majority of Geminin work in beryllium mines deep under the surface of Hydragyr.

Mathias is in his cabin napping; he and Hysan are taking turns at the helm. “Do you need a break?” I ask Hysan.

“No, but your company would be nice.”

I sit beside him and stare at the screens. ’Nox’s Brain Powers has a litany of settings for the ship’s artificial brain. Shielding from Shadows lists the various veils available, including those of the Psy variety.

“He doesn’t believe you,” says Hysan, as though we’ve been carrying on a conversation this whole time.

“Mathias?” I ask. “No. Neither do the rest of my Advisors. Right now, my only supporters are my best friend, Nishiko, who’s a Sagittarian, and you, a Libran. The only people I can’t convince are my own.”

“The most crucial truths are always rejected before they’re accepted,” he says, gazing out at Space. “It’s one of our greatest human flaws: arrogance. We look up and dare to assume we know, when the universe is unknowable.” The words sound like they’re coming from a deeper place than usual. “In my experience, it’s better to keep an open mind and judge without prejudice . . . whenever I can.”

There’s an invitation in Hysan’s voice to get to know him better . . . and the more he shares, the more I want to learn about him. I know I should leave my wall up, at least until he’s revealed more about himself, but it’s hard keeping my distance when every time he gets close, I find myself wanting to get closer.

“How very Libran of you,” I say, pointing to the heading on one of the monitors. “I like your House’s Recovery-Requires-Review approach.”

“Always nice to meet a fan.”

Librans are known for their pursuit of justice, and they believe education is the best path to achieving it. To recover from any blow or overcome any challenge, they recommend reviewing all information available and studying all of one’s options, as an antidote to snap judgments and rash actions. “Do you know this one, too?” he asks.

A hologram beams out from the gold bloom on Hysan’s iris. The text he’s projecting is a children’s morality tale from Libra.



When the letters of the alphabet began disappearing, word spread there was a murderer among their ranks. They agreed every letter with a sharp edge on its body was a suspect. This ruled out O, who was asked to be the judge. He put each letter on trial and eventually blamed X, who had the most violent appearance and the worst disposition of them all. The real killer went free.