Polaris Rising (Consortium Rebellion, #1)(47)

“I refuse to believe that the only two solutions are our marriage or war. I do not understand why our marriage is so important, and until I do, I will not be marrying you. If you would clarify, perhaps I could help you find another solution.”

“Then let me be clear: if you leave in that ship, it will mean war.”

“You mean this mercenary ship that I found on a Yamado planet? This ship? The one I had to borrow after my transport was attacked unprovoked by House Rockhurst? I think the Consortium will be more than happy to hear the entire story from the beginning, along with the surveillance footage from the Mayport. I can call them up now, if you like.”

Richard’s eyes narrowed. “You always were spoiled. If you have no concern for your people, then I don’t see why I should.”

“I am not the one threatening war, Richard. You know how to contact me if you want to discuss a mutually beneficial solution.” I closed the link before he could respond.

If the Santa Celestia was in orbit or at least nearby, then Richard could call down a new transport ship in as little as fifteen minutes. I had to clear the atmosphere and jump before he made it back to his ship or we would be in deep trouble.

“Will you marry him?” Loch growled.

I spun around. Loch still lounged in the chair where I’d left him, but he was clearly awake and more alert than he’d been. How much had he heard? Enough to know that Richard wanted to marry. Would I? That was the million-dollar question, wasn’t it?

I sighed. “I don’t know. I do care about our people. If it really would prevent a war, I would have to trade my happiness for theirs. What’s one person compared to the ’verse, huh?” The words were more bitter than I had anticipated.

“You know it won’t be that easy.”

“I know. That’s why I’m still running. I’ll run until I can’t, then I’ll either stand and fight or resign myself to my fate.” I shook off the bitterness and refocused. “For now, I have to get us moving before Richard decides to blow us up for the fun of it.”

“Do you have a destination in mind?”

“I was thinking Alpha Phoenicis Dwarf Zero.” APD Zero was a large, well-known black market in planet form. Anything that could be bought resided on APD Zero—and everything could be purchased for the right money. The Houses turned a blind eye to the less-than-legal dealings because they all got a cut. And while I normally would choose a space station to disappear, with the addition of Veronica, Lin, and Imma, my contact on APD Zero might come in handy.

“That would be my choice as well. There are plenty of smaller options, but it will be easier to get lost on APD Zero.”

I punched in the destination but routed us through two gates. The engines ramped up as we prepared to exit the atmosphere. As soon as we were clear, the FTL would engage to jump us to the first gate. “I shouldn’t have any difficulty withdrawing your money when we get there,” I said. “Then you’ll have your choice of destinations.” I’d gotten used to having Marcus around. When he was gone, I would miss him.

A few minutes later my stomach dropped as the FTL drive engaged. The transition was butter-smooth, though. The lights didn’t even flicker. Infineon requested a jump point from the gate. Once given, a gate jump point was reliable for two hours. We were eightieth in the queue. With the FTL cooldown showing an hour, it would be a race to see if the drive would be ready before the gate gave us the endpoint.

“There’s nothing else we can do here for now. Let’s get you down to the medbay, so I can run a scan on you.”

“I’m fine,” Loch grumbled.

“You had a very odd reaction to the foxy and you looked like hell when I came to get you at the detention center. Let’s just make sure everything is okay. It’ll only take a second. Please?”

“Fine, but don’t think I’ve forgotten how you tried to stun me.”

That gave me pause. “You remember that?”

He smiled a slow, heated smile. “I remember everything.”

“But you were acting so strangely. At first it was like you didn’t even recognize me. Then . . .” I trailed off with a blush.

“I’ll admit I was out of it at the time, but my memories are fine. If I’d known it was a street dose of foxy, I would’ve been more careful.”

“Sorry, I didn’t know, either. Veronica got it for me at the last second after I saw you on the surveillance camera. I thought I might need it just to get you out of the detention center.”

“I heal fast,” Loch said. “Richard was just toying with me, trying to get me to give up your location. He hadn’t started getting creative.”

“Why didn’t you? Give up the location?”

“Because I figured you’d go back there looking for me. And I made a promise to help you escape. And because Richard would’ve beaten me anyway.”

I skipped the ladder and led him down the stairs. The main part of the ship consisted of three levels. The upper level contained the flight deck and captain’s quarters. The middle level included the crew quarters and mess hall. The bottom level was the medbay, exercise room, and the maintenance access for the engine and life support systems.

The medbay door slid open. As modern as the rest of the ship, the medbay glowed with polished metal and white plastech. It barely looked used.