Drop of Hope
Page 29
“No,” he ordered. “I will arrange to have a new commlink sent to you. Sergei has assured me they have state-of-the-art medical facilities in the towers. You will not return until you are completely healed.”
Her jaw clenched, but she couldn't dispute his orders. “Very well.”
“I need you to assess the situation while you are there. Given what happened with Pavel and Sofia, I have concerns about this alliance and our people. You will let me know if Sergei is unable to hold command.”
She swallowed, not willing to risk glancing at Sergei again. “I understand.”
“Good,” he replied. “Be well, Valya, and return to me soon. You're missed.”
Valentina ended the transmission and handed the commlink back to Sergei, doing her best to ignore the uneasy feeling in her stomach. Nikolai knew that of all the people she'd ever been asked to investigate, Sergei was the one person she wanted to avoid, and she suspected that's why he was now demanding she do so. Sergei wouldn't allow anyone other than her to get close enough to find out the extent of any problems—or even if his loyalty still lay with the Coalition. She'd heard rumblings from their people about the amount of time Sergei had spent with these Omnis and how his sympathies had possibly even fallen in line with the towers.
Sergei pocketed the commlink. “He's ordered you to remain here?”
“Yes,” she snapped, irritated by his meddling.
It was his fault for putting her in the position to spy on him. Though, it might be for the best. She would at least give Sergei a fair assessment, which was more than what he might get if the assignment had been given to someone else. Sergei had never been particularly good at making friends. He had too many enemies and too many people envious of his command.
“If you're going to remain here, I have plenty of room in my quarters. You can have one of the guest rooms,” Lars suggested, taking a step forward. “You'll be more comfortable there instead of staying in the medical center. It's the least I can do for the woman who helped save Ariana.”
Sergei stiffened. Valentina glanced at him, somewhat amused. Oh, he really didn't like the idea of her staying with Lars. Good. She always got perverse pleasure out of annoying him.
Valentina smiled at Lars. “That's a very generous offer. I would be honored to accept and stay in your quarters with you.”
Sergei glared at her, but she simply smiled sweetly at him.
Oh, Seryozha, you have no idea what you've just gotten yourself into.
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About the Author
Jamie A. Waters is an award-winning science fiction and fantasy romance author. Her first novel, Beneath the Fallen City (previously titled as The Two Towers), was a winner of the Readers’ Favorite Award in Science-Fiction Romance and the CIPA EVVY Award in Science-Fiction.
Jamie currently resides in Florida with her two neurotic dogs who enjoy stealing socks and chasing lizards. When she’s not pursuing her passion of writing, she’s usually trying to learn new and interesting random things (like how to pick locks or use the self-cleaning feature of the oven without setting off the fire alarm). In her downtime, she enjoys reading, playing computer games, painting, or acting as a referee between the dragons and fairies currently at war inside her closet.
You can learn more by visiting: www.jamieawaters.com