Mercedes followed him across the island and to a regular-looking ship hatch. As they left the party and entered the ship, her son’s smile grew. He followed close on the Captain’s heels, and where Fernand’s eyes weighed and measured everything he saw, Albert’s open delight saw nothing but his new friend.
“Our banquet hall,” the Captain said with a smile, opening a door and offering Mercedes a hand.
Fernand swooped between them. “Don’t trouble yourself, Captain. I’m sure I can attend to my wife.”
When he took her hand in the Captain’s place, Mercedes blinked back her surprise. When had he last touched her, even casually? Had it been this year? She didn’t think so. Yet, here he was, swooping in possessively. If someone had hinted yesterday that this might happen, she would never have believed them. She raised her eyebrows in question, but he ignored her, dropping her hand to follow the Captain.What had caused his sudden burst of territorial instinct?
“Will we see the bridge, Captain? I’d love to compare it to the ships I’ve served on,” Fernand said.
“I’m afraid not, Mr. Mondego—the bridge is not a part of the tour—but here is our propulsion system.”
Before they could go in, Fernand’s eyes widened as he received a message. He flicked his hand in the holographic display, pursing his lips in displeasure. He turned to Albert, all business.
“Your next game has been called, and so has mine.”
“Excellent! I can’t wait,” Albert said. “Are you ready for more action, Captain?”
The Captain opened his mouth to answer, but he was cut off by Fernand addressing his son."We need to talk seriously about what moves you are authorized to make on behalf of Mondego Industries,” he said sharply.
“You’re among friends here,” the Captain said with a smile. “Speak your piece.”
Fernand started, as if he had forgotten the Captain was leading them on a tour. He shook his head, his expression wary.
“I thank you, Captain, but our business is private. In the coming games, we won’t need your assistance. The great games are serious business. Come on, Albert—we must leave immediately. Thank you for your hospitality, Captain. I’m sure we’d be pleased to entertain you in turn… another time.”
“We’ll miss the tour,” Albert protested.
“I’ll take you on a tour whenever you like,” the Captain said with a smooth smile.
“Tours be damned. This is Bacarrae.” Fernand’s eye had more focus than Mercedes had seen in years. Were this year’s games of particular significance? It wasn’t like he’d ever tell her.
“I’ll have one of my men show you to the skimmers.” The Captain nodded to one of his men in the passage. He responded to the nod by stepping forward and standing to attention. “I’ll take Dr. Mondego on the rest of the tour. There’s no point in spoiling the evening.”
Mercedes’ heartbeat quickened. Maybe if she could get him alone, she could work out what made him so familiar. If she couldn’t, well... she’d still have him alone, and there was plenty of appeal in that.
Fernand looked torn between the urgency of his business and his desire to keep claim on his territory. If he thought she would leave just to go home and sit on her own while they discussed business without her, he could think again. She crossed her arms and he sighed.
“Yes, fine,” Fernand said, beckoning to Albert. “We’ll meet again, Captain. I’m anxious to discuss with you the situation in Davrini Hacken.”
The Captain nodded to him with a secretive look in his eye. His gaze followed them down the hall as they left. He had such a predatory look that Mercedes shivered. He started, as if he had forgotten she was there, but he smiled when he turned to her.
“Let me show you the propulsion systems. Even idling here in the station, they’re a thing of beauty.”
Mercedes allowed herself to smile as she took the arm he offered. As soon as her hand touched him, she felt the hairs on her arms rise. Something about him and his glorious ship was like an echo in her mind. She couldn’t shake the feeling that there was so much more beneath his surface.
Memories of a time before her marriage bubbled up. She’d been so independent. The idea of meeting a dashing captain and touring his ship would have seemed like nothing out of the ordinary. Was it only nostalgia that made her mind drift back longingly to those days? She’d tasted passion once, but that was before mercenary calculation had been forced to take her helm.
The Captain led her into another room, dark and warm. The light was so faint that she could barely see. She drew closer to his arm, afraid of stumbling in the dark.
“Are there no lights?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
“There are lights, and they’re worth seeing.”
He drew her in so close that she thought she could feel his heart pounding in his chest, but she must have been mistaken. Why would his heart be pounding wildly?
He placed her hand on a rail in front of her. Even then, she clung to him with the other.
“Stop,” he whispered. “Just a moment and all will reveal itself.”
“What do you think of when you wait in the dark?” she asked.
“I wonder what makes a person betray the one they love most in the world.”
A stab of fear shot down her spine. Did he know her secret? But, no.No one from Davrini Hacken would have heard about her poor Edmond and his fate..
“Desperation,” she breathed. The answer had flown out of her like a fly released from a bottle. She’d been waiting years to admit that to someone. Somehow, confessing it to him here in the dark made her feel close to him. She let herself lean against his support a little more.
Her eyes strained in the darkness, and then there was a blue pulse of light. It spread across the horizon like blue veins across a lung. The sensation of being within a living thing, open for surgery, swept over her. But that was ridiculous —they were within a man-made machine like any other. Yet, with each of the following pulses, blue rippling to aqua and then swirling greenish yellow, the feeling of being inside an organism increased. It was warm and humid, and as the light danced across the vast room, her eyes sought the Captain’s single pupil, dilated in the darkness. She gasped as his lips parted and felt her own do the same.
“Mercedes,” he whispered, his lips trembling. He looked like a ghost from her past. It was impossible, yet she felt an overwhelming urge to kiss him. This wasn’t part of her pre-determined life—this was something she could reach out and take for her own.
She stood on her tip-toes, heart hammering every nerve in her body tingling with anticipation with risk. The man he reminded her of so strongly in the hazy dark was long dead—nothing but a dream that haunted her pillow. And yet,In this moment, it was almost as if she could kiss this living man and bring the specter back from the dead.
She reached her hands out, delicately, questioningly, and rested them on the breast of his belted leather shirt. His heart pounded beneath them. She licked her lips uncertainly, summoning the courage, and closed her eyes...
“Captain?” Light flooded the room as the door to the passage opened, banishing the flickering lights of the propulsion room and dispelling whatever madness had seized her.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
“It’s time for the display, Captain!” Jack said from the passage beyond.
Dante struggled to pull himself together. The feeling of her so near after all these years was almost enough to undo him. Hadn’t he dreamed of her while he was in prison for all those years? Hadn’t he seen her face again and again in his hopes for the future until the day he finally realized she must have been as much at the heart of his betrayal as his best friend, Fernand?
How long could she have waited before she married him? Not long—Albert had been born within a year of his incarceration. She’d leapt into another man’s bed weeks, if not days, or hours, after he had lost everything. Dante gritted his teeth. He must not succumb to the feel of her hand against his hammering heart.
He must not be melted by the look in her deep, dark eyes that were so like Albert’s. They were the very same eyes that had seen him so many years ago—perhaps the only eyes that had seen him fully.
She’d said desperation would motivate betrayal. Had she been referring to him? What in the world could she have been desperate about?
He cleared his throat violently and stepped back. “Thank you, Jack. Would you care to accompany me to the entertainment, Ms. Mondego?”
Her eyes lingered over him, as if she longed to caress him in each place her gaze traveled. He had never expected that, after so long, she would still have such power over him. He could barely move under the promise of her gaze. It shot little tingles of anticipation through him, as if they had never been apart all these years.
“I must go,” she said, her words coming too quickly, as if she felt it, too. “It’s been a pleasure, Captain. I hope we will see you again. Perhaps tomorrow, at the tournament?”
“Perhaps tomorrow,” he agreed, crooking a finger to Jack. “Would you show Ms. Mondego out?”
Jack nodded and took Mercedes’ arm in his. She smiled and followed, leaving Dante in the hall clenching and unclenching his fists. He must not let her sway him.
Not if you want your revenge. The Monte Cristo understood this one human thing completely. You should have it. Betrayal is worse than death. I’m fogging her more than the rest so she won’t realize it’s you. We can’t afford to tip our hand.
Dante frowned. I didn’t ask you to do that.
Consider it a gift.
He clenched his jaw and strode back to the party, brushing off the attention of adoring admirers as easily as he shrugged off the constant probes by employees of the Company into the inner workings of the Monte Cristo. They could guess all they wanted. When his revenge was complete, they would have all the time they could want to speculate while he was shaking stardust off his hull and zipping off to the next quadrant. He knew the chinks in their armor—they wouldn’t ruin him like they’d ruined others.
He felt a shiver of anticipation. Eighteen years of planning, plotting, and daydreaming were culminating in this final thrust. He’d studied Fernand’s eyes carefully when they’d met, but there hadn’t been even a glimmer of recognition. Even Mercedes had no idea he was her former fiancé. Perhaps the loss of his eye had been worth it, after all.
I keep telling you it was good for you. A worthy sacrifice.
His eye scanned the crowds edging to the sides of the islands as they waited for the display the Monte Cristo was about to launch. There!Villefort was not far away. He squeezed through, letting his single-eyed gaze clear a path for him as party-goers shrank from the famed Davrini Hacken.
His only regret in this was Albert. The young man didn’t deserve the tragedy that was about to descend. He was nothing like his father.But he didn’t really think that revenge could be cheap,did he?
Worth the cost. What is one young man compared to what they took from you?
The firefly lights faded and the islands descended into near darkness. The rush of the intake of breath from a thousand throats filled the room and silence descended immediately after.
Now? the ship asked.
Now, Dante agreed.
Around them, holo-works exploded like fireworks for the senses—not just bursting lights, but bursting with scents, music, and burst of colorful birds. The crowd gasped with delight as Dante positioned himself behind Villefort’s right shoulder. He’d studied the man so carefully for so long, and here was his chance to finally plant the first seed.
“Don’t turn around,” he whispered in the dark. “Nod if you understand.”
As the next burst lit the crowd, Villefort was still nodding.
“I know your secrets. I know every dark deal you’ve made to get where you are. I know who you betrayed—the betrayal that started all of your corruption. Edmond Dante,” he whispered. When the islands went black again, he slipped away through the crowd before Villefort could turn around.
On the next burst, Dante glanced looked back over the heads of the audience to see Villefort scanning the crowd, his face as pale as a sheet.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
“AND WE’RE BACK FROM THAT break brought to us by Mana Energy Bars. When you’re feeling drained, recharge your batteries with Mana! Now, the interview that everyone’s been waiting for—the interview we got first with the questions no one else has the grit to ask. You’ve seen him triumph again and again in the arena, the dark horse from Davrini Hacken known only as the Captain! Bring him on out!”
Applause.
“Hello and welcome to our show, Captain—or Mr. Captain. What do you prefer?”
“Captain is fine.”
“I love you, Captain! I’ll have your baby!” Shouting from the crowd.
“It’s not that kind of show, ladies!”
Laughter.
Dante remained silent.
“Hey, whatever gets the ratings up! Seriously, though, we have a long list of questions here—serious questions. The one that’s at the front of everyone’s mind, of course, is why the eye patch? Are you a pirate? Was there a terrible accident while you were making breakfast one morning? What’s the deal? This is the answer everyone is dying to hear!”
“You have to give something of yourself, sometimes, to find something from your dreams.”
“What an answer, hey ladies? That’s some deep thought right there.”
“It’s the truth.”
“Now, of course, we have to talk Bacarrae. New Rome is home to the Grand Tournament, and even though you were an unknown a few short weeks ago, you’ve already made your way from the preliminaries into the big leagues. We’ve got some footage here of you and your… partner—protégé?—Albert Mondego, toppling the powerful Red League for the entry spot. A huge upset! Was this your plan all along?”
“I came to win. I have a very specific prize in mind.”
“Oh? Do tell!”
“That would ruin the surprise.”
“More surprises from the Captain? No surprise there, hey folks?”
Laughter and agreement.
“Now, let’s talk about Albert Mondego for a moment.”
“If you must.”
“Son of the industrialist Fernand Mondego and famed doctor Mercedes Mondego, you’ve really thrown a stone into that family’s pool and caused some waves, so to speak.”
“Meaning?”
“Of course, you know Albert will be playing for Mondego Industries during the Grand Tournament alongside his father, who received a bye through the preliminaries. You’ve helped Mondego Industries along quite nicely. Has there been any offers from Mondego to play exclusively for their company, or are you planning and betting to take all that back?”
“I won’t be aligning myself with any one company.”
“Then you’re prepared to meet Albert on the field of battle, perhaps against his father as, well, a Bacarrae champion?”
“If that’s how the matches come out. Albert is a strong player, and I have no doubt his father is, as well. They will be interesting matches.”
Fernand paused the news feed, the Captain’s face intense alongside the gaudy talk show host. He was dressed in high Davrini Hacken fashion and cut quite the figure. Hair slick and an ornament eye patch with small jewels embedded along the strap, he was a dandy—or at least pretending to be. Fernand took a long drink from his glass. He went to take another, but found it empty. He held it out to be refilled by the automatic dispenser.
“What do you think of him?” Fernand asked the heavy-set man sitting across from him. “Is he a threat? Is he weaseling into my son’s affection and pushing us into an alliance to force Mondego Industries into something?”
The man across the table drinking mineral water wore a pleasant, unconcerned expression, despite the sullen and steadily declining mood of Mr. Mondego. When he spoke, however, there was nothing pleasant about the rasp of his voice.
“Any man who can play
like that is a threat. We play the game of games. Mondego Industries needs to secure the rights to the Eastward Lanes. Business has not been good, and despite everything our PR spins about your skill, Fernand, you’ve only won three of your last five. Your losses have not been insignificant.”
Fernand nodded.
“There’s also what happened to the Red League assassins,” the big man said, his face keeping its pleasant, careful lines. “I didn’t see the bodies, but I read a medical report. He and the men in his employ are no strangers to violence. One man may have been dispatched with an abnormally strong psychic attack.”
“He’d have to be a strong psychic to play like he does,” Fernand growled. “Few can manifest physically.”
“Just so,” the big man smiled, making his cup float gracefully for a moment before it came to rest again.
“I’ve arranged for you and him to be drawn on the first match,” Fernand said slowly. “He’s bloated with confidence now, crushing the Red League like he did. Finish him now, early, and we’ll be rid of him. I’d rather see Mondego Industries supported by people I know and can control than by some loose cannon. He could just as easily turn on us, no matter how much good he’s done thus far.”
“That must have been expensive—almost as expensive as my services.”
Fernand eyed the big man, glowering over his drink. “Well worth the cost, I think, if I can remove him from the games. He is poison to Mondego Industries and to my son.”
“I heard tell he has an interest in your wife, not that any man wouldn’t. I also hear he might have her interest, as well. The Captain’s party was very educational. This wouldn’t have anything to do with that, would it?”
“The first match,” Fernand growled. “Make sure he goes no further.”
The other man didn’t break his calm expression as he nodded. “So it shall be.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
DANTE’S CHEST WAS WARM WITH satisfaction. He watched through his remote viewer as Villefort opened the tiny golden box on his desk. The man’s face paled as the holographic image expanded upward, mushrooming into a sphere of streaming data. It hadn’t taken long, with the Monte Cristo’s help, to find every illegal deal the corrupt clerk had made, every negotiation that went outside the rules, every bribe, and every lie that had sent an innocent to prison. It wasn’t hard to find when you knew it would be there.
Captain of the Monte Cristo: a space opera retelling of the classic tale (Classic Retellings Book 1) Page 9