“What was the hack?” I ask, even though I know, and Tryion looks proud for a moment. Considering what I know about his hack, I can see why it was something to be proud of from a certain point of view.
“It's a two stage hack, Highness. First, I blanked out the time that Liston was on the estate, just in case there was a security camera in the parlor. Then, I track back ten hours, and I stretch time. Each second of the recording is actually one point one seconds, slow enough to cover the gap without being so slow that someone watching would be able to tell the difference without sound, and even then, a lot of people miss it.”
It's an ingenious trick, I must admit, and even I missed it when I first watched the security video, not identifying it until it was pointed out to me. It took Mogar a long time to find it, and it was only by comparing minor details did it come to his attention. “Did you know that you'd implicated Gwyndolen when you did it?”
“No!” Tryion half shouts then sighs. “Not until the rumors started swirling about her detainment. The hack was an automatic program; I didn't even watch the security feeds. I kept hoping... I kept hoping that something else would come up, that my fears weren't true, but after your announcement today, I couldn't keep my silence any longer.”
“Why didn't you say something when the bombing first happened?” Kelbara asks icily, her voice soft and threatening. “Did Justine mean nothing to you?”
“I couldn't change the past, Kelbara,” Tryion says, rubbing his hand through his hair. “I hated what my brother did, and since coming to the capital, I'd started to have serious doubts about my loyalties, even more than I had before. But Liston is my brother. I couldn't change what he'd done, but I thought it was my duty to protect him, he was doing what he thought was right. Covering a bombing is one thing.... but sitting back and letting another innocent person die when I can stop it, that's another.”
Kelbara considers Tryion's answer, then looks at me. “With your permission Tauren, I think I'll go check on Audra. Should I send a Lancer to escort Tryion to a cell?”
I shake my head, pondering how to use what I'm seeing in his expression, in what his body language is saying. “No.... but you can send Jensen if you don't mind. I think I'd like to talk with Tryion a little more before we get our hands on Liston. Tryion, he is in the capital still, right?”
“Yes, Highness. He's at our capital house right now, he thought that if he fled back to our estate he'd cast doubt on himself.”
“Then Kelbara, please notify the Royal Lancers that I want a squad of them ready to go as well, as soon as Tryion and I are done talking.”
Kelbara leaves, and I turn my attention to Tryion. “You know that what you're saying amounts to a confession to treason.”
Tryion nods, squaring his shoulders. He's not a fighter, he looks like he'd be perfectly happy working with Mogar as an apprentice scholar for the next couple of decades, but there's still some steel in that spine. “I know, Highness. If it means anything, I no longer hold the view that I had when I came to the capital.”
“Which was, or is?”
“When I came here, I was willing to help your mother regain the throne. I felt that the advantages to my family were worthwhile, that my father's view on human/Tamarian relations was correct. In the few months that I've been here, I've come to change that opinion, and I have come to instead support your rule.”
I shake my head, snorting. “Almost had me there, but you lied there right at the end,” I admonish him, not upset. “You don't support the Rebels, but I can see it in your body language, you don't support me either. So, you stepped forward for another reason.”
Tryion shrugs, folding his hands in his lap. “I'll keep that to myself for now. But whatever my reasons are, the information is true. However, I think from the way your body language is speaking, you knew that already. How?”
“Your hack missed a few things,” I admit. “It took Mogar a little while to catch it, so don't be upset, he's the smartest man on the planet. First was pure chance, and if Gwyndolen hadn't said something, we might have missed the second point. After she left the parlor, she went to Jensen's library where she copied flexis for nearly an hour. All we had to do was go into the history of those flexis, which showed their being copied, it established her there well after the video says nobody was there. The second though were the shadows. The shadows cast by the sun during the gap period were an hour off. On a cloudy day, we'd have totally missed it.”
There were other things as well, but I don't need to go into everything Mogar discovered, such as Tryion being the source of the leaked audio. It's amazing what a computer can do in recreating the three-dimensional source of a recording, such as which seat on the Council table a microphone was placed.
“I have a question, this one you may not be able to answer, but if you can, please,” I add. “Your father, why is he supporting Tauria so much? He has to understand that she's already literally stabbed Ambaris and Cassell in the back, she's not going to have a king by her side if she wins.”
“Imogen is a true believer in her,” Tryion says, shaking his head. “For years, he was a secret lover of Tauria's, and he actually does care for her. I didn't know a thing about it until after my mother died, but when Tauria went on the run, Dad opened the whole estate to her. He knows that Tauria isn't going to accept a king or even a consort, but he still cares for her. Actually, it's been one of the things that put a little weirdness in the whole fucking thing.”
“What's that?” I ask, and Tryion blushes. “Tauria hit on you and your brother.”
“Liston more than me, he's always been the more charismatic ladies' man, but yeah. For some reason, though Dad seems cool with it since he can't... well, you know. Not in years.”
I whistle, surprised. “My mother is one fucked up bitch, that's for sure.”
Tryion raises his left eyebrow in surprise, but then nods. “I knew you two weren't close, but I didn't think you'd put it quite that way. So now what? You're right, I am guilty of treasonous acts. Am I to take Gwyndolen's place for execution?”
I shake my head, smirking as Jensen comes in. “No Tryion, I have another idea in mind. If you cooperate, you could find yourself a free man again before you turn thirty.”
Jensen's face is hopeful as I stand up, pointing to Tryion. “Jensen, I think that you and I need to go on a little field trip with Tryion here. With his help, we might just get to capture the bomber without anyone else getting hurt. That is Tryion if you're serious about wanting to see Gwyndolen exonerated?”
Tryion looks from me to Jensen, then nods. “What about the Royal Lancers?”
“Backup,” Jensen says, chuckling. “Between Tauren and me, I'm sure your brother's not going to want to put up too much of a fight. So, Tauren, I assume that means only plasma rounds?”
“Plasma?” I ask, mock-surprised. “I was thinking hand to hand. I could use a workout today.”
Chapter 21
Kelbara
When Jensen and Tauren drag the unconscious Liston out of the shuttle and onto the deserted shuttle pad, it's hard to describe the feelings that go through me. On one hand, I'm elated and relieved, my mother is going to be freed. On the other hand, I want to pull my monowire lash and cut something off Liston, maybe starting with between his legs.
“I can understand,” Jensen says as he helps Tauren, seeing my face. “I kind of hit him a little too hard. He's going to need some time with the autodoc.”
“Can I go let Mom out?” I ask Tauren, who shakes his head. “Why?”
“I want to go talk with Gwyndolen first, just the two of us. First off, I owe her a royal apology. But after that, I'll make you a deal, you can unlock her cell door yourself,” Tauren says, smiling. “First, though, you mind getting the door? Liston's heavier than I thought he'd be. I assume you got the staff out of the way?”
“I did. They're surprised, but most of them did it without too many questions.”
After dragging Liston to the infirmary, Jensen
and I stay with him while Tauren goes to talk with Mom. Jensen's in mission mode, but still, he gives me some affectionate looks. “Does this count as my engagement present to you?”
“Hardly, Tauren's the one who came up with the plan, right?” I joke, watching Liston as the autodoc finishes its scans and starts working. “What all did you do to him?”
“Not half as much as I wanted,” Jensen admits, “but thankfully he decided to try to resist capture. A powerlance to the hip settled that issue quickly enough. Still, I probably shouldn't have punched him in the face quite so many times. My hand hurts even.”
Jensen shows me his bruised hand, and I pick it up, kissing it tenderly. “My big, strong future husband. Thank you.”
“Tauren joked that he should let you get a few licks in too, but he couldn't be sure your monowire lash wouldn't be hidden on your body somewhere.”
I laugh lightly, nodding and making my lash appear seemingly by magic. “You know, someday I'll teach you how I do that.”
Tauren comes into the infirmary just as the autodoc shuts off, Liston starting to wake up. “Jensen and I will keep him here while Tryion stays with the Lancers. We'll figure out a more long-term setup later. I do believe that you have someone's cell to unlock.”
Tauren hands me the key and I swallow, clutching it gratefully. “Thank you, Tauren. For believing in her.”
“I was never going to have her executed even if she'd done it,” Tauren says quietly, looking me in the eyes. “I want to be a better king than that.”
“You are,” I reply, leaving the infirmary and running down the stairs to the cell level. I nearly tear the door from its hinges as the surprised Lancer on guard waves me through, sprinting down the hall to unlock Mom's door. She's standing in the middle, and the first thing I do is hug her, lifting her off the floor. “Mom!”
“It's okay Kellie,” Mom says, both of us crying happily. “It's okay.”
We just hold each other, crying happily as the relief washes over me. “Mom... I'm so sorry that I didn't come and see you. I wanted to, but the Rangers and...”
“And you did the right thing,” Mom reassures me, stroking my hair like she did when I was a little girl. “You did the right thing even though it hurt, which is what I have always hoped I taught you in the few years I was able to really be your mother. You have never, ever disappointed me.”
I hug Mom harder, crying. “I'm... Mom, there were moments when I was so angry, and I had doubts. I'm so sorry.”
“Don't be,” Mom reassures me, still stroking my hair and leading me to the bed where we sit down. “Kelbara, a dear friend was killed. I've cried nearly every day thinking about poor Justine. It's natural to be angry, I keep wondering if I should have left. If I'd stayed and talked more, not let her worries about imposing on me getting in the way, I could have maybe been there when Liston showed up. I could have protected her.”
“It's over now, though, let's get you out of here,” I say, wiping my eyes and standing up, but Mom stays on the bed. “Mom?”
“I can't leave, not yet,” Mom says quietly, giving me a soft smile. “I said before, doing the right thing even though it hurts... it's the mark of what makes us noble. So, I talked it over with Tauren, and I agreed with an idea he had. For now, I'm going to stay here in my cell, although I am agreeing to accept some creature comforts for the rest of my stay.”
“Wait... why?” I ask, confused. “Mom, you didn't set the bomb, and despite your guilty feelings, you didn't kill Justine. Why sit down here?”
Mom shakes her head, smiling slightly. “That's for Tauren to tell you, Kelbara. But... if you don't mind, maybe we can have dinner here together?”
“Whenever I'm in the capital, I'll come see you. Until you're set free,” I promise, still confused but stepping out of the cell. “Do I need to lock the door?”
“You can leave the key with me, though,” Mom says with a smile, and I pass it through the door to her before pausing and taking out my monowire lash. “Kelbara....”
“I've kept one of these on me for nearly seven years now to protect myself. If I can't protect you, then maybe this will.”
Mom accepts the thin tube, nodding. “I love you, Kelbara.”
I smile, shaking my head. “From my Mom... I kind of like the sound of Kellie again. If you don't mind.”
I leave the cell block and head upstairs, where I find Tauren checking on Audra in her study. “Tauren, can we talk? Alone?”
“Of course Kelbara,” Tauren says, straightening up. “I expected you'd want to find me. Join me in the yard? It's my favorite private area, and I seem to have good conversations with family there.”
“Play nice you two,” Audra jokes, and while I can understand her smile, I have a problem smiling back as Tauren and I go to the exercise area. In taking a second to compare it to what Jensen and I have at home, there are slight differences, but not too many.
“So,” Tauren says as he reaches for the grav pod belt on the table next to the door and strapping it on, “I suppose you're wondering why I asked Gwyndolen to stay in the cell.”
“A little, and what are you doing?”
“Getting ready to do a workout,” Tauren says lightly. “Normally I'd ask Jensen, but he's busy making sure Liston and Tryion are securely and secretly tucked away for the next couple of hours, and I always need to work off some physical energy after a Council meeting. Liston wasn't enough of a fight to work off as much stress as I need. So, would you join me? Trust me, it helps with the nervous energy you've got right now.”
“Some answers would be more helpful,” I reply, but my force of habit makes me grab a grav pod kit and start strapping it on. “Like why you decided to keep Mom in a cell. You promised not to keep secrets from family anymore, Tauren!”
“And I didn't,” Tauren says, smiling as he takes off his tunic and leaves on his undershirt. “Jensen told me you don't wear undergarments often if you want I'll have someone bring you an undershirt.”
“No, I wore one today,” I say, shrugging my own tunic off. I knew today was going to be stressful, so I wanted to be polite and look less athletic than normal, I even wore a thin bra. “So long as you don't stare at my nipples, they tend to perk up and say hi when I'm working out. I don't want to kick your ass... yet. So, explain yourself, please.”
“The idea came to me while I was talking with Gwyndolen,” Tauren says as he stretches out his legs. “I still want to end the war early, and so I thought, why not try and use what Liston did to try and get something good out of it? If you're going to be robbed of a friend, and that innocent little girl Olivia robbed of a second mother, then by heaven and stars I'm going to do what I can to make sure the war ends quickly. So... Gwyndolen's going to help me with a little deception. She's going to stay there, and per what I told the Noble Council, she's still scheduled for execution.”
“You don't think that Tryion was the only leak,” I ask, and Tauren shrugs.
“Whether he was or wasn't, we're going to use Tryion,” Tauren responds. “I think your mother's the key to it all, though. Tryion is going to contact Tauria, try and draw her out with this news. Let her think that her plan went off without a hitch and that I'm nearly out of my fucking mind and am willing to execute someone publicly. Get Tauria so greedy for the opportunity to make me look bad she must go public again. We do that...”
“And the Rangers will be there to take her out,” I finish. I go over to Tauren and grab him in a hug, lifting him off his feet. “Thank you. I should never have doubted you. I love you, Tauren.”
Tauren hugs me back as I set him down, laughing softly. “I love you too, Kelbara. I always wanted a little sister, and now I have one. By the way, hugs are good, but one rule.”
“What's that?” I ask, stepping back.
Tauren smirks and goes over to the first thing he wants to do for exercise, a high box that we can jump to. “Hugs can only be done in private. You're going to be my sister in law, but I still must be the king, outside thi
s wing of the palace and a few other places. Although if I ever need a back adjustment, I know just who to go to, I think you cracked me in four places.”
I laugh, flexing my arm. “The strong arm of the crown. So how do you want to set up these jumps, anyway?”
“Let the grav pods adjust our landings, but make it harder to take off. Don't tell me you Rangers are too weak to do some box jumps?” Tauren teases, and I laugh at him.
“Ooooh, Audra's going to be so pissed off at me when we're done. Let's see what your royal ass has. Just don't cry when you get outworked by a girl.”
Chapter 22
Audra
Tauren limps slightly when he and Kelbara come back from their little talk that I assume turned into an exercise session considering they both have sweat their undershirts until they are nearly translucent but aren't bleeding when they come in. Kelbara is smirking, though, and I wonder what exactly they did out there. “Should I ask?”
“I told him not to try it with a hundred kilograms on the grav pods,” Kelbara says lightly. “Just because I'm half his weight doesn't mean he can use twice what I do. Proportional strength and all.”
I give Tauren a raised eyebrow and he gives me a chagrined smile. “Just a little twinge. I still got the step-ups done. A warm bath tonight and I'll be fine.”
“Uh-huh,” Kelbara says sardonically, then comes over to me, giving me a kiss on the cheek. “I'm going to go see how Jensen is doing and go get the Rangers ready. You take care of yourself, and if anything starts to twinge downstairs on you...”
“I'll make sure you're the second person I tell, right after Tauren and the docs,” I promise her, putting Kelbara's hand on my belly. “This little guy is going to be spoiled by his aunt, you know that?”
Red Planet: The Rebel War (Tamarians Book 3) Page 19