“There are no Fairfields,” Liam said. “Your husband was the last of his line.”
“But lines never die out,” Dark Star said. “They just change names. It’s Templegrey now. It doesn’t matter.”
Amelia didn’t know what to think. The Silverhawks of the galaxy could all rot, but the Templegreys?
“Not all the nobility are evil,” she surprised herself by saying out loud. “Some of them are worth leaving alone.”
“Agreed.” Dark Star looked at Liam again. “I need skilled and courageous admirals to command my fleet and impose discipline on my captains. These random murders will not be acceptable when we take control.”
“Take control of what?”
“Think of it, Amelia,” she said, leaning back and gesturing grandly. “A new society, without social ranks, without restrictions based on class. A place where everyone is free to do what they want, live how they want”—she looked at Liam again—“and be with whom they want.”
“I think that’s a nice dream,” Amelia allowed, “but how would it work in practice? We still need laws, and some kind of authority, otherwise we’d devolve into warring clans like the Theropods.”
“I will provide that authority,” Dark Star said with a kind smile, “and ensure that no one tries to reinstate the old ways. I will accept that burden, so that you and everyone else can be free.”
“Wait—what? You’ll be the ultimate authority?”
“I am the one with the vision, Amelia.”
“So we just replace the Emperor with the Dark Star? I don’t really see the progress.”
Dark Star sipped her tea and nodded. “Oh, you think I’d just set up some kind of dictatorship? No, no, no . . . every world would elect its own rulers—temporary rulers, chosen from the people, to oversee the world for a period of time. And then new people would be chosen, to ensure that no one stayed in power for too long.”
“Except for you.”
“As I said, I am the one with the vision. No intelligent species has ever made this sort of communal rule work before. I would need to guide us in the early years to ensure the vision was implemented correctly.”
“And then?”
“And then . . . I would retire, to a life of peace, and let our species continue on its way.”
“Unless your children had other plans. I doubt the idea of hereditary power will be forgotten too quickly.”
“An excellent point,” Dark Star said, sitting back and crossing one leg over the other. “One that makes me the perfect person to oversee this transition. Thanks to my wretched husband, bearing children is impossible for me.”
Her words were so smooth and so elegant that Amelia almost missed them. Dark Star sat in her chair, beautiful, powerful, intelligent, and dangerous. But suddenly Amelia’s heart went out to her.
“I’m sorry,” she said.
“Thank you.”
Silence hung in the vast room, and Amelia felt no need to break it. Liam sat in his chair, staring down at his hands. Dark Star sipped at her tea and offered a sad smile.
“And I’m sorry,” she said finally, “for any injustice you’ve suffered in your life. Liam and I endured a few, but I realize that we all carry our unique burdens. When the time comes, we’ll build a new society together, free of the class system and its chokeholds.”
“That sounds great, but I’m not really that impressed when I know you’re only doing this to exact vengeance. That only leads to more death. I’m not interested in a reign of terror.”
“I understand. And I admit that my original motivations were every bit as savage as you suggest. But my vengeance is strictly limited to those who hurt me. With help, I’ll rein in my captains, because once the yoke of class has been lifted, we’ll need freedom and peace most of all. I’ve been out here in the galaxy for a long time, and I’ve seen how the majority of our people live. I know the common life, Amelia. Better than you might think.”
“Not better than I know it.”
“Quite. And so you understand why there is a need to change things. To bring real power to the people and to bring the nobility to heel. This is what I’ve learned, all these years in the wilderness, and I now have the power to lead the change.”
The idea sounded pretty good, Amelia had to admit. It was just too bad that it could never work if led by a person who was in reality nothing more than a gangster with an accent. Amelia knew the common people better than either of the nobles seated with her, and she knew they’d resist any change forced upon them. Even if it was for their own good.
“It’s quite a vision,” she said, “but people don’t like change. It won’t be as easy as you think.”
“After fifteen years of winning hearts and minds, I think I could do it.”
Her words weren’t bravado, Amelia could see. They came from a sincerity built on experience. She could think of no retort, and simply nodded.
“Piper,” Dark Star called, “please escort Amelia to her room.”
Amelia sat bolt upright. “What? I’m not going anywhere.”
“I would like to speak to Liam in private,” Dark Star explained patiently. “You’ll be very comfortable.”
Piper was approaching, with a pair of guards looming behind her.
“In your new society,” Amelia said quickly, “will people be ordered around like this?”
“You’ll be fine,” Dark Star said, an edge creeping into her voice.
“But I don’t wish to leave this room,” Amelia insisted. “Am I to be forced against my will? Is this what happens in your new society as soon as someone disagrees with you?”
Piper reached Amelia’s side and took her arm. Amelia wrenched it free, staring at Dark Star.
“Don’t make me return the favor,” Piper said quietly, stepping back and placing a hand on her pistol.
Amelia glanced at the woman’s shoulder, remembering the chaotic seconds at the Cup of Plenty, then back at her face. Piper’s dark eyes were alight, and there was even the hint of a smile on her face.
Dark Star sighed. “Fine. You may stay in the room. But I wish to speak to Liam in private—do you intend to stop me from doing so?”
Amelia didn’t want this tart anywhere near Liam, but she caught his gaze and saw the quick shake of his head. Reluctantly, she rose to her feet.
“Show Amelia the sights,” Dark Star said, gesturing to the towering windows behind her.
Piper released the grip on her weapon, indicating for Amelia to join her. Amelia squeezed Liam’s shoulder as she passed him, then strode toward the glass.
Liam watched Amelia walk away, listening to the soft thump of her boots on the stone floor. She stopped by the windows, crossing her arms defiantly as Piper began speaking quietly to her.
“She is remarkable,” Zara said. “I can see why you’re drawn to her.”
He tore his eyes from Amelia and focused on the woman sitting across from him. Her beauty was startling—she was like a painting that had hung on the wall for fifteen years and suddenly come to life. Liam searched her face. She’d aged well, but the happy innocence of their youth was long since banished. Her smile came as easily as ever, and her eyes still sparkled like starlight, but there was something beneath them, and he feared it was madness. The ordeal of her marriage could have broken her, but she’d endured, alive and free.
“Zara,” he said quietly, “my darling.”
She took his hand again. “I know, my love, it’s so much to take in.”
“You have such a vision for the future, and you’ve accomplished more than any person I’ve ever known.”
“Thank you,” she said.
“Why didn’t you ever contact me?” he asked, feeling the sudden ache in his heart again.
“I wanted to, but there was too much risk of me being dragged back to my old life.” She squeezed his hand. “I just couldn’t trust anyone. Not even you.”
“And now you’ve built an army.”
“A loyal following,” she countered.
“The start of a new age for us all.”
She really believed that, he realized. This wasn’t just pretty speeches to motivate her pirates and thugs. Her assurances to Amelia aside, he could see that Zara’s anger burned so hot that she intended to tear down their entire society. And, he considered, given her imminent attack on the Honoria treasury, she might actually gather the means to do it. This had to end, now.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out the wooden box he’d kept in his cabin.
“Your mother sent this to me after the Brightlake estate was ruined,” he said. “She thought I might like to have it. She was right.”
He opened the box. Zara gasped, her expression a sudden torrent of emotion. She reached in and took up the diamond broach, staring at it.
“I’d intended to give this to you,” she whispered, “after you got my father’s permission to marry me.”
“I know.”
“It was my favorite,” she said, closing her eyes as she held it tightly. “My personal symbol.”
“You were the shining star of the Brightlake family.” He smiled. “And this was the missing piece of the puzzle. Dark Star.”
“Oh, you are clever,” she whispered, leaning closer. “No one else would know why I chose that name. But you found me.”
“Here I am.” He leaned in, close enough to breathe in her sweetness.
When she kissed him, he was unable to resist. It was sensual, fueled by an ache of longing, but when their lips finally parted he realized that the spark died as quickly as it lit. He wasn’t a foolish young lord anymore, and she was no longer his love.
“Zara,” he said, taking her hands in his. “Let’s work together to bring your vision to life. Perhaps in a way that doesn’t involve so much bloodshed.”
“Do you think I haven’t tried to create such a way?”
“From what you tell me,” he said honestly, “no. It sounds like you’ve been building this plan from the start.”
“I have,” she admitted, “and originally it was for vengeance. But then, as my anger cooled, it became more for protection.”
“Your anger has cooled?” He tried to ease the question with a smile.
“Yes,” she replied, without the hint of a smile.
“Then why continue with violence?” he asked. “Hide in your anonymity and wealth, and inspire change in the people from here.”
“The people won’t be moved by words. I need to prove that I’m a woman of action for them to follow me.”
He nodded, trying to grasp where her thoughts were coming from, in the hopes of directing them.
“But overthrowing the nobility would bring chaos.”
“There is no other way,” she said sadly.
“Surely, if we contemplate other paths—”
“Darling,” she interrupted, “I’ve been doing this for fifteen years. Take that twit Silverhawk, for example. Even when faced with financial ruin, his inbred brain couldn’t grasp what my people were trying to hint to him—that with all his influence he could effect change and be rewarded for it. All he cared about was his own power in the current system: he just couldn’t conceive of something different.” She squeezed his hand. “I do honestly believe that some of the minor lords in the Halo, like you, will be able to see my vision. But the Imperial court is too corrupt and myopic to cooperate. Wiping them away is the only path open to us. Trust me.”
“My apologies,” he said, retreating from that line of discussion. “Perhaps, then, just get your pirate captains to stop the murders. There’s no need for that.”
“It’s been hard to direct them,” she admitted. “And keeping them motivated is useful.”
“But does it help your cause, or does it just normalize murder?”
She pursed her lips in thought, then shrugged. “Maybe I need your help in this.”
“As your admiral?” he asked, feigning interest.
“As much more than that.”
Her gaze was intense, and he couldn’t help but look over at Amelia. She stood by the windows, her back turned but her head positioned to keep Liam in her peripheral.
“Zara,” he laughed, nodding toward Amelia, “things are a little more complicated these days.”
“I don’t mind sharing you . . . for a while.”
“I will see no harm come to her,” he said firmly.
“Nor I,” she said in sudden shock. “I have many important posts for a person of such caliber. But most of them,” she added with a sly look, “are several systems away.”
He gave her a conspiratorial smile, but his mind was already starting to race. If she wasn’t willing to consider changing her overall strategy, it was time for him and Amelia to consider escaping.
Chapter 15
Dinner was a surprising affair. Amelia had expected either to be thrown in a cell, or perhaps forced to endure a private meal with just Dark Star and Liam as companions. But Piper led them all, including Dark Star and the guards, one floor down from Dark Star’s observation room, along a broad hallway and into what could only be a large mess hall. Long tables were crowded with seated men and women helping themselves to a variety of dishes laid out in central pots and platters. The noise of friendly chatter didn’t pause as Dark Star entered the room—no sudden standing to attention, no trumpets or other heraldry. A few people near the door looked up and offered friendly salutations, but it seemed the arrival of their high commander was of no special import to anyone.
A section of chairs had been reserved, though, and Amelia sat down between two of the guards, across from Piper. Liam and Dark Star sat at the end, just far enough away that she struggled to hear their conversation over the general din, but she watched their body language and saw nothing unusual in Liam’s manner. He made eye contact with her on occasion but was clearly engaged fully with their host.
Piper stood slightly to lift the lid of the pot between them. She hefted a ladle of soup and regarded Amelia inquiringly. “Something to eat?”
The smells were delicious, and Amelia doubted a common pot would be poisoned, so she lifted her plate and received Piper’s offering.
“Where you from?” the guard on her left asked her. He was about her age, with stubble masking his rough features. The darkness of his skin suggested he was from a Hub world.
“Passagia,” she answered, seeing no reason to hide anything.
“Never been there . . . but I hear you have night sometimes.”
“Sometimes, yeah.”
“What’s that like?”
His question seemed earnest, and Amelia noticed several people around her watching with genuinely curious expressions. Hub worlds had skies awash with light from all the nearby stars, and she knew that most Humans only saw blackness when they were in space. Night was something she’d just always understood, but between spoonfuls she tried to explain what it was actually like.
After a while, as people around her interjected with questions and comments, she realized that she could have been in any junior mess on any ship in the Imperial fleet. These people might be pirates, but they weren’t much different from Flatrock, Hedge, or any of her crewmates.
Piper’s refined voice and mannerisms set her slightly apart, and the admiration she enjoyed from her compatriots was obvious, but even she just joined in the conversation with a casual comfort. Her dark eyes watched Amelia carefully, but there was no obvious malice in their depths. She chatted politely, even at one point complimenting Amelia on the capture of Blade.
“Honestly, how did you take him down without killing him?” Piper gestured around at the table. “None of us have ever bested him with a blade.”
“I didn’t use a blade,” Amelia said, surprising herself with a smug grin as she raised her fist. “I was wearing spiked gauntlets, and I slugged him in the face.”
Piper’s throaty laugh led the chorus of guffaws around them.
“Obviously he was expecting a more refined attack,” she said. “My compliments on your improvisation.”
>
“Enough years on the street taught me a thing or two about improvisation,” Amelia said.
“No doubt,” Piper said with a respectful nod. “And you’re not a bad shot, either.”
“Well, I wasn’t aiming for your shoulder.”
That got a reaction from the surrounding people, and Amelia sensed a sudden uptick in the interest directed her way. She tried to downplay it and assured her listeners both that Blade was alive and well the last time she saw him, and that she and Piper had just had a misunderstanding. Amelia didn’t know whether to be mad at herself, but she found she actually liked the attention from these hardened professionals.
But what she definitely hated was that it was actually hard to hate Dark Star. Oh, she was flirting with Liam far too much, but despite her noble accent she lacked the usual pretensions Amelia always expected from a lady of privilege. She was surprisingly grounded, and she clearly held her former lady-in-waiting Piper in the highest respect.
The meal finally ended, and she and Liam were escorted down the corridor to a heavy, locked door. Beyond was a windowless room with two bunks and an alcove for ablutions. A single, wall-mounted lamp cast a dull glow in the small space.
“Apologies for the simple quarters,” Piper said from the corridor. “Hopefully we can make arrangements for something more civilized in time.”
The door shut with a heavy click, leaving Amelia alone with Liam.
“They trust us enough not to separate us,” she said with some surprise.
Liam stepped forward, his strong hands gripping her waist as he leaned in and kissed her. The passion caught her by surprise, but after a moment she welcomed it, reveling in his closeness.
“I’ve wanted to do that for hours,” he said when he finally drew back.
“Glad to hear it,” she replied. “You’re quite the charmer, as always. Almost had me convinced that you were Lady Zara’s lover once more.”
“All part of the training,” he said, sitting down heavily on one of the bunks. “I’m just glad she didn’t want to really rekindle that relationship this evening.”
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