Page 81 of Star Bringer
“So we hung around until theReformerwas due again,” Max continues. “We planned to stow away and find out where the prisoners are taken after Doc V has finished with them. We did manage to figure out that they’re not taken back to the prisons.”
“Maybe she just dumps them in space,” Beckett suggests helpfully. “Problem solved. She really is a miserable fuck.”
“Max told you,” Ian growls. “Milla is alive.”
He seems so sure, but how?
“Anyway,” Max continues, “we all know how well that plan went down.”
Ian scowls. “Yeah, so now all we can do is make a visit to theReformer’s home port on Vistenia and hope we can bribe or otherwise coerce someone into telling us where she was headed.”
“We don’t need to go to Vistenia,” Beckett says.
Ian’s eyes narrow to slits. “If you say Milla is dead one more time, I’ll…”
Beckett raises an eyebrow but seems in no way intimidated. “Chill the fuck out, Captain. We don’t need to go to Vistenia because I know where theReformerwas heading. At least her first stop.”
“Why the hell didn’t you say something earlier?”
It’s Beckett’s turn to narrow her eyes. “Because I didn’t know you wanted to know. Communication is a two-way street, Captain.”
Ian closes his eyes for a moment and takes a deep breath. And when he opens them again, he’s smiling—with all of his teeth. “So, could you tell me, oh wise Beckett, where the fuckingReformerwas fucking heading after it left the fuckingCaelestis. Pretty please.”
“Glacea.”
Glacea? Seriously?
“And you know this how?” For the first time, Max sounds as annoyed as Ian.
Beckett shrugs. “When we were taken on board, one of the guards asked. Apparently, they were just refueling on Glacea, but it’s likely someone would know where they were heading afterward.”
Glacea is the outermost planet of the system. Where could they be heading after that? There’s nowhere to go.
“Then set a course for Glacea,” Ian says with a wide grin that matches the one on Max’s face. “And now would be good.”
Blame the hangover-induced insanity, but I can’t help smiling along with them. I’m glad he’s got a real lead—it’s made him happier than I’ve ever seen him. Again, I wonder who she is to him, to them, but can’t bring myself to ask. Not because I’m afraid of the answer but because… I sigh. I’m totally afraid of the answer. Which is ridiculous, considering we’ve only ever shared a couple of kisses on a rooftop when we were waiting to be sure we weren’t going to die.
That doesn’t count for anything.
But when he crosses to Max and the two of them start talking excitedly, I suddenly need to be alone.
I get up and walk out, and I don’t think anyone even notices me going.
I go to the galley for some water. My head is pounding, my stomach gurgling, and no matter how much I tell myself not to puke, I’m not sure it’s actually going to work this time.
Hangovers are as bad as everyone at the palace always said they were.
I’d like to say I’ve learned my lesson and that I’ll never indulge in alcohol again. But the truth is, I liked the way it made me feel. Like someone else—someone free to say whatever I want. I wonder if that’s what it feels like to be Beckett, who doesn’t need false courage to say what she thinks—or to stand up for herself.
Once I’m in the galley, I notice a huge box of dirty dishes and glasses just sitting on a counter. Clearly, someone started cleaning up but didn’t bother to finish the job.How hard could it be to wash a few dishes?I think.Nobody else is going to do it—whynotme? I can be useful.
I run some water in the sink and roll up my sleeves. As the crumbs drift down the drain, I think about our next steps. I don’t want to go to Glacea. I want to go home and get this whole imposter-princess thing sorted out. Or at least that’s what I think I want, before digging a little deeper into how I’m feeling.
The truth is, Ian wasn’t too far off when he said I wasn’t exactly protesting being on theStarlight. These last few days have made me see my life—and the entire Empire of Senestris—in a whole new way. I mean, here I am with my sleeves rolled up,washing a dish.
And sure, I’ve always known the Empire wasn’t perfect. Always known my mother would choose her kingdom over everything else, including my father. And me. She’s my mother, and she cares about Senestris. It’s why she’s been so hard on me.
But it’s a far cry from that to everything these people are accusing her of. Or, worse, not accusing her of. Just speaking about it like it’s no big deal. Like it’s accepted truth.
