Part 38 (1/2)
Ryn concurred.
Darling took a second to look the device over. ”All right. There's bad news, and some serious suck-the-joy-out-of-your-life news. Where's Hauk?”
”I'm right here.”
”Not you, Fain. My wingman.”
”He's in the hallway. You know how he is about explosives.”
”Yeah, I do, which is why I asked. Send him on a bulls.h.i.+t and long errand across the station. We don't want Grandma freaking out on us. Now where's Mari?”
”With Nyk, I think. Or with Saf. I'm not exactly sure, but he's not here.”
”Well, that sucks.” Darling let out a tired sigh. ”All right, Fain. Do you share Dancer's aversion to explosives?”
”Only if they blow up in my face.”
”That's what we're trying to avoid.” Darling paused a few seconds before he spoke again. ”I need you in a hardsuit, with a blast box. Tell Syn to set the onsite dampners for that room to the sequence I'm sending to his link right now. You need a diffuser kit from him and he will have to be in the command center working in tandem with you to disarm it. If you two cannot work as a single unit and in the right order, we're all going to have a bad day.”
”What can I do?” Ryn asked.
”Stay out of this. And don't argue. I know you're the best in a fight, but not when it comes to your mother. I need a clear head and not an idiot in the way. You want her out of there. Stay in the back and let us do our job.”
”I'm taking advice on this from you?”
”Exactly. I'm speaking from experience, as I was the moron who got all of us into war because I went in to save my wife and I couldn't keep my mouth shut. Had I let all of you do your jobs and stayed home, you wouldn't be plotting my death right now. So, please, Ryn. I love Mama Dane, too. She's the only real mother I ever knew. So let me save her. I'm as upset by this as you are, and hanging on by a thread. We can only afford for one of us to be hysterical right now and I'm claiming it.”
Tears glistened in Ryn's eyes as he looked at his mother, who gave him a sad smile.
”Danes don't flinch, baby. We stand and fight. They're not going to get me. Not today. Don't you worry.”
He nodded. ”Love you, Mama.”
”Love you, too, Trey-vey.”
Syn joined them and handed Fain a hardsuit. ”Hey, I got the note from Kere that said you were in need of this.” He glanced past him to see Hermione and Venik inside. ”How you doing in there, Lady Tavali?”
”p.i.s.sed off and wanting to taste the blood of my enemies who dared to attack me here in my own s.p.a.ce.”
”Working on delivering that to you. Venik, what about you?”
”Get me out of here so that I can give her the head and throat of whoever did this.”
”From what I heard, Fain beat you to that. It's why he's here.” Syn set the blast box at Fain's feet, along with the diffuser kit. ”You know how to use any of this?”
”Not as good at it as you or Kere, but I've had a few training courses.”
”You pa.s.s any?”
”A couple.”
Syn turned positively green. ”Oh, goodie. Ryn, you might stand back... a lot. We're about to have Explosives Amateur Hour. My favorite form of entertainment... when I'm watching from far, far away.”
After making an obscene gesture at the Ritadarion, Fain turned to give Syn his back so that he could fasten the couplings for the blast armor.
Fain glared at his brother while Syn suited him up. ”Dancer, listen to me. I want you and Galene to round up your wife and kids, Talyn and Felicia, and Vega and War. And grab Gavarian and Brach, too. Get everyone to my s.h.i.+p and secure them there until this is over. I'm not playing this s.h.i.+t anymore. You'll all be secure there and no one will be able to touch you.”
”That's against Tavali Code,” Venik snarled.
”Kiss my hairy a.s.s, Ven.” Fain kept his gaze locked on Dancer's. ”You already have access and clearance to board. Tell Storm to follow Level Two protocols. She'll lead you through how to scan everyone in for clearance. There's plenty of crew quarters for everyone. And supplies.”
”I'm not leaving you to face this alone.”
”You're less than useless with explosives, and you know it.”
”You have the same trauma I do... for the same reasons.”
Fain winced as he tried not to think about either of their childhoods. ”Yeah, but I'm not the one who fell off the side of a mountain after a charge detonated in my face.” He jerked his chin toward the end of the hallway. ”Go on, Dance. You've already watched one brother die in front of you. I don't want to be your next nightmare. You have a baby on the way. Children to protect. I need you to keep them and my family safe. For me, little brother.”
Instead of leaving, Dancer moved forward and jerked him into a tight hug. ”You die on me and I'm following you into h.e.l.l to beat your a.s.s. You hear me?”
”I hear you.”
Dancer yanked his hair before he let go and stepped back. ”I mean it, Fain. Don't make me have to commit a mortal sin to d.a.m.n myself to come after you.”
”Go on.” Fain playfully pushed him away. ”You're annoying me. Get to the others.”
Dancer took three steps before he turned to look back. Tears glistened in his eyes.
I love you, too, brother. Neither of them had to say it out loud.
Syn clapped him on the arm. ”All right. You're in.” He handed Fain the helmet. ”Mic check.”
Fain put it on and sealed himself in, then checked to make sure the audio and visuals were transmitting. ”Check?”
”You there, Kere?”
”I'm here. We're ready as soon as you're in the commcen.”
Syn inclined his head to Fain. ”Good luck. I'm dragging Ryn with me so that he can have his nervous breakdown in a less distracting area.”
As Fain reached for the box and kit, he realized that Galene had vanished while he'd been suiting up. That she hadn't even bothered to say good-bye to him.
Or good luck.
It stung a lot deeper than it should have that she'd abandoned him so quickly. For all he knew, he could be dead in the next few minutes. It was actually a good bet. And she hadn't even cared enough to wish him luck.
Don't think about it.
That was easier said than done.