Stormbreak (Seafire #3) - Natalie C. Parker Page 0,60

when it was all over, they would have to move forward without letting those things control them. They needed someone who could shield them from the worst decisions.

And, Caledonia realized as her friends and her crew watched her with increasingly shuttered expressions, that person was always going to be her.

“Steely?” she asked.

She could sense the strain in the room as they answered with varying degrees of conviction. Their trust had stretched thin, and while it was still there, she could feel the way it was unravelling at the edges. The threads that wove them together might be strong, but they were not invincible. They would all need time to recover from this.

But time wasn’t something she could give them.

“Good,” she said, knowing that what came next wasn’t going to sit well with any of them. “Then we need to discuss who will join me on Tassos’s ship.”

“For a meeting?” The skepticism in Sledge’s tone suggested he knew the answer and didn’t like it.

Caledonia shook her head once. “Tassos has agreed to a brief alliance, but while we work on exactly how to go after Lir, he wants me on his ship as a gesture of goodwill and assurance. No one from either side will fire on a ship if we’re both on board.”

“Maybe not, but they can still slit your throat in your sleep,” Pine retorted.

“Which is exactly why I’m not going alone.” Caledonia took a breath before offering the rest of her plan. “Hime, I’m leaving you in charge of the Luminous Wake; Pine, you have the Blade. The two of you are in command of the fleet. I want Pisces, Sledge, Oran, and Nettle with me.”

“Nettle?” Sledge asked, appalled. “You can’t be serious. She’s just a girl.” Somehow, he was still unable to reconcile Nettle’s actions with her appearance. Even after so many moons.

“A girl who navigated Slipmark better than any of us,” Pine reminded him.

“Which is exactly why I need her,” Caledonia said. “She can get in and out of places we won’t be able to. Any other objections?”

The rest shook their heads, still in various stages of shock, both at what was happening and what they’d learned. Caledonia wished there was time to sort through everything, but there was barely time to pack a bag.

“All right, then make your preparations.”

* * *

>><<

One hour later, they gathered again on the main deck. The Net loomed large against the sky, stretching into the east as far as the eye could see. Between each of the towering Assault Ships, smaller ships roamed like sentries. If the Net could be dismantled, there were enough ships here to make taking the Holster more than possible. Enough to do more than simply resist Lir.

As quickly as the thought occurred to her, another followed. Tassos may not have overstated the security of the Net, but he had undersold his need for Silt. There had to be hundreds of Bullets aboard these ships, each with a craving for the drug that they could not create themselves. The minute they ran out, things were going to get ugly.

“Captain.” The word landed at her feet like a stone. Pisces appeared at her side, face fixed in a scowl.

“What is it, Pi?” she asked.

For a second, it seemed Pisces had determined not to speak. Her mouth pinched into a thin line, and her eyes darted from Caledonia to the crew standing near enough to overhear if she weren’t careful. “Star blossoms!” Pisces hissed, stepping in close enough to keep her accusation between the two of them. “Cala, what are you thinking?!” Caledonia opened her mouth but before she could say anything, Pisces rushed on. “And why wouldn’t you discuss that with me?”

“I’m not proud of it. I didn’t want to discuss it with anyone.” Caledonia reached for her sister’s fingers.

“You discussed it with him!” Pisces snapped her hand back, gesturing to Oran, who stood a short distance away, his eyes on them as Hime tucked additional medtech into his bag. “Him and not me. And I know I’m the one who urged you to trust him, but not over me. Not instead of me.”

The hurt that trembled in the bend of Pisces’s mouth was worse than anything else. Caledonia hated that she was the cause, even if she couldn’t apologize for the reason.

“This isn’t about trust.”

“Isn’t it?” Pisces shook her head. “I know what kind of fight this is, Cala. I know there are hard decisions ahead of us.”

“There are some decisions you shouldn’t have to make,