paused. “Ah. You wanted me to be bound by my word to return to Earth. Well played, Director Bishop.”
I’d been manipulated from the beginning. If not for my ability to read messages from thin air, I’d be on my way back to Earth right now. I tried to summon the protective fury I’d found earlier, but I just felt sad and tired. I don’t know why I’d expected Ian to be different from everyone else, but I had, and the letdown hurt.
After Gregory’s overnight switch from devoted fiancé to demanding husband, I thought I’d learned not to get my hopes up, but the lesson refused to stick. Maybe that’s why it had been so easy for Gregory to manipulate me, too.
Looking back, it was easy to see that he had spent the first year of our marriage tearing me down so I’d be more compliant. He moved me away from all of my friends and peers, isolating me in Daln, a tiny city on a tiny dustball planet that no one ever visited unless they wanted to consult Gregory about his research.
Gregory was never pleased by anything I did, so I tried harder. I was a von Hasenberg. We didn’t fail, we persevered, and I had desperately wanted a good marriage.
But that confidence that I could fix anything was ultimately my downfall. I was so busy trying to fix things that I couldn’t actually see what was happening. By the time Gregory gave me the brain implant and modified my nanos, I was nearly broken and the resulting illness and weakness kept me that way.
Early on, in my darkest moments, when I’d been sick and in pain, I’d begged him to help me. Gregory had laughed and told me that he was helping.
I had believed him, for a little while.
After Gregory’s death, I had vowed not to make the same mistake twice. I wouldn’t be so easily manipulated again. I jerked my elbow out of Ian’s grip and stepped away.
Ian murmured something that sounded like, “Forgive me.” While I was trying to puzzle that out, he moved. He wrapped me up in my cloak like swaddling, then picked me up before my brain realized what was happening.
“Let me go!” I shouted, trying to break free.
He bundled me into the transport and sat with me across his lap, held close enough that I couldn’t escape.
It didn’t stop me from trying.
“Stop squirming,” he said tightly. His arms were like velvet-padded iron around me; they were gentle, but they had no give.
“You are a dead man, Ian Bishop,” I threatened.
“It wouldn’t be the first time, love,” he said, his clipped accent more pronounced than usual.
The endearment kicked me in the chest and I froze. I knew it didn’t mean anything, it was just a filler word like darling or sweetheart, but it hit on one of my secret longings.
I stared straight ahead and pretended my heart didn’t ache.
Ian carried me into Persistence, one of the smaller House ships that could be used by anyone in the House. He didn’t set me down until the cargo door had closed and locked behind us.
He kept hold of me and asked, “If I let you keep your weapons, do you promise not to use them on me?”
I stared through him. He sighed and rifled through my bag and pockets, removing the weapons. I didn’t bother fighting him. I would lose, and I didn’t plan to shoot him anyway, no matter how tempted I might be.
“Are you planning to ignore me all night?”
Yes, yes I was. My emotions were all over the board. Silence was safest.
When I didn’t respond, he said, “I’ve updated all of the override codes, so don’t bother. There are spare quarters in the middle level. We will be departing immediately if you would like to join me on the flight deck.”
I turned for the stairs without a word. My eyes caught on a familiar pile of cargo. He’d moved my supplies from Aurora to Persistence. I hesitated and Ian pounced.
“Curious?”
I was, desperately, but I refused to give him the satisfaction.
“I told you not to jump to conclusions, but you didn’t listen. Would you like to listen now or do you want to continue to live in the imaginary world you’ve constructed?”
“By all means, tell me some more lies,” I said bitterly, unable to maintain my silence.
“I wanted your oath because I wanted the option of sending you to safety. I used Guskov because I also needed confirmation of the party time and location.