Home Front (Star Kingdom #7) - Lindsay Buroker Page 0,157
as the shuttle settled onto the hull next to them.
“Do you think that’ll happen?”
“No. I know the early reports that made it back to Royal Intelligence and King Jager about us weren’t flattering. I doubt anything has changed. I have a feeling someone else will get credit for defeating Dubashi, and we’ll be forced to leave our homes.”
“I’m afraid of that too,” Casmir said quietly as the hatch opened.
“I don’t suppose you would entertain the idea of not going back at all?” Kim looked at him. “Tiamat Station is a possibility for both of us. Or you’ve also been offered a job here.”
“There’s still the blockade in our system. It’s possible it’ll peter out and disappear when the captains hear about Dubashi’s death, but it’s also possible they won’t believe it and that our people will still have to fight. I think the fleet we’ve cobbled together here will go back with us, especially if each ship is promised a slydar detector, but I don’t think they’ll go without us. Or without me, at least. You could probably slip off. I wouldn’t stop you.”
Kim looked toward the shuttle for a long moment before speaking again. “No. I’ll go back with you in case it makes a difference. We’ve been in this together since the beginning. We’ll go home together to face our fates.”
Casmir smiled, glad to have a friend to stand with him. “And if that fate is abysmal, then we’ll run away to another system.”
“Damn straight.”
Bonita had been getting updates from Bjarke, Asger, and Qin, but she didn’t allow herself to believe she would get out of this alive until the Drucker warship released its grip on the Dragon.
Two Kingdom warships, along with several ally vessels the Kingdom had rounded up, had arrived in the area a couple of hours earlier and had been ferrying passengers over to the Drucker ships. The one that had been looming above her like a giant wart was the last to receive a shuttle.
“Will the pirates actually comply with the Kingdom officers who are taking charge?” Viggo wondered. “It sounds like there’ll only be a few of their officers on board each warship.”
“And a few crushers.”
“Crushers are not indestructible. Those other four warships haven’t suffered any casualties and should still have their crews of hundreds.”
“You have as many details as I do,” Bonita said. “I gather the Druckers believe any one of those crushers can twitch a finger and afflict them with that virus.”
The comm beeped, and when she answered it, Bjarke’s face appeared on the display. His hair was tousled, his beard needed a trim, and soot smeared one side of his face, but he still managed to appear appealing.
“Good evening, Captain Laser,” Bjarke drawled, his eyelashes drooping and reminding her of him naked, pretending to be the bear that was his namesake as he prowled to her bed.
“Good evening, osito. It looks like you got your head caught in a chimney.” Bonita spotted Asger and Qin leaning against each other in the background. For support, she thought at first, but they kept gazing at each other with goofy smiles on their faces. Maybe they were simply enjoying sharing the same floor tile.
“Just a few explosions. I’m still fit and hale and capable of fulfilling all of your womanly needs in bed.”
Apparently, she wasn’t the only one who had randy thoughts after surviving a near miss with pirates.
“That’s disgusting,” Viggo said.
“Nobody asked you to listen,” Bonita said.
“I thought he might have mission-critical data to share with us.”
“This is bedroom-critical data. What are you wearing under your armor, Bjarke?”
“Nothing. With a press of a button, my full magnificence can be on display for you.”
“Truly disgusting,” Viggo said. “Make sure he washes himself before he presses anything. He’s filthy.”
“Yes. Yes, he is.” Bonita smiled at Bjarke, pleased he’d made it and that he had, from what she’d heard, risked his life leading those crushers against an entire warship of pirates. All to help Qin. Oh sure, he’d probably planned from the beginning to get the pirate ships for his people, but she knew he’d also wanted to help Qin for Qin’s sake. And maybe Bonita’s sake, since Bonita cared about Qin. “Will you be visiting me here, Bjarke?” she added. “Or going home with your fleet?”
“I must go home with my fleet to ensure the blockade is broken and my people are safe, but there’s no stipulation on which ship I ride in.” Bjarke wriggled his eyebrows.