it was possible they’d missed the fact that Denver was responding to a comment nobody had voiced. “You have to go. It’s the only reason we’ve come this far. It’s the only thing that can save you.”
“You’re assuming. You don’t know that for sure. And besides, I’m not leaving you behind.”
“Yes, you are!”
“No, I’m not.” Despite Denver’s anger, Laramie was almost laughing. “Saying it a hundred times won’t make it true.”
“But—”
“You have to go.” But his resolve was failing. Talking about it was enough to make him think about how it would be having Laramie out of his reach for the rest of their lives. Having his twin out of his head for more than a few hours was enough to send him in search of a hit of Rave. He wouldn’t last long with Laramie gone.
But he couldn’t bear to watch him die, either.
They couldn’t stay together, but they couldn’t stand to be apart. How could he make a choice like that? And on top of it, he had Dusty and Verpaelst and a bunch of colonists whose lives were now sitting on his shoulders, their fates resting on this one decision.
“Guys?” Spence’s voice was remarkably quiet and calm after the heated outbursts of the last few minutes. “Aren’t we missing something obvious here?”
Everybody turned to face him. His cheeks reddened a bit at being the center of attention, but he didn’t balk.
“This guy, Tonlet? He’s willing to negotiate, right? He doesn’t want to turn us over to Mars. He has in own agenda. So… what are his terms?”
Everybody turned to Denver, but he and Laramie were already shaking their heads.
“No way,” Laramie said.
“We can’t trust him,” Denver added.
“We don’t need to,” Marit said.
Denver blinked at her. “What?”
“Spence is right. Tonlet doesn’t want you or that ship falling into government hands. He has an endgame. So maybe it’s time we figured out if it’s something we can work with. It doesn’t mean we give him everything he wants, but we can’t negotiate until we hear him out.”
Everybody was silent for a moment, their eyes on Denver and Laramie. The fact that Marit, who hated Tonlet as much as Denver and Laramie combined, was in favor of negotiating with the man spoke volumes.
I know, Denver tried to convey back.
Nothing but time. But choosing not to negotiate wasn’t getting them anywhere.
Houck broke the silence. “If there’s a chance we all go, then I rescind my vote. Leaving anybody behind should be our very last resort.”
“Agreed,” Dusty said.
Verpaelst and Manderson nodded. Even Zahn gave a grudging shrug. “Your crew has a valid point. You should find out what this man wants before we decide it’s something we can’t afford to give.”
Denver sighed. Everybody else seemed energized, as if they’d suddenly been offered a second chance. Denver didn’t share their optimism. He felt defeated. But then he looked across the table at his brother. Denying Tonlet his say meant either watching his brother leave or watching him die.
A third option couldn’t be worse, could it? “How bad can it be?” he asked Laramie weakly.
But behind Laramie’s pessimistic words was a wave of hope. Denver had only to look in Laramie’s eyes to see that he felt this was their best chance. Why let stubbornness stand in their way? They’d come too far to let Tonlet stop them, and whatever happened, at least they’d be in it together.
“All right,” Denver said at last. “We’ll talk to Tonlet.”
Contacting Tonlet was harder than it should have been. Through their entire debate, Denver had expected Tonlet to hail them. He’d been surprised at the man’s restraint. Now, he realized it wasn’t restraint at all. It was all part of Tonlet’s power play. He knew Denver would have to break the silence eventually.
So even though he hated doing it, Denver sucked it up and hailed the Zenith. He had Laramie, Spence, and Marit left in the cockpit with him, and an open comm to the five armada representatives. The latter was risky. It was bad enough that he’d spilled the beans in front of Spence. If he mentioned Denver and Laramie’s unnatural talent now, with everybody listening in, it’d open a whole new can