two jumps and each jump was only going to require an hour’s wait.
An hour turnaround on an FTL drive was impossible. House von Hasenberg scientists were shaving minutes off of six hours and calling it a breakthrough. What we’d heard from the other Houses was the same. And, as far as I knew, even if you had the power stored for a second jump, there was no way to cool the FTL drive sufficiently in so little time without damaging it.
So.
Crap.
Either the estimate was wrong, which would make us sitting ducks for an indeterminate amount of time, or, more worryingly, the estimate was right, which meant Richard would blow us out of the sky at the first opportunity rather than letting me steal the secret.
“Incoming communication,” the computer chimed. The screen showed it originated from ground control, but I would bet good money that it was Richard. I weighed the pros and cons, then pressed the answer key on my console. It would keep the video on me rather than the entire room.
Richard wiped the fury from his face, but not fast enough. “Hello, Richard,” I said. My aristocratic persona was firmly in place.
“Ada, what are you doing?”
“I am leaving. What are you doing?”
He ran a hand down his face and suddenly he looked more tired than I’d ever seen him. “I’m trying to stop a war. You are not helping.”
“You have an interesting way of going about it.”
“I didn’t want it to come to this, but you’re the one who ran away. If we were already married, this wouldn’t be happening. If we marry quickly, we may still be able to prevent it. If not, well, you would make an excellent bargaining piece.”
I ignored the last part because that was just standard House policy. The first part was more intriguing. “We are both far down the House hierarchy. What does our marriage have to do with anything?”
Richard’s expression closed. Ah. Something about that was important. What did he stand to gain from our marriage? He would gain the contents of my dowry. But I didn’t know what all it entailed or how it would prevent war. I made a mental note to look into it.
“I will tell you the same thing I told Father: I will not be forced into marriage. He did not believe me. He thought I would bow to his wishes if he applied enough pressure. He was wrong. I suggest you learn from his mistake.”
“You would rather send your House to war than marry me? We were friends once.” Richard seemed genuinely hurt.
“I refuse to believe that the only two solutions are our marriage or war. I do not understand why our marriage is so important, and until I do, I will not be marrying you. If you would clarify, perhaps I could help you find another solution.”
“Then let me be clear: if you leave in that ship, it will mean war.”
“You mean this mercenary ship that I found on a Yamado planet? This ship? The one I had to borrow after my transport was attacked unprovoked by House Rockhurst? I think the Consortium will be more than happy to hear the entire story from the beginning, along with the surveillance footage from the Mayport. I can call them up now, if you like.”
Richard’s eyes narrowed. “You always were spoiled. If you have no concern for your people, then I don’t see why I should.”
“I am not the one threatening war, Richard. You know how to contact me if you want to discuss a mutually beneficial solution.” I closed the link before he could respond.
If the Santa Celestia was in orbit or at least nearby, then Richard could call down a new transport ship in as little as fifteen minutes. I had to clear the atmosphere and jump before he made it back to his ship or we would be in deep trouble.
“Will you marry him?” Loch growled.
I spun around. Loch still lounged in the chair where I’d left him, but he was clearly awake and more alert than he’d been. How much had he heard? Enough to know that Richard wanted to marry. Would I? That was the million-dollar question, wasn’t it?
I sighed. “I don’t know. I do care about our people. If it really would prevent a war, I would have to trade my happiness for theirs. What’s one person compared to the ’verse, huh?” The words were more bitter than I had anticipated.