\u201cUse him, but don\u2019t trust him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel snorted a laugh at Sergei\u2019s words as he pressed a mug of coffee into her hands. The former Speaker\u2019s cottage was comfortable, compact and snug, tucked into the edge of the words with raspberry bushes growing in a wild tangle in his shady yard. The old man had raised his children there, and it was there that he intended to live out the rest of his days in quiet obscurity, enjoying his grandchildren and old friends.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t have use for him, Sergei, if I can\u2019t trust the information he gives me.\u201d She sat down on his overstuffed couch and rested the mug against her knee. \u201cEspecially not when I have other options to fill his role.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sergei settled into an armchair, looking at her curiously. \u201cDare I ask who?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFreder Rose for one,\u201d Rachel said, taking a sip of coffee. \u201cAlana Chase.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd Brendan Cho, I imagine.\u201d Sergei leaned back, closing his eyes for a moment.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo a lesser degree,\u201d Rachel said. \u201cBrendan\u2019s too honest, in some ways. Too noble.\u201d For all that he knows, he\u2019s unsuited to being a spymaster.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cThe same could be said of Rose.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFreder knows where the bodies are buried,\u201d Rachel said. He knows how to cut losses when it\u2019s necessary.<\/em> \u201cHe may be noble and honest, but he\u2019s far from innocent and he knows the game. It almost got him killed.\u201d She sighed. \u201cI won\u2019t take my chances with D\u2019Arcy, Sergei. You\u2019re braver than I am. I don\u2019t trust him and I know he has an agenda\u2014I just haven\u2019t sorted out what it is yet. Whatever he\u2019s playing at, though\u2014Sergei, I know it\u2019s not good for us.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNot good for the Guard refugees or not good for the Foundation?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNot good for anyone living here that doesn\u2019t care for the methods the congloms employ or the Commonwealth\u2019s handling of just about anything.\u201d A shiver shot through her. \u201cHe has too many contacts there.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSo does Rose. So do you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe were born out there,\u201d Rachel countered. \u201cHis family has been here<\/em> for, what, five generations? It\u2019s an unfair comparison.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPerhaps,\u201d Sergei said. \u201cBut because his family\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI know.\u201d Rachel leaned back, covering her eyes with her free hand. \u201cI can\u2019t move without proof\u2014not to oust him outright, anyway, not to fire<\/em> him. I have to be smart about this.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSo you\u2019ll use Chase and Rose informally.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFreder Rose will be my spymaster in all but name,\u201d Rachel confirmed. \u201cAt least until I\u2019ve got something to use against D\u2019Arcy. As for the level of autonomy he\u2019s been enjoying, though\u2014that\u2019s coming to an abrupt end. I need oversight in that department, regardless of whether I\u2019ll be using what he tells me or not. I don\u2019t care if he realizes that I don\u2019t trust him. Maybe he\u2019ll think twice before stabbing me in the back if he knows I\u2019m wise to his games.\u201d<\/p>\n Sergei arched a brow, sitting forward and leaning his elbows against his knees. \u201cAnd who will you be saddling with the thankless task of spying on him and his operation?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI haven\u2019t decided yet, but Alana is<\/em> a likely candidate,\u201d Rachel said. \u201cThough I don\u2019t know that he\u2019d stand for it. For her, I mean. Possibly not even the oversight.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt strikes me that you don\u2019t quite care what he\u2019ll stand for, Rachel.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMaybe not, but I need him to play ball to some<\/em> degree.\u201d She sighed. \u201cI\u2019ll sleep on it and talk to Adam. Maybe he\u2019ll have some ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLikely,\u201d Sergei said. \u201cI\u2019m sorry that I\u2019ve put you in this spot, Rachel. There wasn\u2019t much choice.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s water under the bridge, Sergei. Don\u2019t worry about it.\u201d She gave him a brave smile. \u201cI\u2019ll do the job.\u201d<\/p>\n Or I\u2019ll die trying.<\/em><\/p>\n \u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u2022\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2022<\/p>\n Her arm ached with a dull, faint throb, heralding the need to return home soon for another dose of pain medication and a request to Ezra to check on the progress of her recovery. As far as she could tell, her arm seemed to be getting better, stronger, but it was hard to judge. He was the expert. She still wore the sling and it still hurt, but she could move her fingers without pain most of the time, and she was able to feel sensations through them\u2014definitely an improvement.<\/p>\n Alana sighed, turning away from the water. She\u2019d come down to the shore for some air, to get away from the house and clinic where worry practically oozed from her lover\u2019s every pore\u2014worry for her, worry for the Commonwealth inspector under his care, worried for everyone in the damned Foundation. She loved him for his compassion, but right now it was in overdrive and suffocating her. She\u2019d needed to escape.<\/p>\n She\u2019d gone two steps when she spotted the slim figure not a dozen yards from her and she cursed.<\/p>\n If D\u2019Arcy Morgause had meant to kill you today, you\u2019d be dead. You\u2019re getting soft in your retirement.<\/em><\/p>\n I won\u2019t be letting that snake sneak up on me twice.<\/em><\/p>\n He stood watching her intently\u2014intently enough that it set her skin to crawling\u2014and was dressed in casual clothing, his hands empty and arms crossed against his chest. Alana frowned.<\/p>\n What\u2019s he doing here?<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cD\u2019Arcy,\u201d she greeted, her words clipped.<\/p>\n \u201cI apologize,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ve startled you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat do you want?\u201d She shifted her jacket slightly, her good hand itching to be filled by a knife\u2019s handle, a gun\u2019s grip\u2014something. Sadly, she\u2019d left her weapons at home\u2014a choice he was suddenly regretting now.<\/p>\n His brows went up. \u201cWhy would you think that I wanted something?\u201d<\/p>\n Alana barely suppressed an annoyed sigh. \u201cBecause I\u2019m not an idiot, D\u2019Arcy. What do you want?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cChinasia\u2019s offered a very handsome sum for Brendan Cho.\u201d<\/p>\n Is that some kind of threat? <\/em>Her eyes narrowed. \u201cHe\u2019s not property and neither am I.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI didn\u2019t mean to imply you were,\u201d D\u2019Arcy said mildly. \u201cBut I know you\u2019re smart enough to recognize an opportunity when it arises.\u201d<\/p>\n Alana killed the urge to try to cross her arms\u2014that would only end in pain from her shoulder to her fingertips and right now she needed all of her faculties focused on the spymaster\u2019s little game of intrigue. Her heart started to beat a little faster, her stomach going sour. \u201cWhat opportunity do you assume I\u2019m seeing here?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s no secret you don\u2019t like him.\u201d<\/p>\n She stared at him. \u201cHe\u2019s Lindsay\u2019s husband.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes, he is Bonded to the vaunted Oracle.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re suggesting I hand someone mentally linked to my cousin over to a conglomerate that tortured her mother-one that will probably<\/em> take Commander Cho apart just to see what makes him tick. Psychics don\u2019t fly for Chinasia.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m aware of that,\u201d D\u2019Arcy said, a coldness in his eyes even as his expression remained impassive.<\/p>\n \u201cWhy would I do that? Never mind the fact that it would absolutely destroy Lindsay to lose him\u2014that more than anything else would stay my hand in this because I love my cousin even if I don\u2019t love the choices she makes\u2014but I\u2019ve seen<\/em> what that kind of torture can be like and I wouldn\u2019t condemn anyone to it.\u201d Alana sucked in a sharp breath. \u201cWhat are you thinking<\/em>, D\u2019Arcy? What you\u2019re suggesting is monstrous.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m trying to think of the Foundation above all,\u201d the spymaster said, his tone vaguely annoyed. \u201cYou know that they won\u2019t stop and we can\u2019t stand against them if they turn the full might of their military on us. All of this will disappear and we\u2019ll end up crushed under their boot. What\u2019s one man\u2019s life measured against that?\u201d<\/p>\n Your math sucks, Morgause.<\/em> Alana shook her head. \u201cIt\u2019s more than one man\u2014much more than one man. Lindsay\u2019s pregnant with his child<\/em>. What\u2019s to stop Chinasia from demanding the child as well? Or demanding that we give America Farragut back to them? They held her prisoner for a lot of years. Don\u2019t forget, too, that the Compact wants me and wants Grant Channing so badly I can taste it from here and I haven\u2019t served them since I as a bleeding teenager\u2014and they have a blood claim on both<\/em> of us, exactly like Chinasia has on Brendan. Then there\u2019s all the refugees that have found their way here over the last ten years. Don\u2019t you see how wide you\u2019re trying to kick this door with what you\u2019re suggesting? It\u2019s borderline treason.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s nothing treasonous about this conversation,\u201d D\u2019Arcy said. \u201cI haven\u2019t suggested that you actually do<\/em> anything. You\u2019re the one that\u2019s making some rather rash assumptions of my meaning here. Call it a warning. Call it a friendly service.\u201d He smiled a snake\u2019s smile at her, one that reminded her of a viper about to strike. \u201cWatch your step, Chase. I doubt you\u2019ll be protected forever, and that prevaricating mind of yours could get you into a great deal of trouble, I\u2019m afraid.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re a monster,\u201d Alana whispered, almost too quiet to be heard.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat was that?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNothing,\u201d she said. \u201cWe\u2019re done here. Stay away from Lindsay. Stay the hell<\/em> away from Lindsay.\u201d<\/p>\n Feeling sick to her stomach, Alana squared her shoulders, straightened her spine, and marched past D\u2019Arcy Morgause, headed toward home.<\/p>\n She didn\u2019t start running until she was out of his sight.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201cUse him, but don\u2019t trust him.\u201d Rachel snorted a laugh at Sergei\u2019s words as he pressed a mug of coffee into her hands. The former Speaker\u2019s cottage was comfortable, compact and snug, tucked into the edge of the words with … Continue reading