“Silva has Ferdinand,” I said quietly to the rain outside.
Ian cursed under his breath.
“I haven’t quite figured out how or why, but I know there is no time to lose or they will break him beyond hope. Even a von Hasenberg will shatter eventually.” I hoped Ian wouldn’t notice the bitter bite in my voice.
The universe was clearly not in a giving mood today because he asked, softly, “Did you?”
I closed my eyes against the warm flood of tears. Von Hasenbergs didn’t break and we certainly didn’t cry. We picked ourselves up, put the broken pieces back together as best we could, and carried on as if everything were okay.
So I did just that, blinking away the tears and continuing. “I’ve heard rumors that the Syndicate is throwing one of their parties soon. If anyone knows when or where it is, Guskov will, but he only meets with contacts in person, here, in Brava. I didn’t come here because I was stupid. I came here because I was desperate.”
Ian silently followed me up to my hotel room. I’d fled the transport before he could respond and now he seemed to be biding his time. It made me jumpy as hell because I knew the attack was coming, I just didn’t know when.
As soon as the door clicked closed behind him, he exploded on me. “Guskov? Your contact on this godforsaken planet is Peter Guskov?” He looked like he’d like to pace, but the room was too small.
“You know Guskov?”
“Of course I fucking know Guskov! I’m the director of security for a High House. It’s my job to know people like Guskov. It’s also my job to keep that murderous bastard far, far away from you.”
“Can you get a meeting set up with him without jumping through his hoops?” I asked hopefully. That would speed this process up considerably.
When he didn’t respond, I tried again. “Ian, can you—”
“No,” he bit out.
“I’ve already been to his shop. I’m waiting on the follow-up,” I said. “That seems like our best option.”
“No,” he said again. “You are not meeting with Guskov.”
“I am.”
“You’re returning home to House von Hasenberg.”
“I’m not.”
Ian looked prepared to argue, so I threw all of my hopes into the basket of one “murderous bastard.” “If I am wrong and Guskov doesn’t have any relevant information, I will return to Earth with you without any further protest.”
“What makes you think I need your cooperation?”
I flinched then cursed myself for showing it. I straightened my spine and pulled my public persona tighter. I clenched my fists until my nails dug into my palms under the cover of my cloak. “Perhaps you don’t. Perhaps you planned to drag me home sedated and compliant all along. But your job still involves finding my brother and I have a solid lead on his location. Are you going to ignore that just to punish me?”
Ian ran a frustrated hand through his damp hair. “Dammit, Bianca, I’m not trying to punish you. I’m trying to keep you safe.”
“I’ve dealt with Guskov before. Alone. And I was fine. I’m not some defenseless hothouse flower with no sense; I’m the daughter of a High House. I take risks, but they are carefully calculated. If you stopped treating me like an ‘empty-headed princess’ and started treating me like an equal, perhaps you would see that.”
Ian stood like stone, staring at me with an unblinking gaze. I could see the wheels turning in his head as he weighed his options. Finally, he said, “Suppose Guskov does have information on a Syndicate party. What is your plan then? Crash it?”
“Telling you my plan before I secure your cooperation would be foolish,” I said drily. “But nice try.”
“How sure are you that he has information?”
“Sure enough to stake my freedom on it,” I said with far more confidence than I actually felt. Guskov was a wild shot in the dark. But I only agreed to return to Earth; I didn’t agree to stay there. If I failed here, I would try again elsewhere.
“If I agree to let you meet with Guskov, you will promise to immediately return to Earth and stay there, without complaint, until your father releases you from house arrest.”
The sneaky, underhanded bastard. I shook my head. “If Guskov knows where the Silva party is, you need me. You won’t get within ten light-years of the place before they sniff you out and kill Ferdinand just to avoid you. I’ve dealt with them before. They will meet with me because I’ve proven that I am trustworthy. And that I have exceedingly deep pockets.”
Ian raised his eyebrows. “You plan to buy your brother back?”
I shrugged. “Agree to my terms and I’ll tell you. We go meet Guskov together. If he has information about the party, you agree to accompany me to it. If he doesn’t have any information, I will return to Earth without a peep of complaint.”
“And stay there until your father releases you,” Ian added.
If I made the vow I’d be trapped by my own honor, something I took seriously. Ian had neatly boxed me in. Decline and he’d know I wasn’t as confident as I seemed in Guskov’s information; accept and potentially lock myself in a cage of my own making. But the other option was Ian dragging me home anyway, so I had to take the risk. “And stay there until Father releases me,” I agreed.
Ian’s smile looked a lot like victory.
I retrieved my hidden credit chips while Ian watched with an increasingly incredulous expression. I gathered up the rest of my things and then sat on the bed before popping back up and pacing in the tiny room, too agitated to sit still.
Ian leaned against the wall and stared at his com. He thought he’d won already, so I felt zero guilt at reading all of the messages he was sending and receiving. I pulled out my own com and pretended to use it while I focused on his messages. Concentrating on one signal was easier than trying to sort through all of them, but it still gave me a headache.
My persistence was rewarded, however, when I pieced together what Ian was doing—he was working on a side deal with Guskov, despite the fact that the man didn’t usually deal in electronic form. He wanted Guskov to tell me that he didn’t have any information on the Syndicate party, whether or not it was the truth.
Hurt warred with fury. Fury won. I held it close and let it burn away the pain. I carefully built my public facade, walling myself off from everything except cold determination.
It was nearly midnight by the time Guskov contacted me. I glanced at the message. “Guskov wants to meet in half an hour,” I said. “Does that work for you?”
“Yes, the sooner, the better,” Ian said.
“Very well,” I said. “He is sending a transport. It will be here in five minutes.” I stood and gathered my things.
I moved past Ian toward the door, but he stopped me with a hand on my arm. “Are you okay?” he asked.
Fury tried to rise but it was buried under a mountain of ice. “Of course,” I said with a cool smile. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
“You don’t have to go to this meeting,” he tried again. “He’ll meet with me as your representative.”
Oh, I just bet he would. And he would miraculously not have any information. I would be carted back to Earth while Ferdinand continued to suffer. The weight of the ice surrounding me was a comforting buffer against the pain. “I am prepared for the meeting. We should be going.”