Page 4 of Triplets for the Barbarians

Leela sighs deeply. “I was hoping our weapons might resolve that issue.”

“We were tempted to hope as well. But those starships are fast. There’s always the risk they’ll leave Sunna’s atmosphere before we can get them in our crosshairs,” I say. Our best option remains the same: finding the last two starships and destroying both before they can take off.”

“Do you have any idea where to get that information?” Sarin asks, her brow slightly furrowed. “Alicia and her mates said communications among Sky Tribe warriors have been tight recently.”

Fadai scoffs. “Yeah, they’ve been closing ranks. Their lines are silent. We suspect they’ve changed radio channels on their stations, and we’ve yet to pick up on the right one. I’m guessing they’re keeping their comms to a minimum to begin with, making it harder for our scanners to detect anything.” He pauses and gives me a long look. “Jewel, we do have to consider the possibility that we won’t get to those starships in time.”

“That’s out of the question,” I reply bluntly and shake my head. The stakes are too high. I cannot afford to leave anything to chance, not when my best friends have built new lives here. They’ve got families and children to protect. There’s no way in hell I’m backing down.”

“No one is asking you to back down,” Yossul chimes in.

“But we do need to be careful about how we proceed. You’re still at risk here, Jewel. I can’t let the Sky Tribe grab you while you’re busy trying to blow up their starships. We almost lost you during the last mission.”

“What mission?” Leela asks, giving me a curious look.

I groan and cross my arms, leaning back in my chair. My appetite is threatening to leave me, and it’s a pity. The peppered plum preserves are simply extraordinary. “We had a recon job near Ruby City a couple of weeks ago,” I say. “I got a little too close, that’s all.”

“No, you tried to get into their main base without any of us watching your back,” Fadai cuts in, a muscle ticking angrily in his jaw. “And you almost got yourself captured.”

“I got away.”

“Barely!” Yossul snaps. “And I’ll be damned if I’ll let you go off on your own like that again. We’re supposed to be a team!”

The truth is… I lost track of my objective during that mission. I was so eager to get a peek inside the enemy’s base that I didn’t care about anything else, not even my personal safety. Keeping my friends safe was paramount. Winning this war is my top prize. And while Fadai’s and Yossul’s arguments make all the sense in the world, my ego won’t allow me to keep quiet.

“We are a team,” I shoot back. “But I saw an opportunity, and I took it. You would’ve done the same,” I insist, my ego causing me to run my mouth like this while Solomon’s widows watch us like they’re at a tennis match at Wimbledon. “Don’t deny it.”

Yossul growls and bangs his fist against the table, startling everyone.

Silence fills the room. The servants freeze on the spot, trays and napkins in hand, as they stare at us, likely wondering whether they should get the hell out before any plates start flying around. The queens are quiet, their red eyes fixed on Yossul and Fadai.

Something tells me they’re just waiting for the storm to pass. They don’t seem worried; they're just patient. I bet they’ve had plenty of hissy fits to deal with from Solomon so as not to be intimidated by the Kreek brothers.

I give Yossul and Fadai a heavy look.

“I would’ve never put myself in danger at the risk of never seeing you again,” Yossul says, his voice low, tension gathering in his shoulders. “You should’ve known better.”

We never really talked about that incident. I just pretended everything was okay, and I brushed off any of their attempts to address it. Clearly, I should’ve been open to talking about it, at least, because what’s happening now is a result of things they never got to tell me. I should’ve swallowed my pride.

“You’re not my mates,” I say, my voice trembling slightly. “Don’t act like you are because you’re not. And while your concern is and always will be appreciated, I am only accountable to myself. I put myself in danger, and I got myself out. Period.”

Once again, my ego has gotten the better of me, and I’m already biting my tongue as I get up from the table and politely excuse myself.

“I’ll go to my room now,” I tell the queens with a curt nod. Then, I walk right out of the tearoom with my head held high. As soon as the doors close behind me, however, I realize I’m shaking.

Yossul and Fadai are right. I shouldn’t have gone off on my own. I should’ve owned my mistake, too. But my pride clouded my judgment, and it’s only because I was raised in a highly competitive environment. I’ve always had to work hard in order to prove myself as a woman in the military.

The stakes were always higher for me, and admitting to any mistake would have rendered me the most vulnerable one in the pack. I couldn’t risk it.

I keep forgetting this isn’t the US Air Force.

This is Sunna. This is the Fire Tribe.

And here, things are very different.

2

Jewel

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