Page 33 of Into The Rift

“I’m very pleased to meet you all, gentlemen, though I’m wondering why my own grandson here is still being held prisoner. He surrendered his prisoners, and I fulfilled my end of the deal. I foolishly, it seemed, thought that you might do the same and not act so dishonorably.”

“The ‘deal,’ as I understood it, was that your grandson would not be summarily executed as soon as he got off his ship. So far, he hasn’t been, though I make no promises. How have we not fulfilled that specific arrangement?”

“That wasn’t the “arrangement’ as you call it,” Itaka snapped back at him. “and what’s more, you know it. Not at all. I’m surprised to learn you can’t keep up your end of a bargain. How disappointing.”

Anton leaned in to say something in her ear, but she shrugged him off, giving him a blistering glance.

Davos shifted his attention over to me, outwardly calm, though I wondered if anyone ever insulted him in such a way to his face, and if he was only barely controlling his fury. I hoped so and couldn’t hide a little smile at his discomfort.

He glared at me. “Lord Dominiko, I presume.”

“At your service.”

“What do you have to say for yourself?”

“What would you have me say? Do you want excuses? The emperor assigned me a duty, and I attempted to carry it out.”

“There has been no declaration of war between your people and the Axis planets, though we could certainly consider this to be one. It was an unprovoked and cowardly attack on innocents and noncombatants.”

“Might I remind you that the one who ordered this attack is not my grandson,” Itaka interrupted. “It was the Pton empire and more specifically, the Pton Emperor, Linnius. Before you embroil yourself in another long and costly war like the one you had with the Alliance, you might need to think long and hard. I realize you want to retaliate, but perhaps you should consider taking a different, smarter course.”

“It’s too late for diplomacy.”

“My grandmother never suggested that,” I said, putting a hand over her own to quiet her. “Since you overheard us speaking, you know that she was just talking to me about an assassination on the Pton emperor. And I am more than willing to take on that duty, given the chance.”

“Why the sudden change of heart? You seem to change sides easily.”

“It’s not sudden or easy, nor is it a change of heart, as you call it. There has never been any love lost between me and my half-brother.”

“Your half-brother? Are you serious?”

“Yes,” I said, lifting one shoulder. “My late grandfather had many wives, and all of them were ambitious for their children, but Linnius eliminated all the ones ahead of him in the succession by one means or another. There is little love lost between us.”

“And you seriously expect me to believe that if I set you free, you’ll go back to your planet and ‘eliminate’ him in his turn?”

“I have no idea what you believe. And I doubt you’ll give me the opportunity. Though once Linnius has been removed, all threat of war will also be gone. No one else on our planet is so aggressive or thirsty for power at any cost. I have access to Linnius as a member of his council and, yes, to my shame, he is my half-brother. I have both means and opportunity. My motive is simple. I despise him and all he stands for. He murdered my father, though I can’t prove it. I still know it to be true. I’d like nothing more than to see him dead.”

“But you just said you didn’t think I’d set you on that course.”

“No.”

“Why not?”

He shrugged. “You don’t strike me as particularly intelligent.”

His consort and his grandson Mikol both made an angry sound at the insult, though Davos merely stared steadily back at me as I continued. “You’re also furious that someone dared touch your family and took them hostage, and that anger supersedes any other consideration.”

“You’re right about that at least. I’m not a forgiving man.”

“Then we don’t have any more to talk about.”

I stood up, though one of the guards shoved me back in my seat. My grandmother grabbed at my hand, all the blood draining from her face. Davos’s countenance was like a thundercloud, full of malice and hatred. I let him see my anger as well. I felt as if his fingers were itching to grab the weapon at his side and execute me “summarily” as he had said earlier. Like he’d no doubt planned to do from the beginning. We were perhaps seconds away from some kind of precipitous action when both Jago and the blond man at the end of the table stood up.

“Davos,” the blond said in an imperious voice. “I want a word with you.”

I thought the king would ignore him or roar at him to shut up, but his head snapped around to glare at him instead. “Not now, Blake. Sit down, please.”

“No,” the man replied. “I said I need a word. Outside. Now.”

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