Page 8 of Only Rogue Actions
Siya glanced over her shoulder at Roderick, who was smiling, laughing, and joking with his friends.Siya’s nostrils flared with disgust, and she stomped toward the exit.
I followed her, growing more and more curious about the history between the Erzton nobles.Being wary of someone from a rival House was one thing, but Siya clearly had a deep, personal dislike of Roderick.Why?What had he done to her?
As we rounded a row of lockers, I looked back over my shoulder.Roderick snapped his fingers at the Hammers in a sharp, impatient rhythm.The other warriors quickly gathered around, and the Erzton lord started speaking in a low, hushed voice.Roderick had been nothing but polite, but something about his sudden furtiveness made me uneasy.
“Let’s go, Vesper,” Siya muttered, quickening her pace.“The sooner you and Kyrion get through the maze, the sooner we can leave.”
I followed her out of the locker room, but my unease trailed along behind me like a shadow I couldn’t escape.
Siyamarchedthroughthecorridors in silence, her shoulders squared, her spine ramrod straight.Even without Kyrion’s telempathy, I still would have been able to sense exactly how annoyed, tense, and frustrated she was.
“What’s the real reason you dislike Roderick Battis?”I asked.“It’s obviously a lot more serious than just him belonging to a rival House.”
Siya’s face tightened with anger.“You’re assuming there is only one reason.”
“Then tell me all the reasons.”
Siya stopped, spun toward me, and slapped her hands on her hips.“You want to know about Roderick?Well, for starters, he was the first boy Asterin ever had a crush on when we were teenagers, so she’s always had a blind spot where he is concerned.”
“What kind of blind spot?”
Siya laughed, but it was a bitter sound.“Asterin invited Roderick to a society ball, and she was so excited when he said yes.Then the mining accident happened, and Asterin’s father and my uncle were killed.A few days later, right after the funerals, Roderick told Asterin that he couldn’t go to the ball with her.”
I grimaced.“That’s harsh.”
Siya nodded.“He blamed his parents, said they made him back out because they didn’t want House Battis to get dragged into the lawsuits between House Armas and the other Houses.But I knew thetruth.”
“Which was?”
“Asterin didn’t have the money, power, and support of a major House anymore.That’s therealreason Roderick dropped her.But Asterin forgave him for that, just like she always forgives him for anything and everything and explains away all his actions, no matter how rude and thoughtless they are.”
Siya finally ran out of clipped, angry words.Her hands slipped off her hips, and she shook her head, more disgust crinkling her face.“And that’s not even the worst thing Roderick has done.”
“What is the worst thing?”
Siya shifted on her feet, torn between telling or keeping the secret.She stilled and let out a tense breath.“Asterin and Roderick started dating a few months before Asterin went to a university on a Temperate planet to study mining.She asked Roderick to go with her, but he was already enrolled at a university here on Sygnustern, so they agreed to a long-distance relationship.”
“Let me guess.Roderick cheated on Asterin.”
Siya nodded.“Multiple times.”
My heart ached for my friend—and for myself.
Once upon a time, I had dated a man named Conrad Fawley, who had cheated on me with Sabine Kent, a Regal lady.Conrad had tossed me aside like a piece of trash to climb the Regal ladder, and he’d also stolen my weapons, spaceships, and other designs and given them to Rowena Kent, Sabine’s mother and the head of Kent Corp.Conrad had also gone along with Rowena’s scheme to kill me and crash Imperium ships on command for the Techwave.Eventually, Conrad’s crimes had caught up to him, and he’d died in Imperium custody, along with the Kents.
Conrad might have fallen victim to karma, fate, destiny, or whatever force balanced the galactic scales of justice, but he’d still left a deep, jagged scar on my heart.I would never forget his casual cruelty, but the painful experience had made me even more grateful that I’d found Kyrion, someone I could always fully, completely trust, truebond or not.
“Did Asterin ever find out about Roderick’s cheating?”I asked.
“No,” Siya replied in a sharp voice.“Things were already strained between us, and I didn’t want to push her away completely, so I kept quiet.A few months later, Roderick was sent to manage House Battis assets on another planet, and their relationship finally fizzled out.”
She chewed on her lower lip, and a wave of guilt surged off her, strong enough to make my own stomach churn.
“But cheating still isn’t the worst thing Roderick did,” I guessed.
Siya blinked in surprise.“No.While Asterin was away, I saw Roderick at a party, and he started flirting with me.Said he’d always liked me ever since we were kids, and we could do great things for our Houses together now that we were older.”
My eyebrows shot up.I hadn’t known Siya Collier for long, but one of the things I most admired was her fierce loyalty to her House, family, and friends.She wouldneverbetray Asterin like that, something Roderick should have known.
