Page 46 of The Rebel and the Rogue

ly.”

The guy on the comms was Everian. He was serious, his gaze intense. Not like Zenos when he looked at me with unflinching arousal, but with a seriousness indicative of an I.C. operative.

“This is Astra of Astra Legion.”

She nodded at the screen, then stepped to the side.

“And that is Gerian Eozara. You received the vids?” I asked.

His gaze dropped, and I knew he was reviewing what had been sent through. “Yes. Excellent work. The Coalition is pleased to hear about the capture and the termination of that channel of Quell production.”

“The lab is destroyed. Not only do you have a prisoner, but the leader of the Cerberus Legion is also dead,” I told him.

“I see. Well done, Lieutenant.”

So official. So formal. So without feeling. He didn’t know my team, didn’t know their names, their lives, anything. He didn’t know how I’d been left for dead. How I’d been discharged from service. Well, he knew about that but didn’t care, and still called me by my rank. There were hundreds, thousands… fuck, tens of thousands of fighters out there. Too many to care about. Or he was just too jaded.

“I shall send the transport coordinates, and the prisoner can be immediately sent.”

Something distracted the Everian, and he spoke to someone off-screen. He moved to his right, and someone joined him.

“I am Dr. Helion, commander of the I.C., Lieutenant Birkeland. I commend you for your actions in bringing Gerian Eovara to justice and the toppling of the Cerberus Legion.” He wore a dark green uniform, indicating he was in the medical field. I wondered how the Prillon was the head of the I.C. but in the health services. Actually I didn’t give a shit.

“I’m not a lieutenant any longer,” I countered.

“I have reviewed the vids of the destroyed lab, and I have to say, Lieutenant, that your performance was exemplary.” He cocked his head to the side. “Yet you’re human. Like my other favorite operative. She is small, like you. From Earth.”

“I have no doubt you have all the information you need about me on your screen.”

If he knew my rank, he knew my connection to the killed unit, to the crash, to my discharge. To the fact that I was from Earth. Everything. Just not how a human could pretty much lift the weight and heft of a refrigerator without breaking a sweat—or her back—and take out a dozen wild hybrid Hyperions with ease.

“The bounty is yours, Lieutenant. Well-earned.”

He was fucking baiting me with my rank. I hated it, but I refused to fall for his continued ploy. He was an asshole, plain and simple. I didn’t need to do more than look at him to know he was calculating. The I.C. had put a bounty out, which meant they were willing to go beyond the bounds of Coalition rules to track down Gerian. Helion played outside the rules to get desired results and used those results to his advantage. Like right now, with me.

“I would like to offer you something besides the bounty.”

And here it was. “What a surprise.” I crossed my arms over my chest, remained patiently silent.

He ignored my remark. “Your record with the Coalition was exemplary until the crash. Your discharge was honorable. It is evident you have more than recovered from your wounds. I am willing to offer you a new commission, Lieutenant. I need good people like you. I need you back in the Coalition.”

“Working for the I.C.?” I clarified.

“Correct.”

“And what would I be doing exactly?”

“You will go where I need you. You will have the latest technology, shuttles, support, everything you could possibly need at your disposal.”

“You want a bounty hunter?” I asked.

“That would be a waste of your skills. I need someone who can operate behind enemy lines. Someone even the Hive will fear.”

I thought of how I’d fought against Cerberus. Wild, pretty much unhinged. I’d used my newfound integrations to my advantage, killed the legion members without mercy. Without thought. I had almost died at his hand.

Yeah, I was a fucking mess. But I was also free.

“You want an assassin, then. One you control.”

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