Page 4 of Conquering the Skies

She scratched the back of her head. “I, uh…it was sort of a busy weekend.”

“Oh, right,” she said, her dark eyes sparkling. “The boyfriend was visiting, I forgot. My sincerest apologies.” Renae activated the display on her communicator so it projected onto the countertop between them. “Here’s what you missed.”

The article’s bold headline made her eyebrows shoot up. “Wow. They finally got him.” She scanned through the text for some additional details. “Leland Hughes has been arrested and charged with…well, a whole lot of crimes, it seems.”

“Everything from money laundering to jaywalking.”

She snorted. “Jaywalking? Do you really think the esteemed Leland Hughes’s feet have ever touched the sidewalks of this city?”

Renae laughed with her. “It was a joke, a turn of phrase from centuries ago.”

Her attention returned to the news article. “I bet this will make Adele feel a lot better,” she said. “I should give her a call later.”

“Ah, yes.” Her expression softened. “How is she doing at her new job?”

“As far as I know, everything’s fine. At least she hasn’t inadvertently stumbled across any illegal activity at the firm she’s working for now.” Geneva reached the end of the page, taking note of the mention of another key player in the case. “That’s a nice quote from your friend Detective Emory, about how no one in Triayda is above the law, justice will always be applied equally, and so on and so forth.”

“Freya’s done this enough times to know exactly what to say to reporters.” With her free hand, Renae filled her own mug with coffee. “The nice thing is, I think she believes all her sound bites.”

She let out another chuckle. “I didn’t realize you were so jaded.”

“I’ve always been a realist.” She switched off the display and sipped her drink. “Anyway, I’m glad I could share some more good news with you this morning. I assume your weekend with the boyfriend went well?”

“Yes, of course.” Heat crept up her cheeks, and she stared down into the depths of her mug and smiled. “Very well. In fact, he just told me of his plans to move here full-time soon.”

“Oh, exciting!” Renae squeezed her shoulder. “I’m sure doing the long-distance thing was tough. I bet you’ll be thrilled to have him home with you.”

Geneva winced. “Especially after his last hellish assignment, where a tiny part of me was afraid he would never come back.”

“I’m familiar with those dangers, unfortunately.” She paused, but then her cheerful demeanor reappeared. “I don’t suppose he’ll be searching for somewhat similar work after he relocates, like a certain other retired commander I know…”

“I’m not sure. We didn’t get that far before he left.” She bit her lower lip. “You’re the first person I’ve told. I don’t know if it’s completely sunk in yet.”

“Well, I’m happy for you. And if he does ever want to join our team, I’m sure he’ll be as qualified and capable as you.” Renae leaned against the edge of the counter and ducked her head to meet her gaze. “It may not have been your name in the news reports, but don’t forget, Geneva, you played a role in having Leland Hughes answer for his crimes.”

She rolled her eyes. “Barely.”

“Come on. Do we really need to have this whole conversation one more time?”

Her shoulders slumped as she conceded. “Fine. I won’t argue with you.” She sipped her coffee. “I guess I have been feeling a little more comfortable and confident around here lately.”

“Good. And you know I’d tell you if I had any concerns.” Renae straightened and stepped away from her. “You’re doing good work here. I’m happy things are going well for you outside the office, too.”

“Thanks.” She finished off her drink. “Speaking of which, there’s a lot on my schedule for today, so I’d better get back to it.”

She winked at her. “See? I have nothing to worry about.”

Geneva rinsed out her empty mug in the breakroom sink. She hadn’t been lying when she’d told Renae about her growing self-assurance in her new job. Even if she wasn’t exactly where she’d expected to be at this point of her life, she was satisfied. As she made her way back to her desk to start her work for the day, she hoped her good mood would last.

Chapter Three

Pasurea’s two suns had dipped below the city skyline by the time Geneva steered her hovercar into her building’s parking garage. As she pulled into her assigned space, her communicator beeped with an incoming text message. She turned off the car and glanced at her wrist to read the words on the small screen.

Counting down the days until we’ll be coming home to each other. Soon!

Ash’s brief note made her heart flutter with delight. He’d let her know as soon as he’d received confirmation his resignation had been accepted, and all they had to do was wait until the official end date of his service. Sometimes the time passed at an agonizing rate, and she was glad when her work could distract her.

As she rode down to her floor in one of the elevators, she rolled her head from side to side, stretching out her neck. Much of her day had been spent sitting in her car, covertly waiting outside a building for the opportunity to capture the perfect footage a client wanted. The lack of movement had left her stiff and sore, and she debated whether she wanted to go for a long run on the treadmill in the building’s gym.

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