Page 20 of Enthraller

He lay still, comfortable and at ease in a way he hadn’t been for a long time.

He tested his mental faculties for any overwhelming desire to rush to Wren’s side, any feelings of desperation for the sight of her.

He didn’t think he’d really felt that way since before he’d entered the Depository yesterday, but he had disturbed her at Hyt’s. Perhaps he shouldn’t have said he’d always come with her, but the word had escaped on its own.

Maybe he was still under the influence in some way. Perhaps the nanos had rewired his brain.

That was possible, but he decided not to worry overmuch about it.

Getting involved with Wren Thorakis was surely not the worst thing to ever happen to him. By a long way.

He’d go as far as to say he’d do it all over again, even knowing he was being manipulated.

Her distress at the thought of him being entranced was real. That told him more than anything that what happened was more of an accident of fate than a self-serving plan to save her own ass.

He rolled to his feet, used the shower off his room, and was in the kitchen in under ten minutes.

Wren must have heard him moving around because she was just setting breakfast on the table as he walked through.

“I thought you were low on supplies,” he said, looking at the freshly toasted bread and the sammab, the small dishes of toppings the Aponi spread over their toast each morning.

“I was.” She slid into a chair and raised a cup of jah to her lips. “I did a quick shop this morning.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Any sign of danger?”

She shook her head and lifted a delicate, bare foot to push his chair out for him in invitation.

He sat with a nod of thanks and dived into the food. “You’re good at this,” he said.

“This?” she asked, on a laugh.

“Feeding me.”

She spread some fruit compote over her bread. “I’ve been on leave from the SF for nearly four months. I found cooking was something I liked doing.”

He’d been out of the SF for two years. He’d started making personal use spaceships, otherwise known as petrals.

Her way was probably a lot less frustrating and a lot more delicious.

“Any news out there on what happened yesterday?” he asked.

“Oh yes.” She grinned. “On all the screens. Not the dissipation, thankfully, not even the nano shield. But the sound of laz fire and a whole lot of soldiers tramping around, looking grim. Most people were talking about it. Apparently there was a mix up by the SF, and they opened fire on an innocentbystander. Most people are of the view that the captain will be lucky not to be sanctioned.”

“Someone is trying to damage Ethan Hyt’s credibility.” Ed thought about it as he sipped his jah. “My guess it’s whoever up the chain of command set him up yesterday.”

“We need to speak to him after that attack last night.” Wren set down her cup. “I’m assuming he’ll be at headquarters.”

“I don’t like that we’ve been forced into hiding.” Ed voiced the unease he’d felt since he realized the Cores were involved in this. “I know we don’t have much choice, but it was a clever move on their part. They’re restricting our information, our ability to get to the bottom of this.”

“I’ve been keeping a low profile for the last four months,” Wren said. “I’ve got a few tricks we can use.”

“Got a way for us to get into SF headquarters unseen?” he asked.

She gave a serious nod. “As a matter of fact.”

The Depository had beenthe main venue for her research, but Wren had known there was information in SF headquarters that would be equally useful, and she had found a way in by the second week of her time in Demeter.

She had also wanted to keep her ear to the ground for any murmurs about her, the Nanganya SF office, or what had happened on Ytla.

---