Page 6 of The First Spark
“Don’t tell me you’re suddenly jealous. After four cycles saying you don’t belong on Dali anymore?”
“She was talking about it,” Kalie breathed, clutching the stem of the wine glass, “as if it was going to happen soon.”
“And Auntie saysI’mthe paranoid one. You’re overthinking everything these days. Seeing shadows where they don’t exist.”
Staring into the depths of her glass, Kalie shivered.
“The succession was a mess when Auntie took the throne. Of course she wants to make sure the court is stable for Lex. She’s nervous about the election, and with good reason.”
Kalie swallowed the knot in her throat.
“But it’s just that, Kal. Nerves. We’ve done a damn good job helping Marcus with his campaign, and no one wants Carik in office for another term.” Ariah nudged her, jostling the glass of wine. “It’sgoing to be fine. You’ll see. Marcus will be Prime Minister Pool by morning.”
Unless Carik had pulled ahead again.
She reached for the holopad, but Ariah groaned, pushing it further away. “For gods’ sakes. I’m not letting you waste our last night of fun on the stupid polls.” She hopped to her feet, balancing perfectly on her stilettos. “We need a distraction. What do you say we head to the bridge?”
Her wink said it all.
Kalie bit her lip. Ariah was a trained soldier, bordering on paranoid—for every room they stepped into, she drilled her with a dozen escape routes and flight plans. If she wasn’t concerned, there was no reason to worry.
So she mustered up a smirk. “Developed an interest in navigation charts? Ooh, better yet, the stargate routes.”
“Ah, yes, the stargate routes.” Ariah rolled her eyes. “No, it’s that cute tech. The new one. Daevin? Daerin? I want his comm frequency.”
“What happened to the one you were flirting with at dinner?”
“Too chatty.”
Shaking her head, Kalie knelt and laced up her boots. There was no point in going—Ariah didn’t know his name, and she’d forget his comm frequency just as quickly—but there was no harm, either. Ariah was right. A distraction was just what they needed.
“Besides, I don’t want it for me. I’m going to get it for you.”
Kalie’s hands stilled on her laces. “No.”
“Yes.” Ariah picked up a paintbrush she’d left lying on the table, a gift from Julian before… everything. “This is sad, Kal. Really sad. It’s been two cycles.”
“Just because you’re dressed as me doesn’t mean you get to set me up.”
“Why not? One of us has some game, and it’s only fair we use it to your advantage.”
Ignoring the slight, she rose to her feet. “I have no interest in dating.”
“Who said anything about dating?”
Kalie’s cheeks burned as she snatched a pillow and hurled it at Ariah. Snickering, Ariah danced out of the way and strode for the door.
“From crib to crypt,” she called, in a singsong voice.
“In this life and after,” Kalie said on instinct, then she scowled. “That doesn’t mean I have to follow you everywhere.”
She followed her anyway, stopping to check her holopad.
“If you check the polls again, I’ll shoot you myself.”
She still checked. Marcus had pulled way ahead. Carik was trailing. With a spring in her step that hadn’t been there in months, she followed Ariah out the door.
TheVenturawas a luxury cruiser, not a battleship. Paintings lined the marble walls. She’d signed most of the portraits asK. Hannover, except for an older one, which readK. Amador. That had led to an uncomfortable conversation with Aunt Calida about Mother’s feelings. Apparently, her pretending to be Aunt Calida’s daughter hurt Mother.
