Fain grimaced. "What level warrant is it?"
"Thrill-kill."
His grimace turned to a wince. Thrill-kill meant the issuer wanted Jullien violently tortured before death--with proof of it before payment--and his remains desecrated. While he was no fan of Jullien's, a thrill-kill warrant against a prince who was incapable of protecting himself was harsh. And the fact that neither of his parents would reinstate him to protect him from it was even harsher.
All hail Andaria.
And that was why Fain had left their empire when he did. They were a cutthroat race, and the Anatoles were the worst of them. It was that very ruthlessness that had made him leave Galene in order to protect her from such atrocities.
Morra frowned at him. "Why are you so interested in Jullien, anyway?"
"Weird transmission came through. Just trying to make sense of things that don't quite fit together. And I'll breathe a lot better when Dancer's here and I can lay eyes on him."
Jayne nodded. "Yeah. I'm only now starting to breathe again after I heard from Hadrian. Nothing's more terrifying than to know you've got family in harm's way and to not be able to get to them."
Fain caught the strange expression on Morra's face. "Where's your family?"
"Qory's with Chayden. Nyk's headed in here. Talyn's in for the night, I'm here with Jayne and on my way to see Galene."
Now it was his turn to scowl. "Pardon?"
"My father was murdered when I was a girl. My mother died when I was a teen. All the family I have is Sentella."
Fain felt bad for the Phrixian. "Sorry."
She offered him a kind smile. "You didn't know, handsome. It's all good. Truth never offends me. I'll always take the bitterest truth over a sugared lie any day."
"Woman after my own heart. And speaking of, I won't keep you two from Galene. There's something I need to check on."
Jayne hesitated. "Don't worry, Fain. Sentella's got your back."
"Thanks. Appreciate it." He watched as they walked off. While he believed Jayne without a doubt, the problem was, he didn't know who had their backs in this fight.
The way it was looking, The Tavali were about to hang them all out to dry.
Even him. And there was nothing he could do to save the very ones he loved most.
CHAPTER 8
Fain was a lot more nervous than he should be for something so ridiculously simple. He shifted the flowers in his hand, wondering for the millionth time if they were too much.
Or too little?
If his hair was in place? His clothes were acceptable? Had he shaved close enough? He'd heard Galene bitch for days about Talyn's goatee, so he'd gotten rid of his this morning.
Had he used enough deodorant? Or too much? Maybe he should have bought some aftershave....
Galene used to hate that on a male, but Talyn wore it. Perhaps her tastes had changed over the years.
Damn. He hadn't been on a date since before Talyn was born. He couldn't remember really how to do this.
It's just dinner, dumbass. Relax. You ate with her last night.
Yeah, but this was different.
They'd made plans for this. Set it up.
With his gut clenched tight, he knocked on the door of Galene's room, and waited.
No one answered.
Scowling, he checked the time. He was a couple of minutes early.
Okay, almost half an hour, but it wasn't that early. Her shift had ended hours ago. She should have been back by now and relaxing with her programs. Not that he was a stalker, per se. He just happened to know her schedule.
And routines.
A little better than his own.
Oh, shit, I am a stalker.
Trying not to think of that, he knocked again and listened.
This time he heard a muffled shout and something that sounded like it'd been dropped. Terror consumed him. Opening the door, he reached for his blaster and started to call out when he heard Talyn's angry voice in the bedroom, growling in Andarion.
"Dammit, you're hurting me! Stop ramming the hole! You're not in the right position! You have to be on your knees when you slide it in!"
To his further shock, Gavarian responded in an equally irritated tone. "Oh bite it and stop being such a damn crybaby. Just shift a little. It'll go in if you just relax and breathe, and quit clenching so tight you could make a diamond from the pressure. Breathe slow and easy, and it'll slide right in the hole. You'll see. We just need more lubricant. Now stop being so hostile and let me do this or I'll leave you to jack it by yourself."
Talyn hissed. "Let me shove it up your ass, and we'll see how relaxed and hostile you are!"
"Gah! You're such a dick. How does Felicia stand doing this with you?"
"For one thing, she's a lot more gentle and her hands are smaller."
"I don't see how that would help."
His mouth hanging open, Fain started to withdraw when he caught sight of Gavarian in the bedroom, on his knees in front of Talyn.
Well, they weren't having sex, but to be honest, he'd have rather they were than face the reality of what they were actually doing in there.
For a full minute, he couldn't breathe as he stared at Talyn's lower right leg resting on the floor by Gavarian's side while the boy entered data on a small tablet in his hands.
He removed the link from the leg and began to reattach it to Talyn.
Talyn hissed in pain. "It's still not right. You're missing the hole. Pull it off!" He reached for his crutches, then froze as he caught sight of Fain in the doorway. "Don't you fucking knock, old man?"
Fain closed his gaping jaw. "I did. You must not have heard me." Sympathetic pain for his son wracked him fully. No wonder Talyn limped and favored that leg so. The memory of all the scars on his son's body went through his mind and he cursed himself for not being there for them when they'd needed him most.
But he was here for them now.
Setting the flowers down on a side table, he stepped forward, into the room. "If you want, I can do that. I used to help my father with his integrations when I lived at home."
Talyn wiped at the sweat on his forehead before he nodded. "Fine. Just get it on right, since Gavarian can't seem to manage it."
Gavarian growled at him. "Don't yell at me. I'm not the one who twisted it. I told you not to play ball last night. But did you listen? No! You never listen 'cause you always know better."
Talyn mocked him in the same manner he'd mocked him the night before.
Ignoring him, Gavarian rose and stepped back so that Fain could take over. He reviewed the data on the tablet and checked the diagnostics. Then he double-checked the couplings and swabbed them out with disinfectant before he added more gel to the connectors. The trick was to slide it in smooth and quick before either he or Talyn moved even a millimeter. Something he and his brothers had learned to do fast since their father was prone to knock the shit out of them if they hurt him in the process of reattaching his limbs.
Bracing the cyber foot against his own thigh, Fain gripped Talyn's real knee and the prosthetic calf muscle. "Ready?"
Talyn inclined his head to him and held on to the chair's arms.
Fain slid the leg into place.
For a full minute, Talyn didn't move or breathe as he no doubt waited for pain to kick in. "Is that it?"
"Should be. Can you move anything?"
Talyn wiggled his toes and finally let out a relieved breath as he slumped back in the chair. "Thank the gods," he said with a happy note underlying his raspy tone. He slowly moved his leg back and forth to make sure it wasn't malfunctioning.
Fain had to give the surgeons credit. When attached, it looked completely natural. Unless you were right up on it, there was no way to detect the faint line that marked where Talyn's natural leg stopped and the cybernetic replacement began. It even felt real to the touch.
"What happened to cause that?"
His features sullen, Gavarian picked up the pad and link. "You should know, Hauk. You were there.
"
"Vari," Talyn chided, "don't."
But it was too late. Over and over, Fain replayed that firefight against Viper and Reaper in his mind. It'd been a brutal fight. No wonder Galene had fallen apart at the prospect of putting Talyn back into a cockpit. Pain struck him hard in the pit of his stomach at what he'd unknowingly cost his son.
And Galene.
"I'm so sorry, Talyn. I would never have hurt you had I known."
Talyn shrugged with a nonchalance Fain would never fathom. "It's okay. Really." He glanced over to Gavarian. "My leg for Vari's life was a fair trade as far as I'm concerned. And it could have been worse. Could have been my head I lost, or something else not so easily reattached."
Gavarian snorted. "You weren't saying that ten minutes ago when you were threatening to kill me." He took the pad and cord out into the living area.
As Fain started away, Talyn stood and caught his arm. "Seriously, Hauk. Let it go."
"How can you stand to look at me?"
Talyn answered in an honest tone. "I fought in the Ring for over a decade. Open and Vested. With Warswords and without. Honestly? I never thought I'd live to this age. Every time I entered a match or flew down a launch tube for battle, I fully expected to lose my life or a limb in the fight. I made peace with both possibilities a long time ago. We're warriors and we're Andarions. It's what we do."
Still, Fain couldn't imagine how his son could stand to be in a room with him and not kill him for what he'd taken from him. It made no sense. "You have every right to hate me."
"I do hate you, old man. But not for this. We all make mistakes. The gods know, I'm not perfect. So I'm not going to hold what happened in battle against you when you had no idea who you were facing off against. We do what we have to, to survive war. And I don't fight for myself. I never have. I fight for what I love."
"Your mother."
Talyn nodded. "For your sake and hers, don't ever let her know you had anything to do with me losing my leg. Don't even let her know you were there that day. She won't forgive you."
"I still don't understand how you can. And if you don't hate me for the leg, what the hell else could you possibly hate me for?"
Talyn pulled out his link and turned it on. He showed Fain the lock screen photo of him with his arms around Felicia. They appeared to be on a camping trip and inside a bright yellow tent. When Talyn unlocked it, Felicia turned and said in the sweetest contralto, "Love my sexy baby!" Then she gave him a loud, audible kiss.
Swallowing hard, Talyn turned the screen dark and slid the link back into his pocket. "Every day I wake up and have her in my life, I have no real problems with anything or anyone. I'm just glad to be here. I don't know why my mother loves you like that, but she does. Whenever you come around, that sadness inside her vanishes and she lights up in a way she never has before. While I might not get it, I won't stand between you. So long as you treat her like she deserves, I'll do anything I can to help you. My personal feelings be damned."
In that moment, Fain felt even more like shit that he hadn't told Talyn Felicia was on her way here. He should. But he wanted to see Talyn's face when his son saw her unexpectedly.
"What I hold against you, Hauk, are all the years I watched my mother suffer because you weren't there for her. I hate you for every lonely tear she's ever shed in your name."
The front door opened. "Talyn?"
"In here, Mum."
The sound of her voice filled Fain with both panic and joy. Damn, that female had way too much power over him. It made a mockery of Ven's kill switch in his brain.
He followed Talyn out of the room to find Galene with Morra and Qory. They were each carrying two large covered trays of food. And Vega and War came in the rear of the group with small bags of chips in their hands.
After kissing Talyn on the cheek, Galene flashed a dazzling smile at Fain.
Suddenly, he felt out of place. "Did I misunderstand our plans?"
Galene laughed. "Not at all. You're a little early. But it's fight night and we always have dinner together while we watch."
Baffled, Fain looked from Talyn to Gavarian to Qory and Morra and back to Galene. "I thought you hated fighting."
She arched her brow. "I'm Andarion. I love the Ring. Not when my son or pledged are the ones bleeding in it, but for the rest..."
"She loves it." Talyn pulled back a lid and snuck a crunchy bit from one of the platters. "More than even I do." He snuck another piece and handed it off to War, who grinned before he ate it.
Morra sidled up to him. "Don't look so disappointed, Fain. This is a family tradition she's invited you to."
He locked gazes with Galene. "Really?"
Galene nodded. "Only Felicia's missing from it. Talyn and I have been doing this since he was in nappies. Even when I couldn't be with him, we'd watch together via links whenever we could."
And it was something she'd started doing with Fain and his brothers and father and uncles when they were kids. As physicians, her family had never cared much for the sport. But every weekend, his had come together for the big fight. His mother and aunts would prepare food and everyone would crash wherever they could find space at his paternal grandparents' massive house. Since the event was vastly chaperoned, Galene's father would drop her off for it, and they'd sit on the floor in front of the screen next to Dancer and their cousin Dimie.
How weird that Galene would carry on a Hauk family tradition without him when he'd basically abandoned it after his mother had disowned him.
Galene handed plates of food to the kids and helped them sit in front of the screen before she returned to make a plate for herself.
Morra passed an ale off to Qory and waters to Talyn and Gavarian. Since they were Andarion military, they weren't allowed to imbibe. She arched a brow at Fain. "Hearty or boring?"
"The good stuff with bite in it."
She popped the cap and handed him the bottle. Galene gave him a plate before she grabbed a water for herself and headed toward the living room with the others.
"Who's fighting?" Fain started to sit next to Qory, but Galene grabbed his belt and pulled him down beside her.
Too stunned to argue, he balanced his plate on his legs and set his drink on the table next to the couch.
Talyn licked the sauce from his fingers. "Torrid and Gallows."
"Who you banking on?"
Talyn shook his head. "Only gamble with my life, Hauk. Never my money."
Galene tossed a pillow at her son. "Not my favorite thing about him, either."
Sitting on the floor, next to the kids, Gavarian picked up his link to place his bet. "So who's going to win?" he asked Talyn.
"Gallows. Six rounds in."
"Thank you."
Fain frowned. "You sound like a prophet."
"He's never wrong," Galene, Gavarian, and Morra said simultaneously while Qory nodded in agreement.
"Then why don't you bet?"
Talyn rubbed at his leg. "Loyalty. I only put creds on a match when I know a portion's going to the fighters, or Erix's the trainer."
"Erix? He's still training fighters?"
Talyn grinned. "Yeah, I know, right? The way he complained about me sucking the life out of him, I'm stunned he didn't retire with me."
Fain laughed. "He did the same with me. All the time." He deepened his voice to mimic his old trainer. "'I swear, Hauk, you're sucking the last few good years of life right out of me.'"
Talyn laughed. "You do that well."
Frowning, Morra looked back and forth between them. "Didn't he know you two were related? I mean ... c'mon. You're dead ringers for each other, and no snide comments about how Andarions look alike to foreigners, 'cause I know better."
Talyn snorted. "He never really said anything. But yeah, I think he knew. I always suspected it was why he took me on as a lack-Vest."
"What do you mean?" Fain asked.
"Just that he wasn't known for taking pity on punk kids. And every now and again, I'd overhear him mumble s
omething that sounded suspiciously similar to 'just like his useless paka.' I assume he had to mean you."
Fain laughed at his spot-on impression of Erix's gruff tone. "He never called me useless."
"True, but I like to embellish." Talyn ate another bite of his ribs.
Fain shook his head as he considered his son's words. "But you do bet, though."
Talyn shrugged. "Not a bet when it's a sure thing."
The more Fain learned about his son, the more he respected him and regretted how little he'd had in the making of such a great Andarion male. Then again, maybe that was a good thing. Had he been around, Talyn might not have grown into such an exceptional being.
The gods knew Talyn was definitely a better male than Fain had ever been.
Warwyk popped his head up. "Commander Galene? May I have some of the cake pieces?"
She narrowed her eyes at his plate. "How much did you eat?"
He held it up for her to see. "All."
"Wow! You inhaled that! By all means, sweetie. Go grab what you want."
With a happy shout, he ran to the kitchen to get another plate full of sweets and chips.
Laughing, she leaned against Fain's shoulder and made his heart quicken. "I forgot how much boys that age eat. I could barely keep Talyn in groceries."
"You can still barely keep me in groceries." He wiped his hands on his napkin. "Hey, War? Can you grab me another plate, too?"
"Sure, Big T!"
As the fight started, Talyn checked his link and frowned.
Qory signed at him to ask what was wrong.
Talyn let out a heavy sigh. "Still haven't heard from Felicia. I'm really getting worried about her. She knows what a psychotic asshole I am so she doesn't normally stress me."
Qory silently laughed.
From his seat on the floor, Gavarian passed a covert hate-filled scowl at Fain. Since they were traveling through League-controlled space, there was no way to safely contact them right now. Especially not with an unknown spy on the loose. "I'm sure she's fine. Just busy."
Galene brushed the hair back from Talyn's face. "Don't worry, baby. I'll have her brother check in on her. You know Aaron and the others would never let anything happen to your Felicia."