Page 13 of Claimed By the Wraiths

Deyric leaned forward. “If she gets working access codes and authenticates from inside the station, I can use her handshake to bridge the diplomatic network back to the Raptor. Mirror the logs here while she’s connected. I’ll have the bridge and the upload package ready before she docks.”

The room looked at Serak.

He sat at the head of the table. His hands were flat on the surface. He’d listened to everything without moving, without reacting, without giving any sign that the crew had just built a mission around the person sitting to his left.

“No,” he said.

I’d expected it. I’d prepared for it. I’d run the conversation in my head a dozen times while I put the briefing materials together.

I felt it anyway: a hot pressure behind my sternum, the kind that wanted to become words and couldn’t because the whole crew was watching and I would not give him the satisfaction of seeing it land.

“The risk to a single crew member without on-site support is not justified by the intelligence gain.”

“I am the intelligence gain. I’m the only one who can read this encryption. The only one with credentials that pass. The only one who knows Tal’s face. There is no other plan.”

“Then there is no version of this plan.”

Eight people holding still around the table.

Ressh looked at his hands. Alix watched Serak’s. Thoryn hadn’t moved.

Maris had her mouth set the way she did when she was biting back something she wanted to say.

“Is this a command decision,” I said, “or a personal one?”

The dark was climbing his forearms, past his rolled sleeves. His biology answering the question his mouth wouldn’t.

“It’s my decision.”

“It’s not. Not if the reason you’re saying no has nothing to do with the plan. I’ve watched Ressh and Alix walk into Epsilon. I’ve watched Thoryn go back to the Quarry. I provided covering fire at the Haven and afterward you thanked the crew and didn’t mention me. Because I was supposed to be on the ship.”

I kept my voice steady.

“I’m not fragile. And I’m not going to sit on this ship while three thousand people wait. Not when I’m the only one who can fix that.”

Serak stood. Black eyes, unreadable.

“The answer is no,” he said.

He left.

Nobody moved.

The briefing room hummed. Deyric’s displays cycled through the data. Maris looked at Thoryn.

Thoryn’s hand was still on the table, palm down.

Then Maris stood, touched Thoryn’s shoulder, and walked out. The rest followed, one by one.

Ressh paused at the door and looked at me. Didn’t say anything. Just looked.

Then he went. Deyric left his displays running. Solren watched me from his corner, then went.

I collected my hardstock sheets. Walked into the corridor.

Maris was waiting.

“The Ghost is in the hangar,” she said.