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Chapter 10

There was no way Hunterwas letting Cleo lose everything she loved. He ignored the way she glared at him and stared straight at the screen at the two jerks who were trying to ruin her life.

“You’re confessing this screw up was your doing?” Jagger said.

Hunter nodded. “It was my fault. I told Cleo we should steal the animals. She said we shouldn’t, but I disobeyed her orders. I get bored being on this ship all the time. Apexians are meant to fight, and I figured I’d found something interesting to fight for. I caused the distraction. If Cleo hadn’t taken the ship, she’d have been killed. She did the only thing she could to survive.”

Cleo sucked in a breath, but Hunter shot her a glance, and gave a discreet shake of his head.

“That’s unacceptable behavior for an Apexian,” Commissioner Viewick said, his small eyes gleaming with interest.

“It might be from where you’re sitting, but Hunter has a point,” Jagger said, a sneer on his face. “We aren’t made for desk jobs.”

“The Apocalypse shouldn’t lose such a great leader because Cleo is covering for me,” Hunter said. “She’d do it for anyone. She always puts her team first. She doesn’t want me to lose my position.”

“That’s not what happened.” Cleo’s words rushed out of her. “I was in charge of that mission. I ordered Hunter to distract the Siblet while I took the ship.”

“Was Hunter the one who proposed the explosions to distract the Siblet?” Commissioner Viewick said.

Cleo hesitated. “Yes, but I could have ordered him not to do that. He would have obeyed me.”

“That’s not true. I wanted to dish out payback to the Siblet. I wouldn’t have listened to Cleo’s orders. I wanted them dead.”

“If the chain of command is ignored, mistakes happen. Hunter, are you certain about this?” Jagger’s gaze swept over him, suspicion in his eyes.

“I am.”

“Cleo, it seems I was mistaken. I should have known you’d protect your crew,” Commissioner Viewick said.

“I wouldn’t. I mean, I would protect them, but not like this.”

Hunter nodded, noting the gleam in the commissioner’s eyes. He knew this little weasel would grab this option if he offered it. Even though Commissioner Viewick talked down to Cleo, she was his golden girl. She never failed to make him look good. She turned in all the right reports and let him take the piss repeatedly so he wouldn’t look bad.

“I’m the reason this mission went wrong,” he said.

“Give us a moment to speak.” Commissioner Viewick cut the communication link with the Apocalypse.

Cleo rounded on Hunter, anger flaring in her eyes. “What the hell are you doing? You know that’s not what happened.”

“It doesn’t matter what really happened. There’s no way they’re taking you off this mission. I didn’t expect them to get rid of you. And you can’t be suspended from your job. You’re too important to lose. I’m a grunt. You can find another Apexian to help with the paperwork.”

Cleo raked her hands through her hair. “No! That’s not why I need you to stay.”

“Then why do you want me here?”

Her gaze dropped for a second, before the anger returned to pin him in place. “You can’t take the blame for this. This was all on me. I ordered you to cause a distraction. You even questioned whether it was the right thing to do, but I was too busy trying to prove myself to consider what carnage this would cause once we had the animals.”

“It’s not important. The important thing is you remain on the ship.” Hunter longed to kiss her and comfort her, but that would cross the line by about a million miles in the wrong direction. Making out with your boss in front of High Command was a dumbass move. It still didn’t stop him from thinking about it.

Cleo must have sensed the heat building inside him, because her cheeks flushed and she turned back to the screen. “This is my mess. Let me clear it up. I don’t need you to pull the hero card to cover for me.”

“This is happening. You’re staying on the Apocalypse.”

“We’ve made a decision,” Commissioner Viewick said as he reconnected the comm link.

“Your decision should remain unchanged,” Cleo said. “The responsibility ultimately falls on my shoulders. Even if Hunter suggested we take the gabblefoot, I should have overridden him. This is my ship and my rules.”

“Cleo, your service record is exemplary. We don’t want to lose you from the Apocalypse,” Commissioner Viewick said.