Athena's Ashes Read Free Page B

shoulders and fixed the other occupants of the table with a cool gaze. “According to my intel, we have a rogue element within our ranks.”
    Renna felt dismay flicker across her face, and she quickly schooled her features to remain blank. How the hell did he know that? Pallas and Major Larson’s betrayal was still secret. Only the crew of the Athena knew the truth about what had happened on Vall.
    Dallas continued, oblivious to her sudden tension. “I was shocked and dismayed to hear Captain Finn has stolen the Athena and is on the run with the Aldani boy. The captain has been completely loyal to our cause since the day I recruited him. There has to be something we don’t know about this situation.”
    Renna’s muscles unclenched, and she let out a silent breath. Her secret was still safe. She’d have to make sure it stayed that way. As soon as Pallas knew they were on to him, he’d either go to ground and they’d never find him, or he’d launch his attack and they’d all be dead. Neither option really appealed to her.
    Admiral Usamov glanced at Renna. “That’s why we’ve asked Miss Carrizal here. We’re hoping she can tell us what happened on the mission. Perhaps there’s an explanation for the captain’s behavior.”
    Every eye in the room focused on her, and Renna swallowed thickly. Everything depended on her answer. Finn, Myyka, Viktis. The galaxy.
    Nothing like putting a little pressure on a girl.
    She let her gaze drift around the table, stopping briefly on each of the majors before speaking. “As I’m sure you all read in my report, after tracking the boy across most of this system, Captain Finn and I broke into the facility on Vall and discovered that Dr. Navang was using Myka’s DNA to create a cybernetic army. We rescued him, and Captain Finn took the boy back to the Athena for medical treatment. Unfortunately, I was captured by Navang’s men. He ran several experiments on me before I was able to escape.”
    “Do I understand that you had a pirate on board the Athena as well?” the admiral asked.
    Renna nodded. “Correct. Viktis Korrik. Son of former President Korrik.”
    “And now a pirate.” Usamov’s lips thinned in distaste.
    “A very good pirate,” Renna corrected. “He agreed to help us infiltrate Navang’s lab and rescue Myka after his ship was destroyed and his crew murdered by Navang’s henchmen.”
    Dallas raised one of his neatly trimmed eyebrows. “And Finn agreed to this?”
    “He didn’t have much of a choice. As Major Larson can confirm, we left Lenue in a rush after the attack on that city. Viktis was already on board.” Renna paused. “Whatever you may think about him, it was lucky we had him with us. Navang was working on some seriously illegal tech.”
    Among other things.
    The horrors she’d seen there still haunted her at night. Men and women transformed into cyborgs with glowing eyes and metal limbs. The sound of their screams as they died in a shower of sparks and blood. The technology that had taken over their humanity.
    Renna noticed her fingers drumming against the tabletop and quickly dropped them to her lap. Tells like that would get her in trouble here.
    “Navang was behind the attacks on the various cities in this system,” she continued. “He took the injured citizens and experimented on them, implanting them with his cybernetics. He created a drug that melded the implant technology into human physiology.” Renna paused, swallowed. “He turned them into hybrids.”
    Beside her, Dallas inhaled sharply. “Could he control them?”
    “Yes. He was creating an army.”
    Shocked whispers and mutters broke out at the table. Renna sneaked a glance at Major Larson from beneath her lashes. He sat perfectly still, no reaction, no indication he was part of Navang’s plan. That would have been too easy, of course.
    Finally, Usamov held up her hand. “Silence. Let Miss Carrizal finish.”
    Nausea burned the back of her throat as she pushed away the