Endgame Read Free Page B

frames a thin mouth, and his mien gives away none of his thoughts. From their body language, the two are more than friends though Tarn’s never discussed their relationship. They’re both private men—and tremendously useful. More to the point, they look happy, comfortable even, which means they’ve been together a while.
    “Your reputation precedes you,” Leviter says.
    I figure he’s giving me fair warning what to expect from him. “Only half of it’s true.”
    Leviter flashes a sardonic smile. “That’s more than enough.”
    “Is Loras here?” Tarn interjects. “I look forward to meeting him.”
    “Yes, the others are in the ready room. This way.” I gesture for them to follow me.
    Outside the city, the house is perfectly situated for skullduggery such as this, and it’s large enough to house everyone—Loras, Zeeka, Constance, Vel, and me—without any trouble. Since the property lacks a pool and formal garden, however, most nobles found it too provincial, and Vel got a good bargain; it had been on the market for a while.
    “Any luck?” Though it’s not a specific question, I know what Tarn’s asking.
    I shake my head. “I didn’t imagine it would be easy, but it’s worse than I expected.”
    “Have you cited the legal precedents, as I suggested?” Tarn asks.
    “For all the good it does. The Nicuan are entrenched.”
    As we walk, Leviter says, “I trust Suni told you I have some ideas of how to start?”
    “You’re committed to the cause then?”
    Leviter smiles. “I specialize in this sort of thing.”
    I decide not to ask; sometimes it’s better not to question your allies. The resistance is a grassroots movement with a few volunteers filling out forms and holding poorly attended rallies. At this point, the Imperials don’t even take us seriously enough to shut them down.
    Tarn nods. “It’s true. If anyone can help you get the job done, Edun can.”
    “Excellent news. We can use all hands.” This is true enough, as my own efforts have been spectacularly fruitless.
    “Ultimately, you know that the civilized requests will go nowhere.” Leviter speaks the words with grave caution, as if he wonders whether I’m the sort of person who believes you can change the world through peaceable means.
    I would like that to be true, but it’s not. That’s an idealist’s dream, and I’m too far past my starry-eyed youth to put my faith in fairy tales. Yet we must start somewhere, and I want it on record that we tried lawful measures before we escalated.
    “I’d be surprised if anything came of them since the nobles run all the courts on Nicu Quintus.” That’s what the nobles call La’heng.
    I step into the ready room, where Loras is waiting. At the moment, Vel’s at flight school, and Zeeka is tinkering upstairs with something that will explode if he’s not careful. It has been delightful exploring the galaxy with the grown-up version of Baby-Z. Before getting to know the Mareq, I never could’ve imagined such a bright and cheerful soul.
    Loras stands and offers his hand to the two men. He’s average height, thin, with blond hair and azure eyes. When I first met Loras, he had an unearthly beauty, which made his face disturbing because it made me think he couldn’t care enough about events to be affected by them. In fact, that untouchableaspect came as a result of the
shinai
-bond, which makes his people reliant on others for their protection. When you’re prevented from having experiences, you look young; it’s natural cause and effect. In the turns I’ve known him, he’s lost that deceptive innocence, and since he took Carvati’s Cure, Loras has changed. The
shinai
-bond kept his integral savagery at bay, but over the last turn, he’s become fierce and driven, hardening into the steel he’ll need to lead this rebellion.
    I remember the promise I made to him, before the Morgut War. At the time, I was trying to apologize for leaving him to die and to explain how much I valued