Steel Scars Read Free

isn’t happy.”
    I grin and push past her. She’s shorter than me, like most people, and has to work to keep up. “Is he ever?”
    â€œYou know what I mean. This is different.”
    Her dark eyes flash, betraying a rare fear. I saw it last in the infirmary, as she stood over the body of another captain. Saraline, code named Mercy, who ended up losing a kidney during a routine arms raid. She’s still recovering. The surgeon was shaky at best. Not your fault.Not your job , I remind myself. But I did what I could. I’m no stranger to blood and I was the best medic we had at the moment. Still, it was the first time I held a human organ in my hand. At least she’s alive .
    â€œShe’s walking,” Indy offers, reading the guilt on my face. “Slow, but she’s doing it.”
    â€œThat’s good,” I say, neglecting to add that she should’ve been walking weeks ago. Not your fault echoes again.
    When we make it back to the central hub, Indy breaks off, heading to the infirmary. She hasn’t left Saraline’s side for anything but assignments and, apparently, the Colonel’s errands. They came to the Guard at the same time, close as sisters. And then, quite obviously, not sisters anymore. No one minds. There’s no rules against fraternizing within the organization, so long as the job gets done and everyone comes back alive. So far, no one at Irabelle has been foolish or sentimental enough to let something so petty as a feeling jeopardize our cause.
    I leave Indy to her worries and head in the opposite direction, to where I know the Colonel waits.
    His office would make a marvelous tomb. No windows, concrete walls, and a lamp that always seems to burn out at precisely the wrong moment. There are far better places in Irabelle for him to conduct business, but he likes the quiet and the closed space. He’s tall enough, and the low ceiling makes him seem like a giant. Probably why he likes the room so much.
    His head scrapes the ceiling when he stands to greet my entrance.
    â€œNew orders?” I ask, already knowing the answer. We’ve been here two days. I know better than to expect any kind of vacation, even after the grand success of Operation Laker. The central passages of three lakes, each one key to the inner Lakelands, now belong to us, and no one is the wiser. For what higher purpose, I don’t know. That’s forCommand to worry about, not me.
    The Colonel slides a folded paper across the table to me. Sealed edges. I have to snap it open with a finger. Strange . I’ve never received sealed orders before.
    My eyes scan the page, widening with every passing word. Command orders. Straight from the top, past the Colonel, directly to me.
    â€œThese are—”
    He holds up a hand, stopping me short. “Command says your eyes only.” His voice is controlled, but I hear the anger anyway. “It’s your operation.”
    I have to clench a fist to keep calm. My own operation . Blood pounds in my ears, pressed on by a rising heartbeat. My jaw clenches, grinding my teeth together so I don’t smile. I look back at the orders again to make sure they’re real. Operation Red Web .
    After a moment, I realize something is missing.
    â€œThere’s no mention of you, sir.”
    He raises the eyebrow of his bad eye. “Do you expect there to be? I’m not your nanny , Captain.” He bristles. The mask of control threatens to slip and he busies himself with an already pristine desk, flicking away a piece of dust that doesn’t exist.
    I shrug off the insult. “Very well. I assume you have orders of your own.”
    â€œI do,” he says quickly.
    â€œThen a bit of a celebration is in order.”
    The Colonel all but sneers. “You want to celebrate being a poster girl? Or would you rather cheer a suicide mission?”
    Now I really do smile. “I don’t see it that way.” Slowly, I fold