The Star Thief (Star Thief Chronicles 1)
Page 34Aldani crossed his arms. “I changed my mind. Your mission is not mine. Myka is the only thing I care about.”
Renna played with the stem of her wineglass, rolling it between her fingertips. Aldani had changed his tune faster than she’d expected. What had happened between their earlier meeting and now?
Keva shook her head. “The captain’s right, Doctor. Rescuing the boy right now doesn’t make sense. With radio silence coming from MYTH headquarters, we can’t afford to split our team. And if the kidnappers come after him again, we don’t have any additional support to protect. Even Renna’s…special…skills won’t work this time.” Disdainful derision dripped from Keva’s words.
Renna forced herself to loosen her grip on the wineglass before it shattered. Bitch. What was it with these people? She was proud of her skills; she’d worked hard to become good at her job, even though she wanted nothing more than to get out. But they wouldn’t see her as anything but a greedy mercenary.
Aldani glanced over at Renna, then arched a mocking brow at Keva. “I suppose competency is one of those ‘special’ skills, seeing as how Renna’s the only person in this room who’s actually done her job.”
Keva’s pale violet skin flushed pink, and she dropped her gaze.
“Excuse me, sir?” Corporal Bokal’s voice rumbled pleasantly through the room, breaking the sudden tension. “I understand you’ve been working on tech to get us inside the facility. How close are you to finishing it?”
The doctor studied each of the crew in turn, as if he were gauging his response. Finally he answered, “It should be finished tomorrow. I have one last test to complete.”
“What is this thing, and what exactly does it do?” Renna asked. She knew it had something to do with the gamma particle destabilize she’d retrieved, but ever since she’d stepped inside the MYTH headquarters, everyone had been specifically vague about it. Did anyone actually know the answer?
“Really?” Renna raised an eyebrow. “I’d say I’d need to know. You know, using it to break into a facility no one else can figure out…”
Captain Finn nodded. “Renna is right. She needs to know the details before we can plan our attack.”
Renna smirked. Agreement from Finn was the last thing she’d expected, but it was worth it just to see Keva’s shocked expression.
Aldani picked up a fork and drew hash lines in the tablecloth as he spoke. “The device uses the gamma particle destabilizer that Renna retrieved from the Cordozas to rearrange the dark matter between molecules, making them pliable. Once I configure it into my technology, it should get you inside the otherwise impenetrable facility.”
Finn continued. “After that, it’s Renna’s show. We’ll have to rely on her to guide us.” He turned his head to catch the doctor’s gaze. “If Dr. Aldani agrees, of course, that this is the next logical course of action.”
The doctor seemed to deflate, the wrinkles around his eyes standing out as he frowned down at the tablecloth. “You don’t understand. Myka is all I have left of my brother. He’s special. We must get him back.”
Renna leaned forward. “And we will. I promise.” She froze in her chair. Dammit. Why the hell did she keep using that frakking word?
“But only if I allow you to investigate the facility first.” Aldani’s shoulders slumped. “I know I am being a sentimental old man, but the fate of the universe doesn’t seem very important when your only family is missing.” He rubbed his eyes. “Very well. Continue with your mission. I will have my staff finish work on the destabilizer device. But please, please find Myka as soon as you can.”
Aldani inclined his head. “Thank you, Miss Carrizal.” He rose to his feet, setting his napkin on his plate. “If you’ll come with me, I have something else I’d like to give you that may help you once you’re inside the facility. Everyone else, please feel free to stay and enjoy your wine.”
Across the table, Finn stiffened, like he was going to get to his feet and follow. Aldani waved him down. “Stay with your crew, Captain. Renna will be perfectly safe with me.”
“It’s not her I’m worried about,” he said dryly.
Aldani chuckled, and Renna smiled tightly at Finn. If looks could kill, he’d be in a heap on the floor.
With a sigh, she trailed Aldani from the room, leaving Finn to stare after her.
“Have a seat on the table,” Aldani said as he shut the door behind them. They’d come to one of the labs on the lower level, and the doctor had quickly led her to a private room and pulled out a tray of sterile tools from the cabinet on the wall.
Her heart jumped at the variety of scalpels laid out across the tray. “What are you doing?” she asked, her voice a touch too high as she eyed the shiny metal instruments.
“Upgrading your implant.”
“I saw the incision site on your neck earlier. Am I right in guessing it’s not currently working?” He pinned her with his gaze, and Renna found herself nodding.
“It broke while rescuing Myka.” She paused. “Don’t you care that I have illegal tech?”
“I only care that you have the right tech to rescue my nephew.” He pulled out a small handheld computer and tapped the screen. “What model do you have?”
“It’s a Compass X-3 from Imperial Medical Systems.”
He touched another series of buttons on the screen. “All right. I’m going to numb you up a bit. It shouldn’t hurt, but I don’t want you to be uncomfortable. Then I’m going to restart the cybernetics and see what the damage is.”
She didn’t trust him. He was obviously holding something back about Myka’s abduction. He could be planting a tracer or sabotaging her implant.
Aldani must have seen the unease in her expression. “Please don’t worry, Renna. On my honor, it’s a simple repair and upgrade.” He flipped the screen around to show her the diagnostic tool he was using. She recognized the manufacturer’s software.
“All right. Go ahead.” Even if she didn’t trust him, she needed every advantage she could get to break into that facility. She’d just have to hope he was telling the truth.