Good question.
“That type of mission requires flexibility and a talent for diplomacy,” Ramona continued. “Two things an eradicator unit clearly wouldn’t be known for.”
“And yet here they are.” Without their trademark skull braids.
A gentle chime sounded through the room. Ramona rose, crossed the floor to the opposite wall, and retrieved a tray of food from a niche. She brought it to the table and set it in front of him. A dish of spicy soup, smoked fish, four different types of local cheese, small fried pastries, skewers of meat grilled over an open fire, still sizzling, crusty golden bread, and honeyed Rada berries.
Suddenly, he was ravenous.
Ramona ladled the soup into two bowls and passed one to him. He drank it. Spiced just right. He took a second swallow. Even better.
“Good,” he said.
She rolled her eyes. “Of course it’s good. Everything here is good. They’re serving our family recipes.”
“In that case, I should have said passable.”
“Clearly, you don’t value your life.”
They ate in silence. Ten minutes later, he was no longer starving, and his brain restarted, crunched through the data, and spat out an answer to the Vandal mystery. He really didn’t like it.
“Is the existence of the Vandals secret?” Ramona asked.
“No. Their reputation is an asset.”
“How closely are they monitored? As a unit?”
“Not very. They answer directly to the high council and are typically stationed on whatever border the SFR finds most troublesome at the moment. They do not enter deeper into the republic’s territory unless ordered.”
“Two birds with one stone,” she murmured. “Secure the border and keep them away from civilian centers and other military installations.”
She was walking the same logical path he took. She didn’t have all his background, but she would arrive at the same conclusion whether he helped her or not. There was no reason to hold things back. They had to work together. And yet he hesitated. It was probably force of habit. For some reason, he was irritated, and that irritation made him combative.
“If three men in uniform with skull braids showed up in the Davenports’ office bringing the same proposal, their reception would’ve been exactly the same,” Ramona said. “There is no reason for Varden and the others to hide their identity from the kinsmen or to pretend to be Rada citizens.”
“They are not hiding from us.”
She fixed him with her stare. He imagined a bloodred seco blade unfurling from her arm.
“Why do I get a feeling that you’ve already figured it out and are now feeding me bread crumbs of data to see how fast I get there?”
“Because I am.” He probably shouldn’t have said that.
She leaned forward. “Kinsman Baena, you try my patience.”
Haider called her she-wolf. Apt.
“Are we working together or not?”
“We are,” he told her. “We are temporary allies.”
“Then you must share information. I brought you to a safe room. You’ve seen my people. I fed you. I demonstrated trust.”
“I don’t have a problem with you. I have a problem with your last name.”
She bristled. “And now you’ve insulted my family.”
“It’s not an insult but a statement of fact. Our families have been enemies for generations. There is no guarantee you won’t stab me in the back.”
She gave out a short laugh. “Oh, that’s rich coming from a Baena.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“You have no room to talk of betrayal considering who you come from.”
That was quite specific.
“You talk as if our families had an alliance, which my family broke. There was never any such relationship. We were always rivals.”
“Don’t pretend like you don’t know.” Her words dripped with scorn.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Ramona stared at him, sizing him up.
He spread his arms and stared back.
“Fine,” she said. “We have bigger things to worry about.”
Oh no, you don’t. “Tell me.”
“As you said, Kinsman Baena, we are temporary allies. The information you’re asking for is outside the scope of our limited partnership. We don’t need it to find your wife or my husband. What we do need is everything you know or even suspect about the Vandals on our planet, since they are trying to buy the same type of tech our spouses are selling. If you don’t want to share, tell me now so you can stop wasting our time.”
Nothing she said was wrong. He had to give her enough information to move forward. The most important thing was finding their spouses and recovering the tech.
He realized why he was being petty. He liked this. Without meaning to, Ramona had rubbed his nose in what he was missing. He would never come to a secret room on the Terraces with Cassida. He would never enjoy a delicious meal in comfortable silence and then discuss serious plans and plots with her. His wife had no interest in sharing that part of his world, and she filled every silence with conversation, meaningful or not.