Page 22 of Revenge (Warriors of the Drexian Academy #6)

Chapter

Twenty-Two

Sasha

I followed Reina through the station’s interior corridors, leaving behind the tropical fantasy of our deck for something more utilitarian. The walls here were still the same curved white surfaces, but the lighting was brighter and more focused, designed for work rather than romance.

“Nina is one of our best holo designers,” Reina explained as we approached a door with a clear window panel. “She’s also one of the people who helped save Kann and Britta when they got stuck in that holo-simulation disaster.”

The door slid open to reveal a compact but efficient workspace filled with tall tables, holographic displays and sleek control surfaces. A woman with lots of dark, curly hair looked up from where she was working at a curved console, her face lighting up when she saw us.

“Nina,” Reina said, “I’d like you to meet Sasha Bowman.”

“The rescued pilot!” Nina exclaimed, rising from her chair with obvious enthusiasm. “I’m so relieved to hear they got you out safely. What you must have gone through...” She trailed off, her expression shifting to sympathetic concern.

I felt a familiar stab of guilt at the deception we were perpetrating. Nina seemed genuinely kind, the sort of person who would be horrified to learn she was being manipulated. But I pushed the feeling down. This was necessary, and I couldn’t afford to let sentiment interfere with my mission.

“Thank you,” I said, managing what I hoped was a grateful smile. “I have the Drexians to thank for being rescued.”

“They’re pretty great.” Nina gave me a knowing wink. “In more ways than one, right?”

“Nina’s mate is a Drexian,” Reina explained with a giggle.

“I hear you’re engaged to one.” Nina grinned. “Welcome to the ranks of the tribute brides.”

I bristled at this terminology but tried not to let it show on my face. “Thanks. Everyone here has been incredibly welcoming.”

“Not that we’re tributes anymore,” Nina said with a nervous laugh. “All of us know exactly what we’re getting into.”

“We were wondering if we could use your communications setup,” Reina said, smoothly taking charge of the conversation. “Sasha needs to make a vid call to the Academy on Drex.”

“Of course!” Nina said immediately, gesturing toward the array of equipment that dominated one wall of the office. “It won’t take me a minute to get you connected. Which part of the academy are we calling?”

“The School of Flight,” I said. That was the place where I was most likely to find Ariana.

She settled at the shiny console, her fingers dancing across the control surfaces with practiced efficiency.

The familiar beeps and buzz of subspace communications filled the office.

Then within moments, the primary display flickered to life, showing the interior of what I recognized as a classroom in the Academy’s School of Flight.

Volten appeared on screen, looking surprised but relieved when he saw me.

“Sasha!” he said, his usually composed expression cracking. “Ariana has been freaking out since you and Deklyn disappeared without a word.”

Another stab of guilt twisted in my chest. I should have told my sister I was leaving. I should have spared her the worry and fear that must have consumed her when she realized I was gone.

“Is she there?” I asked, trying to keep my voice steady.

“Right here,” came a familiar voice, and then Ariana was pushing into frame beside Volten, her face pale with worry and relief and something that might have been anger.

Before she could speak, before she could demand explanations or express the hurt I could see in her eyes, I plunged ahead with the lie I’d rehearsed.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you I was leaving,” I said, the words tumbling out in a rush. “I hadn’t planned to, but it was a spur-of-the-moment thing, and now, well, Deklyn and I are engaged.”

The silence that followed was so complete I could hear the hum of the station’s life support systems. Ariana’s mouth fell open, her expression cycling through disbelief, shock, and something that might have been anger.

“Could you repeat that?” Volten asked, his voice carefully controlled.

I forced myself to smile, to look like a woman who’d just gotten engaged to the love of her life rather than someone who’d just told one of the biggest lies of her existence.

“Deklyn and I are engaged,” I repeated, injecting as much happiness into my voice as I could manage. “We’re getting married!”

Before either of them could respond, Reina poked her head into frame beside me, her timing perfect.

“And we’re already busy planning the wedding of the century!” she added with enthusiasm that sounded completely genuine.

“Sasha,” Ariana said slowly. “Why is this all happening so fast? I mean, you’ve barely been out of that prison for?—”

“When you know, you know,” I interrupted, hating myself for the words even as I said them. “After what we went through together, we realized there was no point in waiting. Why waste time when we could be building a life together?”

The explanation sounded hollow even to my own ears, but I pressed on before Ariana could ask more questions.

“We want everyone to come to the station for the wedding,” I said, trying to inject excitement into my tone. “Everyone who worked on the rescue mission, Admiral Zoran and his wife, all your friends from the Academy. It’s going to be incredible.”

I paused, then played what I hoped would be my trump card. “Ariana, I want you to be my maid of honor.”

The effect was immediate and heartbreaking. My sister’s eyes filled with tears, and for a moment all pure joy replaced the hurt and confusion on her face.

“I... of course,” she whispered. “I’d be honored.”

“I have to run,” I said before she could ask any more questions that I wasn’t prepared to answer. “There’s so much planning to do, and?—”

“So much planning!” Reina chimed in again, playing her part perfectly. “Serge has about a million ideas, and we need to narrow them down before he swags the entire station in flowers.”

“I’ll see you when you get here,” I promised, already reaching for the connection controls. “I love you, Ari.”

“I love you too,” she said, but her expression was still confused, still questioning.

The connection ended, leaving us staring at a blank screen. Nina looked between Reina and me with obvious curiosity, but she was too polite to ask the questions I could see forming on her face.

“Thank you so much for your help,” I said to Nina, forcing another smile. “I really appreciate it.”

“Anytime,” she said warmly. “And congratulations again.”

As we left Nina’s office and walked back through the corridors toward our deck, Reina leaned close to whisper, “I think they believed us. Your sister looked shocked, but not suspicious.”

I wasn’t so sure. Ariana had known me her entire life, had seen through every lie I’d ever tried to tell her when we were children. The look on her face suggested she knew something wasn’t quite right, even if she couldn’t put her finger on what.

“Ariana’s not stupid,” I said. “She knows me better than anyone. If anyone’s going to see through this deception, it’s my sister.”

“Then you’ll just have to be extra convincing when she gets here,” Reina said pragmatically. “Lucky for you, you’ve got a very attractive fake fiancé to help sell the illusion.”

The thought of having to convince my sister that I was madly in love with Deklyn sent a flutter of panic through my chest. It was one thing to fool strangers or casual acquaintances. It was another entirely to lie to the person who’d known me longest and loved me most.

But as we rode the inclinator back up to the tropical paradise where Deklyn and I would have to continue our charade, I reminded myself why I was doing this.

Someone had betrayed me, had left me to rot in an alien prison while they played their political games.

They deserved whatever consequences my deception might bring.

I just hoped I could pull it off without destroying the relationship with my sister that we’d been rebuilding. And I hoped I could survive weeks of pretending to be in love with Deklyn without losing myself completely in the fantasy.