Enemy Lines II_ Rebel Stand - Aaron Allston [77]
“Over here.” That was Jaina’s voice, and when Kyp turned he could see both her and Jag Fel sitting atop a condenser-unit housing. He could barely identify them by sight; they were nothing but silhouettes. There were more, smaller, silhouettes where they sat—something that looked like a basket, something that looked like a bottle.
Kyp snorted. “You’re having a picnic?”
“That’s right.” There was amusement in Jaina’s voice. “And the Goddess commands you to attend.”
“You’re getting strange, Goddess.” Kyp sprang up to the unit housing top, landing directly into a cross-legged sitting position to match Jag’s. Jaina was stretched out on her side, facing the two of them.
“It’s not just a picnic.” Jaina took the bottle and poured some of its contents into a glass, one of three mismatched glasses beside the basket. She handed the glass to Kyp. “We need to talk. The three of us.” She poured two more glasses and handed one to Jag.
Kyp sniffed dubiously at his glass. “Paint thinner?”
“We’re not that lucky,” Jag said. “While we’ve been waiting, I’ve been determining its effects on local insects. One hundred percent deadly.”
“Hush,” Jaina said. “This is the finest example of the Borleias distiller’s art. It’s dereliction of duty to be drinking it when another Vong barrage might start at any minute. That means it’s going to taste wonderful.” She took an experimental sip.
To her credit, she did keep her reactions from her face. But through the Force Kyp could feel her physiological reaction as nerve endings in her throat protested the intrusion of the homemade brew.
Though blind to the Force, Jag had to be familiar enough with Jaina to sense what she was experiencing. His shoulders shook with silent laughter.
“Anyway,” Jaina said. Her voice sounded as though she’d suddenly transformed into an elderly mechanic. “We’ve got a problem, Kyp. You and me and Jag.”
“I wasn’t aware of any problems.”
“Then why do you yank yourself out of our Force connection the instant it’s not absolutely vital to our current task? It’s like dancing with a partner who jumps back past arm’s length and brushes himself off at the end of every dance.”
“That’s … an interesting comparison.” Kyp glanced at Jag, but the younger man hadn’t reacted to Jaina’s phrasing, and Kyp couldn’t see his face. “Maybe you and I should talk about this some time. Privately.”
“And maybe not. Jag’s part of this situation. He was the one who suggested this talk.”
Kyp felt himself grow annoyed, and became even more annoyed with himself for indulging in such a predictable reaction. “He did, huh? Direct confrontation. That is the Fel family approach, isn’t it?”
Jag took a sip of the homebrew and made a noise that suggested he’d just been punched. After a moment, he said, “I come from more than one family line, Kyp. Some of them are sneakier than others.”
“What does that mean?”
“That means … that whatever you expect this meeting to be, it probably isn’t.”
“A nice enigmatic reply.” Kyp sipped from his glass. Whatever the fluid was, it seemed to be part alcohol, part pepper, part rotted fruit. His eyes watered. “Wait a second. You two took the antidote before I came up here, didn’t you?”
Jaina snorted. “Would you mind if I cut straight to the power cable?”
“Go right ahead.”
“A while back, you manipulated me. I didn’t like it. On Hapes, I dragged you into some situations you didn’t care for. I gave you plenty of trouble. We both lied to each other about what we intended and what we meant. Well, I thought, when you decided you wanted to join my squadron, that it meant you’d forgiven me. When I accepted, it meant I’d forgiven you. Did it mean that, or didn’t it?”
“It did.”
“So are we partners, or aren’t we?”
“Well, we are. At least so long as Twin Suns Squadron holds out.”
“No, don’t do that.” Jaina let some exasperation creep into her voice. “Every time we link through the Force, I can feel you preparing yourself for the day you have to