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A

bright flash illuminated the lab as one table further back caught alight. Demetrius, who had been fighting with a soldier, stumbled back. The soldier took advantage and cut his arm. Demetrius had disarmed the soldier of his gun already so the long knife was his only weapon. The pain in Demetrius’ arm reminded him that even a knife was deadly enough to kill him.

Before the soldier could do more, Liam moved up behind the soldier and smashed something over his head. A liquid sluiced the man. The soldier turned on Liam but Liam was already lighting a match. The soldier frowned, then realised that the jar smashed over his head had contained oil. Liam grinned and lifted the lit match.

The soldier didn’t even fight he just ran. Liam said to Demetrius, “That looks like all of them.”

Helena said, “Not all of them.” She pointed.

At the door where the soldier had disappeared was Puck. He glared at them. So much for the man being in his lab. Demetrius didn’t wait for the others he attacked as he was the closest to the door.

Puck stumbled backwards out of the door at the attack and slipped on the oil. He cracked his head on the stone as he went down.

Demetrius tried to halt his own forward momentum but he slipped on the oil and he went down, crashing into the engineer. Demetrius quickly found his feet, not wanting to be close enough to the engineer that he could kill him with whatever weapon he had. But Puck didn’t move. Liam came to stand in the door and nudged the engineer’s foot with his own and still the man didn’t move.

Helena pushed past Liam and crouched down by the engineer and felt for a pulse. Demetrius held his breath and when Helena looked up and shook her head, Demetrius finally let it out. Demetrius hadn’t liked the idea of killing the engineer. He had thought he was a strange man on the airship but Demetrius had known him. Had sat down and had a meal with him.

The other soldiers they had fought had known they were risking their lives when they became soldiers and Demetrius didn’t know any of them, so killing them didn’t come with the same mix of confusing emotions. Demetrius had actually liked the idea of convincing the man to work for the Empire, even though he had been pretty sure Puck wouldn’t have gone for that particular plan.

Helena closed the engineer’s eyes. “That will give Gideon some peace of mind.”

Demetrius wasn’t so sure. The engineer had told at least one other person about the poison. There could have been others. Also, now they couldn’t question him about who he had told. Or who had given him the information in the first place?

As only a traitor close to the Emperor could have known about the poison, let alone have access to the scientist himself. Hara had explained how the scientist was thought to be dead by the rest of the world so he wasn’t even allowed to wander around. Gideon had assured all of them the scientist was so obsessed with his work, he didn’t mind. Puck, on the other hand seemed a man who liked his adventures. He would have withered away in a lab like that.