Breakfast was quiet, and I couldn’t even glance at Alex without blushing. Ying caught me and gave me an inquiring look. At my minute head shake, she smirked. I was adding fuel to the inquisition that was coming, but I couldn’t discuss it across an open table. Plus, I needed time to process everything that had happened.
After breakfast, we broke into teams of four for the hover bike race. Hover bikes were small, nimble craft that were ridden astride and open to the elements. They floated above the ground on anti-grav boosters and could reach speeds over two hundred kilometers per hour when running flat out. Racing one required a blend of skill, art, and science.
I loved the thrill of it.
This was one area where I got to be close to my true self because I’d made a point of throwing myself into various dangerous hobbies over the years. Every time I picked a new one, I flamboyantly hired a host of the best instructors money could buy. Thanks to them, as well as my standard House upbringing, I could race on land, water, air, or space with equal skill.
Having an outlet made the rest of my public persona easier to bear—most of the time. This morning I was still struggling with the toll yesterday had taken. A good ride was exactly what I needed.
Alex and I had formed a team with Ying and Joseph. Ying was lovely in a burnt orange jacket, cream breeches, and deep brown boots. Joseph kept sneaking glances at her when he thought no one was looking. He wore the traditional black jacket, tan breeches, and black boots.
House James had two dozen matched racing bikes in a garage built specifically to hold them. The garage opened onto the starting line, and stands lined the far side because the House hosted qualifying races for the intergalactic hover bike rallycross championship. They usually fielded at least one team of their own, and Joseph had been their driver of choice for a few years. He was quite successful, but I had a feeling that Ying hadn’t pulled him into our group because of his racing prowess.
Each group was “discussing strategy,” which seemed to mean flirting and laughing for most of the groups around us, but Joseph’s competitive nature had seemingly overridden his penchant for flirtation. “Have you ridden before?” he asked us. When we all nodded, he continued, “Are any of you any good?”
I laughed. “Not as good as you, maybe, but I can hold my own with most amateurs. Damien Quint taught me how to ride.”
He looked stunned. “How in the hell did you get Damien to give you lessons? And how did you know I race?”
Damien Quint was one of the all-time greats of hover bike rallycross. These days he was a near hermit, so Joseph’s stunned surprise wasn’t misplaced.
“Even Damien isn’t immune to the right offer,” I said with a wink. “And I follow rallycross. Your circuit was one of the reasons I accepted Lady Stephanie’s invitation. I had hoped to try it.”
Joseph shook his head in wonder, then turned to Ying and Alex. “What about you two? Any more surprises?”
“I’ve ridden, but I’m not very good,” Ying admitted with a grimace. “I thought it was going to be a tour, not a race.”
“A race is just a fast tour,” Joseph said with a grin, “but I’d be happy to escort you on a more leisurely circuit whenever you like.”
Ying rolled her eyes, but a faint blush stained her cheeks.
Alex said, “I’m familiar with hover bikes but not rallycross.”
Joseph heaved a dramatic sigh. “It’s up to you and me, Lady Catarina.”
I wrinkled my nose at the title. “Well, since I’m going to be saving you from the ignominy of defeat, you might as well call me Cat.”
His smile was warm and genuine. Perhaps he was merely trying to gain my friendship, as I was his, but if so, he was the best actor I’d ever seen. I wanted to believe that he had no idea what his House had done to mine, but that was a dangerous assumption.
Joseph laid his com on the table and it painted a map of the course in the air above it. “The circuit is five kilometers long and includes two creek crossings, a tunnel cut into the rock, blind corners, and numerous jumps.” He pointed to the various places on the map. “The bikes are limited to a meter from the ground except in the jump zones. There are three straights for passing, one short and two longer. Any questions so far?”
Aoife straightened from her position against the wall. “Has the circuit been swept by security?”
“Yes. The entire length is monitored.”
“Is it possible for me to ride double with Lady Catarina?”
Joseph looked between us, obviously trying to judge why she wasn’t asking me. “It’s possible,” he allowed, “if she’s skilled enough. The weight of another rider makes the bike trickier to control. And if you move in a way she doesn’t expect, it could be catastrophic.”
While technically true, he’d overplayed the danger a bit, and I appreciated it. I’d already had this argument with Aoife. Going out alone was certainly a risk, but this was one of the few parts of this trip I was actually looking forward to—I wasn’t going to skip it. As a precaution, I’d worn my shielding cuff. It looked like a wide bracelet, but it could deflect blaster bolts long enough for me to escape or for Aoife to intervene.
Aoife studied the projected map with a frown. From a security standpoint, it was a nightmare. There were too many access points and too much distance for her to cover on her own. “I want a bike that is not hobbled with height restrictions,” she said. “I will observe from the air.”
“Of course,” Joseph agreed easily.
She turned to me. “Do not leave this building until I return.”
“Where are you going?”
“I’m getting a different weapon. I’ll be back in five minutes.” She handed me her blast pistol. I accepted it by grasping the grip with two fingers and holding it away from my body, like she’d handed me a live snake. Her eyes narrowed slightly as she tried to determine whether I was acting or not. “In the unlikely event that someone attacks before I return, shoot them.”
I shuddered dramatically. “Hurry.” I gingerly set the pistol on the table. It was a standard-issue von Hasenberg security weapon, biometrically locked to House members and security personnel. It would be useless if anyone else tried to pick it up and use it, but it would be quite enlightening.
“Cira will keep an eye on us both,” Ying offered.
Aoife inclined her head in gratitude, then strode off toward Chaos. I wondered what sort of weapon she expected to find. There were rifles in the armory, but she wouldn’t have access to them. Maybe she’d brought her own supplies and had left them out of sight.
Aoife was barely out of the door before Stephanie and Chloe approached the table. I tried not to view it as an ill omen, but it was difficult.
“Hello, brother,” Stephanie greeted. Chloe stopped far too close to Joseph and smiled up at him. He returned the expression with a tight smile of his own. I mentally rubbed my hands together at the potential for drama.
“Hello, sister. Lady Chloe.” He edged closer to Ying on the pretense of turning to include her in the group.
“We’re planning to do a slow group circuit before the warm-up laps, to give everyone a chance to see the whole route,” Stephanie said. “I wasn’t sure if you wanted to join us or not. If so, would you mind escorting some of the newer riders?”
“I would appreciate your expert guidance,” Chloe said, simpering. She was a few years younger than me and this was her first season, so I tried to cut her some slack, but her technique needed work. She wouldn’t catch Joseph like that. He was the type of person who craved a challenge, not fawning affection.
Still, as a gentleman, he was stuck, until Ying decided to throw him a rope. “I’m sorry, ladies, but Joseph has already agreed to escort me around the circuit and I plan to hold him to it.” She laughed lightly. “I need all the help I can get.”
Chloe’s smile was filled with ineptly concealed jealousy. “Of course, Lady Ying, I understand,” she gritted out. “Joseph, another time, perhaps.” She was conceding the battle, not the war. She turned to me. “And what about you, Lady Catarina? Wasn’t hover bike racing last season? Haven’t you moved on to some new frivolity this year? Do you even remember how to ride?”
Her face was a pleasant mask, but her eyes gleamed with malice. Oh, someone was big mad that I’d threatened her yesterday. Now she was feeling brave in company and with Stephanie James at her side. As if I wouldn’t be rude to both hostesses if it suited my purposes.
I didn’t rise to her baiting, and instead laughed lightly. “I suppose we’ll find out soon enough.”
She shook her head with a poorly concealed sneer. “Come, Stephanie, let’s check in with the others.” The women drifted away.
“You have my gratitude, Lady Ying,” Joseph murmured.
“You can repay me by making sure I don’t make a fool of myself on the circuit today.”
“Of course, it will be my pleasure. Would you like to ride with me for the first lap so I can point out the dangers?”
Ying paused long enough that I figured she was going to turn him down just to be ornery, but then she dipped her head in reluctant agreement, a tiny smile hovering on her lips. “If I ride with you, I expect you to teach me how to cheat without getting caught.” Unlike Chloe, Ying knew exactly how the game was played.
Joseph’s eyes widened and he clutched at his chest dramatically. “And give away my best secrets? You demand a high price, my lady.”
She leaned in. “I’m worth it.”
If Joseph had been the swooning type, he would’ve been laid out at her feet. Instead, he bowed low. “I have no doubt, Lady Ying. Shall we?” He offered her his elbow and she slid her arm through his.
Alex’s eyes twinkled when he offered me his own elbow. “Shall we?” he murmured in perfect imitation.
Butterflies fluttered in my stomach, but I was going to have to talk to him sometime, and this was a nice, neutral opener. I slid my hand into the crook of his arm. “Do you know what Aoife was going to get?” I asked in a low voice.
“Her rifle, most likely. She’s a crack shot with almost anything, but her long-range rifle is her baby. She could hover on a bike in the middle of the circuit and hit a person-sized target at speed on the ground anywhere on the course.”
“So I shouldn’t challenge her to a shooting competition?”
“Not unless you want to lose. Or stroke her ego. But it’s big enough already.”
I laughed. “I’m going to tell her you said that.”
“Go ahead. I say the same thing to her face, I’m just usually wearing combat armor when I do it,” he said with a grin.
“Are you excited about the race?”
He shrugged. “I like riding, but I’m more interested to see what you can do. I bet you give Lord Flirtatious over there a run for his money.”
“I appreciate the vote of confidence, but while I’m decent, he’s semipro and this is his home course. He’s going to trounce me. I would be happy to beat Chloe, though.”
“Vindictive?”
My grin was sharp and full of teeth. “Of course. Aren’t you?”
“When I need to be.”
Aoife rejoined us, a long blast rifle strapped across her back. She hadn’t bothered trying to conceal it and she had a point—nothing would disguise a gun that big. It was a specialty weapon, designed for long-range, high-powered shots. Even at a distance the blaster bolt could punch through combat armor and keep going.
“Alex told me to challenge you to a shooting competition because you’re terrible and I would definitely win.” I said it with a straight face and an earnest expression.
“He’s right,” she agreed easily, but her smile had turned predatory.
“Oh, you’re good,” I murmured.
“I am,” she said without an ounce of humility.
THE HOVER BIKE PURRED UNDER ME, ATTUNED TO MY EVERY shift. The course was narrow and curvy here, winding through dense trees, but the heads-up display in my helmet gave me a few seconds’ warning of what was ahead. This was my third lap on my own and I was starting to get a feel for the course.
The jump button illuminated as I came into the jump zone. Ahead, a stack of fallen trees blocked the track. Timing jumps was where races were won and lost. Jump too early and the bike would arc higher than necessary, costing precious seconds, but wait too long and the safety system would kick in, jumping for you, but at a much slower pace.
I mashed the button a heartbeat before the end of the zone. The bike skimmed over the top of the logs, low and fast. I whooped in delight and my teammates, tied into the com in my helmet, laughed with me.
“That was cutting it close, Cat,” Joseph warned, “but nicely done. I see Damien taught you well, the lucky bastard.” Since Joseph didn’t need more than one practice lap, he was monitoring the rest of us from the garage.
As soon as I slid around the corner onto the longest passing straight, I jammed the throttle wide open. The bike surged forward and the ground and trees flashed by in a blur of brown and green. I could see the rider in front of me, even though we’d started a minute apart for the warm-up laps.
I wanted to catch him.
I hunkered low over the bike, pressing my chest to the angled, padded frame, legs back and arms forward on the separate steering controls. A clear windscreen showed my speed and other information in addition to the heads-up display, but nothing else blocked the forward view.
It felt like flying and I reveled in every second of it.
I leaned to the right as the straight became a sweeping curve that led into the tunnel. If the bike’s sensor system didn’t think it was going to make a clean tunnel entry, the bike would automatically slow or stop. It didn’t eliminate crashes, but it made them far less fatal than they once had been, especially on a tricky circuit like this.
Our bikes were also locked into amateur mode, which upped the safety and decreased the overall speed. Still, even limited, I slowly closed the distance between me and the rider in front of me. At the next jump point he jumped early and I streaked under him. The safety system wouldn’t let him come down on my head, even if he tried.
I left him behind and flew through the tight corners and gentle hills of the final third of the track. When I returned to the start line, I reluctantly slowed down and pulled into our team’s pit area and parked the bike. I could do this all day, but that was supposed to be my final warm-up lap. Maybe I would get to ride some more after the race. I couldn’t remember what else was on the schedule, but perhaps no one would notice if I skipped it.
And maybe I could persuade Joseph into disabling the amateur lock on my bike.
Alex settled his bike beside me. It gently sank to the ground and rested on the landing pads. He’d started two people behind me, but he must’ve passed the person in front of him, too. I took off my helmet so our conversation wouldn’t be broadcast to the team. “I thought you weren’t a racer.”
He swung off the bike and pulled his helmet off. “I said I wasn’t familiar with rallycross, but I’ve had my share of fun on a hover bike before.”
That was proven true when Joseph showed us our lap times. Alex was a mere second slower than me. Joseph had beat us both by more than five seconds, an eternity in a race, and Ying trailed by a half dozen seconds. But, overall, our team was the fastest during the warm-up.
I leaned into Alex. “Your time was pretty good. Think you can beat me during the race?”
“Maybe.”
“Want to make a friendly wager?”
His answering grin was slow and delicious. It sent heat spiraling through my veins. “What do I get when I win?”
“Fighting words already. You should be more concerned about what you forfeit when you lose.”
“Name your terms, my lady.”
I paused. I hadn’t really thought that far ahead. I was naturally competitive, but an additional wager might give me the edge I needed to pull off a truly spectacular time. “What do you want?”
He backed me into the wall behind me and caged me in with his arms. He wasn’t touching me at all, but I was hyperaware of the heat of his body. The overhead lights cast shadows on the sharp planes of his face. To everyone else, it probably looked like he was stealing a kiss. I had the intense urge to make that fantasy a reality.
“That’s a dangerous question,” he growled quietly. “Are you sure you want to know the answer?”
Wordlessly, I nodded, nearly hypnotized.
He leaned in until his cheek nearly brushed mine and his lips were next to my ear. “I want you,” he breathed, “to spend a week with me. No pretense, no obligation, no plots, just you and me.”
I shivered and desire burned bright, but it was tempered by a heavy dose of caution. People rarely wanted me for me, so I tried to decide what he really wanted. Nothing I came up with made any sense. He already had a connection to my family through Bianca and he couldn’t possibly be stupid enough to assume that I would be manipulated into marriage. If he was, I’d be happy to disappoint him.
It’s not as if I was going to lose, anyway. “Deal.”
He pulled back enough that I could see his face. “What do you want?”
He’d asked for a week of my time, something worth a small fortune to many people. What did I want in return? What could I ask for that held the same value?
I stared at him for a few more seconds. “If I win, I want you to stop working for my sister for the next two weeks. I will pay whatever fee she’s promised you.”
He sighed and dropped his arms. “I can’t agree. I’m sorry, but I gave her my word. I won’t break it.”
Disappointment warred with respect. Disappointment won. “Never mind. It was a silly idea anyway.”
I started to step around him, but he stopped me with a hand on my arm. “Ask for something else,” he urged, his gaze intense. “Please.”
“Fine, if I win, I want you to tell me about the debt you owe to Bianca. And how you were able to dodge my punches last night.” I hadn’t meant to add the second requirement, but the question had been bothering me all day. I’d never had a sparring partner who could keep up with me, and I’d trained with our elite soldiers.
Alex stared at me for long enough that I thought he was going to decline, but finally he said, “Deal.”
And now I was desperate to win.
THE RACE CONSISTED OF FIVE LAPS OF THE CIRCUIT. IT was far shorter than a standard fifty-two-lap race, but likely longer than some participants would enjoy. I, however, would love every moment.
All eyes were on the starting lights. As soon as they went out, Joseph and I launched off the line, everyone else behind us. Joseph easily edged me out going into the first turn, but I stayed in front of Alex. The bottom corner of my helmet’s display showed me everyone’s position on the course. Right now, we were all clumped together, but as the race progressed, we’d spread out.
With how good Joseph was, five laps were not enough time to do much more than cling to second. I could still see him in the distance, which was something, but I was slowly losing ground, and Alex’s bike remained glued to my ass. If we went into the first straight this close, he’d likely overtake me.
And I really wanted those answers, dammit.
I pressed myself against the bike frame, trying to be as aerodynamic as possible. Adrenaline thrummed through me, and I couldn’t stop smiling. I was truly enjoying myself for the first time in months.
I timed the first jump perfectly and gained a few meters of breathing room. Alex made up some of the distance in the first straight, but he couldn’t get around me. I gained ground on the jumps, while he gained ground on the straights, but I held him off at the second straight, too. We plunged into the brief darkness of the tunnel, then swept through the rest of the course.
Joseph had crept farther ahead, mostly out of sight. Alex and I were neck and neck, and Stephanie was just a few seconds behind us. The rest of the field was scattered around the track and the last stragglers were about to be lapped.
On the second lap, Alex lost less ground on the jumps. By the third lap, he was reeling me in. I pushed my bike wide open on the longest straight and kept a lot of the speed going into the sweeping curve to the tunnel. The bike had proved that it could handle it, and I’d done this enough to know I could handle it, too.
Then, fifty meters from the tunnel, the bike died without warning.
I careened toward the ground and a sheer rock wall with no hover, no brakes, and no steering. I hit the emergency restart, but it did nothing. I didn’t have time to try anything else; I was going to crash and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do about it.
I had two heartbeats to decide if I should try to ride it down—yes, because it was sturdier than my body—then the bike hit the dirt.