Two meetings back to back was not ideal, but with the opening of the Tourney happening tomorrow, I needed to make sure we knew how we were going to keep Ambrose safe, as well as what was going on with the Paragon, new Sanctum, and whatever else was on my seemingly never-ending checklist. Call me a micro-manager, but I had a lot of balls in the air.
She gave me a look as she opened up a cabinet. “Need any help with those boxes?”
I laughed and shook my head. “Gee, thanks. That’s what you offer some help on? And no, you do not have to come with me to my parents’. I couldn’t subject you to something so inhuman. Maybe Ambrose, but you? I like you.”
She blinked in surprise before a pleased smile blossomed on her face. And though she turned away to hide it, I felt a smile of my own tugging at my lips. Maddox wasn’t prone to shyness, but she hadn’t had many friends growing up, let alone any friends who were girls, so her vulnerability was understandable. She’d always wanted a female friend.
And in my mind, she was my friend. Which in my experience meant the person was even better family than the one you were born with.
She began pulling out coffee cups and setting them on the counter, busily preparing tea for everyone. Only Zoe and Eric would be missing from this meeting—partially because they didn’t need to be involved in these particular discussions, and partially because they were settling into Roark’s old apartment in Cogstown.
It hadn’t taken much convincing for me to agree to their sudden transfer into the Mechanics Department, once Zoe pointed out the pros to me, the big one being that she and Eric would be safer if they were closer to Lacey. It would also give her more space and equipment for figuring out the formula for Paragon—in case we never recovered Jasper. And it might even allow her and Eric to find out what Lacey and her legacy group were all about.
Besides, it meant she and Eric could take care of each other.
There was a buzz on the door, jolting me from my thoughts, and I stood up, waving Maddox back. I checked the peephole first, smiled when I saw who was on the other side, pressed the button, and stepped back to make room for Leo, Ambrose, Quess, and Tian.
“Liana!” Tian shouted, wrapping her arms around me in a tight hug. I started to hug her back, but she pushed away quickly and raced over to Maddox. Quess and I exchanged an amused look as he went by. Quess had changed his look again, and now had frost-white hair that rivaled even Tian’s, and brown contacts. He’d done something to make himself appear younger, and I felt a little bemused at the boyish look he’d affected.
I stopped marveling at his skill with makeup long enough to give Leo a friendly smile and nodded to Ambrose as they both entered the apartment and I shut the door behind them. I pushed through the wall the three men had formed in the threshold, reminding them to spread out.
“Congratulations!” Tian cried, her arms already wrapped around her surrogate sister. “You look amazing!”
Maddox beamed and dropped a kiss on Tian’s forehead. “Thank you, Tian. Want some hot chocolate? Liana and I made sure to get some packets for you when we were at the market.”
Tian’s blue eyes grew large, and she started bobbing her head emphatically.
“Nuh-uh, Tian,” Quess said from next to me. “We’ve got to sweep this room and the bedrooms for listening devices, which means I need my tiniest helper focused. Hot chocolate will have to wait until afterward.”
“Awwwww…” Tian pouted and remained where she was, staring up at Quess with eyes as large and luminescent as the moon. “I just finished Ambrose and Grey’s apartment, though!”
The four of us shared a smile, while Ambrose’s face reflected a hint of disapproval. I ignored it and focused on Tian. We did need the apartment checked, but Quess had developed that noise-canceling device, so there wasn’t a huge rush for her to do this room first.
I shifted my eyes over to him and smiled when I saw him already pulling it out of his satchel, one thick eyebrow up in question. I gave him an approving nod, and then returned my eyes to Tian. We were about to strike a deal.
“All right,” I said. I paused for a second—long enough for her face to light up in excitement—then added, “but…” She froze, and gazed at me with wide eyes. “You have to check the bedrooms first, while Grey, Maddox, Ambrose, and I have our meeting. Then you can have hot chocolate during our meeting, and check the front room last. Okay?”
Tian gave me a suspicious look. “Promise?” she asked, raising one blond eyebrow.
“Cross my heart,” I replied solemnly.
She stared at me for a moment or two longer, reminding me of a cat who hadn’t quite decided if the food I’d just offered it was poisoned, and then nodded her head and stuck out one thin hand.
“Shake on it.” I smiled and took her hand, giving it a gentle shake. She nodded again, all business, and took her hand back, placing it behind her back. “Come along, Quessian,” she said primly, marching toward the hall. “We have a deal to honor.”
“Yes, of course, milady,” Quess replied congenially with an elaborate bow, before straightening and sauntering toward the hall. “Ladies,” he said in greeting, handing me his noise-canceling device and tipping an invisible hat to us before disappearing into the back after Tian.
I watched them go, both bemused and lighthearted at their antics. In just seconds, they’d managed to make this place feel more like a home than Maddox and I had done in five minutes. I hoped that Tian wound up staying here a few nights; having her around helped me forget about some of the things that were plaguing me.
The biggest one was that I missed Grey terribly. I tried to hide it, tried to not think about it, but it was always there, lurking on the edges. Keeping busy helped. Focusing on other worries that I could do something about did as well. But in the moments in between—like right before I fell asleep, or when I was sitting down to eat—it would suddenly hit me, how lonely I felt, and that highlighted his absence even more, making me heartsick.
“So, are we having this meeting or what?” Ambrose asked gruffly.
My joy faded some, and I turned to him and nodded, looking down at the gray box I was now holding. “Please take a seat,” I said, holding it out to him.
He accepted it gingerly and moved into the living room, taking a moment to look around the still-bare surroundings before picking one of the two solitary chairs opposite the sofa. He set the device down with a click, and I turned back to Leo, who was waiting patiently.
“Hello, Liana,” he said formally. “I’m afraid I did not get to say hello due to Tian’s entrance.”
I chuckled. “It’s okay. How’s your new room?”
“Quite nice,” he replied. “Although a bit dusty in the wake of Tian and Quess’s investigation.”
“Oh?” I asked, smiling politely.
“They apparently felt it was necessary to pull my uniforms out and toss them on the floor,” Ambrose announced from the other room, his tone a grumble of disapproval.
I didn’t hold back my smile, but didn’t say anything other than, “I’m sure they were just being thorough.”
Maddox moved past me, a tray of steaming mugs balanced between her hands as she crossed into the living area. Leo and I followed, and within moments we were all seated and she was handing out mugs of tea to everyone. I accepted mine, and then reached out to hit the round, black button on Quess’s device.
I hadn’t noticed a lot of noise before, but as I hit it, an impossibly deafening silence seemed to blanket us, making my ears feel slightly pressurized.
“Your friend made this?” Ambrose asked, his voice slightly awed.
“Quess is a whizz with tech,” Maddox said softly, before blowing over the surface of her tea, trying to cool it. My mug was also warm, bordering on hot, and I hurriedly put it back down and leaned back in my chair.
“All right, guys, the qualifiers are tomorrow. All three events are going to be held in one day, so we’ll need to be up and ready by seven thirty. I’m going to have Quess in the cro
wd to keep an eye out for anyone suspicious, but our priority is Ambrose at all times.”
Ambrose frowned pensively and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Look, I know you were attacked, and I’m sorry for that, but I’m still fairly certain that was just a prank. You’re overreacting.”
I opened my mouth to object, but when he gave me a surprisingly plaintive look, I reconsidered, and decided to hear him out.
“You said they were using pulse shields, right?” I nodded, and he continued. “Then it stands to reason that they were members of the IT Department and not Knights. I honestly think that any legacy presence within the Knights died with Devon, so you don’t have to worry about me during the actual events.”
I licked my lips. I wanted to give him this, because it would go a long way toward us finally getting on the same page, but I couldn’t. There were a dozen reasons our assailants could have had pulse shields, and the list started with robbery and ended with working for another legacy within the IT department. Perhaps there were even other legacy groups backing candidates of their own, just like Lacey was doing with her cousin.
If there were, it was reasonable to assume that if they were willing to back a Knight to try to gain control over a department head, they would also be willing to kill to ensure that their candidate won.
“I’m sorry,” I said earnestly. “I hear what you’re saying, but I can’t risk your safety.”
He stared at me, his jaw clenched tightly shut. I waited for him to snap, or get angry, but instead he sat back. “Fine. But inside the ring, you will follow my orders.”
“Wait, we have to follow his orders?” Maddox asked, blinking. “Why?”
“Because part of the competition is performance, but most of it is focused on the deeds you perform during the challenges,” I explained, leaning forward. “Robotic drones will be covering each match, and projecting the feed to the Tower and all the department servers. They only choose the most exciting matches to display and transmit, and if a person or team really impresses them, they’ll have a deed named for them. Like Devon was the Defender of Six Bells.”
“Ah.” Maddox took a sip of her tea and then sat it down. “And how will him giving us orders help him achieve a deed name?”
“Because they need to see that I’m in command!” Ambrose sputtered. “Tactical leadership is rewarded just as much as physical prowess.”
Maddox arched an eyebrow at him. “And what makes you think you can actually lead us?”
“How dare you speak to me like that!” Ambrose declared after a momentary loss of speech. “I am the one who is going to be the Champion, and I’m your supervisor within the Knights themselves! You have to listen to me.”
“Oh, man. That is so weak,” Maddox said, setting her mug down and narrowing her bright green eyes at him.
Confusion radiated across Ambrose’s face. “E-Excuse me?”
Maddox scrutinized him, then wrinkled her nose. “I said, that is so weak. But if you want to know what I mean, allow me to explain: a leader, a true leader, doesn’t run around hiding behind the shield of a title. A leader doesn’t need to. They do what needs to be done, and people follow them. You may be the next Champion, but if that’s how you choose to lead, then you’ll lose your Knights’ loyalty faster than you can blink.” She snapped her fingers suddenly, but to Ambrose’s credit, he didn’t flinch.
He started to open his mouth, but I cut him off before he could begin. “Maddox,” I said, and the raven-haired girl turned and looked at me. I gave her a warning look and turned to Ambrose. “We’ll go train together in the Salles later,” I said. “That way we can practice together. We will do our best to try to follow your commands, and make you look good.”
For a second, Ambrose looked unconvinced. But after several agonizing heartbeats, he finally nodded, and sat back in the chair. He was fuming, but he had chosen valor over fighting, and I appreciated that.
“We’re here to talk about Ambrose’s security,” I continued, hauling the conversation back on course. I peered over my shoulder to see if Quess and Tian were done yet, and then turned back to the group. I didn’t want them walking in unnoticed while we talked, and their presence would be a signal that it was time to end the meeting with Ambrose, so I wanted to make sure we went over anything.
Leo was the first to break the silence. “Liana, the crowds are going to be thick tomorrow. How are we going to get him from event to event without exposing him too much?”
I had actually given this some thought, and had come up with what I hoped was a workable plan. “We’re going to limit our exposure in the Salles,” I said. “We have to stop by the registration table tomorrow to pick up our schedule, but once we know our times, we’ll either stay down there or come back up here to wait for our next event. I don’t want us where we’re supposed to be until fifteen minutes beforehand.”
“That’s cutting it a bit short,” Ambrose said, his voice holding a note of worry.
“I know that,” I said. “It sucks, but the less time you’re out on the floors with a thick crowd of people, the better. To that effect, any time we’re moving, you’re in between the three of us. One of us is to be with you at all times, and if you have to pee, Grey is going with you.”
“I’ve gotten better with zippers,” Leo said cheerfully, giving Ambrose what I could only assume he thought was a congenial smile. I froze for a second, worried about how Ambrose would react—it was a bit of an odd statement.
There was an awkward moment in which the three of us who weren’t Leo looked anywhere but at him, and after a few seconds, he sighed. “I apologize. I seem to have made everyone uncomfortable.”
“My new roommate, everyone,” Ambrose said dryly, and a surprised smile formed on my face. Ambrose had made a joke. What was better, he’d just overlooked the oddity of the statement as some sort of personality quirk. Leo wouldn’t be the first odd person in the world, and he certainly wouldn’t be the last.
He caught me smiling at him, and frowned in surprise. Then he cleared his throat and looked around. “If that is what you want to do to keep me safe, then I will trust you and follow your lead,” he said, fixing me with a pointed look.
“Thank you.”
He scanned everyone again and sighed. “Was there anything else you wanted to discuss about my personal safety?”
I shook my head. There wasn’t at the moment—at least, not for him to concern himself with—but there was another piece of business that needed handling before he left. “No, but has Lacey sent you any information on Dylan or Frederick?”
“Actually, yes,” Ambrose said, leaning back and feeling around on his abdomen for the zipper that opened a pocket designed specifically for a pad. “She sent me a data burst this morning at about three. The details are on the pad—just download them and return the pad to me after you’re done with the other meeting.”
He finally managed to get the pocket open and the pad out, and sat it down on the table next to the noise-canceling device. “She wanted to know if you found out anything about the pad you recovered at the Lion’s Den yesterday.”
“I’m not sure,” I replied. “Quess hasn’t given me an update. But I’ll let you know after the meeting.”
Ambrose nodded, just once, and then stood up. “Well, in that case, I’ll be leaving,” he said politely. “Who will be coming with me?”
“I’ll go,” Maddox said, setting her now-empty mug down on the table and rising in a fluid motion.
I shot her a grateful smile, and watched as she and Ambrose left. For a moment, I worried about Leo and me being left alone, but then Quess and Tian emerged from the hall, with Tian bearing several dark smudges on her arms and face, but beaming happily.
I watched them approach, and then quickly leaned forward to hit the button on the table, dropping the noise-canceling device. The strange underwater feeling in my eardrums suddenly released, and I took a moment to adjust as the ambient sounds returned. I had never realized how m
uch noise was in the Tower, but I was suddenly aware of it all—the slight rattle of pipes behind the walls and of metal expanding and contracting. It wasn’t obtrusive, but it was still there.
Quess smiled as he opted to sit down on the floor next to my chair. “You don’t have to do that,” he said, picking up the still-warm mug containing water from the tray with one hand, setting it in front of Tian, and then emptying the silver foil packet of hot chocolate into the mug. “The device won’t hurt us if we pass through.”
I thought about it, realized that Maddox and Ambrose had just exited without any problem, and felt slightly embarrassed. Reaching out, I reactivated the device and leaned back, sighing.
“How’d it go with Ambrose?” Tian asked sweetly. I smiled at her, but she missed it, her eyes trained solely on the brown powder Quess was mixing into the liquid inside her mug.
“Actually, pretty well,” I said, still feeling stunned by the exchange. It seemed that something had worked, because today he had been the most civil I had ever seen him. “But there are a few more things we need to go over before we can talk about that. Quess, what did you discover on that pad?”
I was referring to the pad our assailants had dropped in the market, and luckily, he understood.
“Not much,” he replied as he spooned some sugar into his own mug. “The whole thing was wiped clean. There was a serial number on it, which I passed on to Mercury, but it was also a bust—decommissioned and supposedly recycled six months ago.”
I wasn’t surprised, but it was still a tad disappointing to have discovered nothing. “What about the anchor program for scrambling our net transmissions? Where are you on that?”
Quess took a long sip of his tea and leaned back heavily on one hand. “I passed it over to Zoe,” he said finally. “I got a good start on it, but it got too difficult to keep on top of, so I had to delegate.”
I frowned, and realized I had been leaning a lot on Quess recently. I’d been leaning on all of them a lot, asking them to see to the things that I should really have been helping with in the first place.