Elizabeth sighed and rolled her eyes.

  “The things I do…” she muttered. “The things I do.”

  On board the Ebon Knight, the galley slowly filled. Several repair crews had returned on the morning shuttle, stowed their gear, and headed directly to the mess. They had much to do and limited time to do it in, and while they felt better for the leave, they mourned the delay.

  “I only wish we had more stuff to throw at things,” one of the weapons crews complained. “Especially monsters like that dreadnought. Think of the damage we could have done with a few more of those missiles we had tucked alongside.”

  “Yeah?” His teammate frowned and slopped scrambled eggs onto both their plates like they were eating for two. “I wish we could do something more with the guns.”

  “Me, too.” The first crewman reached across and added large servings of bacon to their plates.

  “Hey! Leave some for the rest of us.”

  In answer, he turned, scooped more bacon up, and dumped it on the plate of the man who’d protested. “No problems. See? There’s plenty for all of us. The Knight wouldn’t let us starve.”

  “Sure, the ship won’t let you starve,” the cook grumbled as he appeared to top up the bacon. “It has nothing to do with the damned kitchen staff.”

  “Beyond the fact that they serve the best damned bacon of any galley crew I’ve ever known?”

  “Ha! Flattery will get you—”

  “An extra serving of bacon?” the crewman asked hopefully, and the cook shook his head and grinned at his cheek.

  “Not today, it won’t. I’m short-handed and another shuttle’s arrived.”

  “So you don’t love us then?”

  “I’ll make something extra special for dessert,” he promised but didn’t mention to them he’d had it organized before he’d left.

  “You are the bomb, Leckie.”

  “I hope not. There are strict prohibitions on exploding in the kitchen.”

  “Oh, ha-ha, you’re so cute.”

  “When you’re done flirting,” the female crewman called as she moved to a table.

  “I’m not flirting.”

  “You coulda fooled me.”

  “Thanks, Leckie,” he said by way of farewell.

  “Sure thing, Mannerly. Now, get to work.”

  “Slave driver,” Mannerly grumbled and slid into a seat beside his crewmate.

  She chuckled. “He has a point, though. Have you seen the task list for this morning?”

  When he shook his head, she pushed her tablet over to where he could see it, and he whistled.

  He was interrupted by the arrival of the man who’d been behind him.

  “Did I hear you wishing the Knight could carry more big stuff into battle?”

  “If you mean more weapons like last time, then yeah,” Mannerly admitted. “I simply can’t work out how.”

  “Mini-tractor units attached to the hull?” the crewman asked and sat beside the woman.

  She moved down to make room as another of the men in line joined them.

  “We could do that, but we’d also need multiple power units or generators to feed them and that gets expensive.”

  “Not to mention inefficient,” added a third woman as she set her meal on the table.

  “Well, what about magnetic fields, then?”

  “Or a combination?”

  They tossed ideas around but couldn’t find one that fit, either because it wouldn’t be guaranteed to hold when the ship entered warp, or because they didn’t know how a gate’s magic would affect the extra loading, or because they couldn’t fit an increased load inside the containers, or…or…or…

  The reasons became endless and the solutions arrived with more problems and soon became less efficient than the one they’d already used. It didn’t deter them, though. They wanted their ship to go into battle with more power than she’d ever carried before and they wouldn’t give up until they found a way to achieve it.

  Or, at least, a potential solution they could present to the captain and his chief engineer.

  The animated discussion drew attention from all corners and soon took up half the mess.

  “You’d all better be eating over there,” Leckie called from the counter and was met with a series of utensils being waved in acknowledgment or insult.

  “Has anyone suggested using a box-car arrangement where only one car is attached to the ship and the rest are coupled on?” came from one of the engineers.

  “Say what?”

  “You know what I mean, right?”

  “Not really.”

  He sighed and cleared a space on the table. “Look, say Jansen’s breakfast—”

  “Hey!”

  “Quit your bitching. It’s for a good cause.”

  “Look, I love this ship and all but that had better not be cold or missing pieces when it gets back to me.”

  “Fine. Whatever. So. Jansen’s breakfast is the Knight, right, and—”

  “Oy, that’s my coffee!”

  “And mine.”

  “What the fuck?”

  “Shut up, all of you. So, Jansen’s breakfast is the Knight and these coffee cups—”

  “You could at least have waited until I’d emptied it.”

  “These coffee cups are the containers containing whatever extra firepower you want to give her. What I’m suggesting is this…”

  They looked on, fascinated, as she finished her demonstration and finally handed the cups and plates to their nervous owners. Jansen stuck an experimental finger in his egg.

  “It’s still warm,” he commented. “Lucky you.”

  “You’re welcome.” The engineer settled back and let them work through the idea.

  “Might I make a suggestion?” Everyone froze when a voice spoke from above them. “Well?” the Knight continued as they looked at the ceiling in stunned silence. “May I?”

  “S…sure? I mean, it’s your hull we’re talking about tinkering with,” Mannerly told her. “We meant no disrespect.”

  The Knight managed an almost human laugh. “No offense has been taken, and what ship doesn’t want more options for defending itself?”

  A few of them exchanged uneasy glances, then cast quick looks of assessment at the newer crew. If those people found it unusual that the ship was addressing them like a human, they didn’t show it.

  “I like this train suggestion, but how do we keep the cars tracking where we want them to go rather than going where other influences might push them?”

  The engineer blushed and reached for a cup. It was whisked hastily out of her reach. Other cups and plates were lifted away as she looked for alternatives and she slumped in her chair.

  “It’s a good point,” she admitted, “and I hadn’t thought of that.” She looked hopefully toward the ceiling. “What would you suggest?”

  “Let me look into it,” the Knight replied. “Engineering is not one of my specialties. I will have alternatives to offer by lunchtime. In the meantime, I would also like to be able to defend these outer cars from incoming fighters, who are sure to target them.”

  “We could use magic,” someone suggested. “You know, kinda like spells bottled in canisters that we could set off if we needed them.”

  “Ooh, I like that,” the Knight replied. “I shall contact the university and ask them if they can work on it.”

  This started another round of animated discussion, which only ended when the shift supervisors came looking for their crews.

  Chapter Seventy-Five

  “Whoever it is, they’re back,” Amy announced as she entered the office, her face alight with satisfaction at her discovery.

  Elizabeth turned to Matthias, her eyebrows raised. They’d moved him into a guest suite on the second floor when he’d shown no sign of leaving and he’d since retrieved his things from the boarding house he’d moved into.

  It was only two blocks away, but she had said she’d feel better with him on-site and he hadn’t argued. That had been one night ago, but Amy thought there’d been someone hanging around each time he’d visited previously—and again the night before.

  “I thought you said you were sure you weren’t followed,” Elizabeth began, and he scowled.

  “I said I was fairly sure.”

  “Like that makes a difference.”

  “It means I might have a doubt.”

  “Might?”

  “I thought I was clear, but I still had a—” He shrugged and spread his hands and she remembered that she’d never told him what she’d done for a living.

  She sighed. Well, now’s as good a time as any.

  “So, you had an itch,” she finished for him. “That niggling feeling right between the shoulder blades that makes you duck your head before the sniper fires or turn in time to face an enemy attack.”

  He narrowed his eyes. “Yes, and now I want to know how you know about that.”

  “We’ve never really talked about what I used to do for a living, have we?” She gave him her most winning smile.

  Matthias frowned. “No.”

  “So, if I told you I never ignore those feelings and they’re what have helped me stay alive until now, can we leave that discussion for a later date?”

  “I really wish we didn’t have to—” he began and she stood quickly and opened her top drawer.

  Pulling two comm units from it, she handed him one and snugged hers over her ear. “Lars? They’re here.”

  “How many?”

  Amy’s voice joined the comm. “Only the one, I think. So far, anyway. Elle’s trying to pin their location down, but they keep moving and they’re either really fast or really sneaky.”

  “Both,” Elle interjected, “although I can’t be sure. It’s an operative of some kind but I can’t figure out what they want.”

  “What do you mean?” Elizabeth snapped.

  “I mean I don’t know if they’re hostile or not.”

  “Why not?”

  “Well, the last two times I’ve been sure they’ve come on-site, they didn’t do anything—and I checked with Johnny and Felina and they confirm there were no comms.”

  “What?”

  “Yeah, it’s weird, right? Nothing came in and nothing went out, so we assume they’re either operating on their own or they report back in person.”

  “Both of which mean we really want to bring them in alive,” Amy added.

  “Agreed.” Lars had no doubt.

  “But what does this have to do with me?” Matthias asked and winced when his question carried over the line.

  “The first time we think we picked them up was when you arrived and announced your intention to be a pain in the ass.”

  “My ass in particular,” Elizabeth specified and reddened when Amy snickered. “That is not what I meant.”

  He rested his head against his hand and blushed, and she glared at him. “Don’t even go there.”

  Amy’s snicker turned into a chuckle, but Elle and Lars remained suspiciously silent.

  Ms E cleared her throat. “Give me an update, Elle.”

  “We’re dying here.” Elle came back on the line chortling, and Lars could be heard almost crying in the background.

  After her boss gave an exasperated sigh, Elle’s merriment ceased. “Oh, you mean on the intruder?”

  “Who else?”

  “Do I have to answer that?”

  “Status,” Elizabeth snapped, and Matthias rested his head in both hands and shook it from side to side.

  “Frog and Marcus are approaching from the building’s west, and Angus and Johnny have gone out the back so they can meet them at the front gate if they decide to do a runner.”

  “Do you think that’s possible?”

  “On any other night, I would have said yes. Tonight, I think they’ll try to come in.”

  “Do you think they’re gonna knock first?”

  “I think they’ll try to avoid it.”

  “Hmmph. At least we’ll get to see what we missed when we set the security up. Call the boys back. We’ll let them get inside.”

  “Gotcha, E.”

  Lars had stopped laughing and the low murmur of his voice could be heard. “Give them five.”

  “It’s not us that has to give them the time,” Elle responded. “Our intruder’s on the move.”

  “Cams?”

  “You should have them…now.”

  Elizabeth resumed her seat in front of the computer and Matthias crowded close to look over her shoulder. If it had been anyone else, she might have objected. As it was, she liked feeling the heat of him so close.

  Taking a deep breath, she tried to focus on the scene on the screen. Unfortunately, the breath made her conscious of his scent and concentration became difficult.

  Shaking her head to clear it, she scowled. Hell, I’m a professional, not some wayward teen.

  “There.” He redeemed his presence by pointing at the screen.

  She followed his finger in time to catch a flash of shadow as it leapt onto the wall and clambered rapidly up the side of the building. The blocky outline suggested someone male, but the suit he wore hid anything more. He passed quickly out of camera range and Matthias whistled.

  “Ballsy,” he muttered. “He knew the camera was right there and took the chance that no one would catch him.”

  “Insane,” she agreed and didn’t tell him it was exactly the kind of move she’d been known to try with her more difficult targets. Of course, she’d usually created a diversion, but a quick scan showed there wasn’t one.

  “Why not?” she murmured as she flicked through the camera feeds in an attempt to reacquire him.

  “Why not what?” Matthias asked.

  “Why no diversion?” Elizabeth answered as two shadows came around the corner from the front and walked down the side of the building. “Never mind.”

  Frog and Marcus passed swiftly and silently under the camera. Both scanned the area and both gave the occasional glance up, but neither gave any sign of seeing the intruder.

  She flicked through the cameras once more and identified the blind spot she hadn’t noticed before.

  “BURT, we need to fix this,” she noted, highlighted the footage, and brought up a floorplan.

  “Burt?” Matthias asked.

  “That’s need to know,” she told him shortly. “We’ll read you in when you have it.”

  He sighed. “Fair enough.”

  She was glad when he didn’t push the matter and instead, leaned forward to study the building’s layout.

  “Do you have a shuttle pad on the roof?”

  “Like you didn’t know.”

  “Brenden and Garach are already there,” Lars informed them. “I’ve told them not to engage him unless he tries to sabotage the shuttle. Neither of them was happy with letting him into the building, but they’ll come down the stairs after him once we give the signal.”

  “Excellent,” Elizabeth all but purred.

  She flicked through the footage again, not pleased to note another blind spot.

  “BURT…” She highlighted the footage.

  “And he’s in,” Matthias noted when they returned to the cam monitoring the rooftop entry.

  They’d missed him by seconds, but the door still swung closed.

  “Brenden?”

  “He went through a few seconds ago,” the pilot reported. “He’s human and he moves like he’s seen combat.”

  “Damn,” Elizabeth muttered.

  “At least he didn’t take the elevator.”

  “So, he’s not an amateur,” she retorted. “That’s hardly comforting.”

  “Are you saying you wouldn’t take the elevator either?” Matthias asked.

  “Would you?” she challenged.

  He smirked as he shook his head. “Not a chance—unless I thought the stairwell was more of a risk.”

  “It doesn’t look like more of a risk,” she answered.

  “That in and of itself would make me suspicious.”

  “Suspicious enough to use the elevator?”

  “No, but I’d be on edge.”

  “Noted. Elle, lock everything down except for the ground floor.”

  “Gotcha, E.”

  The schematics flashed to display the newly inaccessible areas in red.

  “Nice,” Matthias murmured.

  “You have no idea.”

  “I’m beginning to wonder why an R&D company needs this kind of security, though,” he told her.

  “Keep your Navy nose out of this.”

  “It’s not my Navy nose that’s twitching,” he replied. “It’s my boyfriend nose. I’m worried about what my girl has gone and let herself be in charge of.”

  “Uh-huh.” Elizabeth’s tone invited him to continue and he surprised her by obliging.

  “And, given that she’s so comfortable with it all, I wonder exactly what other things I don’t know about her too.”

  The way he said it made her smile. “Well, play your cards right, and she might consider telling you.”

  “Does she promise?”

  “She promises she’ll think about it. Will that do?”

  Some of the worry subsided from his expression and he smiled in return. “As long as it’s over a long and very private dinner.”

  “Don’t push it,” she told him, and he grinned but didn’t add anything more.

  He’s smarter than he looks, Elizabeth thought, but she was still smiling as she turned to the screen again.

  The intruder worked his way through the third floor. He tried a couple of doors but moved on when he saw they were locked. Every now and then, he’d glance at one of the security cams, hesitate, and move on.

  Each time he did that, he’d move a little faster.

  It looked like Brenden’s assessment was right. The intruder was definitely human and definitely male, and he definitely moved like an operative.

  “Are you sure the Navy isn’t keeping tabs on you?” she asked as the possibility occurred to her.

  Matthias regarded her with surprise. “Why would it do that? I applied for long-overdue leave, they told me to stay in comms range, and that was that.”

  “Are you sure? There wasn’t anything unusual about the process?”