CHAPTER TWO #3
Siya finally ran out of clipped, angry words. Her hands slipped off her hips, and she shook her head, more disgust crinkling her face. “And that’s not even the worst thing Roderick has done.”
“What is the worst thing?”
Siya shifted on her feet, torn between telling or keeping the secret.
She stilled and let out a tense breath. “Asterin and Roderick started dating a few months before Asterin went to a university on a Temperate planet to study mining. She asked Roderick to go with her, but he was already enrolled at a university here on Sygnustern, so they agreed to a long-distance relationship.”
“Let me guess. Roderick cheated on Asterin.”
Siya nodded. “Multiple times.”
My heart ached for my friend—and for myself.
Once upon a time, I had dated a man named Conrad Fawley, who had cheated on me with Sabine Kent, a Regal lady.
Conrad had tossed me aside like a piece of trash to climb the Regal ladder, and he’d also stolen my weapons, spaceships, and other designs and given them to Rowena Kent, Sabine’s mother and the head of Kent Corp.
Conrad had also gone along with Rowena’s scheme to kill me and crash Imperium ships on command for the Techwave.
Eventually, Conrad’s crimes had caught up to him, and he’d died in Imperium custody, along with the Kents.
Conrad might have fallen victim to karma, fate, destiny, or whatever force balanced the galactic scales of justice, but he’d still left a deep, jagged scar on my heart.
I would never forget his casual cruelty, but the painful experience had made me even more grateful that I’d found Kyrion, someone I could always fully, completely trust, truebond or not.
“Did Asterin ever find out about Roderick’s cheating?” I asked.
“No,” Siya replied in a sharp voice. “Things were already strained between us, and I didn’t want to push her away completely, so I kept quiet. A few months later, Roderick was sent to manage House Battis assets on another planet, and their relationship finally fizzled out.”
She chewed on her lower lip, and a wave of guilt surged off her, strong enough to make my own stomach churn.
“But cheating still isn’t the worst thing Roderick did,” I guessed.
Siya blinked in surprise. “No. While Asterin was away, I saw Roderick at a party, and he started flirting with me. Said he’d always liked me ever since we were kids, and we could do great things for our Houses together now that we were older.”
My eyebrows shot up. I hadn’t known Siya Collier for long, but one of the things I most admired was her fierce loyalty to her House, family, and friends. She would never betray Asterin like that, something Roderick should have known.
Siya’s lips curled back into a derisive sneer. “As if I couldn’t see right through that pompous fool. Roderick Battis only cares about his own House and ambitions. And don’t even get me started on those ridiculous trips he goes on every few months.”
I thought of his earlier words. “Roderick goes to Frozon moons and other planets and hunts creatures?”
Such excursions were common in the Imperium, and I’d seen more than one gossipcast reporter follow a Regal lord or lady through a Tropics rain forest in search of tigers, dragons, and other large, dangerous predators.
I suppose when you had more credits than you could ever spend, you needed some sort of challenge—even if it came with an alarming number of razor-sharp teeth and claws.
Siya nodded. “The more exotic and dangerous the creature, the better. He even has their heads stuffed and mounted. There’s an entire hall in Castle Battis devoted to Roderick’s trophies.
” Her lips curled back with even more disgust. “Roderick’s hunts are cruel and barbaric, just like he is, but Asterin only sees what she wants to see. ”
“Why?”
Siya sighed. “I think Roderick reminds Asterin of a time when she was extremely happy.”
“Before her father died.”
Siya nodded. “Asterin adored her father, which is why she’s still convinced Urston isn’t to blame for the mining accident.” She shook her head and let out a tense breath. “But Asterin won’t listen about her father or Roderick. She never listens to me about anything important.”
“I’m sorry your relationship is so strained.”
Anger flared in Siya’s hazel eyes, making them shimmer brightly.
“You should be sorry, Vesper. Things were finally getting better between Asterin and me, but then you and Zane Zimmer dragged her into your scheme to rescue Kyrion from the Serpens Corp mercenaries. You went against my father’s orders, and your rogue actions almost got Asterin killed, along with the rest of you. ”
After we’d rescued Kyrion from Stardrop Falls, Siya and Asterin had gotten into a heated argument in a garden at the Collier estate. I hadn’t heard everything they’d said, but the two women had barely spoken to each other over the last several days.
“Asterin decided to help Zane and me of her own free will,” I replied.
“Just like she helped Kyrion and me battle the Techwave at the Regenwald Resort and then escape from Crownpoint Palace. If you think anyone can drag Asterin Armas into anything she doesn’t want to do, then you don’t know her as well as you think. ”
Siya’s right hand clenched around the war hammer on her belt, and green magic sparked, crackled, and hissed around the lunarium weapon, mirroring her anger.
My seer magic whispered a warning, but I gave Siya a cool look.
Over the past few months, I had faced down one vicious enemy after another, and I wasn’t about to let the Hammer intimidate me.
Especially since I would have gone rogue and done the exact same things again right now if Kyrion was in danger.
Siya removed her hand from the hammer. Her green magic vanished, although she kept glaring at me. “Let’s get this over with. The sooner you and Kyrion learn to fully control your truebond, the sooner the two of you can leave Sygnustern and take your problems back to the Imperium.”
She brushed past me and strode down the corridor. I blew out a tense breath and followed the warrior, but the harsh, uncomfortable truth of her words pounded through my body with every step.
Siya was right. My rogue actions had already caused a multitude of problems for her and Asterin. But the most worrisome thing was my seer magic, which kept whispering that only more troubles were on the way for us all.