Carys
Istood near the central display, answering questions about a Thal’reth pottery fragment for a Fanaith couple. My voice was level. My hands were steady. Outwardly, I was the perfect, unimpressed curator.
Inwardly, I was waiting.
Tarsus wanted me to wear this dress. This ridiculous, backless silver thing. He thought it made me a display piece. He didn’t realize the loose folds at the waist, designed for aesthetic, were perfect for concealing the two items I’d nearly died to acquire from Renna.
The miniature power source was strapped to my inner thigh, digging into my skin. The data spoofer was tucked in a small pocket Flinx had helped me sew into the lining.
Flinx sent from his post near the refreshment tables.
I glanced over. Brevan was facing Tarsus. Valerius was nearby. The tension was exactly what Brevan had described. He was creating the social cover. He was pulling the senator’s focus, making the interaction all about ego.
I sent back.
I had to act.
“If you’ll excuse me,” I murmured to the Fanaith couple. I moved away from them, not toward the confrontation, but toward the side of the ballroom. Toward the main control junction for the ballroom’s atmospheric and holo-display systems.
It was an ornate panel, disguised as part of the wall’s sculpted glass. I’d identified it two years ago.
Flinx sent.
I “stumbled.” Just a little. Enough to brace myself against the wall, my hand landing on the decorative panel. My body blocked the view from most of the room.
My fingers found the maintenance seam. Tarsus was still focused on Brevan. “I’d hate to think my hospitality was being misused.”
Brevan said, “Never.”
He opened his mouth to say something else. To call out Valerius. That was my cue.
I palmed the spoofer from its hidden pocket and jammed the power source from my thigh strap against it. I shoved both components deep into the panel’s diagnostic port.
The effect was immediate. I felt a sharp jolt and the smell of ozone as the components fused, burning themselves out in a massive power surge. The manufactured sunset on the walls tore itself apart in a wash of static. The main lights exploded in a flicker and died. The room plunged into blackness.
A second later, red emergency lights stuttered on. They pulsed, casting horrible shadows. A mechanical voice blared over the speakers.
“SYSTEMS FAILURE. ALL LEVELS. CONTAINMENT brEACH DETECTED IN SECTOR FOUR.”
The alarms shrieked.
It was beautiful.
The room dissolved into panic. Guests shouted, shoving each other to get to the exits. A Lyrikan fell. A server dropped a tray of burning blue drinks.
Tarsus roared, “Secure the perimeter! Find out what that breach is!”
His entire security team, weapons drawn, formed a protective circle around him. Their focus was absolute, not on a social rival, but on the very real, very physical threat of a containment breach in his priceless collection.
I pulled my hand back. The components were gone, fused into the port. I’d have to thank Renna. If I ever saw her again.
I looked across the chaos. Through the flashing red lights and the panicked crowd, I saw Brevan.
He was looking right at me. He wasn’t panicked. He understood.
He turned and melted into the shadows of the exit corridor, walking away while every guard in the room was looking the other way.
He was gone.
The alarms continued for another thirty seconds, long enough for Brevan to be clear of the office wing. Then, as suddenly as they started, they cut off.
The main lights flickered back on. Dim, but functional. The red strobes died.
The room was a mess. Overturned chairs. Spilled drinks. Crying guests.
Tarsus stood in the center of it all. His face was beyond fury. He was perfectly, terribly calm. His security detail was already moving through the crowd, restoring order.
“A false alarm,” Tarsus announced, his voice carrying over the murmuring. “A minor system glitch. Please, everyone, return to your drinks. The staff will... clean this.”
He turned. His security team was already reassuming its positions. The crisis was over.
He scanned the room. His eyes passed over Valerius. Over the other guests.
Then they landed on me.