“I’m not sure if that was a compliment, or an insult,” Rhea told him. “It sounds almost like you’re saying I make more mistakes than an ordinary human would.”
“I meant it as a compliment,” Brinks said slowly. “In that, you display more human emotion, more heart, than most of us with organic bodies do.”
She smiled. She thought he had definitely backtracked, but he did in such a way that she couldn’t be the least bit upset with him. “I appreciate that.”
The SUV jerked rather harshly, ruining the moment.
“Are we under attack?” Rhea spun and scanned the horizons.
“No, just a bad bump,” Will said, rubbing his head.
She nodded.
After a moment, Will added: “You know, you probably should have just let the mayor send in a strike team. He wants Veil dead just as much as you do.”
“And risk scaring him off?” Rhea said. “I don’t think so. Don’t you remember what DragonHunter told us?” DragonHunter was a hacker who had helped them track a transmission from Veil to the Aradne city hall. “The Black Hands, and thus Veil, always seem to be one step ahead of the security forces. If we had the mayor dispatch a strike team, they’d arrive to find Veil long gone. Veil wants me to come in person? Fine, I’ll come.”
“So,” Miles said after a time. “I was thinking about what you told us about Ganymede.”
Rhea glanced expectantly over her shoulder at him.
“About how all the original domes have been shattered,” he continued. “And I can’t help but think, they deserved it. For what they did to Earth.”
He stared at her, as if expecting her to agree, but when she didn’t say anything, he nodded slowly.
“I don’t blame you for what happened,” he said. “You know that, right?”
He had switched off his comm node, so that his words were heard only by the current occupants of the vehicle, all of whom knew that Rhea was a Ganymedean.
“Sometimes I’m not sure,” she said.
“You were obviously taken prisoner on Ganymede,” Miles said. “And brought to Earth as a slave of some kind. It’s a miracle you survived all these years. You have no memories of the Great Calming.”
She exchanged a guilty glance with Will at that latter comment.
“So, I can understand why you don’t blame your people,” Miles continued. “But if you saw the cities melting, heard the screams of the dying, you would feel as I do. The Ganymedeans deserved to die, every last man, woman and child.”
“Surely not the children,” she said quietly.
“Yes, the children,” Miles spat. “Do you know how many baby skeletons they recovered from the ruins of New York city? Los Angeles? Philadelphia? There were millions. Ganymede got what it deserved. Have you ever heard the phrase; you reap what you sow? The Ganymedeans definitely reaped the bountiful crop of death they had sown.”
“Don’t mind him,” Brinks said. “We’re all in a bit of a grim mood… traveling into the Outlands, in search of a deadly crime lord, uncertain if we’re going to survive this day.”
“I will protect you,” Rhea insisted.
“So you keep saying,” Miles commented. “But you weren’t able to help Chuck, were you?”
Rhea stared at him. Those words cut her to the core. “Why are you here?” she asked crossly. “You volunteered for this. Would you like to transfer to one of the technicals? I can have it take you back.”
“Sorry,” Miles said. “I didn’t mean it. Like Brinks said, I’m in a bit of a grim mood. I get this way before a fight. It happens.”
“No actually, I think you should get the hell off this SUV.” Will was staring at the man. He was obviously pissed. “You’re talking to the Warden here, you know that right?”
“Yes, I’m sorry,” Miles said.
“Chuck was the one who messed up,” Will continued. “She can’t help it when you have idiots standing up from cover when they’re supposed to be staying down.”
“He wasn’t an idiot,” Rhea said softly. “He did it on purpose, to help me.”
“That’s what you keep telling yourself,” Will said. “And it’s probably wrong. You do it, I think, just to let the guilt fester.”
“That’s because guilt is good,” she said. “It reminds me of what happened and keeps me on my toes. I won’t let any of you die on me again.”
The men were quiet for a time.
“I just wanted to apologize again,” Miles told her, breaking the silence. “About everything I said earlier. I overstepped. Should have kept my mouth shut. I’m just anxious about what’s coming. I was never good at keeping emotions bottled in. They just blurt out and offend the people who are closest to me. People I respect more than anything, such as yourself. You’re my Warden, and, well, you used to be my friend. I hope my words haven’t jeopardized that friendship.”
Rhea gazed at him and smiled. “No, Miles. You’re my friend. And always will be. Don’t be afraid to speak your mind around me, just because you’re worried you might offend me, or those with me. I need you guys to keep me grounded. And do remind me of what the Ganymedeans did. I need to hear it, I think. Just as I need to keep hearing about Chuck’s death.”
Will was shaking his head. “You don’t need to hear that crap.”
“But I do, Will,” she told him. She patted him on the shoulder, then reached out toward Miles, who extended a hand. She grabbed it. “You are all my brothers, those of you who travel with me today. You are my most loyal and dedicated companions. And I will protect you. You have my word.”
Miles nodded, and she released him.
The journey through the Outlands continued uneventfully. They sighted no bioweapons all the way to the highlands. She was definitely starting to believe the Black Hands had spread misinformation to keep people away.
When the foothills that marked the start
