Jun didn’t answer for a moment, busy switching out his ray gun for a newer model that Boom had stashed somewhere previously unseen. He looked up as he snapped his new weapon into place. “You’re not going to rescue him. I am.”
He accepted a detonator from Boom, leaving Theo to squint dubiously at her scant attire to determine where it had been kept. “And then, I’m sending you home.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
He was building a wall out of hardened steel, ten sheets thick. Impenetrable by even the greenest, most intelligent eyes.
Jun would brick himself up into the wall until Theo had no choice but to go on his way and leave him behind.
So what if the wall made Jun feel like he was running out of air? Like he couldn’t breathe at the prospect of losing Theo forever.
Forever probably wasn’t going to be all that long for Jun anyway.
He could do this, bluster his way through a Crew of low-rate Raiders on the dregs of his old reputation, drop some credits he really couldn’t afford, and bring back Theo’s twin brother.
The only person Theo loved.
Jun could do that for him, and then he would let Theo go.
Because that was the right thing to do. The honorable thing.
He knew it was because it was the thing that hurt the most.
Pain was often a good indicator that his moral compass was pointed in the right direction, for once.
It wasn’t difficult. The Raiders were a small Crew, not affiliated with anyone Jun needed to worry about. He would wager this had been their first successful Raid in a while. Striking low and easy, picking up a little Core scientist and his bumbling Verge boyfriend when their ship was out of order.
And, if he was a little rough in his dealings with them after seeing them lead a man who looked like Theo stumbling behind in mag-cuffs, well, that was his business.
Even having seen him on the vid feed, Theo’s twin was a surprise.
Identical was an understatement.
Ari could have fooled anyone who hadn’t looked into Theo’s green eyes long enough to notice they were a slightly brighter shade, that his head was held at a jauntier angle, and his limbs were looser and more confident.
Then, of course, there was the hair. Where Theo’s flowed wild and free, Ari’s was cropped close to his head, disheveled by his misadventures but clearly meant to be neat and tidy.
Ari squinted dubiously at Jun with poorly disguised fear, the mouth Jun was so used to seeing wide open around a waterfall of words now pinched tight.
It was mindboggling to imagine the two contradictory brothers interacting. Jun couldn’t wait to see it.
He kept up his full Captain Park act as he loaded them onto the dinghy and for the duration of the journey, savoring the anticipation of witnessing Theo’s face light up when Jun delivered his twin safe and sound.
The bigger the buildup, the more spectacular the results, and if this was going to be the last time he saw Theo’s face, Jun was going to make sure it was spectacular.
The giant Verge rat had been a little harder to handle, for all that he staunchly remained at Ari’s side. Jun would have been just as happy to leave him behind, if he could have borne the disappointment on Theo’s face.
The man was clearly used to his size causing intimidation, but Jun knew that some of the most frightening people came in small packages. Barnes was short and stout, and Jun had never feared another man more.
When Jun docked the dinghy with Ari’s shiny little ship in tow and opened the doors to Sylvia’s cargo bay, the larger man busted out of his arm cuffs with unnecessary drama. He stepped in front of Ari and flourished the tiniest blade Jun had ever seen in his hamlike fist. Barely refraining from rolling his eyes at the man’s posturing, Jun led them out into the cargo hold. He kept a careful eye on the Verge rat while he waited for Theo to arrive, an unfamiliar, bright emotion filling him at the expectation of Theo’s joy.
He held his breath and kept his posture casual, trying not to reveal his building anticipation. If these were the last moments Jun would spend with Theo, at least he would get to see him rejoice at his brother’s return. Jun could soak up the moment from afar, something he could hold on to in the dark, lonely days ahead.
It didn’t take long before Theo careened into the bay, knocking over something that Jun could only hope was noncombustible.
For all their sakes.
Ari collapsed into Theo’s arms, and Jun could sense the tension releasing from Theo’s spine, the razor-sharp edge of anxiety he had kept carefully concealed all this time, melting away at a single touch.
It was as if, from the moment they saw each other, the twins fell back into roles so well-worn Jun could practically see the grooves.
He did his best to appear detached, steel wall holding steady, even as he took in Theo’s explosive, contagious joy with greedy eyes and ears. Holding on tight to each moment with his stained hands.
The wall started to crumble when Theo turned his attention to Jun with full, fiery force, and Jun had to make his escape.
A tactical retreat, to regroup and rebuild those walls. He needed to tighten his resolve to send Theo away, to do the right thing. The painful, difficult thing. Jun walked away from the brothers’ reunion to the rear of the dinghy, escaping unnoticed.
He cursed as he struggled with detaching the dinghy’s hitch from Ari’s ship. He needed to make sure it was ready for departure. If he was launching Theo into space, he was going to do it as safely as possible.
“Hey, watch it, now. You oughta treat a lady kindly if you’re trying
