Free Three Card Monte (The Martian Alliance) by Gini Koch Page B

could create an organism that did what Ciarissa described. “Doctor Wufren, is he part of this, too?”
    She shook her head. “Fren opposes the Diamante Families for the same reasons the rest of you do, but he was never a part of the Espen Resistance. He self-exiled from Espen well before the Purge.”
    Interesting. Yet another fact I hadn’t known. Roy might not know, either. “How many of you are there?”
    “Not enough, but we do what we can. We are placed within certain organizations, on specific planets, within groups where our assistance is most needed.”
    The light dawned. “That’s why you fly with us.”
    She smiled. “I would fly with you even if I was not part of the Espen Resistance. I requested to be given the chance to join with Roy and his loyal retainers.” Her expression saddened. “I have lost many things because of the Purge and my planet’s refusal to help fight against obvious evil. I don’t want to lose your trust, or lose the family I have joined and love.”
    Had to give one thing to the Diamante Families—they really brought a galaxy together, united under the banners of loathing, hatred, and revenge.
    Maybe I should have continued to be suspicious, but I’d known Ciarissa a long time now. Having met Longdaddy, it was clear that we were all on the same side. Besides, I didn’t want to lose anyone or anything else because of the Diamante Families.
    I hugged her. “I understand.”
    Her body relaxed against mine, and Ciarissa hugged me back tightly. “I would prefer not to tell the others about any of what we have discussed.”
    “Let’s get out of this situation first, and then worry about who gets to know what.”
    “What situation are we in, exactly?”
    Either she was faking it really well, or Ciarissa truly hadn’t been reading me and Bullfrog while we were gone, other than at a very high level. While I was ready to forgive her, there was information I needed to have in order to ensure our crew’s long term health and happiness.
    “We’re here to save the day again. Per my intel, it should pay well. If we can pull it off. But we’re not going to pull it off until you tell me if Doven’s interest in you really is or isn’t returned.”
    Ciarissa stared at me for a few long moments. “You would endanger an entire world for this information?”
    “Yeah, I would. But I don’t think you would.”
    She shook her head. “That is not like you.”
    “Based on what I’ve learned today, you aren’t like you. Not the you we thought you were. So why does it surprise you that I might be different than you’ve thought?”
    “Because I’ve seen your true heart, as I’ve seen the true hearts of all who fly with us. It is why I fly with all of you. And because of this, I know you will not risk the lives of innocents on a whim.”
    “It’s not a whim. Doven and Roy are fighting because of you, and we can’t afford to have that. I need to know, right now, where your loyalties—romantic and otherwise—really lie.”
    “My loyalties are with the Martian Alliance. I believe bringing back the true galactic emperor, especially as personified in Roy, will be what the galaxy truly needs. The Espen Resistance agrees with this—they want a return to the former rulerships, kingdoms, democracies, theocracies, and such that existed before the Diamante Families took over.”
    “Good to know. And your romantic loyalty—is it to Doven, Longdaddy, someone else, or no one else?”
    “Ah. You fly with the man you love, so you need to know if it’s the same for me?”
    I rolled my eyes. “I’d fly with Roy even if I didn’t love him, and vice versa. You’re stalling, waiting for someone to come and interrupt us. But I have a guarantee of privacy, because Longdaddy understands what my price for participation is. So, stop dancing around the question and answer me—do you have romantic feelings for Doven like he has for you?”
    She looked straight into my eyes. “No.”
    “Fair