Free Belligerent (Vicara) by B.N. Mauldin Page A

preference no matter how many years she had left. A few minutes after Mackenzie had gotten settled, Aria slipped into the bath and took a seat on the bench across from her.
    The two sat in a comfortable silence that was soon interrupted when Clarisse bounced her way over and climbed into the bath next to Aria. Her long hair was piled up on her head in two buns to keep it out of the water, as was proper bathroom etiquette. Mackenzie didn't know how she could deal with that much hair. She herself had enough of an issue remembering to pull her hair up in a high ponytail before entering the bath.
    “I showed Ryan around,” Clarisse said.
    Mackenzie noticed she looked uncertain about something. “Your emotions are showing,” she warned.
    “Maybe they're not my real emotions,” Clarisse said, and Mackenzie didn't bother to try figuring out whether she was acting or being honest.
    There was a reason Clarisse was the informant, after all.
    “How long have you known about Ryan?” Mackenzie said. “About Shifter's plan?”
    “A week or so. I had to arrange his room.”
    “I wondered why you kept sneaking off,” Aria said.
    “I told you that I was going shopping, which was the truth.”
    Clarisse didn’t tend to lie. She twisted the truth. They had all realized long ago that she thought of her manipulations as necessary games, and since she didn't tend to play her games on them except under Shifter's orders, none of them typically minded. Besides, it was Clarisse’s ability to twist the truth that Mackenzie leveraged in her strategies.
    “The number of hours you spent away and the number of bags you brought back for yourself didn’t quite add up. There should have been more,” Aria said with a smile. “And I should have tracked you better.”
    Clarisse laughed in delight. “You've been more observant of me!”
    “Back to the subject,” Mackenzie said sternly, causing them both to become serious again. It seemed like she was always wiping the smiles off people's faces. “How much information about Ryan did Shifter give you?”
    Clarisse looked at Mackenzie as if she had just asked something that she should have the answer to already, and Mackenzie tried to remind herself that Clarisse's job was to know more than everyone else.
    “Shifter simply told me that Ryan was from Darton. I found out the rest myself and confirmed for Shifter that Ryan had the kind of reputation that would have him fit in well with us.”
    “Basically you chose him for us,” Mackenzie clarified.
    “Ryan wasn't the first,” Clarisse said.
    “How soon after James did Shifter start looking?”
    “Mackenzie-” Clarisse started to protest. There was that look in her eyes. The one that meant if she said anything, someone would end up hurt.
    Mackenzie didn't care. “How soon?”
    “Two days after it was official.”
    “It's still not official!” Mackenzie shouted.
    Clarisse was too emotionally drained to flinch. Aria, however, glared at their strategist: a rare expression of disapproval and a slight protectiveness for Clarisse. Aria almost never interfered in the disputes of others except to play the part of a mediator, but it appeared as if she would take a side in this round.
    Clarisse continued. “Shifter started looking almost immediately. He knew that no matter the final outcome, we would at least need a temporary substitute. I'm not sure if he's even given any thought as to how long this arrangement will last. He's doing what’s necessary at this moment and leaving the future to figure itself out as he always does. You must understand that, since you're a strategist as well.”
    “I do understand,” Mackenzie said. “It's just... I can't separate the personal from the business. Not this time. Not when it concerns James.”
    “You don't have much of a choice right now. You're our leader, after all,” Aria said, relaying the obvious.
    Mackenzie sighed. “Maybe we should switch. You always seemed to be much better at being a