Embers by EJ Fisch

Author:EJ Fisch [Fisch, EJ]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Transcendence Publishing
Published: 2022-02-22T08:00:00+00:00

Chapter 21

Niiosian Cruiser Revenant • Deep Space

Aroska had barely settled onto the little sofa in Ken’s cabin when he heard the heavy footfalls coming up the hallway outside. Giving Ziva the data pad and then leaving her to her own devices had been a bit of a gamble, so part of him was overcome with relief that she was choosing to seek him out, especially so quickly. But at the same time, he felt compelled to brace himself for whatever attitude might accompany those stomping feet.

He’d opted to leave the door open to allow her easy entry. She burst into the room, face contorted by the same scowl she’d worn in the officers’ lounge, and pounded a fist against the control panel behind her. Technically, this door and others like it couldn’t slam—mechanisms within the wall forced them to shut at a uniform rate every time—but based on her demeanor, slamming had been the intention, whether the speed of the closure changed or not.

“The hell is this?” she demanded, bringing one hand to rest on her hip. In her other, she clutched the data pad with white knuckles.

“That,” he began, rising to his feet and moving over to stand in front of her with his arms folded, “is a little project I’ve been working on for the past four years.”

Her scowl didn’t abate, but something about the way she hesitated ever so slightly gave him the impression he’d caught her off guard. “You knew I would be on Panuco.”

So she’d at least taken the time to read some of the pad’s contents. Still, it was a statement rather than a question, and there’d been something oddly accusatory in her tone. “I wasn’t positive,” he replied, “but it was the best lead we had.”

“You lied to me,” she said, voice low. Her jaw trembled and tears glistened in her wide eyes once more.

“We didn’t lie, Ziva,” Aroska replied softly, shaking his head. “What Zinni said was true—we came to Panuco looking for Matia Moryi per Starcer’s request and had no idea the two of you were one and the same.” He gestured at the data pad in her hand. “But yes, we knew there was a chance you might be there, and we hoped that if we managed to make contact, we could recruit you to help us bring Moryi down. In a sense, that’s exactly what happened, but things are obviously more complicated than we’d envisioned.”

Those tears—hot and angry—broke free and spilled down her face. “But you…” she began, thrusting a finger toward him and grinding her teeth as though struggling to articulate what she wanted to say. When she spoke again, she was nearly shouting. “You knew. You did all of this.” She hurled the pad at him. “I told you not to look for me!”

He allowed the device to bounce off his chest and clatter to the floor without flinching. “No, you told me not to stop you or come after you when you were surrendering to the Feds.

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