Mindee Arnett - Avalon

“Really. So how does somebody like you know so much about metatech?”

“Because I’m ITA.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I’m an ITA agent.”

Jeth scoffed. “That’s impossible. What are you, sixteen?”

Sierra put her hands on her hips. “Seventeen, not that it matters. I joined the ITA at fifteen, spent a year and a half as a probationary agent, and received full field status a few months ago.”

Jeth crossed his arms. “You’ll understand if I find that hard to believe. I know a thing or two about the ITA. You can’t even submit an application until you’re seventeen.” He knew this well, because as a kid it was all he ever wanted: to be old enough to join the ITA and to become a space explorer alongside his parents.

“I didn’t apply . I was recruited.”

The idea made him cringe. It was a concept he associated with Hammer, the way he was always seeking out new talent, new blood. “Why would the ITA want to recruit a kid?”

“Because I’m gifted, but if you don’t believe me . . .” She reached into her pocket and withdrew an item he had no trouble recognizing—the badge of an ITA agent, with the star and eagle emblem.

Jeth stared at it, incredulous. Sierra certainly wasn’t dumb, but would the ITA actually go so far as to recruit her? It broke every ITA rule and regulation that he knew of. And yet the concept wasn’t farfetched at all—that was, if he replaced “ITA” with “Hammer.”

Jeth held out his hand, and she gave him the badge. He examined it carefully. It certainly seemed genuine. Then his mind made a new connection. “You’re on the run from them, aren’t you? The ITA?”

“Correct,” Sierra said, her voice clipped.

Jeth thought about Renford, trying to remember everything about their brief meeting. He’d only mentioned the ship, saying nothing about survivors. Jeth had assumed that, like Hammer, the ITA was only after the weapon on board and didn’t believe there would be survivors—that the ship had been missing two months and not two weeks like Sierra insisted. And yet Sierra being an ITA protégé couldn’t be coincidence, could it?

He considered telling her about Renford but held back, worried that she would clam up and refuse to tell him more. “Why are you on the run?” he asked, trying to sound casual as he handed her back the badge. If he could get her talking, get her to trust him, she might reveal more on her own.

Sierra stared at him for several long seconds, considering her answer carefully. She slid the badge into her pocket. “Once you join the ITA, you can’t quit. They don’t tell you that beforehand, and I found it out the hard way. But I didn’t like being owned . I didn’t know it would be like that, with them dictating your every move, every decision. I wanted to be free to live my life on my own terms.”

Something moved inside Jeth’s chest, a feeling like butterflies. Only it had nothing to do with nerves but rather like calling to like. Her words might’ve been stolen right out of his own mind, his heart. He cleared his throat. “Yeah, I understand that.”

She sighed. “I imagined you would. I know the story about your parents.”

Jeth blinked. He hadn’t been thinking about his parents at all, but he wasn’t surprised she knew the story, given her background. That must have been why she recognized his last name when he introduced himself. And what she said made sense. Their lives had been fully bought—and expended—by the ITA’s will.

Shaking off uncomfortable connections, he asked, “What about Vince? Is he ITA, too?”

“He was an elite combat soldier.”

“And now he’s a deserter.”

Sierra flinched. “Yes, but not because he’s a coward. We both learned some awful truths about the ITA. Things neither of us could stomach. Stuff so horrible you couldn’t imagine.”

Jeth slid his fingers into the belt loops of his pants, more curious about what she knew than he cared to admit. “Oh, I can imagine a lot. But no worries here. Anybody who’s ever told the ITA to piss off is welcome on my ship.”

Some of the tension in Sierra’s body eased a little. “Good to know. So I guess this means you can understand why I’m so concerned about what you decide to do next.”

Jeth gritted his teeth, knowing exactly what she was getting at even though he hadn’t agreed to anything yesterday. “You don’t want me to call Hammer to come fetch us.” Of course she didn’t. If Hammer found out they were wanted by the ITA, he would turn them in and collect the bounty. The ITA did not take desertion lightly.

Jeth turned and sat down, falling into the chair as he ran his fingers through his hair. He wanted to yank it out, if only it would relieve the pressure inside his skull. Maybe the pain would inspire him to some solution to the problem. But in his heart he knew he had to call Hammer. It was the only choice. How could he call Renford now, knowing Sierra and Vince were ITA fugitives?

Jeth looked up at her. “I don’t want to call him either, but I’m out of options.”

“No, you’re not. I’ve another option. One that will solve both our problems.”

“Yeah, and what’s that?”

“Your sister told me about your deal with Hammer for this ship.” Sierra motioned to the bridge. “I know how much it means to you, but a ship without a metadrive is practically worthless to anyone who wants to come and go as they please.”

Jeth exhaled, his fury with Lizzie a dead weight against his chest. How dare she share such secrets with these strangers? She was under a lot of pressure with the manual jump, his conscience reminded him. And no doubt she’d blathered out of nerves. But that didn’t excuse it. She’d exposed a powerful pressure point for Sierra to use against him. “What does that matter?” he said.

“Because I have a way for you to get a replacement metadrive.”

Jeth snorted. He’d been wrong about her. She wasn’t smart. She was crazy. “Oh sure, because those are just lying about for the taking.”

“You can get anything if you’ve got the right bargaining chip.”

“Like what?”

“Like the weapon Hammer is after.”

Jeth narrowed his gaze. “You said you didn’t know anything about a weapon.”

Sierra folded her arms. “I lied.”

“Well then, now I’m ready to believe everything you say.”

She tapped her foot. “I didn’t know if I could trust you, and ignorance is safety.”

“Not to mention an ace in the hole, right?”

“Right.” She drew a breath and let the air out through her teeth. “Also, I didn’t realize what you were talking about at first. What he’s after isn’t a weapon in the traditional sense. It’s not an explosive or viral or anything like that.”

“Oh yeah? Then what the hell is it?”

“The most dangerous weapon there is: information. And I happen to know exactly how much it’s worth.”

“How much?”

Her lips parted in a smile. “It’s priceless.”

Jeth slowly exhaled, not daring to believe. Information, she said. A dangerous weapon. He did a mental review of the conversation with Hammer, remembering the way he’d stumbled ever so slightly when he’d first mentioned the weapon. Had he lied? Of course he did. He’s Hammer .

But Jeth wasn’t biting. Not yet. “Okay, tell me more. Why do you think this information is the weapon that Hammer’s after?”

“Because it was the only thing of real value on the Donerail . There were a couple of crates of guns and ammunition, but I imagine Hammer has plenty of those types of conventional weapons already.”

Jeth thought about it, conceding the point. “All right. Then what exactly is this information?”