Ragnarok 03 - Resonance by John Meaney Read Free Book Online

really,’ she said. ‘Look, I’m not going to wish you luck, because you’ll be great.’
    â€˜If I am, it’s thanks to you.’
    Roger had toughened up – more than that, had been transformed – but right now his emotions were open, on display. Reversing her previous decision, Rhianna hugged him hard.
    â€˜I’m proud of you,’ she whispered.
    Then she stepped back, summoning a rotation.
    Roger nodded.
    Everything revolved around a host of axes, and as Tangleknot and Roger disappeared from sight, Rhianna wondered for a moment whether she would ever see him again, because meetings with Uncle Max had a way of changing one’s life, not always in expected ways.
    You’ll do fine, Pilot Blackstone .
    They were senpai and kohai , he and her, as much as sensei and deshi , a bond inexplicable to one who had not experienced mentoring through harshness for mortal stakes. In teaching him, she had learnt much about herself; more importantly, she had bequeathed all she knew to someone worthy, someone who would fight for Labyrinth just as she would, willing to sacrifice the same.
    Meaning everything.
    She had not met Clayton before, but Roger had mentioned him during the long hypnosis session back on Molsin when she had uncovered all his memories, including the ones that he accessed only in dreams of the far future, the most disturbing of all. Other enquiries since returning to Labyrinth had unearthed only good reports about Clayton.
    He was waiting, a large bearish man, in the director’s ante chamber. They shook hands as he introduced himself.
    â€˜The Commodore wondered if you knew this guy.’ Clayton gestured a holo into existence. ‘This was taken yesterday, mean geodesic.’
    It was a head-and-shoulders shot of a scar-faced, hard-looking man.
    â€˜So he survived.’ Rhianna nodded, still looking at the image. ‘His name’s Tannier, and he’s a peacekeeper – was – on Barbour. That’s a Molsin sky-city. If you’ve access to Roger Blackstone’s debriefing—’
    â€˜I was there when he delivered it.’
    â€˜Then you’ll know Tannier’s the man who helped him. And that’s definitely Tannier in the holo. But how did he get away?’
    When the sky-cities perished, she meant. Then she remembered their confrontation with Helsen and her assistant Ranulph, dead at Roger’s hands.
    â€˜I’m guessing it was the Zajinets,’ she added. ‘Returning the favour, after Helsen tried to get at them, and Tannier, Roger and I stopped her.’
    Clayton looked as if he were trying not to bite his lip.
    â€˜Thanks for the confirmation,’ he said.
    â€˜You don’t sound happy about—’
    A ginger cat with white patches walked out of the wall from the direction of Max’s office, stopped, and turned to look at them with unblinking obsidian eyes. Then he continued on, walked inside the opposite wall, and was gone.
    Clayton sighed.
    â€˜Don’t ask,’ he said.
    When they entered Max’s office, there was a cream-coloured cat, too elegant to be male, sitting on Max’s lap. She flowed onto the floor, turned in circles like a kitten chasing her tail, and fastpath-rotated out of sight. Had any Pilot besides Max attempted the same, here in the heart of his defences, they would have been obliterated.
    He stood up with massive arms open wide.
    â€˜Rhianna. My favourite niece.’
    â€˜Uncle Max.’
    They hugged strongly and kissed each other on the cheek, while Clayton stood with his mouth open, like a man whose heart has stopped.
    â€˜Er,’ he said.
    Clearly being assigned to assist the director of the intelligence service meant one surprise after another. Knowing Uncle Max, poor Clayton probably had not learnt the half of it, not yet.
    The floor budded flowmetal chairs, and everyone sat.
    â€˜Pilot, um, Chiang,’ said Clayton, ‘confirms Tannier’s