then?”
“Ah, now that’s the really interesting thing.” And he was off into a long explanation involving security loopholes and hidden pathologies, leaving Elissa—and, she thought, probablyBruce, too, despite all that nodding and “mm”-ing he was doing—way behind him.
The front door chimed as Elissa’s parents and brother finished their second cups of coffee, and Bruce got to his feet. “It’ll be Cadan. He said he’d be coming by and that he’d give me a lift back to the base.”
“Oh, ask him in for coffee,” said Mrs. Ivory.
Oh please, do we have to?
“I’m sorry, Ma, he won’t have the time to stop. Curfew’s early tonight—we’ve got some intense exercises tomorrow. I have to get going; no one likes to miss curfew, but Cadan is what you might call hung up on it!”
Mrs. Ivory smiled. “Well, you can understand that, given the circumstances.”
“Being the scholarship whiz kid? Well, yeah, sure.” He disappeared out into the entrance hall, and in a moment Elissa heard him greeting Cadan, and Cadan’s voice answering.
“Come through a minute while I say bye to the family . . .”
Elissa looked up as they came in, composing her face to politeness. Cadan Greythorn was not quite as tall as Bruce, and a little broader across the shoulders. His dark-blue SFI jacket was fastened up to the neck, and his fair hair, even as short as it was, stuck up from the kitchen at the backArt at the back where he’d pulled his helmet over it.
“Good evening, Mrs. Ivory, Mr. Ivory. No, please, don’t get up—I’m literally here just to kidnap your son. Hey, Lissa.”
Elissa gave him the merest possible smile.
“You’re on your skycycle tonight?” Mrs. Ivory asked.
Cadan nodded. “It’s a nice night for it. I was coming back from the east side as well, and it saves me a bit of time.”
“Visiting your parents?”
“My sister. She and her husband finally moved into family accommodation—I was visiting their new place.”
“Oh, that must be a relief for them,” Mrs. Ivory said.
“Absolutely! They’ll be starting their family any day now.” He glanced at Elissa. “Hey, Lissa, what do you think about Bruce and me getting our first sole-charge flight soon?”
Bruce had moved to kiss his mother good-bye and shake hands with his father. Her parents’ attention was on him, and for a moment Elissa felt free of the obligation to be as polite as they’d expect. When she was little, she’d hung on every detail of Bruce and Cadan’s flight training, but a lot had changed since then.
She gave Cadan an indifferent look. “Bruce said that might happen.”
“Only ‘might’?” Cadan laughed, all superior and confident. “It’s pretty certain now. Watch for a ship taking off at twenty-two-hundred tomorrow night, okay? ’Cause it’ll probably be us.”
It was too much, seeing him standing there on the brink of his glittering career, hair all coolly messy from his skybike helmet, thinking she had nothing more important to think about than watching the sky for a ship he and Bruce just might be piloting. Like I have headspace to spare for thinking about him when he’s not right here forcing me to!
She lifted a shoulder. “Sorry. I’m planning on washing my hair.”
For a moment something like lightning flashed in Cadan’s gaze as it met hers. Then the brief spark of what could have been anger was gone, swallowed up in the untouchable self-belief that was his default mode.
He looked down at her, eyebrows slightly raised. “Okay. You keep those priorities straight, princess. After all, wewouldn’t want you slipping up and, you know, excelling in any of your classes, would we?”
Heat flooded Elissa’s face. She stared at him, caught between hitting back with the nastiest thing she could think of—if she could think of it—or defending herself. I’m not lazy! I’m close to failing my classes because I can’t work, not because I won’t.
But it was too late. Bruce had
“Ah, now that’s the really interesting thing.” And he was off into a long explanation involving security loopholes and hidden pathologies, leaving Elissa—and, she thought, probablyBruce, too, despite all that nodding and “mm”-ing he was doing—way behind him.
The front door chimed as Elissa’s parents and brother finished their second cups of coffee, and Bruce got to his feet. “It’ll be Cadan. He said he’d be coming by and that he’d give me a lift back to the base.”
“Oh, ask him in for coffee,” said Mrs. Ivory.
Oh please, do we have to?
“I’m sorry, Ma, he won’t have the time to stop. Curfew’s early tonight—we’ve got some intense exercises tomorrow. I have to get going; no one likes to miss curfew, but Cadan is what you might call hung up on it!”
Mrs. Ivory smiled. “Well, you can understand that, given the circumstances.”
“Being the scholarship whiz kid? Well, yeah, sure.” He disappeared out into the entrance hall, and in a moment Elissa heard him greeting Cadan, and Cadan’s voice answering.
“Come through a minute while I say bye to the family . . .”
Elissa looked up as they came in, composing her face to politeness. Cadan Greythorn was not quite as tall as Bruce, and a little broader across the shoulders. His dark-blue SFI jacket was fastened up to the neck, and his fair hair, even as short as it was, stuck up from the kitchen at the backArt at the back where he’d pulled his helmet over it.
“Good evening, Mrs. Ivory, Mr. Ivory. No, please, don’t get up—I’m literally here just to kidnap your son. Hey, Lissa.”
Elissa gave him the merest possible smile.
“You’re on your skycycle tonight?” Mrs. Ivory asked.
Cadan nodded. “It’s a nice night for it. I was coming back from the east side as well, and it saves me a bit of time.”
“Visiting your parents?”
“My sister. She and her husband finally moved into family accommodation—I was visiting their new place.”
“Oh, that must be a relief for them,” Mrs. Ivory said.
“Absolutely! They’ll be starting their family any day now.” He glanced at Elissa. “Hey, Lissa, what do you think about Bruce and me getting our first sole-charge flight soon?”
Bruce had moved to kiss his mother good-bye and shake hands with his father. Her parents’ attention was on him, and for a moment Elissa felt free of the obligation to be as polite as they’d expect. When she was little, she’d hung on every detail of Bruce and Cadan’s flight training, but a lot had changed since then.
She gave Cadan an indifferent look. “Bruce said that might happen.”
“Only ‘might’?” Cadan laughed, all superior and confident. “It’s pretty certain now. Watch for a ship taking off at twenty-two-hundred tomorrow night, okay? ’Cause it’ll probably be us.”
It was too much, seeing him standing there on the brink of his glittering career, hair all coolly messy from his skybike helmet, thinking she had nothing more important to think about than watching the sky for a ship he and Bruce just might be piloting. Like I have headspace to spare for thinking about him when he’s not right here forcing me to!
She lifted a shoulder. “Sorry. I’m planning on washing my hair.”
For a moment something like lightning flashed in Cadan’s gaze as it met hers. Then the brief spark of what could have been anger was gone, swallowed up in the untouchable self-belief that was his default mode.
He looked down at her, eyebrows slightly raised. “Okay. You keep those priorities straight, princess. After all, wewouldn’t want you slipping up and, you know, excelling in any of your classes, would we?”
Heat flooded Elissa’s face. She stared at him, caught between hitting back with the nastiest thing she could think of—if she could think of it—or defending herself. I’m not lazy! I’m close to failing my classes because I can’t work, not because I won’t.
But it was too late. Bruce had
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