Lucifer (Book 3, The Redemption Series) by S.J. West Page B

has always been a calculating little bastard. He has to be planning something and is trying to bolster his position before he does it.”
    “ Do you have any idea what that something is?” I ask.
    Brutus shakes his head. “No, I have no idea. But, you can bet it’s something that most people wouldn’t ordinarily agree to do considering how much effort he’s put into gaining support.”
    “ Should we just go grab Kyna now and bring her here?” I suggest, knowing if Malcolm were in a similar situation I would do whatever I had to do to ensure his safety.
    “ I think that’s a bad idea,” Jered is quick to say. “She could be placed in more danger if we single her out. Abaddon will know we care what happens to her, and he’ll make sure to keep her close to protect his own skin.”
    “ Which is exactly why I haven’t gone there myself and taken her out of Stratus,” Brutus grumbles, obviously not liking the situation but not seeing a better way to protect Kyna.
    “ We’ll think of something,” I promise Brutus.
    Brutus nods at my words. “I know we will.”
    Desmond phases into the sitting room.
    “How is Catherine?” I immediately ask him.
    “ As well as can be expected considering what Levi did to her,” he says, sounding disgusted by Catherin's condition. “She’s going to need a lot of rest and medical care while the lash marks heal. Mentally, I'm not sure she'll ever recover. It's too soon to make a proper diagnosis.”
    “ Gladson and Barlow have arranged to have her taken off world,” I tell them. “I think we should still stick to their plan. Levi knows I care about her now. If she’s somewhere he can’t find her easily, he won’t be able to use her safety against me.”
    “ Agreed,” Malcolm says. “We keep to the plan Gladson has worked out and get her off-world as quickly as possible. Maybe a new set of surroundings will even help her forget what happened.”
    “ I had to make a promise on your behalf to the owner of a freight company,” I tell Malcolm. “He wanted exclusive rights to transport thorium off of Mars in exchange for helping us with Catherine.”
    “ Vitor?” Malcolm says knowingly, looking slightly amused.
    “ Yes,” I answer hesitantly. “Should I not have made the deal?”
    Malcolm shakes his head. “No, it's fine. Vitor has been hounding me to do that for a long time now.”
    “ What kept you from agreeing to do it before?”
    “ I mostly just wanted to keep the price of thorium low. We can deal with him through a tariff negotiation to yield the same result. It's nothing to concern yourself about. We have bigger issues to deal with at the moment.”
    “ I will arrange for a doctor to accompany Catherine to Mars,” Desmond says. “I know of one who has been looking for an excuse to get off-world.”
    “ Barlow said it would take a couple of hours before Captain Vitor would be ready to leave,” I tell Desmond.
    “ Good. That gives me plenty of time to make arrangements. I'll bring the doctor back here so she can do her own examination of Catherine. I'll be back soon.”
    Desmond phases.
    “I can't just sit here and do nothing,” Brutus says, looking frustrated by his inability to do something about Kyna’s situation. “I'm going to go to Stratus to snoop around and see if I can find out what Abaddon is up to.”
    “ Make sure you're back here by this evening,” Malcolm tells him.
    Brutus nods and phases away.
    “I guess I should make arrangements for Linn to come tonight,” Daniel tells us before standing. “She would kill me if she missed it.”
    “ Missed what?” I ask. “What's happening tonight?”
    “ Our wedding,” Malcolm gently reminds me.
    “ Oh,” I say, suddenly feeling stupid all of a sudden. “I'm sorry. I didn't realize we were doing it tonight.”
    “ Well, I don't see any reason for us to wait,” Malcolm says. “Do you?”
    “ Absolutely not,” I tell him, squeezing his hand. “The sooner the better.”
    Malcolm