Jeana gave Misha one of Melissa's smiles. "Mother, you've dealt with Misha's father long enough to know it's impossible to keep a secret from someone in the Auburn family. Court historians extraordinaire!" She patted Misha's hand. "The Auburns are the only thing that keep us Steiners honest."
Misha smiled. "True enough." She looked up at the Archon. "If you think I could be of use in the LIC, I'd be happy to assist, but I'm not sure I want to work with Simon Johnson. That spy-master is so tricky. I always feel I cannot trust anything he says."
Katrina nodded. "We'll save you as our secret weapon then. In the meantime, I'm interested in your thoughts and theories about Kurita. Keep me posted."
Misha smiled. "I promise, Highness."
The Archon moved to the door. "I'll let you two get on with whatever you had planned for this afternoon." She held her hand out to Jeana and drew her daughter's double into a hug. "Have fun, Melissa. And thank you for our chat. It was just like old times."
9
Furillo
Bolan Province, Lyran Commonwealth
25 April 3029
The question is, Ryan Steiner, do you want to be Archon?"
Ryan Steiner raked long, slender fingers through his thick blond hair and stared back at his questioner. Your tone, great-uncle Alessandro, suggests that "yes" is the only proper answer. It's the answer I'd give in a heartbeat, too, except that I know you hope for a return to the throne.He narrowed his eyes and imagined he saw disgust flicker across Alessandro's gray eyes. It's true that my eyes are darker than those of most Steiners, but that doesn't mean I'm as weak or defective as you seem to imagine.
Ryan nodded his head to the older man seated across from him in the solarium. "Yes, Archon, I do desire the throne."
Alessandro's smile at Ryan's reply brought some life back into the ex-Archon's tired, wrinkled face. It had been twenty-two years since Katrina Steiner had deposed him. Ryan knew that Alessandro had been more subtle than some others in attempting to take back his power, but none of these schemers had been very effective. Ryan wondered what plot his uncle had in mind now and why he was trying to work his great-nephew into it.
As if reading Ryan's mind, Alessandro waved him to one of the wicker chairs arranged to face a holodisk viewer. Above them, through the solarium's glass roof, the stars burned with a fierce cold light. Ryan smiled as he saw that the larger of Furillo's dual moons had moved into the constellation Serpentarius.
I've always considered that a good omen. Perhaps the old man's plan will work.
Alessandro leaned forward, placing his elbows on his knees. "As well you know, I have plotted my return to the Archon's throne for almost as many years as you have been alive." The old man smiled ruefully. "Over the years, dozens of my plans have failed, but I have not lost heart. Practice makes perfect, they say, and I have had enough practice to perfect a hundred different ways to take power. I still have supporters scattered throughout the Commonwealth, and I have secrets that can coerce cooperation out of the most difficult of enemies."
The wrinkled old man looked up at the stars as if he hated them. "What I no longer have, Ryan Steiner, is time. I'm only seventy-two years old, but life has caught up with me. The doctors think they can trace it back to a dose of radiation I took in a 'Mech battle forty years ago." Alessandro looked up into the starry night and spoke as though defying the universe itself. "My body is consuming itself, but I have refused to let the doctors do anything. I will not die half a man."
Ryan felt his mouth go dry. Dying? He must have known for some time. That's why he's had me here "helping " him. He's not needed my aid as much as he is grooming me to replace him."I am deeply saddened to hear this news, Archon."
Alessandro's features sharpened into a viperlike expression. "Please, Ryan, do not pity me. That I will not have. I have brought you here to be forged into a weapon for use against my enemies. Right now you need another lesson, and there is no subtle way to teach this one to you." Alessandro picked up a remote control and pointed it at the holodisk viewer. "Watch this."
The screen brightened to reveal the regally handsome face of a man who might have been twenty-five years younger than Alessandro, but who was the Archon's junior by only sixteen years. The man's gray eyes and platinum blond hair marked him a Steiner; the scar tugging at the corner of his right eye marked him a Mech Warrior. His deep voice rumbled undistorted from the speakers. "Greetings, Alessandro."
Ryan smiled without realizing it. Uncle Frederick! When did you begin to address the Archon so cordially.
Frederick's image smiled to put the viewer at ease. "We have quarreled for too long. I still recall your visits to our home when I was but a child. I always wanted to be like you, and growing up, I cherished the picture taken of the two of us upon your graduation from the Nagelring Academy. I recall you promised me your 'Mech command when I became old enough to earn it, and I labored from that point to be worthy of your bequest."
Frederick's hand absentmindedly strayed to the scar on his temple. "The time has come for us to put down our differences and unite to oppose the Witch. She's already given her daughter to Hanse Davion, and I fear she will give away the rest of the Commonwealth as well. She's openly embraced his war and sends our citizens to die in order to keep the Dragon from Davion's neck. I am certain this situation alarms you as much as it does me."
Frederick lifted his head high. The camera slowly withdrew to show him in the gaudiest of medal-laden uniforms possible within the Lyran Commonwealth. Though he had earned each medal honestly, he looked more like a whore piling on jewelry than a heroic warrior.
Ryan narrowed his eyes. He flaunts evidence of his service to the Commonwealth while he discusses treason. Aglance at the disgusted expression on Alessandro's face told Ryan that the Archon's thoughts must parallel his own.
Frederick continued his monologue. "We are in a time when simple events could change everything. The Commonwealth is nearing a point of dissolution because of the Davion question and this war. Were something to happen to the Archon, the social upheaval could destroy the Commonwealth. Neither of us wants to see that happen.
"You, Alessandro, still hold considerable sway within the Commonwealth. Unfortunately, your age calls into question your ability to create a government that could stabilize the Commonwealth. This is not a concern in my case. Though we both know you would do your best, I submit that your age is not in your favor in this area."
Frederick tried to smile beneficently, but his craving for power distorted the expression. "It is time, uncle, for you to pass the mantle of leadership to me. I require from you a pledge of support so that the Commonwealth we both love can continue, despite the grave mistakes made by the Witch. It is now time for my generation to regain control of the Commonwealth, and it is your duty to support me.
"Please reply soonest. There may be no time to waste."
Alessandro froze the image with Frederick's mouth hanging open, making him look stupid. Smiling, the older man turned to Ryan. "What do you think?"
Ryan frowned. "The message is openly antagonistic and arrogant. Frederick hints at some disaster that might befall Katrina Steiner. Because Uncle Frederick does not think in terms of subtleties, I have to assume Duke Aldo Lestrade lurks somewhere in the background. That leads me to have little confidence in the successful completion of the plot."