Blink: Interdiction (Book 4)

04

Amber left the briefing room with a coiling snake of unease wrapped around her heart. Even though she'd known Darien had been called back from his suspension, when he actually walked into the room it had triggered a violent outpouring of conflicting emotions within her. This was the young man who'd found her and given her the opportunity to join Blink, to make her mark on a whole galaxy in way that the vast majority of the human population never could.

He was also the young man who she'd watched murder a prisoner without even a shimmer of regret.

She'd only seen him briefly after that incident, during their after-action report. After that Darien had been placed on suspension, and Amber spent the subsequent months trying to forget that awful confrontation out on the edge of nowhere.

But they were all back here together now, and all set to be hurled into another conflict different to anything they'd had to deal with before. She didn't relish the prospect of going to Ravine at all, let alone under the command of a military officer. Blink operatives were not soldiers – their remit was much closer to a well-equipped police force as opposed to an actual combat unit.

The other squads dispersed, eager to get to grips with their new assignment, but almost as though drawn by some unseen force, the operatives of Hammerhead grouped together just outside the briefing room, waiting for their leader to emerge.

Darien stepped out of the room and she saw a flash of uncertainty on his face when he saw his team lurking in the corridor beyond. For a moment an uneasy silence hung in air; no-one seemed to know what to do. But then Idas rescued the situation. His mulish features cracked into a broad grin and he stepped forward, slinging one heavily-muscled arm around Darien's shoulders and dragging him into a hug. It took a second for Darien to register the motion and return the embrace.

"Well I'll damned if you're not a sight for sore eyes," Idas rumbled good-naturedly. "We were starting to think you weren't coming back!"

"That makes two of us," Darien replied with a rueful smile as they stepped apart. His eyes swept over the others and Amber felt a shimmer of apprehension run up her spine. "It's good to see you again," he said. "All of you."

She managed to smile and nod as the others returned the sentiment; even Hekket moved forward to give the other operative a firm clap on the shoulder. If he noticed her hesitance he didn't react – at least not immediately. He finished his greetings with the others and they stepped apart, gathering around him in a vague semi-circle.

"Alright, I know that when I left, things were rocky," he said, his voice firm with resolve. "But we're going out again, together. If things are bad enough for Blink to be called in, we're going to have to be at the top of our game to get though this in one piece."

"We're still the best unit on this station," Niamh declared, casting a dismissive glance down the hallway where the other operatives had exited. "No matter what Vass might think."

"Gettin' a bit big for his boots, eh?" Darien shook his head ruefully. "I wouldn't worry about it. Vass is good at what he does, but he's not a strategist. Smith knows that – he was never going to be in charge of this op."

"I'm glad you're back," Niamh continued. "It hasn't really been the same..."

"Maybe not." He cast an appreciative glance over the squad. "But I gather you guys have pulled off some impressive work while I've been gone."

Uther grinned. "We struggled along."

Darien's smile broadened. "Well, struggle no more. It only took a civil war, but I'm back now."