Serendipity (Book 1 of the Dana Halliday series)

WASTING GOOD SARCASM. FAMILIAL TELEPATHY. GRATIFIER.

I leaned back to catch Adrian's deadpan eye. "You won Serendipity in a card game?"

"I wasn't expecting to win." His face broke into an authentic smile. He nodded courteously at Kleathanna. "Especially not against a true ejomsop master."

Klea handed him back the gracious nod. "You're a quick learner."

Gabriel said something to the nearest Sturv. He sounded rather like a dog on a summer day, too hot and unmotivated to do more than bark lazily at the mailman. "And you are a good teacher, my dear."

Flynt grumbled into his glass of wine.

"I thought you said something about her former own—" This time I felt claws in the region of my kneecap. "I mean, I kind of assumed you were her former owner, Gabe."

The Earther huffed. "Serendipity isn't built for fighting. She's meant for rescuing and then running away. She would have made a nice toy for my wife, but alas..." He shrugged. "No offense to you, Travers. I know you prefer to avoid conflict."

"I'm a coward, it's true," Adrian agreed, chipper as a chickadee.

Flynt spoke in identifiable Fenn, but my Earwig didn't translate it. My little translating friend was asleep on the job, or so it seemed. Adrian patted his shoulder and gave a forcible laugh.

"What was that?" Gabriel asked, and the hair on the back of my neck prickled. For a moment, I wanted to throw myself down and beg his forgiveness for my smartassery.

"Oh, he just forgot to thank you for your escort from Tirza 50's system that time. Didn't you, mate?" Adrian said. "He just said it was, ahem, very generous to help us out after we stole your wife's prize."

Flynt subsided.

"I trust that all the, um, controversy over your win is worked out?" Gabriel was apparently satisfied that he wasn't being mocked. "If not, I could be persuaded to—"

"Nope," Adrian interjected. "But I try to stay away from Tirza 50 all the same. All settled, mate, and thank you again."

"Good." Liang paused to watch the rest of us eat for the next few moments, only toying with his own food. "You know, Travers, I'd have expected more gallantry from a descendant of Ukrainian kings."

I had attacked my plate, in hopes that having something in my mouth would leave less room for my foot. It worked, in that I had to concentrate not to inhale a handful of nuts—which I suspected were probably larval forms of the chicken-fried scarabs—into my lungs. 

In the few seconds it took to keep from dying, I was able to glance at Adrian again, and I imagined an instant of familial telepathy.

Ukrainian? I said with my exaggerated chewing.

Go with it, replied his left eyebrow.

I countered with my watering eyes. Dude, did Ukraine even have kings?

Go with it, D.

Okay, but really...why not Russia? They had a royal family.

His eyebrow didn't budge. Go. With. It.

I took a gulp of wine to clear the pipes. "I know, right? I mean, his mom just goes on and on, tsar this and imperial that. You'd think Anastasia was her grandmother."

Liang chuckled. "Not likely. Anastasia finished out her days on an Oploki colony."

I burst out in a laugh, needing another swallow to keep from choking, then realized he wasn't kidding. "Oh, don't tell me. Anastasia was abducted by aliens?"