“I had to tell them what was happening. I watched you unresponsive on my monitor, and I’d never been so scared. I wish…” Declan was quiet for a moment. “Lorne’s so unbelievably mad at me.” A long sigh hissed across the com. “And if I’m honest, I’m mad at myself, too. Watching you today was impressive. I’m blown away by your strength and determination, but I’m second guessing every single step that led us here. This never should’ve happened. I’ve failed you, and that’s the last thing I wanted to do.”

Failed me? I had a lot to say about that, but it’d have to wait until we didn’t have an audience.

“Lorne is coming to pick you up. He’ll be there in a few minutes.”

“What?” I sat up. “No!”

“Martinez?” Carl asked. “You okay?”

I heard his question, but it felt like it was a million light-years away. My mind was spinning, and answering Carl didn’t matter anymore.

None of this mattered. Nothing that I’d suffered through would matter if Lorne picked me up. That would mean war.

It felt like I’d been kicked in the gut. All the air was gone. Declan couldn’t do this to me. Avoiding war was why I went to Abaddon in the first place. It was why I endured working the most idiotic job in the entire godforsaken universe. It was why I tried to find my own way out of it and ended up mining. It was why I’d survived for hours today on Apollyon. Giving up now meant that all of that was for nothing. That I’d suffered for no reason. That I was the one who failed.

His new plan was iced. I hated it. I was trying to figure out how to tell him that with the control room listening in when the drones around me smashed to the ground, and the yelling from the base abruptly cut off.

“Ahiga just wiped out communication. He made it look like an accident, but they’re going crazy, and it might not last long.”

“I don’t need saving. Find another way. Negotiate with—”

“It’s not up to you or me anymore. Lorne started this way as soon as he got Ahiga’s message. Apparently, he was almost here when I called him. I was hoping to do this more delicately. I wanted to somehow keep the peace, but the Aunare have decided that war is inevitable. That SpaceTech crossed the final line. Lorne will be there soon. I’m connecting him to you now.”

“Amihanna.” That one word from Lorne sent shivers down my spine. My skin flared, and I was glad Ahiga had already shut down the drones. It wasn’t just my name that set me off, but the way he said it, laced with so many layers of emotion.