Reema

Two days ago, I showed you how Rome and Rei set a trap for Reema, the leader of the Onsiras. Reema and the rest of her troupe had thought it was the other way around. They thought they had the perfect trap set for our heroes by capturing their son. Her minions still held Rome's parents and Commander Ursay captive so there was more work to be done. But rather than do it by brute force, Rome decided she would educate her instead:

     At first, Reema was completely and utterly confused. MINIMCOM’s livetar grabbed her arms and yanked them behind her while Bonnie slid a T-suppressor over her brow.
     “Mommy!” Aason shouted and released his hold, running over to his mother who scooped him up and squeezed him so tight, she had to stop herself from breaking him.
     “Oh, my baby,” she said, rocking him back and forth. “I was so worried.” She kissed his little head over and over. Aason smiled and cooed. She gently removed the white band from around his forehead and kissed him yet again.
     Even though Reema was an older woman, MINIMCOM secured her arms with elastic white bands. She narrowed her eyes and looked at the group before her. She stopped when she saw Rome. She addressed her in Vuduri.
     “We still have your parents,” Reema said in a gruff voice. “If you want to save them, you will have to answer for your crimes,” she added.
     “Junior is clear,” MINIMCOM announced, ignoring her. “We will retreat to a safe distance,” the livetar added.
     “Take her into the kitchen, please” Rome said to MINIMCOM. “We’ll be there in a minute.”
     “As you wish,” replied the livetar. Rei handed the gun to Bonnie who then followed MINIMCOM and Reema out of the cargo compartment.
     Rome handed Aason to his father who took his turn squeezing and kissing him. Rome reached over and hugged them both.
     “You did so well, my baby,” Rome said. “You are so brave and smart.”
     “It was easy, Mommy,” Aason said. His little brow furrowed. “What about Grandmea and Grandbeo,” he said. “And why were they acting so funny?”
     “We’ll get to bottom of all of it,” Rome said. She looked at Rei who nodded. Rei set Aason down and the three of them crowded into the kitchen where Reema was being held.
     Reema’s deeply lined face looked around the room. Her matted hair had been dark brown once but was mostly gray now. She was wearing a gray jumpsuit that matched her hair. She couldn’t decide who she hated more. The Essessoni, the mosdurece woman, her bastard child or the robot who served them. She decided to hate them all equally.
     Rome walked around to her side of the table and sat down next to her. She put her hand on Reema’s shoulder. The older woman bristled at the touch but her bindings prevented her from shaking off the contact.

Rome was going to dive into the woman's head to figure out how best to present her with the truth.