“Not bad, Pixie. Not bad at all.” Dax tips an imaginary hat to Brenne as she holsters her plasma-sheer and does a little victory dance. She’s just blasted nineteen out of twenty holographic ‘Forcers without taking a single hit.

Dax may have been joking about us needing combat training, but Cael took the suggestion seriously. He looks up from the holo controls to give Brenne a thumbs up.

“Learned that in the Academy, did you?” he asks with an amused lilt to his voice.

“Nope.” Brenne hops off the sim platform to join us. “Grew up near ‘Forcer Camp Alpha. My dad was the camp medic, so he used to take me along on his rounds. That’s where I learned how to shoot.” Her face lights up at some amusing memory. “The trainers always got a kick out of watching me show up their new recruits.”

Vin turns to her, eyes going wide. “I’m not sure whether to be turned on or terrified by that little info nugget.”

“Maybe you should be both.” She flexes her biceps before handing him the plasma-sheer. “Intimidated?”

“By you?” Vin grips the palm-sized weapon awkwardly, like he’s afraid he might blast off his foot. “Always.”

“Hey, Vineland!” Dax cuts in. “Stop flirting with your girlfriend and get into position. You’ve got one minute.”

Vin gives him a scathing look before climbing onto the catwalk, where Cael has set up the sim.  It’s supposed to mimic the narrow catacombs of a high-security detention center, with three flimsy metal barriers positioned at regular intervals to provide cover. The goal is to reach the finish line while shooting as many targets as possible. Hard enough, but Cael’s also rigged the course with heat-sensing stun drones. I only made it half way through before getting hit. That was fifteen minutes ago and I still can’t feel my right arm.

Vin crouches behind the first barrier, looking about as comfortable as a lobster sinking into a pot of boiling water. “Don’t worry!” Brenne shouts, elbowing me to stop my laugher even though she’s cracking up herself. “You’ve got this!”

“Drones go live in ten seconds,” Dax warns, “so you might wanna back up in the cheering section. Just saying.”

Once we’ve retreated to a safe distance, I ask Brenne if she knows where Astrid went. She slipped away with Thea right after we left the control room and I haven’t seen either one of them since.

“Don’t know,” she answers with a shrug. “Maybe to check on Ferr?”

I grind my teeth at the suggestion, which makes perfect sense. Of course Astrid would go back to her golden boy. It doesn’t matter that his betrayal almost cost us our lives. You’d think I would have learned by now. High Founders always stick together. Stupid to think that will ever change.

“Hey.” Brenne grabs my arm and I hear the gentle reproach in her voice. “Now’s not the time for that. She needs you.”

“Yeah, right.”

“It’s true. I know she hides it well, but she’s suffering right now.”

“Well she can get in line! We’re all suffering, Brenne. Why should Princess Astrid’s pain count any more than yours or mine? What makes her so bleeding special?”

I try to pull away but Brenne won’t let go. “Sulking’s not your style, Wil. You’re better than that.”

“Oh? And how do you know?”

“Because…” she says, finally releasing me, “my best friend wouldn’t fall for a self-pitying loser.”

“Wait, did you…?” I take a few steps back, wondering if I just heard that right. Talk about a loaded sentence. “Did you just call me a loser?” And what was that part about your best friend falling for me?

“Um, no.” She blushes, like a little kid who just realized she’s blurted out too much. “What I meant was, you’re sort of acting like a loser. Think about what she’s going through. First her father and now...” Her voice cracks with emotion. “Ferro.” 

She’s right. Given what’s happened over the past week, Astrid must feel like she’s fallen into a nightmare. “I see your point,” I admit. “What do you suggest I do?”

“Same thing you did in York. When her dad was arrested and she needed someone, she turned to you, Wil. Not me.”  She shakes her head to drive home the point. “And not Ferro.”

Her words take me back to that moment in the generator room when Astrid finally let down her guard. When she cried against my shoulder, it felt like I was meant to be there. Like all the seemingly random twists and turns in my life had led me to that one purpose.

I’m about to thank Brenne for opening my eyes when Vin grunts and starts cursing behind us.

“That’s a head shot, Vineland!” Dax says with way too much enthusiasm. “Ten seconds in and you’re already dead!”

“How ‘bout I show you my version of a head shot?” Vin fires back. One look at his expression and I know exactly where this is going. I’ve seen that clenched jaw and tight, humorless smile enough times.

“Here.” Brenne steps in to let me know she’s got this. “I’ll defuse the testosterone bomb. You need to find Astrid. Talk to her, before it’s too late.”

“But –”

“Don’t think, Wil.” She shoves me toward the exit, pale green eyes giving me an extra push. “Just go.”

*

Astrid shouldn’t be hard to track down. She’ll be with Ferro, so all I need to do is find his holding cell. I pull up my mental map of the subnaut. Three levels, each with a narrow central walkway running like a spine from bow to stern. Sonar and torpedo rooms up front. Control deck, engineering and crew’s quarters in the mid-section. Reactor, propulsion and steering in the rear.

“She’s in the galley, talking to Thea.”

I jump at the sound of Lily’s voice, which came from right behind me. When I spin around, she’s standing there with hands on hips, so close I could touch her. How does she do that?

“Who are you talking about?”

“Your Stalker Princess.” She puckers her lips as if the words taste sour. “Who else?”

“Actually, I’m, uh…” Why am I noticing her lips? I cross my arms, trying to ignore the hot sensation creeping onto my cheeks. “I’m looking for Thea.”

“Sure you are.” Those lips now curve into a playful smile. Or is it a smirk? “Well then you’re going the wrong way. Looks like those super Stalker senses were taking you…” – She sniffs in the direction I was heading, like a fox scenting the wind – “…straight to the waste disposal room. Here, I’ll show you the way.”

“Don’t bother.” I stomp past her. “I’ll find it on my own.”

Her laughter trails behind me, fueling my anger. I still can’t sift her with this damn blocking collar around my neck, but it’s easy to guess her thoughts. She sees me as a fragging joke. The realization hits me harder than it should. I mean, who is this girl anyway? She’s basically a stranger, so why should I care what she thinks? And why in fragging flames is she still following me?

Lily must sense my mood, because she only breaks the silence to call out an occasional direction. When we finally reach the crew’s quarters, I reach for the hatch with no intention of stopping to thank her.

“Hey, Wil?”

I spin around at the sound of her voice, practically baring my teeth. “What?”

“I...” She looks away. Takes a deep breath. “I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings back there. It’s just… I don’t really know what to say around you.” Her eyes dart back to mine, searching. “Know what I mean?”

I nod, remembering how she drew back her hood to reveal herself in Washton. Even now, it’s hard to believe she’s real.

“Anyway, I’m glad our paths crossed again.”

She bites her lip and I get the feeling she wants to say more, but we’re interrupted by the sound of grinding metal. Moments later, the hatch swings open and Astrid emerges from the crew’s quarters. Her gaze shifts from me to Lily, eyes narrowing.

“Lily, right?” She crinkles her nose, like she’s just sniffed something rotten. “You’re supposed to be in the Comm room.”

Lily edges toward her. “Is that an order, Stalker?”

“Yes, it is,” Astrid replies, standing her ground. “Given by Thea. She and Cael are probably waiting for you right now.” She tilts her chin in a dismissive gesture. “You’d better get going.”

Lily shoots her the kind of toying look a cat would give a three-legged mouse. To pounce or not to pounce? Guess she decides it’s not worth the effort, because she leans in to whisper “See you later” into my ear before sauntering off.

“Catching up on old times?” Astrid asks, eyes boring into the back of Lily’s head as she walks away.

“I could ask you the same thing,” I throw back at her. “How’s Ferro?”

“I wouldn’t know.”

“But weren’t you just with him?”

“No.”

Okay. Not the answer I expected. She twists away before I can ask for an explanation, but I don’t need one. If she wasn’t with Ferro, that can only mean one thing.  “Then you think he’s guilty?”

Her shoulders heave in confirmation, rising and falling with each muffled sob. Now that she’s traded her parka for a t-shirt, it’s painfully clear how much weight she’s lost over the past month. Her shoulder blades look so sharp and curved, like a bird’s wings trapped beneath the fabric. Brenne’s right about her suffering. Why didn’t I notice sooner?

“When’s the last time you ate?” I ask.

She glances over her shoulder to give me an exasperated look. “That’s your next question?”

“Sure.” I shrug. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but we’re about to raid Scilla and you look like a gust of wind could knock you over. I’m worried about you.”

“Worry about yourself,” she snaps. “I’ll be ready.”

“I know you will, but…” I fumble for the right words, but what do you say to someone who’s just lost her father, then been betrayed by a backstabbing boyfriend? “This can’t be easy for you. I’m so sorry about your father and…”

She turns to face me, blinking back tears.

“…Ferro. I know how much he means to you.”

“I trusted him,” she whispers.

“We all did.”

“No. No you didn’t. You tried to warn me, but I wouldn’t listen. I trusted him, just like Dad trusted his father.” She tightens her jaw and I know she’s thinking about the vid we just watched, the one in which Ferro’s father stood smiling behind a triumphant Cillian Gant. “His psychopathic sister has always hated me. I bet she couldn’t wait to stick a knife in my back. But Ferro? How could he?” She leaves the question hanging, heartbreak in her voice.

“I don’t know.” Now would be the perfect time to bury Ferro, but what would that accomplish? We need to know what he knows, and there’s only one way to make that happen. “But maybe Ferro has some answers. You need to see him. Get him to talk.”

“I can’t.”

“I’m sorry, Astrid, but you have no choice. He won’t talk to anyone else.”

She shakes her head, lips pressed into a stubborn line. “You’re wrong about that. I already had this conversation with your friend Thea. She thinks Brenne and I are too emotionally involved. That you’re the best person to see him.”

“Me?” I almost turn around to see if she’s speaking to someone else behind me. “You can’t be serious.”

“Yes, I am.” She glances over her shoulder, in the direction of the crew’s quarters. “They’re holding him in a supply room, just off the galley. The guard outside will be expecting you.”

There’s that set, determined look I’ve grown so accustomed to by now. Whatever comes out of her mouth next will be an order, not a request.

“And this is what you’re going to tell him…”

***

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