“What?”
“Shushing the consort is a punishable offence.”
“Can I opt for banishment?”
Lily hugged her again.“You can.”
“Why do you keep hugging me?”
“You have this sad puppy energy that makes me want to hold you.”
Nebel smiled.“Our child is with the nanny.She gets broody when she doesn’t have someone to cuddle every hour.”
“I know.Get her a puppy.Nevmato is working on animal-shaped personal assistants.I think he could manage a fuzzy one.”She smiled.“Goodbye, and thank you for being kind to him.”Will sighed.“And to me.I promise to be in touch.”
Lily smiled and nodded.“Every three days, or drones are going to come looking.They are on a timer, and we need to hit the delay switch.”
Will laughed and nodded, bowing formally to Nebel before heading to the shuttle they had provided.It was the atmospheric shuttle that would be swallowed by the small warship that Nebel wanted her to test.
She settled into the pilot seat, but the ship was automated.It rose slowly and moved into the flight path.She looked at the bright golden world, spotted with domes filled with geniuses and artists plying their crafts.She could have made a home here.She would fit right in, and there were a few males who had expressed interest in her if she ever wished to pursue a relationship.Life with Grandpa had meant there was no relationship.He needed.He needed her help, her attention, and her presence.Now, just like that, it was gone.She loved him, but the pressure had been suffocating.
She watched the world fall away beneath her, and she dragged in a deep breath.The second home she had ever known.This time, she was leaving because she was choosing it.She was choosing her own path.
She was fucking terrified.
Will thought about her name.Will was definitely masculine, but her grandfather had been so proud of it.She mumbled names aloud, “Will, Willa, Wilhelmina, Trey, Treya, Trinity.Trin.I think that’s it.”She grinned.“Trin William.”
She typed out the name change and sent it to the bond house to change her link to Nebel.
She grinned when she got a notice: “Contract updated.”
“Trin.I am Trin.”She said it out loud and practiced signing her name on the console.
Making a new identity for herself was the first thing she needed to do.She didn’t mind a tie to her family, but she needed to be her own person.Starting a life at thirty sounded like the plot of a romcom, but the view screens showed her stars and space and wonder.
Trin was on course for a system that was known for its cool environments.She looked forward to it.
Winter was her favourite season, and the worlds in this system had it nine months out of the year.If she couldn’t have Christmas, she would have snow.
She looked around at the interior of the warship and smiled.It figures that Nebel would send her out in a heavily protected ship.Lily wouldn’t let it be any other way.
Trin smiled and spent days watching the stars go by.When a proximity alarm went off, she strapped in and checked the screens.“Aw, shit.Raiders.”
She grabbed the vial and dumped it on the console.“Time to go to work, Boss.Let me know when you are settled.”
Trin waited while she was hailed.“Incoming vessel, what do you want?”
“You are off trade routes, warship.Why is there a Bellen ship out here with one life sign aboard?”
“Vacation.Shakedown cruise.Take your pick.”
“You are about to be grappled.Prepare to come aboard.”
“No, I don’t think so.Boss, are you ready?”
A wry male voice that she had chosen from an archive said,“Systems acquired.Defensive protocol initiated.Hold on to your butt.”
The warship began to fire with precision, and it picked up speed as it streaked through the star system.
