“And where do you think most of that new generation’s ended up?” she asked. “Wait—” She leaned forward to inspect the console, found the button that closed the door between the front and back portions of the cruiser, and pushed it. In my side monitor, I saw Sanaa Mwende throw the newly sealed divider between us and her a dirty look.
Tess glanced over her shoulder to make sure she’d closed us off from Mwende. “A lot of them are in the Fold, working to further the rebellion. Or they’re part of crews, running missions for the rebel leaders. Or they’re Nightchasers, like us. Don’t picture the DT Mooncampers like a bunch of lazy birds waiting with open beaks for us to fly by and drop food down their throats.”
I scrubbed a hand over my jaw, nodding. I was more curious by the minute to see Mooncamp 1 for myself. “Since we’ve got a moment without the lieutenant listening in, what are we going to do with her?”
“Lock her up,” Tess said.
“The brig?” I asked.
She pursed her lips. “No need for that. I can reprogram the door to Miko and Shiori’s room so that it only opens from the outside.”
“She won’t like it. Or go quietly,” I added.
Tess smiled at me, a glint in her eyes I hadn’t seen since our hike in the jungle. “I’m counting on Merrick to overpower her.”
“Now there’s a confrontation I’d like to see. I doubt Mwende’s a graceful loser.”
Tess grinned. “She’s going to hate it. I can’t wait.”
Mwende banged on the door between us.
Tess laughed. “Honestly, though, she’s growing on me.”
“She’s very direct.”
“Understatement,” Tess said heartily. She reached forward and opened the door panel again.
Mwende poked her head into the front. “Are we establishing orbit or actually going down there?” she asked with a scowl.
“Sorry, Sanaa.” Tess glanced at me, her lower lip caught between her teeth as she smiled. “Okay. Let’s find theEndeavor.”
“Can you make contact with Mooncamp 1?” I asked my copilot. Tess would know what frequency to look for.
She reached for the com unit. “You think they’re here already?”
I angled us toward the moon hovering at the edge of our clear panel. “We know they escaped Korabon. That was the hardest part. Their only goal after that was to stay under the radar, recharge, and get here.”
“Yeah. No reason to think they’d run into trouble.” She fiddled with the dials and then said in surprise, “This is brand new. The only history in here is the reservation service on Reaginine.”
“I took out my old com after finding you on Starway 8 and installed this one when we were in the”—shit, Mwende was listening—“you know where.” The Fold was one hell of a place. I’d had no idea of the extent and organization of rebel operations until Tess had taken me to their secret hideaway. And by secret, I meant an alternate dimension or something. Wherever the Fold was, it wasn’thereexactly.
“Where’s the old one?” she asked.
“Garbage compacted and floated, somewhere in the Outer Zones.” Once Tess had taken me aboard theEndeavor, there’d been no way I was attracting unwanted company from a contact list that was a mile long and short on integrity.
“Smart. Although compactingandfloating might have been overkill,” she teased as she sent the new device on a search for nearby open channels. Several popped up immediately, but she waited for the list to expand, half her face lit in blue from the control panel and the other half in shadow. She was so intent and beautiful that my heart pulsed with a quick spasm.
“Do you have any contacts here?” I asked.
“Several. This is one of our places. Kind of like home.” She smiled at me.
I smiled back, but the idea ofhomeknotted in my chest, tying an ache into it.
“Got it!” DT MOONCAMP 1—OPEN CHANNEL scrolled across the small square screen in green block letters. Tess selected the frequency. “Mooncamp 1, this is…” She looked at me in question.
“Queen Bee.”
She grinned at the name I’d just given my cruiser. I shrugged, a smile tugging at my lips. I’d never bothered to name my transportation before, but Star Cruiser Model R16 seemed too boring now that Tess was on board. She loved Starway 8, and everyone knew the orphanage was famous for its rare apiary and honey making.
