This is my future, shaped byme,not Verux’s greed or that of any other company. Right now, though, it’s just one ship and me.
Though I’m hoping to change that.
I watch Kane prod at the hatchway, probably checking for crumbling foam seals out of habit, and my stomach lurches in a mix of anticipatory flutters and stabbing dread.It’s not too late, Kovalik. Just give Kane the tour, and let it be done. You don’t have to do this.
Except Iwantto. I think. I’m just not sure which is going to win out, the want or the fear. The possibility of success versus the very real relief from not taking the chance at all.
I follow Kane in. “Lots of available parts means cheaper repairs.You’re the one who told me that,” I say, rubbing my sweaty palms against the worn legs of my jumpsuit. Wearing anything else still feels strange, even after months of dressier clothes for congressional hearings, depositions, and court dates.
Kane lowers his hand from the hatch. He looks so much healthier these days. No more gray tint to his skin, no deep purple circles beneath his eyes from stress and lack of sleep. It took months for him to make a full recovery, and he still has issues with headaches.
“I did say that,” he agrees readily enough. “But it’ll be a full-time job keeping her up and running. I told you that, too.” He holds my gaze, bright blue eyes seeing right through me, to the core where I’m scared and he knows it.
Suddenly, we are standing too close together.
“Come on.” I turn away from him, but my shoulder brushes his chest.
I shiver, heat rising in my cheeks.
Taking a deep breath, I push down unruly emotions and lead the way to the bridge, up a short flight of stairs and to the left through a narrow corridor. The overheads are higher on theCharlotte,so at least Kane won’t have to duck.
From the corner of my eye, I catch a glimpse of Derik, drifting aimlessly down the hall away from us, his hand trailing lovingly across the wall. Derik has been dead, as near as I can tell, for at least twenty years. I haven’t found his name in theCharlotte’s records yet, but whoever he was, he loved this ship and he seems okay here. Perfectly happy to ignore me. For now, anyway.
I’ve been watching for my mom, but nothing. Perhaps her absence is the best sign of all. It’s safe. I think she would be pleased, though, both by the ship and its name.
The narrow corridor dead-ends into a blast door—another safety protection, given that piracy is an ever-present threat in the transport business—but the door is currently standing open, revealing the bridge. A wide, open space, compared to the LINA’s. There’s even a seat for my mech, assuming he—or she or whoever!—wants it. No matter what, I’ll need to hire other crew.
“All the chairs have been replaced,” I say to Kane, gesturing toward the bridge. “Used models, yes, but upgrades. No more worn-out padding and questionable springs.” I sound defensive, and I hate it.
Kane just nods.
“The comm board has also been completely—” I begin, gesturing at the console right as it signals a new message. And because I’m the only one living here at the moment, I don’t have the privacy controls on, which means the message pops right up on the main screen.
He raises his eyebrows. “A Forum subscription. To theAurorathreads?”
I try not to grimace. “It’s proved useful in the past.”
Kane stays silent, but I can feel both the questions and concern radiating from him. And it’s not like that. I’m not obsessing.
“Did you see the fucking memorial?” I burst out, furious heat in my chest at just the memory of it. “Just an empty hunk of rock with their names carved in it.” Just like all of Verux’s other fuckups. Slap a memorial up and call it done. No. Hell no.
The civil suit—the one we’re bringing against Verux with the families of theAurorapassengers—might help, if we win before Verux goes bankrupt. But I’m not taking any chances.
“At least this way Nysus’s name will be remembered,” I say, quieter. Nysus’s family refused to meet or speak with me, even after I sent his share. They’ve never publicly acknowledged the death of their son. “All of their names will be remembered.”
“What did you do?” Kane asks, eyeing me with mild suspicion.
“I made sure Voller, Lourdes, and Nysus were all officially acknowledged on the thread as the finders of theAurora,along with us.” Lately the media has been too focused on Kane and me, forgetting that we were once a team of five.
“And?” Kane prompts, gesturing for me to spit out the rest.
I sigh. “I might have paid the Forum to permanently rename that section. It’s now the Dionysus MemorialAuroraArchive and Messageboard.” That was my only other major purchase.
A smile spreads slowly across Kane’s face. “That’s a mouthful,” he says after a moment.
“Yeah, but his name is on every page now, at the top,” I point out.
Kane laughs. “He would have liked that.”
