Sam reminded him that there was nowhere else to stop en route between quadrants, and despite being down two landing pads, the number of travelers who stopped for repairs was only slightly down from the year before.
Tyer made a crack about the sorry state of the hotel, and everyone had opinions aboutthat.
As the meeting began to wind down, Holly looked at the people around her. They seemed less guarded. Less skeptical. She thought, maybe, they were beginning to trust her. A little. And she had to admit, she liked them. They were good people, for the most part.
“Thank you,” she said when it was clear everyone had run out of useful things to say. Tyer had begun to focus his energy on making little digs at Cody, and a good meeting leader knew the signs of when to end a meeting. Before it devolved into arguments. “I appreciate all of you for coming. For sharing your thoughts with me.” She closed her d-pad. “I’ll follow up on everything we discussed. We’ll have another meeting soon.”
The residents began to rise, gathering themselves to leave. Holly leaned toward Sam before he could stand.
“Why didn’t more people come?” she asked quietly.
Sam shrugged. “Some live at the edge of the galaxy because they wish to not be noticed. Some are planning to leave.” He met her eyes. “The people who came want to help. They’re willing to fight for Moone’s Landing.”
Holly nodded. It would have to be enough.
The lounge emptied. Holly gathered her d-pad and rose to leave, her head full of ideas and fresh worries. She was halfway to the door when she realized that Rasker Vipp was still leaning against the wall.
She stopped short. He smiled faintly at her.
“You did well,” he said.
Holly regarded him cautiously. “Thank you.”
“It’s a shame none of it will be enough.”
Her guard snapped back up. “Excuse me?”
“The station is too far gone.” He pushed away from the wall in a fluid movement. “Sam’s right. Many of the remaining residentsareplanning to leave. Soon this will be a ghost station.”
“Are they leaving because you’re paying them to?” Holly demanded.
Rasker chuckled. “Rest ’N Recharge doesn’t use those tactics, although I cannot speak for our competitor, Complete Respite. As far as I know, no one has been paid to leave. They’re doing so for free.” Something flickered across his face. Something that looked almost like regret. “I will say, it’s sad this beautiful place has fallen to near ruin. It must have been truly beautiful in its day. They don’t make stations like this anymore.” His gaze swept the lounge, the vintage kitchen, the faded carpet. “It’s a shame to see it go.”
Holly could tell his words were genuine. That made it worse, somehow. But at the same time, her chest filled up. Ifhecould see the potential here, maybe he could see the station’s value.
“Then why don’t you help?” she asked softly, taking one small step closer.
He shook his head. “I, unlike you, live in reality.”
“Reality is what we create,” Holly said, thinking of the uncompleted station her great-grandfather had bought and shaped into a thing of dreams. “Notwhat we settle for.”
Rasker’s expression shuttered. He turned away and shifted his body toward the exit, as if to block her words. But before he slipped through the door, he looked back at her. His eyes traveled over her form, the new clothes, the hair she allowed to flow past her shoulders. Her favorite shoes.
“Your new look suits you,” he said, inclining his head. “I’m still waiting to set up a meeting with you.”
“Keep waiting.”
He sighed and slipped out the door.
Holly stood alone in the empty lounge. Her heart beat faster than it should. Her chest tingled with an annoying awareness that in addition to looking good, Rasker Vipp smelled good, too.
She walked back to her unit replaying what had just happened. Rasker had dropped the consultant role just long enough to give her a peek at what was beneath the polished exterior. It wasnoteasy to push against energies that wanted to make you into something you weren’t, but she could see that he, too, saw the beauty of this domed station. He ran Loop Road, so he’d seen the forest, the gardens, the pond, and the rest. He must have appreciated the potential that was here. He must have wondered what it could be like, again, with some attention and repairs.
And he must have also thought about what it would be reduced to when the whole dome was shut down. Holly could only hope that mental image affected him. As she walked back home, she wondered for the first time if Rasker Vipp could possibly be persuaded to be part of Moone Landing’s renewal, and not its demise.
Fifteen
Three weeks had passed since Holly had arrived on Moone’s Landing, and she had been busy.
