Page 119 of Veiled Vixen

“It’s as much yours as it is his. Or mine. It’s really just… ours. You know?”

He’s still silent. And for a moment I wonder if he left me here.

“I hope,” he finally says, “that you can see the similarities.”

“To what?” I laugh.

“To Veila. Because she was like me when she arrived. She was like everyone when they first arrived. She was lost. And then, slowly, over time, she realized that this was a place for all the outcast people. All the wandering ones. All the loners. All the ones who failed miserably at first. She realized that this station was her second chance.”

“So I should trust her?”

“You should consider it. That’s all the advice I have to offer. You should look at her now, not then. Just like you look at me now, not then. Just like you look at ALCOR now, and not then. Did you love him the day you arrived?”

“No. He scared the shit out of me.”

“And Veila scares you too. But we have something good here, Valor. And she was the one who made that good possible again.”

I’m the one who pauses now.

“No,” Baby says. “Not just her. Both of you. This time pause—whatever it is—this is not something she does. Or you do. It’s something the two of you did together because you are connected. Because of the bond you were forced into. I believe humans call that… a team. So all I’m saying is that you should not throw away the greatest gift that time gives.”

“What’s that, then?”

“A new perspective.”