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Vegas licked her lips. “Computer, is Nell Saunders on Prodigy?”

“Negative. Nell Saunders is not on the station.”

Rane swallowed his panic. “Computer, give us the exact location of Nell’s wrist comm.”

“Nell Saunders can be located in Quadrant Three. Forty-three miles from the station.”

“That can’t be right,” Vegas said. “Computer, double check your information. Where is Nell Saunders?”

The computer repeated the coordinates.

“She must be on a ship,” Vegas said. “Computer, check departure logs for Nell Saunders.”

“Negative. Nell Saunders has not logged a departure from the station.”

Vegas turned confusion in her eyes. “If she’s not on the station and she’s not on a ship, where is she?”

A cold horror gripped Rane as he raced out of the room, his heart slamming in his chest. He ignored the calls of Nell’s colleagues.

Nell was the person he’d seen in the spacesuit. It had to be her. She was out in space and drifting away from Prodigy.

Whatever she was doing, he had to get her back.

Chapter 19

Nell was swimming in space. She kicked her legs until she was on her back and pretended to do a perfect backstroke. It was a stroke she’d never mastered in the water. It was too hard, and she worried about hitting the wall or other swimmers.

Now that she’d completed her mission, she was content. The doors were jammed open and the explosives set. She needn’t worry about anything else. She could carry on this final adventure on her own and never have to worry about being around aliens again.

Her mouth twisted to the side. Surely, she would. Nell was going on an adventure and starting a new life where nobody knew her. There would be aliens around. She couldn’t ignore them completely. She didn’t want to. Now she’d completed this part of her therapy, she should have no worries about being around aliens. Wasn’t that what all this was about?

Nell righted herself and did a slow turn. She could just about see Prodigy from where she was. She’d floated a long distance. It didn’t matter. She’d find somewhere else soon enough.

She wouldn’t be out here if it wasn’t safe. Nell had followed Doctor Kingsbury’s instructions, and now she’d get her reward. She just needed to go a little farther.

An image of Rane popped into Nell’s head. She wished things had been different. She could have loved him. Maybe a tiny part of her did.

By drifting away, she was giving up on her own mission. Nell had never confronted who had abducted her. Doctor Kingsbury believed it was Rane, but Nell’s mind revolted against the possibility.

That now familiar foggy feeling settled over her brain again. She stared at the tiny silver dot that was Prodigy. It didn’t matter. This was the right choice. Maybe some people were too damaged to be saved and had no choice but to wipe the slate clean and try again.

Nell turned her arms in small circles to slow her propulsion. For a second, she thought she heard someone say her name.

She looked around and smiled. There was nobody else out here. She was all alone.

“Nell, damn it! Respond.”

The voice was in her ear, feeding through the spacesuit’s internal comms. It sounded a lot like Rane.

Panic flashed through Nell. It was slammed away by the calming knowledge she was doing the right thing and had completed her mission.

“Nell, respond.”

Rane’s voice sent a shudder of unease through her. She activated the comm on the suit. “Rane, where are you?”

“Heading your way. Stay still and stay calm. What’s the oxygen level on your suit?”

Nell lifted her right arm and checked her suit stats. She frowned. “It’s malfunctioning. It says I only have eleven percent left.”