from Professor Dane's class, but it's from the same department. Lost cultures. Cultures so old we only have stories about them.”
“I know what the phrase means,” she said.
And it frightened her. How could she be his weakness? They hadn't seen each other in decades.
“I should have reported you,” he said softly. “I should have reported you the moment the Dane crossed into Enterran territory.”
It felt like her heart stopped. Then she realized she had forgotten to take a breath. “What do you mean?”
“Squishy,” he said, standing up. He started to come toward her, then seemed to think better of it and stopped. “How can you let them call you Squishy? You have a beautiful name. You're a beautiful woman, Rose.”
He knew she had lived outside the Enterran Empire. He knew her nickname. He knew much more about her than she had ever known about him.
“For the first time in your life,” he said, “when you left Vallevu, you didn't leave it entirely. You stayed in touch. You let some people know how you were doing. You didn't say much in the messages, but the messages came from the Nine Planets Alliance.”
Her fists were clenched so tightly that her hands ached. Had she made a mistake coming to the Empire? Not for herself, but for all the others? For the work she had been doing back at the Nine Planets? Had she let the Empire in when Boss and the team had worked so hard to keep the Empire out?
“Don't worry,” he said. “I couldn't track you inside the Alliance. They have good protections in place.”
Her heart started pounding. She had forgotten that he used to do that, answer her questions even when she hadn't spoken them.
“But I have a hunch I know what got you out to the Nine Planets,” he said. “There've been credible rumors that the Nine Planets has made breakthroughs in stealth tech. I know enough about stealth tech to know that the person who understands it best is you.”
She almost denied it. She didn't understand it best, not anymore. Now there was an entire department of people who worked with the anacapa drive, who had worked on it all of their lives, working with knowledge passed down from generations. Now she was behind in her understanding of the technology.
Although not in her understanding of the technology that the Empire was developing. Imperial stealth tech consistently malfunctioned and killed because imperial stealth tech tried to harness a burning log with a rope. Sometimes the rope held for just a moment, but eventually it would get burned as well. Everyone who worked in imperial stealth tech believed that the log was the technology. They didn't even see or understand the fire.
“I wanted you back here,” he said, extending his hands. She looked at his hands, then looked at him, keeping her gaze level, showing as little emotion as she possibly could. He was scaring her. He probably knew how much he was scaring her, and by extending his hands, he tried to calm her.
Slowly, he let his hands drop.
“I wanted you working for us again,” he said. “You know so much, and things have gone so wrong.”
“You're the one who leaked that information about the stealth-tech research,” she said. Anger she hadn't even realized she was feeling made her voice tremble. “You're the one.”
He nodded. “I figured it would bring you back. And it did.”
ONE YEAR EARLIER
S quishy stood in front of the schematics for the small anacapa drive displayed on the table before her. She had her hands clasped behind her back. Six people crowded around her. The room was long and narrow, adjacent to her office, an office she rarely used. Mostly, she was in the various labs, working on a dozen projects.
Once upon a time, she supervised all of the work on the space station, but she couldn't any longer. Too much was being done. So much, in fact, that Boss—or to be more accurate, the Lost Souls Corporation—had recently purchased another space station for different kinds of work.
“I know what the phrase means,” she said.
And it frightened her. How could she be his weakness? They hadn't seen each other in decades.
“I should have reported you,” he said softly. “I should have reported you the moment the Dane crossed into Enterran territory.”
It felt like her heart stopped. Then she realized she had forgotten to take a breath. “What do you mean?”
“Squishy,” he said, standing up. He started to come toward her, then seemed to think better of it and stopped. “How can you let them call you Squishy? You have a beautiful name. You're a beautiful woman, Rose.”
He knew she had lived outside the Enterran Empire. He knew her nickname. He knew much more about her than she had ever known about him.
“For the first time in your life,” he said, “when you left Vallevu, you didn't leave it entirely. You stayed in touch. You let some people know how you were doing. You didn't say much in the messages, but the messages came from the Nine Planets Alliance.”
Her fists were clenched so tightly that her hands ached. Had she made a mistake coming to the Empire? Not for herself, but for all the others? For the work she had been doing back at the Nine Planets? Had she let the Empire in when Boss and the team had worked so hard to keep the Empire out?
“Don't worry,” he said. “I couldn't track you inside the Alliance. They have good protections in place.”
Her heart started pounding. She had forgotten that he used to do that, answer her questions even when she hadn't spoken them.
“But I have a hunch I know what got you out to the Nine Planets,” he said. “There've been credible rumors that the Nine Planets has made breakthroughs in stealth tech. I know enough about stealth tech to know that the person who understands it best is you.”
She almost denied it. She didn't understand it best, not anymore. Now there was an entire department of people who worked with the anacapa drive, who had worked on it all of their lives, working with knowledge passed down from generations. Now she was behind in her understanding of the technology.
Although not in her understanding of the technology that the Empire was developing. Imperial stealth tech consistently malfunctioned and killed because imperial stealth tech tried to harness a burning log with a rope. Sometimes the rope held for just a moment, but eventually it would get burned as well. Everyone who worked in imperial stealth tech believed that the log was the technology. They didn't even see or understand the fire.
“I wanted you back here,” he said, extending his hands. She looked at his hands, then looked at him, keeping her gaze level, showing as little emotion as she possibly could. He was scaring her. He probably knew how much he was scaring her, and by extending his hands, he tried to calm her.
Slowly, he let his hands drop.
“I wanted you working for us again,” he said. “You know so much, and things have gone so wrong.”
“You're the one who leaked that information about the stealth-tech research,” she said. Anger she hadn't even realized she was feeling made her voice tremble. “You're the one.”
He nodded. “I figured it would bring you back. And it did.”
ONE YEAR EARLIER
S quishy stood in front of the schematics for the small anacapa drive displayed on the table before her. She had her hands clasped behind her back. Six people crowded around her. The room was long and narrow, adjacent to her office, an office she rarely used. Mostly, she was in the various labs, working on a dozen projects.
Once upon a time, she supervised all of the work on the space station, but she couldn't any longer. Too much was being done. So much, in fact, that Boss—or to be more accurate, the Lost Souls Corporation—had recently purchased another space station for different kinds of work.
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