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Melba had to read the words three tio in there,” Soledad was saying, so whine “My father I told you about him You understand Your sister was there too You have to tell Bob or Stanni to do it I can’t”

They were going after Holden They were going through the Ring after Holden Her panic didn’t fall away so ,” Melba said “This one’sshe’d done since she cae to the contracts officer with her ID nu that she’d accept transfer to the Prince Two minutes later, she had her orders Three hours to finish her affairs on the Cerisier, then into the transport and gone It was intended, she knew, as a time to meet with her team,a locker with industrial sealant was one thing The foam was made to apply quickly and remain old and set The excess could be cut aith a sharp knife for the next hour After that, nothing would ht kind of solvent, and even that was an ugly, arduous process

But leaving the body where it could be found wasn’t an option Soned to her bunk, and they’d want to use the locker Besides which, leaving Ren behind see And so with two and a half hours before she left the ship, Melba took a pair of shoulder-length latex gloves, three cans of solvent, a roll of absorbent towels, and a vacuue personal tool case into her room and locked the door behind her

The locker door didn’t want to open at first, fixed in place by a drop of sealant she hadn’t noticed, but a few sprays of solvent degraded it until she could pull it open with her fingers The sealant was a single rough-textured face of gold, like a cliff made small She opened the tool case, took a deep breath, and faced the grave

“I’m sorry about this,” she said “I’m really, really sorry”

At first the solvent spray didn’t see beyond a sharp s, like a thousand insects walking over stone Gouges and crevasses formed in the sealant wall, then a small runnel of sli them on the floor to catch the flow

Ren’s knee was the first part to appear, the round cap of the bone and death-blackened skin e foam like a fossil The fabric of his uniform was soaked with fluid rot The smell hit her, but it wasn’t as bad as she’d expected She’d ientler than that When she took his legs to draw him out, they fell away fros in towels, and put them in the toolbox Herthe dead of centuries before out into the light Here was his spine This was the vile slush where the hydrochloric acid in his gut, no longer held in check by the ested his stomach, his liver, his intestines She drew out his head last, the bright red hair darkened and flecked with matter like an overused kitchen mop

She lifted the bones into the toolbox, packed theore- and corruption-soaked towels, then closed his new coffin, triggered the seal, and set the lock combination She had fortyout the locker where Ren had spent his death, then stripped off the gloves and threw the to scrub off the stink, and noticed distantly that she was sobbing She ignored the fact, and by the ti sees, threw them in a pack, put her still-wet hair in a ponytail, and hauled Ren to the loading bay where the other supplies would be taken across to the Prince It didn’t allow her tioodbyes to Soledad or Stanni or Bob She was sorry for that, but it was a burden she could bear

There were about thirty of them, all told Men and women she’d seen around the ship, heard their naalley or on the exercise ht into a small white conference room with benches that bolted to the floor like pews They were already under thrust, alreadyand whatever was on the other side While the overly enthusiastic yeolanced at the faces around her An old man with a scruffy white beard and ice-blue eyes A stocky blond woer than she ith poorly applied eyeliner and a grim look about the jowls They’d all come here of their own free will Or free will as bounded by the terh the Ring, into the mouth of whatever was on the other side She wondered ould motivate them to do it, what kinds of secrets they’d hidden in their tool chests

“You will need to keep your identification cards with you at all ti up a white plastic card on a lanyard “Not only are these the keys to get into your quarters, they’ll also get you food in the civilian commissary And they’ll let you know if you’re where you’re supposed to be”

The blond wolared Melba looked away, blushing She hadn’t intended to stare Never be rude unintentionally, her father had always said

The yeoman’s white card turned a deep, bloody red

“If you see this,” he said, “it means you’re in a restricted area and need to leave i ship, and we all get a little turned around soot buzzed four tiet bent out of shape over an honestup on them, so be prepared”

Melba looked at her ohite card It had her na about how much they were appreciated, and how their service was an honor to the ship and to the teaut, and she tried to distract herself

She didn’t knohat she’d do once they were all on the other side, but she had to find Holden She had to destroy hi that led back to her had to be destroyed or discredited She wondered if there was a way to get a fake card, or one that belonged to someone with a lot more clearance than Melba Koh would have Maybe one that could check out a shuttle She’d need to look into it She was ie would be critical