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“Why?”

Anna’s eyes clouded For asome internal conversation But only for a moment She leaned forward, her hands clasped

“I didn’t help you before I saw you just before the Seung Un blew up,” she said “Just before you set off the bomb”

“It was too late by then,” Clarissa said Ren had already been dead “You couldn’t have stopped it”

“You’re right,” Anna said “That’s not the only reason I’m here I also… I lost someone When all the ships stopped, I lost someone”

“Someone you cared about,” Clarissa said “Someone you loved”

“Someone I hardly knew, but it was a real loss And also I was scared of you I am scared of you But Tilly told et past some of my fear”

“Not all of it?”

“No Not all of it”

So deep in the structure of the ship thu for afar, far away

“I could kill you,” Clarissa said “Before they got the door open”

“I know I saw”

Clarissa put her hand out, her palainst the notched runner The finish was smooth and the metal cool

“You want a confession, then?” she said

“If you want to offer one”

“I did it,” Clarissa said “I sabotaged the Rocinante and the Seung Un I killed Ren I killed some people back on Earth I lied about who I was All of it I’ht”

“Are we done, then?”

Anna scratched her nose and sighed “I cah itmy baby for months I told myself that I wanted to come see it To help people make sense of it and, whatever it was, to not be afraid You came out here to… save your father To redeem him”

“Is that what Tilly says?”

“She’s not as polite about it”

Clarissa coughed out a laugh Everything she could say felt trite Worse, it felt naive and stupid Jim Holden destroyed my fa