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"Well, those people--Mike, the others--they weren’t killed by ordinary gunfire It had to be a Gleidel Who else has a weapon like that, except a soldier?"

Suddenly the roo up, and the same realization hits all three of us The bottom drops out of the world, and my skin’s all pins and needles as a wave of dizziness sweeps over me We all knoho has that kind of weapon, because he just used it to shoot Molly in the back of the head

Gunfire roars in the distance as Jubilee and I cross the base The air splits with the crack of the old-fashioned ballistics weapons the Fianna use and the shriek of the deadly Gleidels The stench of singed plastene and burned ches in the air I want to put ascells Away froh Doyle, away fro and I start to stu

McBride For all our differences, for all his thirst for war, I always believed anted the sa--prosperity for Avon, peace and justice for our people

But he al He murdered Mike He murdered every person who lay dead in our sanctuary, just to light the fuse behind this war And now Molly, because he wouldn’t betray Jubilee

And he’s still out there somewhere, with Sean Oh God

I’m jerked back to the present as the com-patch on Jubilee’s sleeve buzzes, and she ducks into the shelter of a building to hear it better The voice is tinny with interference, but familiar "Lee, this is Merendsen, report"

She lifts her wrist to speak into the patch "Go ahead, sir"

Merendsen’s voice is muffled, but clearly identifiable "Lee, Commander Towers has raised your threat level and ordered all nonessentials off the base and off Avon That includes me"

"Because of Molly’s?" She closes her eyes as she speaks his name

"Because they’ve confirmed the Fianna have anti-aircraft weaponry The next shuttle out of here could be the last, and I’ to accept the risk if I stay, but the commander said if I don’t boardfor the orbital spaceport You’re my security detail, but if you aren’t here to pilot it, so "I wouldn’t h the words are casual, I can tell what he’s trying to say I tried to stay, they won’t let o But their comm system is not private