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“Good,” Holden said “Extreood”

“I may be a little pissed off”

The contents of Monica’s quarters were laid out on the gray-green ceraes, and the background soup of DNA from thousands of people who’d been in contact with the objects in the last week, usually with too small a sample to identify an individual This as left A clothing bag, its zipper ripped and hanging open in awhen he’d seen her a few days before Her crippled hand ters that hadn’t belonged to the station when it rented her the space It seeh there He realized it was just that he was thinking of it as the collection of a lifetime Probably she had other possessions somewhere else, but maybe she didn’t If they didn’t find her alive, maybe this was all she’d have to leave behind

“You cannot be fucking serious,” Sakai said for what seeineer’s face was red, his jaw set He’d arrived at the security station a few minutes after Fred and Holden, and Holden was a little surprised Fred hadn’t had hiht ships inbound within the next week What am I supposed to do? Tell them to match orbit and float until we decide whether we’ll let them in?”

“Seeood start,” Fred said

“We have supplies due to ship on half a dozen contracts”

“I’m aware of that, Mister Sakai” Fred’s voice was no louder; there was no anger in it The cool politeness made the hair on the back of Holden’s neck rise Sakai seemed to feel it too It didn’t stop hi

“I’ve got shipo out There are a lot of people counting on us”

For a , but his voice was just as strong “I’ain as soon as we can”

Sakai wavered, on the edge of saying soh and walked back out as the head of security came in She was a thin-faced woman Fred called Drummer, but Holden didn’t know if that was her first na she went by

“How’s it going?” Fred asked

“Nothing we can’t handle,” she said Her voice had a crisp accent that Holden couldn’t place She glanced at him, nodded curtly, and turned back to Fred “Do we have any infor we expect the lockdown to be in effect?”

“Tell them the interruption of service will be as brief as possible”

“Yes, sir Thank you, si

r,” Drummer said, then turned away