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There was a part of her that enjoyed this too She suspected that the pleasure she took in Earthers claet mementos of themselves with the head of the Belters spoke poorly of her in sorown up in a universe where people like her were disposable, and she’d lived long enough for fortune’s wheel to lift her up higher than Earth’s sky Everyone wanted the Belt for a friend, now that the term meant more than a cloud of half-mined-out chunks of debris trapped between Mars and Jupiter For children born today, the Belt was the thing that tied all hue If the worst that came out of it was a little schadenfreude on her part, she could live with that

Vaughn waited in a ss that would have done credit to a ed to make it work for him His formal jacket was cut to echo old-style vac suits The h fashion Time healed all wounds, but it didn’t erase the scars so much as decorate them

“You have an hour before the reception, ma’am,” he said as Drummer sat on the couch and rubbed her feet

“Understood”

“Can I get you anything?”

“Encrypted tightbeam and privacy”

“Yes,a beat

When the door slid closed behind him, she turned on the syste in the back of her head all through the ceremonies was in place All the bits and pieces she’d need to make it happen And sooner was better than later Punishap between misbehavior and consequences, or at least that hat they told her But there was also a real advantage in giving the offender tiret

Best of all hen she could do both

She hit Record

“Captain Holden,” she said “I’h to the data on an unauthorized transit fro you access to the security review of the Freehold system It’s not much One habitable planet a little s as you don’t overnor of Freehold is named …”

She checked the records and coughed with contehter

“Payne Houston I’ that’s his own choice and not what hisyou under an executive et Eenuflect over this well before you get there, so we’ll be fine with that

“Your official e that Freehold’s repeated violations of Transportation Union guidelines have triggered punitive action, and that I’ all traffic in and out of Freehold for three years When he asks whether it’s Earth years, the answer is yes He’s going to make a point of that, because that’s the kind of idiot he is

“Your unofficial mission is not to hurry I want Freehold and all the syste toward theets there I’ll have reement If you can’t take the job, let me know as soon as possible Otherwise, I’ll have you on the roster to fuel up and make transit in the next fifteen hours”