That was when I began to be really afraid of what kind of people the Authority might be. Most of the Authority types I had so far encountered, such as Ernest Schultner, were professional but distant. I felt that Barnes’ stumbling, drunken behaviour had ripped the veneer away from that quietly professional surface, revealing something altogether more unpleasant.

Nobody, I noticed, made a move to help Barnes or to apprehend Nadia, even though the incident had been far from unnoticed.

Rozalia stepped up beside Nadia and grabbed her by the shoulder, quickly guiding her out through the open hangar doors. Nadia was still trembling with fury, but she let the other woman pull her along regardless.

I looked around, and then down at Barnes, who was struggling to stand. He fixed me with a look of psychotic anger, and I decided not to stick around. Besides, there were some things I really, really wanted to ask Nadia and Rozalia.

When I stepped out into the sunlight, it occurred to me there was nothing so beautiful as blue skies and clouds. The grass beneath my feet seemed like some kind of miracle after the hellish vistas I had just returned from. I looked around until I saw Nadia leaning against the outside wall of the hangar with a contrite look on her face while Rozalia lectured her.

‘You’re in a heap of trouble, you know that?’ I heard Rozalia say as I approached. ‘I mean, did you even think before you punched that son of a bitch?’

‘I don’t give a shit,’ said Nadia tonelessly, as she stepped out of her spacesuit. Rozalia’s already lay discarded to one side on the bright green grass. ‘But did you ever doubt I’d come looking for you?’

Rozalia looked as if she was about to respond sharply, but then her features softened and she shook her head. ‘Not for one moment, baby. Not for one single second.’

I cleared my throat and they looked around. ‘I, uh, don’t mean to interrupt . . .’

Rozalia grinned broadly and waved at me to come closer. Now that I wasn’t either running for my life or trying to escape being burned or frozen alive, I had an opportunity to study her a little more closely. She had close-cropped hair with a touch of grey at the temples, and I could see a long, dimpled scar on one cheek. She also, I noted, walked with a very slight limp.

To my surprise, she pulled me into a hug. ‘Thank you,’ she said, ‘for your help back there. Nadia’s had a lot of good things to say about you, Jerry.’ She leaned back again and extended a hand in a gesture of mock formality. ‘And while we’re at it, I’m Rozalia Ludke. Pleased to meet you.’

‘You too,’ I said, a little dazed. ‘Exactly how much trouble are we in now?’

‘A lot,’ said Nadia, gloomily, then tipped her head forward.