Saul felt a chill spread through his bones, as he listened intently.

‘Now I don’t know what the hell that means,’ Olivia continued. ‘I can speculate certainly, say that somehow Mitchell’s waking triggered the artefacts inside that shipment into becoming the growths, or maybe it was the other way round and something inside that shipment caused him to wake up.’ She sighed. ‘But if you asked me to go with my gut, after seeing how much he’s changed and knowing what happened to him . . . then I can’t help wondering if that really is him, no matter how much it looks or acts or sounds like him.’

She then went on, Saul listening but not really hearing as she told him their plans for the future. There were three hundred of them on board the Jupiter platform, with stockpiles enough to survive for decades yet, and perhaps even centuries, if their agricultural programme took off.

Saul felt that same bottomless sadness he’d experienced when he’d last spoken to her directly, knowing that if he survived this day then this would be his one remaining memory of her, sitting bleary-eyed and haggard in front of a terminal, while all those strangers hurried past.

She started to finish up, but he stopped the file, unwilling to hear her say goodbye a second time. He saw Mitchell peering at him across the lander, and once again Saul felt a familiar chill settle beneath his skin.

‘I heard the three of you talking through there in the command module,’ he said. ‘You’ve heard from Olivia?’

‘Yeah.’

‘And?’

Mitchell nodded. ‘I’m glad to hear that. Can I see it? The message?’

Saul felt his throat tighten. ‘I’d rather not.’

‘Any reason why?’

‘It’s . . . personal.’

He frowned. ‘Can’t be that personal, surely? I—’ A look of enlightenment crossed his face, and he nodded. ‘Do you know, I actually forgot, for a moment there, about you and Olivia.’

‘You were out of the loop for a couple of years back there. It’s understandable.’

‘You two . . .’ Mitchell traced a loop in the air with the forefinger of one hand. ‘I know you met up while Jeff was still on the run. Did you . . . ?’

‘No, all that was over a long time ago,’ Saul replied, unable to hide a hint of regret.

‘Right,’ Mitchell nodded, ‘if it’s private, it’s private.’

‘Thanks for understanding.’

Saul tried not to show his relief that Mitchell was not being more insistent.