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Chapters (57)
  1. Cover
  2. Dedication
  3. CHAPTER ONE
  4. CHAPTER TWO
  5. CHAPTER THREE
  6. CHAPTER FOUR
  7. CHAPTER FIVE
  8. CHAPTER SIX
  9. CHAPTER SEVEN
  10. CHAPTER EIGHT
  11. CHAPTER NINE
  12. CHAPTER TEN
  13. CHAPTER ELEVEN
  14. CHAPTER TWELVE
  15. CHAPTER THIRTEEN
  16. CHAPTER FOURTEEN
  17. CHAPTER FIFTEEN
  18. CHAPTER SIXTEEN
  19. CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
  20. CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
  21. CHAPTER NINETEEN
  22. CHAPTER TWENTY
  23. CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
  24. CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
  25. CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
  26. CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
  27. CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
  28. CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
  29. CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
  30. CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
  31. CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
  32. CHAPTER THIRTY
  33. CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
  34. CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
  35. CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
  36. CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
  37. CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
  38. CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
  39. CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
  40. CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
  41. CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
  42. CHAPTER FORTY
  43. CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
  44. CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
  45. CHAPTER FORTY-THREE
  46. CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
  47. CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE
  48. CHAPTER FORTY-SIX
  49. CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN
  50. CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT
  51. Acknowledgments
  52. Discover More
  53. extras
  54. meet the author
  55. interview
  56. A Preview of "A Big Ship at the Edge of the Universe"
  57. A Preview of "Adrift"

The bearded man stands on the hull, unsteady on his feet and blinking in the sunlight like someone freshly awoken. He tilts back his head, gazing out at the sky and the ocean and the red sun, and he smiles. It is the kind of smile that transforms his whole face, even after it fades. It leaves him looking gentler.

Despite the man’s wounds, and despite the peacekeepers shouting at them from the nearby boats, the three of them wait.

Finally, one last survivor climbs out of the crashed ship. She sways with the movement of the water, one foot slipping on the damp hull. Then, with an exuberant yell, she stretches both arms wide as if she means to embrace the whole world in front of her. She is still grinning when the authorities slap the handcuffs on her.

That look of elation is mirrored by the strange woman standing on the end of the dock, even as tears start to roll down her cheeks.

CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE

Missing Pieces

Corvus

The ocean is calm today. The hoverboat barely rocks beneath me as I stretch out on my back, and the salt-touched breeze is a soothing reprieve from the sun overheard. I’m not sure how long I’ve been here. With one arm over my eyes and my wounded leg soaking up the warm rays, I could spend all day in this boat. I often have, in the week since the Nibiran Council decided to release my family from jail, declaring us heroes instead of criminals. They even gave us medals, which Scorpia found unreasonably hilarious. I keep mine on the nightstand beside my bed, and look at it often.

My comm beeps at my side. I pick it up, holding a hand up against the sun and squinting at the screen. The time surprises me; only one more hour until the Gaian Arrival Ceremony. I’ve been trying to keep myself from thinking too much about it all day, but now my heart surges with a simultaneous rush of nerves and excitement. Today the first wave of Gaian refugees arrives on Nibiru—and I will see my brother again. I still haven’t decided what to say to him. I’ve relived our fight a thousand times since that day, and I have no idea how I can even begin to make it up to him, but I’m prepared to try for the rest of my life.