The horses whickered hungrily when Samm approached; their food was gone, and their water was almost depleted. He spoke to them simply, trying to emulate Kira’s soothing tone, but his words were still direct and matter-of-fact, like he was talking to another Partial soldier. “Sorry we were gone overnight,” he said. “We found a group of people in the ParaGen complex. They have real grass and an apple orchard, and clean water to drink. We’ve come to take you back.” He pointed at Calix. “This is Calix. She’s a friend.” The horses stared back with deep, dark eyes, stamping their feet impatiently.

“They’re huge,” said Calix. “Bigger than any elk I’ve ever seen.”

“They’re hungry,” said Samm, “and they want to get outside. They don’t like being stuck inside with their own droppings, this one especially.” He patted Oddjob on the nose and brushed her back with his fingers to calm her. “This one’s Oddjob, and that’s Bobo. Kira named them.” He showed her how to soothe them, and then how to load them up with the equipment—first a blanket, then the saddle, buckled tight enough to stay on without cinching too close and hurting them. They were skinnier now than when they’d started the journey in New York, and he hoped that a short stop in the Preserve could give them some strength back, and a bit more weight. They’d need it for the return journey.

Calix seemed to be thinking the same thing, for she asked him a question as she worked on Bobo’s saddle. “How long are you staying?”

“I don’t know,” said Samm, though the question had been troubling him ever since they’d found the settlement. He had to be careful what he revealed to her. “We can’t stay long—we came looking for ParaGen’s headquarters in the hopes to find a cure for RM, and now that we’ve discovered one exists, we need to take it back as soon as we can. Our people are at war, and we need . . .” He paused, not sure how to say what he needed without giving too much away. “To be honest, we’re looking for more than just the cure for RM,” he said. “We need information on the Partials themselves. We’re trying to . . .” How much should he say? How much was Calix prepared to hear? The people in the Preserve didn’t seem to think much one way or the other about Partials, but they likely still blamed them for the Break. How would she react to the idea of peace between the species? She was staring at him, her eyes full of . . . trust? Friendship? He couldn’t read human emotions, and wondered again how they ever managed to get along without the link. He’d seen the look on her face before, on Kira’s face, but he wasn’t sure what it meant.