Naomi brought the precious chocolate back to her room. It rested on the desk. Fifty whole grams. Naomi had run out of paint, but the walls were covered in stylised vines. Her little zinnias were doing well, their orange blooms bright next to the snow globe shuttle Valerie had given her. She touched a velvety petal with the tip of a finger as she loaded up the tablet. The women had scattered again. Naomi brought up the ship map, and sure enough, Lebedeva was in the gym, running her steady cadence on the treadmill, or lifting weights because that was easy, that was simple. Pick up the heavy thing. Put it back down again. Count to ten. Do it again. Hart and Hixon were in their quarters, turning things over in detail. Valerie was in the observation room.

Once everyone was asleep, she planned to go back to the rec room. Dig through folders and subfolders, see if she could access Valerie’s personal drive.

She didn’t want to find any more secrets. She wanted to discover that was it—this was Valerie’s plan, which hadn’t worked as she’d hoped. Perhaps other countries in the world would finally step up, edge ahead of the U.S. in the race to Cavendish. Russia or China would have little reason to imprison the five of them for crimes against another country—though if Valerie insisted on messing with the warp ring on Cavendish, all bets were off. There were too many unknowable components. Too much uncertainty. If there was one thing Valerie hated, it was unnecessary complications.

Naomi sent Evan a message. It would be the middle of his work day back on Earth, so she wasn’t sure if she’d have a response.

Naomi Lovelace: The U.S. is angry. It’s no deal. Their offer has expired.

She sent along a summary of their conversation for him to read once he was back in the bunker. Naomi picked up a piece of chocolate and broke off a corner. She placed it on her tongue and closed her eyes in bliss as the sugar shivered along her taste buds. One hundred and twenty-six days without chocolate. She’d had a cheap candy bar the morning of the launch after breakfast, a comfort and an extra burst of quick energy she didn’t need. She remembered folding the wrapping into the tiniest gold square she could manage before throwing it away. Seemed so long ago.

By the time the little bit of chocolate dissolved, the taste of it still lingering, Naomi received a response. She sat up in surprise. Probably about nine minutes between messages with their current alignment with Earth.

Evan Kan: What will Valerie do next?

She broke off another minuscule piece of chocolate.