He was firmly centrist—not radical enough to offend, but not full of enough conviction to inspire, either. He claimed he stood for equality and forward change, but Naomi had little faith left in anyone willing to do what it takes to get into power. She’d wait to see if his actions spoke, rather than his pretty speeches at the beginning of his presidency.

His immediate problem was figuring out what to do with the bodies of the dead—the morgues and funeral homes were overloaded. They’d also worked up a rudimentary universal healthcare system to ensure the Sev was fully eradicated. It was a start. Naomi didn’t know how long it would last, but it was a start.

Flores had decided to paint the Atalanta 4 as heroes. The first baby in space helped the PR spin. They received a pardon for stealing the ship on the assurance that the court would have their full cooperation in the upcoming trial.

Valerie was the one charged with the relatively minor crimes of theft as well as kidnapping and murder of the backup crew. Of course, they paled compared to the charges of terrorism, war crimes and genocide.

The backup crew had received a lavish state funeral, empty coffins lowered into the ground. Naomi had watched the stream from orbit. Dennis’s wife hid her face in her hands the entire ceremony. Dave Webb’s and Josh Hines’s parents were bowed and grey beneath their grief. Devraj Chand’s partner looked lost, as if it still hadn’t hit him that Chand was never coming back. Mel Palmer stood at the front, tear-streaked but strong, holding the hand of her toddler. Naomi’s body had churned with guilt and she’d had to turn the broadcast in the rec room’s wall screens off.

Lebedeva and Valerie had already headed down to the surface two weeks ago. Lebedeva had handed Valerie to the authorities then overseen reloading the shuttle with an unmanned supply payload. Naomi remembered Lebedeva leading Valerie through the ship, her hands tied in front of her. Confinement had not been kind to their former commander. Flat hair, grey skin. She’d been thinner, but that was the same for all of them—nutriblocks had put everyone off their appetite, especially when the machine broke and they couldn’t even taste the echo of vanilla or cinnamon any longer.

Valerie had slowed, meeting Naomi’s eyes almost hungrily. They hadn’t spoken since their last conversation. Valerie had hunched her shoulders when she realised that Naomi had left Grace in another room deliberately. Valerie had not seen her granddaughter, and Naomi would do everything in her power to make sure she never did.