That evening, as she finished work on her tablet in her lab, she heard a ping. For half a minute, it didn’t register as bizarre, until she realised it was a specific notification she hadn’t heard since Earth.

She drew it towards her, frowning. There it was:

New message.

Evan Kan: Hey.

Her frown deepened. She typed the first words that came to mind.

Naomi Lovelace: What the fuck?

He’d timed it for a shorter window of communication. Five minutes passed as the signal swung its impossible way back to Earth. Another five minutes for his reply.

Evan Kan: It worked. I’m sending this through the main hub but encrypted and rerouted to your tablet. A buddy taught me how. I wanted to talk to you before you went through. Actually talk to you. This should be secure.

Naomi Lovelace: I suppose I should take advantage of this, then. I’ve been wondering how to ask you, but not wanted to put it on the official records—do you by any chance know if Earth is still sending the Atalanta messages?

It was something that had been niggling at her. They’d sent messages the Atalanta had ignored from lower Earth orbit, but they knew the ship’s location and projected path. It’d be easy to send further missives, but Valerie hadn’t mentioned anything. Naomi had asked Hixon, but she hadn’t heard of anything either, and seemed annoyed about it.

Evan Kan: Funnily enough, that’s what I wanted to ask you about, too. Earth is definitely still sending messages, and V is ignoring each and every one. I’ve urged her to at least see what they’re saying or if they’re offering anything, but she’s refused. I don’t know what’s in them, but you’d be able to access them from the hub. They still save on the drive. A little hard to access, but doable.

Naomi rubbed her lower back, easing the tight muscles. A conversation that could have taken a few minutes had already stretched out to almost an hour.

Naomi Lovelace: That would be crossing a line I can’t come back from. It’d be undermining her and Hixon at once. I’m technically lowest ranked on this ship. Maybe I should just trust her.

Evan Kan: Are you really okay with not knowing? It could be they’re offering clemency. Or that there’s more to this mission than you know.