She imagined what their life might look like off-world. How did people cook in microgravity? What happened when they had sex or fights? Did they have a local network with swarms and tip jars, or did they live the old-fashioned way, with private activities?

Then, as she stood braced against the blower in the entry, she skimmed the latest headlines that Por Qué had grabbed while outside. The raw material situation had worsened after the last round of attacks. Even the undamaged refineries had stopped production. In the interests of safety, they said. Idiots. Didn’t they realize they had done the Machinehood’s work for them? And what would happen to Connor and every other sick or injured person in the meantime?

I should go back to him, take care of him, go with him to Eko-Yi. But if things went wrong again, she’d wonder if she could’ve made a difference. When she applied to become a Raider, Captain Travis had told her that no service could occur without sacrifice. She had signed up to lay down her life for her people, and if she could stop the Machinehood, then everyone, not just Connor, would benefit.

Why did dying for a cause seem easier than living without her partner?

She restocked her own supply of pills as soon as she got inside. Might as well play it safe. The agency often left low-level freebies around to keep people in practice, but even they couldn’t produce something from nothing. She had felt small tremors ripple through her arms and legs. She couldn’t afford to expose her condition any further so she popped a duo-zip into her mouth because that was all the building had. No officer would use less in the field, so why stock anything slower?

At least the facility’s kitchen brewed a decent black coffee. When she got back to the basement, half the room had gone upstairs to dinner, including Olafson. Welga’s stomach grumbled as she sipped the scalding brew. She sent him a message to bring her back some food and then called up the data from Crawford.

The only genetic connection, Jun-ha Park, came from a traditional family: Mother, Josephine Lee. Father, Donald Park. One sibling, a younger sister, Soo-ha Park, currently age seventeen. Their permanent address: Eko-Yi Station.

Eko-Yi again. It’s a small world.

If she bailed on this mission and went to space with Connor, Park’s family would be her neighbors. Out of curiosity, she dug deeper into their public records. They had emigrated to the station in 2091, a few years after the boy died. To make a fresh start, they said. Made sense to her. If Papa had suggested going off-world after her mother’s death, Welga would’ve accepted in a heartbeat. Anything to avoid the well-meaning pity party that she’d faced in high school, or the bullshit and bullying that Luis dealt with for his tears.