“How can we do that with the world in chaos? Look at your condition! You should be healed by now. And you haven’t seen the outside world. The roads are full of wrecked bots. People are sick and dying in the streets. No one wants to leave home, because they don’t have pills or swarms to protect them.”

“Goddamn it, Welga.” He settled back against his pillow and closed his eyes. “I’m so tired of this shit.” A tear trickled from the corner of one eye.

“So am I,” she said gently, ignoring the pang in her heart, “but I can’t sit around and watch people get hurt like this, not when I can do something about it.”

“I know,” he whispered. “And I can’t go with you to Eko-Yi. According to the minimal capability of Marcelo’s care-bot, I’m not in much danger as long as I keep lying here. The force of the launch could set off internal bleeding again. It could kill me.”

Whatever it takes. “Okay, then you stay here. I’ll go up alone. We let the agency find out after the launch. They might not be thrilled by it, but I can’t risk them grounding me.”

“In your condition? At least my body will heal. We don’t know what’s happening to yours. What if you can’t fight? You can’t defend yourself. What good will you do if you go up there and die?”

“More than I’ll do here,” she said. “At the very least, I can look for firsthand proof of what they’re doing, how they’re making the dakini. I’m fine as long as I take zips. The pills will help me in a fight, too. Come on, cardo, this isn’t our first go at this.”

“I thought—hoped—we had put ourselves on a new path.” His voice caught. “One where I didn’t have to worry about when or if you’d come home.”

She stopped pacing. Connor’s face held an expression of resigned despair. The familiar contours had sunken from his illness, and she wanted nothing more than to hold him forever, watch him regain his health.