There was crime too, of course. Maybe if she and Nasir went to Mars together he could be a policeman there, too. Mariam had watched enough Martian soaps to know they had crime there. Wherever there were people there was crime.

It was a nice thought, though, this idea of going together. Of a new life. It was just a fantasy. She shook her head to dispel the thought. She was a practical woman, and she had a practical life right here.

She saw the boy and the jackal come off the pier. They looked lost. The jackal said something to the boy and the boy nodded. They walked along the promenade, and she watched them as they came closer, about to pass her by.

“You’re looking for a place to stay?” she said.

The jackal stopped and regarded her with its head tilted.

“City,” it said. “Smells . . . strange.”

“We don’t know where we are,” the boy complained. “Anubis says he’s noded and can lead us to a shelter but we have no real money, only things to trade.”

“What sort of things?” Mariam said. “Neom is no good for a person without money.”

“They don’t use money in the Up and Out,” the boy blurted. “On Mars everything is free.”

“For the Collective, yes,” Mariam said. “But everyone has to work. From each according to their ability, to each according to their needs. And besides they still use money too.”

“I’m Saleh,” the boy said. “This is Anubis. We just want to make enough to get to Central Station or the nearest ’stalk. We want to go to Gateway.”

“And you have nothing?” Mariam said. “Where did you come from now, Marsa Alam?”

“El Quseir,” the jackal, Anubis, said.

“Before that, the desert,” the boy said.

“It’s a desert here, too,” Mariam said. “Just outside the city.”

“Then you know what kinds of things are in the desert,” the boy said.

He had sad eyes, and stubbornness.

“We can sleep on the beach,” Saleh said. “We do not need a roof.”

“You’ll be moved,” Mariam said. “Vagrancy is not allowed in Neom. It spoils the view.”

“We will find something,” Saleh said.

“Do you have anything to trade?” Mariam said.

The boy clutched the bag to his chest.

“Yes,” he said.

“Something valuable?”

“Yes.”

Mariam made a decision.

“Then I will take you to Mukhtar’s tomorrow,” she said. “He will help you.”

“Who is Mukhtar?” the boy said.

“He’s a dealer in rare artefacts.”

The boy nodded, smiled suddenly.

“Thank you,” he said.

His smile was so trusting and bright it made her wince.