“Act like we’re meant to be here,” Dex said, switching back to the mission. Sometimes hiding in plain sight was the best disguise.

Andi gave him a nod, and together they strolled into the hangar. A couple of engineers in green jumpsuits passed, and Dex gave them a casual nod, which one returned.

“Which ship do we grab?” Dex asked under his breath once the engineers were out of earshot.

“I say we go for the Sneaker in the back corner,” Andi suggested.

Dex followed her gaze and pinpointed a small ship across the way. To say it had seen better days was an understatement, and that was Dex being generous about its looks. The silver hull was marred with meteor dents and its nose had been scorched so badly, it was now charred a solid black.

But if it got them to Arcardius, he wasn’t going to complain. Still, Dex let his gaze linger longingly on the Ripper once more before heading toward their chosen ship.

“Going somewhere?” a familiar, metallic voice said behind them. Dex and Andi both stopped in their tracks.

“Arachnid,” Andi hissed.

Dex’s heart leaped, and he rested his hand near his gun. “Act casual,” he said quietly, but even while saying it, he knew the suggestion was futile. Nothing about this situation could be called casual.

Klaren came to stand in front of them, eyes hard. Dex sighed. Out of everyone who could’ve stopped them, it just had to be her.

“I’m not here to stop you,” Klaren said, her hands held up defensively. “I’m here to go with you.”

“Sure you are,” Andi said, a mocking tone in her voice. “Because you seemed so willing to let me go when we spoke earlier.”

“I’ve done a lot of thinking since you stormed out of my office,” Klaren admitted. “We’ve tried to alter the outcome of all this by physical means, by pitting soldier against soldier. But if I know Nor and Darai, they won’t be fazed by that—they’ll just use our actions to inspire their followers even more.”

“So what are you going to do?” Dex asked.

“I am going to try and reason with them,” she said simply, as if they were merely discussing a fight between two toddlers.

Andi scoffed. “Like that will change their minds.”

“I only need to change Nor’s mind,” Klaren insisted. “Darai has been influencing it for far too long, but I think I can convince her to listen to reason. In any case, they’ll eventually figure out a way to access the nuclear arsenal, with or without you, Andi. You being out of their reach has just delayed the inevitable. And even if I ask you to stay, I know you’ll still try to figure out a way to rescue your girls.”

If there were any left to save.

“Fine,” Andi agreed. “So what’s the plan?”