“Yes,” Rosalyn said, just as softly. “I can.”

He frowned and tried to think of the right thing to say but she cut him off, tossing her nonexistent hair back and sucking in her cheeks. “I know what it feels like, and I’m sorry. You didn’t ask for any of this to happen, and it’s certainly not your fault.”

“I’m sorry, too,” Edison said. “Yeah . . .” He still felt unbalanced by her response. She knew. Right. Of course. He scrambled to come up with that goddamned question. Any way he phrased it she would be put off, so he decided to just be direct and hope for the best. They were running out of options. And time. They had a day at the most, he figured, before the Merchantia ships turned up to investigate, maybe far less if someone in the area was redirected to their coordinates. At the risk of sounding insensitive, he blundered on.

“So, all right. Well. There’s no polite way to say this, I guess, but I think you and I need to make a deal. Or a promise. No, a deal.”

Her face relaxed a little, full lips quirking to the side. “A deal?”

“We can’t be here when those ships arrive, it’s too unpredictable, and I think we both would like to avoid more people getting contaminated with this bullshit. But without access to the thruster controls, we’re just sitting ducks. We need our scanners back on, the piloting mode fully engaged, and then we need to get the hell out of here.” At least it came out coherent, he thought, watching her mood darken by the word.

“We’ve been over this,” Rosalyn spat. “I’m not giving you my credentials.”

“And instead?” He gestured broadly. “Look around! We’re running out of options. If we just sit here, we’re as good as a baited trap. More ships will come, and there’s no guarantee I can control the crew long enough for you to warn them and escape. Things are getting worse. You can’t see inside our heads, but trust me, it’s worse.”

“That’s not a deal,” she said.

“What?”

She rolled her eyes and marched up to the clear barrier, poking it as if to poke his chest. “Let’s say I play along, mm? You get my credentials and we avoid the Merchantia ships. Then what? That’s only benefiting me so far, and a deal by definition cuts both ways.”

Damn. Edison ground his teeth together, wishing she hadn’t caught on. It would be simpler to explain later. Simpler, but meaner.