“Mr. zu Schiller has asked me to take you to the office to wait until they have debriefed. You can have some food there and freshen up,” the driver said.

“Thank you,” Lydia said politely. She insisted I take the front seat and I was grateful for the extra space to stretch my legs. As we pulled away from the viewing site, I noticed an immense crater in the earth just a few dozen feet away from where we’d been sitting. It was dozens of feet across, and even deeper than it was wide. It could have swallowed maybe half of a city block.

“What’s that?” I asked the driver.

“That’s the impact from the failed launch from last week,” he said. Then he whistled. “Didn’t get off the ground properly before it detonated. It almost knocked me off my feet even over the other side of the island. That is why we aim them into the ocean.”

I failed to hide my distress, and he misread it, giving me a gentle smile.

“Oh, don’t worry, Mrs. von Meyer Rhodes. That one was launched from the other platform. You weren’t in any danger today.”

Nothing went the way we planned. Yet another launch had failed, and instead of taking the afternoon off with us, Karl and Jürgen were both called into meetings. The afternoon dragged by, and as the sun began to set, Lydia and I were told we’d be shepherded back to the hotel in Rügen.

“Do you think I’ll get to see Jürgen at all?” I asked Lydia miserably.

“Maybe later,” she said gently. “You know the work must come first.”

At the hotel lobby, she dealt with the staff, checking us into our rooms, arranging for our bags to be ferried inside.

“I’ve organized for a meal to be brought to you. Why don’t you take a hot bath and get into bed? I know you’re keen to see Jürgen, but you really need to rest. I’m just a few doors down if you need me.”

I considered the bath, knowing the hot water would be blissful against my bones, but when I stared at the little tub, I realized I’d be unlikely to get back out on my own even if I did manage to fit inside.

Instead, I nibbled at the food Lydia arranged and then sat on the bed and waited for Jürgen. I thought about the launch and the crater and the millions of questions I wanted to ask him—but we’d have to assume someone was listening in on the hotel room. Once again, we’d be whispering under blankets.