‘I like the stories that my grandfather tells. They aren’t true, though. They have ghosts and ships of treasure in them, and the kings and queens of the sun, and the knight of the moon. The ones about the knight are the best. She rides across the stars, you know, and she can never speak, not ever, and she has a sword that you can’t see, and she doesn’t dream because she had to give her dreams to the sun to keep while she went to find the creatures that live in the night.’

Mersadie found herself smiling.

‘I like stories like that, too.’

The child nodded, face serious.

‘My grandfather will tell me a story when we get back to Cordelia. That’s our home. We had to leave, but we will go back, but I have to tell the stories to myself until then.’

A hand reached down and took the child by the shoulder and tugged her back. Mersadie looked up into the face of a hard-eyed man with a Uranus indentured service tattoo circling his cheek.

‘Come on, Sibi,’ he said, then looked at Mersadie. ‘You bring any food down here with your nice words and clean clothes?’

Mersadie straightened, suddenly aware that the line of people had moved almost imperceptibly forwards. There was anger in their eyes now.

‘No…’ she began. ‘No, I am sorry. I didn’t know I was–’

‘What’s happening?’ came a call from further back.

‘I…’ Mersadie began.

‘Where are we going?’

The line was a crowd now, sliding closer, so that she could smell the sweat and breath and feel the static charge of fear.

‘Why are you here?’ came a growl, and a hand reached for her. Aksinya stepped forwards and batted the hand down. The crowd shrank back from the bodyguard.

‘Go,’ said Aksinya, pushing Mersadie towards the door they had entered through. The crowd did not follow them, but Mersadie thought she could feel their stares even after the chevron-crossed metal closed. She stood for a second in the passage. Aksinya moved to walk past her.

‘I understand,’ she said to the bodyguard.

‘Do you?’ said Aksinya, stopping and looking at Mersadie. ‘There are six holds on board. All of them just like that. How much food do you think a ship like this has in its stores? How long do you think it will last when split between hundreds of mouths? How long, do you think, until they are not happy to stay where they are? How long until they try to get out? What does your understanding say about what happens then?’

‘I am sorry, but I didn’t cause this.’