FORTY-SIX

Beth was the perfect fare. Cash in hand, few demands, and she kept to herself. Two weeks to the Moon, and the only place their paths crossed were the kitchen and the bathroom.

They alternated cooking chores. The final night, she made macaroni-and-cheese while Brooklyn tossed a salad and opened a bottle of wine.

“This Evelyn woman is special to you,” she said.

“Lookin’ for leverage? That case, I barely know her.” In any case, really. Flyin’ millions o’ miles for a woman I spent a few weeks with. “Who the hell’s Evelyn?”

“Just making conversation.” She drank some wine. Red and dry. “You don’t believe I’m going back for my family.”

“Even spies got family.” He shrugged. “It’s possible.”

“When we get to Tycho, I’ll contact a man who’ll give me access to a ship that I’ll fly to Earth. On the way there, I’ll transmit a report to my superiors at the agency. Then I’ll land the ship in a secret location and pick up my mother, my sister, and her family. We’ll fly back to Venus in hopes of surviving.”

“Stealing CIA assets? Nice way to start the New Year.” His lips twisted. “Hope it works out for you. Guy might’ve flown off in that ship of yours all ready.”

“You don’t like me much.” She rested her fork on her plate. “Is it because I was with Andy?”

“Nothing to do with that,” he said. “Has everything to do with the fact your people used her to blow up the damned Sun.”

“Assuming it was us.” She drank some wine. “Which it probably was. Most of us just wanted to make sure the United States came out on top in the new order. Run Mars. Eventually run Venus, maybe. We were patriots. The zealot side of things decided burning it all down was the only move. I wasn’t part of that.”

“You helped them.”

“So did you. Andy and her outlaws gave us the means to read the data crystals. You gave us the crystals.” She crossed her arms. “You were supposed to die months ago, ‘Donato.’ The zealots burned Big Tony’s entire organization to keep anyone from figuring out what they were doing.”

“Building a doomsday weapon.”

“Building the trigger. The weapon was already there. I had an idea there was a button to push, but no clue someone really wanted to push it.”

Brooklyn pointed at her with his fork. “You guys were tryin’ to bluff the First. Show ’em the button and say you’d use it if they didn’t leave.”

“I didn’t come up with the idea.”

“You assholes couldn’t even wipe out Big Tony right.” He scoffed. “Missed a guy at the warehouse, and he warned me.”

“Lucky boys.”

“I mighta been okay. I don’t die so easy.” He drank some wine. “Those same mistake-making assholes thought they should have power to end the world.” He shook his head. “Pretty fucking stupid.”

“It might’ve worked.”

“Fact you’re still sayin’ that is even stupider.” He wiped his mouth on a napkin. “Is that why’re you’re takin’ this ride with me? Poison my mac-and-cheese, close the loop?”

“Of course not. Patriot, not zealot, Brook. I just want to get my family out.”

He grunted. “Right about one thing, Beth. I do not like you.”

After dropping Beth off, Brooklyn flew the Victory two miles southwest of Tycho and landed it inside a crater too small for anything but a registration number.

“Right time, right place, pal,” he said to Om. “See anyone?”

“There’s an inflatable set up one hundred and twenty meters to the left of the cockpit.”

Brooklyn twisted his neck and leaned forward to see. “It’s either them or Boy Scouts. I’ll get suited up.”

He met them outside. Five mismatched vacsuits, Evelyn and four people she wanted to save. None of the suits had radios, so he led by gesture and example back through the airlock and into the ship.

“Bathroom is that way,” he pointed. “Kitchen–”

The last of the five took his helmet off. A lanky preteen in a gaggle of like. No Evelyn.

“Where’s Ev?” Brooklyn said.

“She sent us,” one of the girls said.

“I know you,” Brooklyn said.

She grinned. “On Eisenhower. I had a guitar. We talked about TV shows.”

“Is she coming along later? What’s the plan?”

“She said to go without her, and she’d figure it out on her own.”

Brooklyn frowned. “This ain’t something ta figure out. She comes with us or she probably burns.”

The girl shrugged. “Just tellin’ you what she said.”

“Om, you’re in charge ’til I get back.” He put his helmet on. “Don’t let them eat the mushrooms in the instant-coffee jar, and don’t leave without me.”

It took him more than an hour to crack one of the south-side airlocks and gain access to the city. The streets and alleyways were deserted, and he skipped north at his best speed.

Neither Evelyn nor her roommates were home when Brooklyn forced the door of the apartment. The small overnight bag she liked to use was missing, as were her toothbrush and a couple of small things from her room.

He didn’t know her roommates well enough to deduce if they’d left too. The public terminal would be a zoo: people trying to get home, panicking, maybe trying to get to Venus. It would be impossible to find her in the scrum. Maybe she already found a way out.

Brooklyn opened the refrigerator and snagged one of the beers inside. There was a note taped to the bottle’s neck.

I said ‘go’, you asshole. Or stay, and give your seat to someone who deserves it. But I suppose the ship needs you to fly it. Anyway, it was fun. – Evelyn

He sat on the edge of her bed, opened the beer, and drank it while reading the note over a couple more times. The slip of paper, folded tight, went into the watch pocket of his jeans.

Should’ve found out if she wanted to be rescued.

He put the other beers in his pockets and closed the door behind him.

Brooklyn stowed his vacsuit. The five kids were in the kitchen. “Happened to your guitar?” he asked the girl.

“Traded to get to Tycho.” She didn’t seem too upset about it. Might’ve just been a way to make money.

“What am I s’posed to call you?”

“Maddy.”

“You’re chief kid.” He pointed at her and looked at the other four. “You twerps do what she says, or I’m tossing you out. Clear?”

They nodded.

“Maddy, youdadone what I said on the station, you’d be in De Milo already. Now you gotta take the long way.” She said Vegas. Somewhere else before that. He took a step toward the cockpit, and the energy drained out of him. No way in hell I’m gonna find her in time.

“Brooklyn, there is a message from former Ambassador Andromeda,” Om piped in. “She says you are needed in the Belt. There’s an emergency.”

He put his hand on the wall to steady himself for a few beats. Guess it’s gonna be the real long way. “Maddy, get those breakables put away. We’re launching in five minutes.” He put Evelyn’s beers in the fridge. “Om, gimme a course to Ceres, will ya. Fast as fuck.”