What I haven’t thought about since then iswhyI was so afraid of her staying on duty.They snap together like teeth, I remember her saying.I need to make sure they don’t eat you.I couldn’t find the words to tell her how very much I needed her to stay alive, too.
An idea sprouts: we could pile everyone into the safe room—it was built for twice as many people as we have left, at least. “Any idea how much time we have until Vonn closes in on us?”
“An hour?” he says. “Maybetwo? Could be even less if they’ve launched the birds. A firebird could zip here in as little as half an hour, depending on how far out it was before takeoff.”
I want to wait as long as possible before asking people to camp out in such a dim, depressing room, but it sounds like we’re working with a very narrow window of time. You’d think the designers could’ve made it more hopeful-looking, since it would only be used during times of extreme duress—but no. It’s a plain gray cube, cement except for the requisite air vents.No windows, no neon, no cushions; even the benches are made of steel and cement. Fire hazards and all that, I can only guess. People are unpredictable, especially under stress.
Which... makes me reconsider locking everyone down in the safe room altogether, given our circumstances.
Would it be worse to take our chances on Vonn’s attack—stop it before it starts, somehow?—or to put our increasingly volatile population together in a dark room where they can’t escape? What sort of safe room does it become when you’re locked inside it with a mystery murderer who hasn’t hesitated to kill six people just like you?
Still. We could losemanyof our people if things go worst-case scenario with Vonn.
There is no surefire win here.
I close my eyes, make the call.
“Haven?” I say as soon as she picks up. “I’m going to need you to make an emergency announcement.”
61
PANDORA
WE HAVEN’T HAD need for the safe room in so many years that half our people aren’t old enough to remember how to get there. Fifteen minutes pass in a blur as Heath, Haven, Leo, and I position ourselves in the most heavily trafficked areas around the station, guiding people in the right direction and making sure they actually do what we’ve asked them to this time. Zesi stays behind to monitor the radar, while Natalin gathers up as many SpaceLove packs as she can pile on the cart—hopefully our people won’t have to stay in the safe room for too long, but we can’t be careful enough.
When no one passes through my corridor for two minutes straight, I run and find Haven, who’s nearest to me on the opposite end of this deck.
“Hey,” I say, cutting her off as soon as she’s given directions to a trio of sisters. “I’m going back up to Control now. I need you and the guys to check all the residential wings, and also the rec center—make sure no one’s unaccounted for, okay?”
She gives me an easy grin. “Go. We’vegotthis.”
“And after that, could you send Leo up to Control? And the rest of you could stay behind with—”
“Seriously, Lindley. Go,” she says with a little shove. “And yes, I’ll pass all that on.”
“And—”
She tilts her head, gives me a look.
“Okay. Okay, thank you, Haven—buzz if you need me.”
“We’ll befiiiine.”
I head back up to Control as quickly as I can, less sure of myself than I look. Ever since I made the call to direct everyone to the safe room, I’ve been turning the decision over in my head. Eventually, I landed on splitting our core six into two groups: two of us with Heath, the other two with me. Heath will be able to handle anything that gets out of hand in the safe room, and my gut says I can trust him. As for the decision to bring Leo up to Control—mostly, I just want someone else in the room with me besides Zesi. Even though Zesi’s beyond preoccupied at the moment, it doesn’t mean he’s not our killer... it only means his sense of self-preservation is as strong as the rest of ours. And just in case, I’d rather not get on the wrong side of said self-preservation.
Besides, having more eyes and ears and hands around should prove helpful, especially since Leo’s good under pressure. Zesi hasn’t buzzed, so we’re not under immediate threat just yet—but that could change at any second.
“Anything new?” I ask as soon as I’m back. Zesi is exactly where I left him, only now he’s standing over the display screeninstead of sitting on his stool. It’s a subtle change, and it carries with it a new sense of authority.
He shakes his head. “They’ve stalled out here”—he swipes to rotate the radar’s sphere, doesn’t even have to zoom out this time—“and I’m not quite sure what to make of it.”
“Still no word from them?”
“Nothing.” He sighs. “On the plus side, I haven’t picked up any firebirds just yet.”
“And on the down side?”
“They could be stalled out for any number of reasons—to fake us out, or to prepare their shields in case we go on the offensive as soon as they’re within shooting range. Or they could be planning to launch a coordinated advance of firebirds,” he says. “Easier to send more than two if the ship’s not moving.”
