Ned said.
Everything was spiraling out of control. Pendt was going to get caught. She was going to be sent back. She was going—
“Let’s try this again,” Ned said. He held out his hand. “My name is Ned Brannick. I promise you, you do not have anything to be afraid of from me or from Fisher. We just want to talk. Can we go to a booth?”
Despite the noise and the crush of people, they were definitely starting to attract curious looks. And no wonder, two Brannicks talking to a total stranger. Pendt nodded and followed the boys to a booth in the back of the restaurant. A server appeared with menus, depositing one on the table for each of them.
“I’m starving,” said Ned, who didn’t look like he’d ever been on strict rations in his life. “We had two ore shipments come in today after literally months between deliveries. Can you imagine? Well, I mean, you were on one of them, so maybe you can.”
Pendt didn’t say anything. She didn’t pretend to read the menu either. It would only list food that she couldn’t afford.
“I saw you on the security camera,” Fisher said. “Usually when a shipment comes in, one of us stays in the booth to monitor operations and the other goes down to help.”
“What do you want from me?” Pendt asked. “Are you going to sell me back?”
“Sell?” Ned dropped his folksy pretense and sharpened to myriad edges at the word. “Stars, I was going to ask if you wanted us to send you back, but if you go straight to selling, maybe we should get right to it: over my dead body.”
Pendt relaxed a little bit. These boys were strangers, but they didn’t seem to be inherently cruel.
“I saw you,” Fisher said. “You snuck off your ship, changed the way you were dressed, and made no attempt to return when you knew the timeline was tight. Furthermore, you probably know how your ship launches. It can’t come back for at least a month, and that’s if they burn all their fuel. You don’t want to go back.”
“No.” Pendt was determined. “I won’t go back.”
The server came back and Ned ordered for the table. Pendt didn’t understand any of the words he was saying, though she assumed they were all specific words for food. He didn’t mention who was going to pay.
“So here’s the thing,” Ned said as he distributed the cutlery. “My parents are currently being held hostage by the Hegemony, do you know what that is?”
“It’s what some people call the Stavengers,” Pendt said. She picked at the serviette in front of her. It was, rather pointlessly, folded in the shape of a flower. She loved it. “Because it feels like less of an empire that way.”
“We can argue about that later.” Ned waved off her comment. “Anyway, since my father is gone, I am the Brannick, the only one on the station with the right genes to keep the station alive.”
Usually at this juncture in the conversation there were awkward and ignorant questions about Fisher, but Pendt didn’t so much as blink.
“I have to stay,” Ned continued, “but I would very much prefer to go and fight in the rebellion.”
“The rebellion?” Pendt said. “I’m sorry, we don’t get a lot of current events on the Harland. I thought all that was more or less . . . finished.”
“Not entirely,” Fisher said quietly. “You’re right about the empire not really having died, and neither did the rebellion against it. It’s just more complicated now.”
“And you want my help?” Pendt said. She pressed a hand to her chest. “I just found out there was a rebellion, I don’t know anything about fighting in it.”
“That’s not what we want,” Ned said.
“I saw you change your appearance,” Fisher said. “It’s not just a disguise; it’s a full change. There hasn’t been a gene-mage on Brannick Station with that kind of power for generations, and you can’t be anywhere close to caloric maximum.”
As if mentioning food had conjured it, the server returned with a heavy tray. When it was all on the table in front of her, Pendt started to hyperventilate. She’d never seen so much food at one time in her entire life.
“Hey, it’s okay.” Ned leaned over and awkwardly patted her on the shoulder. “I know rations are tight on a merchant ship, but we’re a bit more relaxed here. Dinner’s on us.”
Pendt didn’t move, even though it was becoming clear that the boys were not going to