The young man barely said anything on the way back to the ship, resolutely avoiding her gaze. Elletra, usually very good at reading people’s emotions and motives, admitted that she was stumped. There was a surface layer which she could read like a book – a distant, dark storm cloud heavy with emotion.

But that was as far as she could see. That cloud hid something, she was sure of it, but whether the storm was caused by it or simply summoned to hide it, Elletra wasn’t sure. Both possibilities were frightening, and for the first time she considered the idea that someone else might have inner demons even worse than hers.

The lifeboat barely made it back into its bay before the Silver Skies was away, engine pods opening up to full power. The sudden acceleration knocked her off balance, but Hawkeye steadied her with an arm that she instinctively grasped. Ever the gentleman, she thought, stepping off the lifeboat with his help.

She didn’t think he knew how violently his hands were shaking.