S184 2/3

We chat for another twelve minutes.

He tells me who to let loose and trust—Tushabe, Mose, Pavov, and Ezebel. And who to keep a rein on—Cord and Muli and Oreilli.

“You sure Mose is on the let loose side?” I ask. “Ironic considering he’s as good as chained up for being a Quishan spy.”

“The only spying he does is for himself...and anyone he trusts,” says Drake.

I nod. I think that was a hint, but we move on.

He suggests I keep Angi with her brother Mikhail when possible. And Pavov and Mary Beth are a good pairing, like mixing salt and lime to cancel out the extremes.

I question his Billie Cates pick, and he tells me I’ll regret saying that in the end. He told me just to find a hero that Billie could imagine herself being in real life, and she’d show her value.

I finally ask about his daughter Genni, who he has clearly been avoiding as a topic.

“I’d wager you were mad about getting Daddy’s Girl?” he says.

“Yep, I was. But she’s done okay. She might be the most agile person I’ve ever met. Acrobatics? Gymnastics?”

“Genetics,” says Drake. “Look, I’ll tell you two things about her, and then I’ll let her as a twenty-one-year-old adult prove herself out to you. One, she killed her first man when she was thirteen. I have a dangerous occupation, and my family assists me in that. Two, I spaced two of my highly-trained starship crewmen for going after her when she was underage. So she’s outgrown Daddy’s Girl, but she’s still Daddy’s Girl. You understand?”

Right.