Page 166 of Commander’s Mate

Not elegantly.

Tivid queried Dreadnought Eight.

No Kaeli Sar.

No Kayli Saar.

No K. Sar.

Medical checked physical discharge.

Supply checked clothing.

Security checked boarding cameras.

For twenty-six minutes, nobody found her.

Vessa sat outside my office gripping a blanket.

I could not look at her.

This was exactly what the Sargans had done.

Not the chains.

Not the auction.

The reduction.

A person became a record.

The record became wrong.

Then the person became unreachable.

“Harper.”

Zared stood in the doorway.

I hated that relief came with seeing him.

“I lost someone.”

“You did not.”

“The system did.”

“Yes.”

“I built the system.”

“No.”

I looked at him.

He came inside but did not touch me.

“You built part of a system because the old one was insufficient.”