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you fall and give up? Or will you try to take down as many as you can?’
    ‘How would I know? I’ve never been shot.’ Fuck. I don’t even want to think about it.
    ‘Will you pull the trigger when I tell you to?’ he asks.
    That stops me in my tracks. He wants to know if I can kill a man. ‘I don’t know,’ I say.
    ‘Hmm.’ He nods and lets it go. ‘I underestimated you today. When we return, you have to show me how you crossed that swamp without drowning. But the sandals were a tad over-dramatic.’
    ‘Shut up, you are dead.’ I’m walking faster. He has a point there, but that just makes me angrier. ‘You believed I couldn’t think, because I’m nervous because of what happened back at the comm tent and us going to Taiwan and possibly running into the BSA. You underestimate me because I’m a girl.’
    The slop-slop of his boots in the muck are approaching. ‘No, I didn’t.’
    ‘Yes, you fucking did!’ I turn around and point my finger at his nose. ‘You think women are soft and need protection. That’s why you told me to get the toxic implant. That’s why you don’t tell Yi-Ting you’re in love with her. You protect her from yourself, the professional killer. And now it’s too late.’
    Wow. That came out bluntly. Sometimes I speak like an axe in the woods.
    ‘Why would it be too late? This mission is low-risk. Besides, I can see how you are looking at her. Like a very lonely puppy. But you’ve never said anything either. Why?’
    My chest contracts. ‘Because she likes you.’
    ‘She likes you, too.’
    ‘Bullshit!’ I stop and point my rifle at him. ‘If you keep annoying me, I’ll plop my second marker in your crotch.’
    He lifts an eyebrow. ‘You turn into some kind of very prickly thistle every time someone offers you a friendly gesture. That might be a good method if you want people to treat you like shit. On the other hand, some people refuse to turn into assholes no matter what.’
    My mouth wants to drop open, but I don’t let it. I set my jaw. ‘You’ve been a cold bastard ever since we arrived here.’
    Runner just grins and walks past me. ‘Briefing in one hour. Well done, by the way.’
    I can’t believe my ears. Since our training began, he’s never complimented me for anything.

The small aircraft sets down smoothly and slows to a stop. I hold on to Ben’s seat as inertia pulls me forward. During the short flight, I couldn’t bring myself to speak to Ben. All I did was gaze at his back — the small cockpit lights pinpricking the darkness — and wonder if we’ll ever meet again.
    Ben takes off his night vision goggles and turns to us. ‘Elevation, five hundred metres. Can’t get you farther up; no landing strip anywhere near the observatory.’
    And we’ll not get any lower than this. Runner and Kat consider all surface and groundwater from below five hundred metres elevation, as not safe to drink.
    ‘Thanks, Ben,’ Runner says, grabs his ruck and rifle, snaps his night vision goggles on, and jumps out without a goodbye.
    I’m not as tough. I punch Ben’s shoulder and give him a peck on his cheek.  
    He grins. ‘Don’t you worry, honey. You’ll be back in no time and then I’ll let you ravage my hard body.’
    The tension falls off. I bark a laugh and punch his shoulder once more. As I turn away from him, a memory of Yi-Ting hits me square in the chest. How she stood at the mouth of the comm tent when we were leaving, her outline cut sharply against the moonlight. She placed her hand over her heart, then to her lips before she waved her kiss to Runner. His expression was severe and he hid it quickly, lowering his head and bending down to tie his boot laces that were perfectly tied already.
    ‘I’ll bring him back for you,’ I’d told her and regretted this silly promise at once. For many years, Runner worked alone. He doesn’t need anyone to watch out for him.
    I shoulder my pack, snap the night vision goggles in place, and grab my rifle. My