Victoria Stromova, who never lied, told her first and only lie. “A sensor ghost. I’ll recalibrate the imaging array. Give me an hour alone.”

“You’re late,” said Nadezhda Stromova. “I’ve been waiting twenty-seven years.”

“Toria.” Commander Petrov’s voice crackled over her headset. “We have a neutrino spike. Sector Gamma-9. It’s… odd.”