LINGIARI WAS WAITING in the lobby of the hostel when she got back that evening, long after dark, feeling better than she’d felt for a long time. She’d had a wonderful day with Idris, and talking with him about what had happened with the aliens aboard the Galathea had eased her conscience a little.
“Where have you been?” she asked the pilot as she came through the door.
“I was gonna ask you the same thing.”
“I went to the beach. It was amazing.” She was breathless after walking back from the army barracks.
“I was looking for you all day,” said Lingiari.
“I was looking for you, too, yesterday evening and this morning. What happened to you?”
“Nothing much. I was just looking around the place, then I went to bed early and woke up late. Since then, I’ve just been hanging about. Looks like
