I did it, she thought as Nathan murmured to his copilot. I’m free! No more beatings! No auction. No Andy! Yes! Best of all, she’d finally told Elder Jones exactly what she thought of him and his con man’s cult. Everything she’d been biting back for years. The vague sense of shame she’d always felt at her own cowardice was gone. She had a new life. Lost in her own delight, Trin barely noticed when the shuttle slid into its berth. Even the roar and hiss of atmosphere being pumped in around it scarcely penetrated her joy. When the troopers rose to file out, it was all she could do not to dance as she followed them. “Ms. Yeager?” She looked around with a happy smile as Nathan appeared at her elbow, tall and dark and looking very professional. “Yes, Captain?” He gave her a short, stiff nod. “If you’ll come with me, please.” Pivoting, he strode off down the corridor. Trin followed his broad back happily, unconcerned about where he was leading her. For the first time in her life, a man had actually come through for her.
