Out of all the crew, Simon was the one who probably worried the most. He’d been doing it for so long it had sort of become second nature to him. First with River, every day waiting for another of her odd letters from the Academy, knowing something was wrong but not seeing a way to help. Then actively trying to get her out, worrying that he was going to get caught, but worse worrying he wasn’t going to be successful.

Even when he’d sprung her, he worried that they’d be found, that he couldn’t help her and she’d be sent back.

And now he had all these other people to worry about. Hardly a week went by that he wasn’t sewing up a knife wound, removing a bullet or applying some kind of dressing. For five months he’d worried about Bethany, every day, waking in the night so he could worry some more.

Only it seemed all his worry had paid off. She was perfect. Lying on the medbed in front of him, gurgling and smiling at him, her little arms waving, wanting him to pick her up and hold her. Only he wasn’t finished.

Lifting up the tub of talc, he shook it over her, causing a cloud of white particles to fill the air. He sneezed, and Bethany gurgled even more, her version of laughing. Waving the cloud away, he looked down and considered that was probably enough.

Or maybe it wasn’t. Was there an optimum quantity of talcum powder you should use when changing a baby? Did it make a difference if you used too much? He understood the physical mechanism of dry lubrication, but … and then there was the cream. Didn’t the talc just get absorbed by it? If you used too much, did it sort of clump together, causing irritation? He shook his head. In this case, probably less was more.

Putting down the tub he took hold of the corner of the terry diaper. Kaylee had been insistent. Out in space there was no way they were going to use disposables. Apart from anything else, there was no guarantee they were actually going to be able to find somewhere selling them, so she’d bought the old-fashioned kind. Simon