“If you knew that I was here, you’d claw your way out of the ground and slap me. You’d forgive me for coming here last year to bury you, but returning on the anniversary, no that’d be out of question. But it’s not like I’m at risk. I did get some armour. Sure, I could’ve scrapped together a cloaking mechanism for the ship, but today snuck up on me. You know how I am with dates. I forgot our wedding anniversary more than once. And birthdays. Well, at least I don’t have to worry about those.”

Yana’s gravestone seems to stare up at me, her name crudely burnt onto the white stone with my handgun.

“No, of course I haven’t got any friends anymore. I left them within the first month. Oh don’t be like that. You know that I never really like them. They were always harping on about making an honest life. You did that too, but you were allowed to. They just didn’t want to be associated with a so called criminal. Which I’m not, by the way. Well, here on Torline I probably am, but that’s your fault. You were so kind and naïve and genuinely good. How was I meant to resist?”

An especially chilling wind blasts past and I drop to my knees.

“You know, it was my fault that this happened to you. If I’d just left you there, you’d have been in for what, three weeks? If I’d just left Torline instead of staying longer, you wouldn’t even have caught any enforcer’s eyes. If I’d just taken any other job on this planet of yours, you would never have met me. Nine years together is hardly worth your life. Imagine how much more you could’ve done if-.”

A stick crunches and I jump to my feet. A young Torl enforcer is staring at me in horror, recognition flooding his features. I take a step forward. He whimpers. And this is why I don’t come to this planet anymore. It’s like I’m the worst thing to happen to the white rock. It’s a wonder they let me bury Yana here. Then again, they didn’t exactly want to approach me this time last year. I don’t blame them; rage doesn’t really fit me.

“Hi there,” I say, taking in how his hand automatically reaches for his sidearm.

“Y-you’re not allowed on Torline under section-,” he starts.

“You mean I can’t visit my dead wife’s grave?”

“Er... Y-you’re not,” he stumbles.

“And people wonder why I kill for money,” I mutter, drawing my handgun. “Alright, how’d you want to do this? It’s been ten years; surely I’m not that infamous of a criminal here anymore. Maybe you could just let me leave in peace.”

“You’re Valentina Mayes. You blew up our planet’s Enforcer Headquarters. Everyone here knows your name. I’ve got to bring you in.”

“Try.”

“Excuse me?”

“You’ve got to try to bring me in.” I smile. “You don’t really think you’ll succeed, do you?”

His grip on his gun tightens. “I’m not just going to let you go.”

“Oh, I know that. But don’t think for a moment that you’ll be taking me anywhere. This is going to end with me walking over your dead body. Or with you running away to get help.” I shrug. “I’m cool with either option.”

“Y-you’re going to murder me?”

“Of course not.” I aim at his head. “It’ll be self-defence. Unless you see a way of bringing me in without use of force. I’d be interested to hear it.”

A rugged enforcer reaches the top of the hill. “I’m sure you’ll be willing to come once you hear what I have to say.”

I tuck my arm behind my back and double tap my wristband. It vibrates against my skin four times. Knew I was right to upgrade the motion sensor. Let’s see how long they take to reveal the other two then.

“You really think I’m going to fall for a ploy like that?” I ask. “I know how you enforcers work here. You’re a corrupt bunch who is more interested in looking like you’re catching the bad guys while you lock away innocent doctors. Doctors that have dedicated their lives to treating kids, your planet’s kids. So don’t give me some nonsense and expect me to bite. The only reason that every Torl in the galaxy fears me is because of a story that you spun.”

The young enforcer manages to find his courage and stands tall. “You killed innocent enforcers. You did that! Nobody lied about that.”

“I’m not denying that I set off some explosions kid, I’m denying that innocents died. They deserved it after what they did to Yana and the others.”

The other enforcer aims her rifle. “Come with us and we’ll give you the full picture of how that gravestone came to be.”

They can’t know more than I do. They can’t. But if they do... Then I won’t take it from them. Not them. Anyone but them. They’re the reason Yana left her own planet.

“Try,” I say lowly.

They fire. I roll to the ground, catching a few plasma darts to the chest. Thank goodness for the new armour. I take my shot. The young enforcer drops like a rock. He had it coming. The remaining enforcer screams something in Torl; Yana only ever taught me the swear words. I shoot before she does. I jump to my feet as two enforcers scramble to the hilltop. They open fire with their rifles.

My armour takes a battering as I sprint towards them. It unnerves the left one, who stops firing momentarily. I jam a blade between his armour plating. He screams and flails. The other one tackles me to the ground, knocking my handgun aside. I wrestle her and force myself on top. She lands a solid hook to my jaw. I stumble and grab onto her arms. We roll down the hill, haphazardly throwing punches as the white grass softens our fall. I manage to wrench us apart as we crash into a rocky ditch.

She tries to pull out her gun, widening her eyes as she realises it’s still on the top of the hill. I stumble to my feet and grab my plasma rifle, ending her stream of Torl swearing. The remaining enforcer takes shots at me from the hilltop. I try to dodge them while running back up. One of the shots cracks through the armour and leaves a nasty burn on my left arm. Good thing I can repair armour cheaper than I can buy it for.

I aim for the blade I left embedded in the enforcer’s ribcage. His weapon drops to the ground and his body falls into me. I roughly shove him aside. His blood covers my front. I haven’t seen this much silver in one year, exactly. I turn to Yana’s gravestone. She would have screamed herself hoarse if she saw what I did today. But I had to. They’re the reason that she isn’t with me on some distant planet trying to convince me, like always, not to kill. And yet they had the tenacity to claim some sort of knowledge about her death?

But what if they were telling the truth? She’d ask that.

Crap. It looks like I’m staying on this damned planet a little longer.