Five Dogs wasn't hard to find. It sat half-sunken into the edge of a comms stack, its windows fogged with age and whatever passed for Martian cigarette smoke. The sign blinked in tired neon. One dog was missing an eye. Another looked like it had never been a dog at all.

Colt stepped in, boots scraping metal. He picked out Marcus instantly. Same build, a little thicker around the neck, same worn face. There was a pint already waiting across from him, sweating in the recycled air.

"Martian beer," Marcus said, raising his glass. "Brewed from hydroponic hops and Martian regrets."

Colt took a sip. It tasted like disappointment and vinegar.

Marcus leaned back. "So what are you really doing here?"

"Told you. Looking for my cousin."

"Six months here. Seven back. That's a long way to chase a cousin." Marcus said while Colt sipped the artisanal tasting brew.

"What about you? America run out of crime?"

Marcus scratched his scalp. Colt saw the small bald spot he remembered from years ago. Some things never changed.

Marcus sat forward, elbows on the table. "A couple hundred clicks east of here you've got Tiāngōng. Main Chinese base. Other way, New Singapore. Then there's New London. Even Europa Station's got a shuttle run now. Everyone's moving in. All those flags, all those governments... Mars is filling up. Fast."

Colt said nothing.

"Eventually," Marcus continued, "we'll all want the same air, same water, same minerals. That's when it gets difficult. People know it. People are planning."

Colt raised an eyebrow. "What's your point?"

Marcus gave a half smile. "Your old fire captain told me a story once. Said you pulled up on a truck fire. Right before the team opened the hose, you took an axe and cut the line."

"I remember."

"Said the chemical reacted with water. Caught fire, spread through the drainage. If you hadn't stopped them..."

"Whole team would've burned."

"How'd you know?"

Colt shrugged "Didn't smell right."

Marcus chuckled. "You look after people. That's rare now. Mars needs people like you."

"I don't look good in a blue shirt."

"I'm not asking you to join up." Marcus sipped. "But if I tell you something—something that doesn't officially exist—you'll keep it quiet?"

Colt nodded. "Sure. And?"

"My jurisdiction ends at the airlock. Outside? It's another world. People are going missing, Colt. Not just bad luck. I heard there was some communist colony out there. I don't know if that is it but I do know something's happening out there."

"And you want me to poke around?" Colt said tilting his head.

"Nothing official. Just... someone who can look after himself."

"No."

Marcus raised an eyebrow.

"Just no?"

"I'm here for my cousin. That's all. I find him, I go home."

Marcus didn't press. He just nodded. "I saw what you did to those guys outside the dome."

"So what? You going to arrest me?"

"No. I know them. They had it coming. Out of my jurisdiction too.  One lost an eye. He's lucky you didn't pop his whole suit. Good news for him the ban on transplants and blood transfusions  isn't enforced the same out here."

Colt's eyes narrowed. "Is that a threat?"

Marcus shook his head. "Just facts. Three of his friends are in here now, just came in behind you."

Colt glanced toward the pool table. Three men. Waiting.

"They want to see what you do next." Marcus said. 

"That's fine. Don't let me keep you." Colt set his glass down. "But I'll call in that favour. You know a guy named Winders?"

 Marcus nodded. "Jonas Winders? Sure,  I know him. Senior ops at StarTech. Probably the highest-ranking guy they've got on Mars. I knew him back before his first wife died. Good man."

"How would Noah know him?"

"Maybe Winders offered him a job. He's hands-on, always moving. Doesn't sit in offices. If Noah was trying to get in, that's the kind of guy he'd talk to."

"You think he'd talk to me?" Colt said leaning forward.

"I'll reach out. Let him know you're coming. I'll be honest, don't hold your hopes out there."

Colt nodded. "Noah's mother—Joan. She's desperate. She's Catholic. She just wants a body. Worst case."

"I got you," Marcus said, standing. "Last chance for me to send a couple uniforms your way."

Colt looked at the men by the table. "If I walk out with you, they'll just follow me tomorrow. They made the mistake of walking in here."

Marcus tapped his phone to pay for the drinks. "Let me get this round. Martian prices take some getting used to."

Colt stood. Stretched. Rolled his neck.

Then he walked toward the door. Three pairs of eyes followed him.

Which was fine.

He was ready.