* * *
8:40 A.M...
Hellenistic Sector, Memorial Park Vicinage...
A thick fog hung above the grounds of the Hades Cemetery, and a few dozen people had gathered for Preacher's funeral and more were coming. Bleak Dry Clouds grumbled over the dark day like a cyclops with a belly ache. Very few street lights lit the area, so the funeral home handed out lanterns and by the time the gathering was complete, about a hundred people stood around the casket. Each of them held the electric luminary. Solemn faces mourned the passing of a great and beloved man, and a few women cried along with a boy. Many people sniffled as an elderly woman blew her nose.
Katharine's view...
I stand off by myself near a tree and watch the people slowly assemble. I experience a sadness so deep and so painful I don't know how to handle it. I feel awkward and out of place, and I don't want to be by the others. I wouldn't know how to act. My eyes burn because no tears relieve the scorch of my grief.
I whisper to the book I hold, "Oh, Preacher... I'm sorry, but I need to keep my distance until there are fewer people. I'm already taking a chance by coming here."
I sniff and wipe my runny nose with the arm of my jacket. I might not have my tracking beacon, but that doesn't mean bio-mechas are unable to hunt me.
End Katharine's view...
Stephanie approached from behind, carrying Transgenic Daisies. She wore a black printed t-shirt of a smiley face, but this time it had its red tongue sticking out. She stopped beside Kat, noticing her anguish. "Did you know Preacher?"
Kat gripped the book she held. "Yes."
In the distance...
At the head of the casket, a pastor opened a black Bible and once everyone gathered had quieted, he started on a passage.
"Ecclesiastes 3:1-8. To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven. A time to be born, and a time to die."
At the tree...
She switched the flowers to her left hand and offered her right. "I'm Stephanie."
"Kat." She shook her hand.
In the distance...
"A time to plant, and a time to pluck what is planted. A time to kill, and a time to heal."
At the tree...
Stephanie asked, "Why are you standing here instead of with the others?" She motioned with her head.
"I..." Kat didn't know what to say. "I ah..."
In the distance...
"A time to break down, and a time to build up. A time to weep, and a time to laugh."
At the tree...
Stephanie examined her face and tried to figure out her expression and what Kat was thinking. "Don't worry about it," Stephanie said. "You don't have to tell me. I get uncomfortable around dead people too." She buttoned up her dark brown corduroy coat as the air cooled. "When I look at them, it's kind of like looking at myself."
Kat couldn't figure out who the woman was. She said the weirdest things. She also couldn't figure out why she was standing by her instead of over by the coffin.
Stephanie continued, "I know it's not normal, but that's how I feel."
In the distance...
"A time to mourn, and a time to dance. A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones. A time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing."
At the tree...
"Were you and Preacher close?" Stephanie asked.
"Yes."
Stephanie glanced at her flowers; she wished she could throw these smelly things away, but she needed to stay in character. Mr. Decuma said she needed to work on her patience, and he said she needed to take more time and get to know a person before she killed them, so she asked, "How close?"
Kat looked to her unsure of her question.
Stephanie leaned in. "What I want to know is, were you two playing between the sheets?"
Kat's cheeks flushed red as she shook her head.
In the distance...
"A time to gain, and a time to lose. A time to keep, and a time to throw away. A time to tear, and a time to sew."
At the tree...
"Really?" Stephanie brushed a stray hair from her own face. "Are you a lesbian?"
Taken aback, Kat said nothing at first, but then shook her head again, and then she said in a hushed tone, "Umm... I think we should be quiet while the pastor is talking." Kat took a few steps forward and away from Stephanie.
In the distance...
"A time to keep silence, and a time to speak. A time to love, and a time to hate. A time of war, and a time of peace." The pastor closed his Bible and picked up a handful of dirt. "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust." He sprinkled the dirt on the coffin and nodded, and a man activated a machine that lowered the pine box. Those gathered, one by one, threw a handful of dirt on the coffin.
At the tree...
"I'm sorry." Stephanie walked up to her. "I didn't mean to offend you or anything. I can't imagine spending so much time with a guy and not..."
Kat angrily looked at her, trying to figure out what was with her.
"Right." Stephanie covered her mouth as she said, "We should be quiet."
#2 Shades of Gray: From Moscow, With Love Page 24