New Threat

by Nathan Hystad

  “You’ll be a great dad. That much I know,” was all I could say.

  “How about you two lovebirds?” He was fishing for information, and I wondered if it was coming from his own curiosity, or if Nat had given him a mission. They had their suspicions about our new engagement but had been nice enough to only ask indirectly. I wished he would just ask the question straight out.

  “Magnus, you’re my best friend, so I’m going to cut to the chase. I asked her to marry me…” I was cut off by him almost driving into the ditch. He’d been staring at me, not the road.

  “Really? Who did you ask?” he asked sarcastically. As we swung back to the packed-down dirt road, he looked at me apologetically, but his grin was as wide as I’d ever seen it. “I knew it! Nat owes me ten bucks!”

  We laughed and chatted about the future over the next hour on the way to Santa Fe. It was so nice to put all the other stuff aside, and just be friends on a road trip.

  We entered the city, and Magnus had me check the nav system for something I hadn’t even thought about, mainly because Mary said it wasn’t necessary: a jewelry store.

  We passed by a school just on the border of the city, probably catering to all the deep-dwelling super-suburban families, as well as the rural ones. Some children romped in the playground, but the few that were there seemed subdued, swinging in silence. Teachers had always been an important commodity, but now their task of helping educate these traumatized youths was a huge task. Magnus had brought up children, and I wasn’t sure I could ever go down that alley. With Janine unable to have kids, I’d thought that ship had sailed. Of course, now I knew why. Because she wasn’t human. I thought the world’s birth rate would either take a drastic nose dive over the next year, or people would be happy to be alive, and take pleasure in the fact.

  Magnus must have looked at a map before we left, because he seemed to know exactly where he was going without checking the GPS. Soon we arrived at a strip mall on the outskirts of Santa Fe, lined with generic franchises, some of which weren’t open, the windows boarded up.

  Other stores were doing business as usual. After the Event, so many business owners were no longer with us that their companies were sometimes handed to family members, who often didn’t want the burden of running a post-Event-world store, which I didn’t blame them for. I could hardly go back to bean-counting after everything we’d been through, so I understood completely. But life did need to go on, normalcy and routine were necessary to rebuild our world, and many businesses did end up running after it was all said and done.

  The first stop was a liquor store. The building looked new, but it’d seen better days, like the whole area. A couple down-on-their-luck guys hung out on the sidewalk in front of it. With all the housing and new jobs becoming available, it made me sad to still see what looked like poverty, though I could probably attribute it more to addiction.

  “Good thing they gave me a company card. This could get ugly.” Magnus smiled widely as he flung the door open. “Come on,” he called as he walked past the two sitting men.

  The liquor store was half empty, but considering logistics were just starting to get back in order, that wasn’t a surprise. A lot of these places were looted in the weeks people arrived back on Earth. Newfound life, and all some of the population could do was steal from each other. I thought about the colony ship leaving and felt a stab of guilt as I wished I could leave Earth behind and just start fresh somewhere else.

  “Hello, good sir.” Magnus walked up to the cashier, who looked almost as large as his new customer.

  The man grunted. “What can I do for you fine gentlemen?” he asked, eyeballing us suspiciously. I was grateful we’d decided on not wearing our uniforms. Something told me we might be dealing with some more hostility if we had.

  “Scotch. I want it all.” Magnus raised his eyebrows as he spoke.

  “Sure thing. We got some good stuff left over here.” The man started to walk to the next aisle.

  “No. I don’t think you understand what I’m saying. I want it all. The stuff out back.” I had no idea what the hell Magnus was talking about, but he seemed to.

  “Who are you?” the burly proprietor asked.

  “Let’s just say, the president would be very thankful if you could supply me with what I need,” Magnus said, and the man took a step back.

  “Look, I ain’t doing nothing the other stores ain’t,” he said, hands raised in the air as if to feign no responsibility for something.

  “Relax. I just heard through the grapevine you had the best selection of 20-year-old Scotch in the area, and a lot of it, I might add. I’m paying, and I don’t even need a great deal on it,” Magnus said, and the man’s tense posture did relax.

  “Why didn’t you say so? Drive around back. I’ll get you set up.” The man was now smiling like he’d won the lottery. “Name’s Gus.”

  I followed Gus, our new friend, through the staff-only doors, and into the small warehouse space. He slid open a door, revealing a semi-truck trailer full of liquor. Magnus popped through the steel door beside it and whistled when he saw the stacks of hazel liquid he was after.

  Twenty minutes later, we were leaving, our truck canopy three-quarters full of various booze bottles. I’d even grabbed a few bottles of some nice Bordeaux for Mary and myself. A few was actually a case. We had no idea how long we would be cooped up in that dome, so I couldn’t be too careful.

  “Next stop coming up,” my big friend said, once again grinning like a school kid who’d just pulled a prank.

  We drove through what was once an affluent neighborhood, only half the yards were untrimmed, and nature was on the warpath after being left for a year. The houses were large, with great yards and long driveways. After a few lefts and rights, Magnus pulled over as we approached a dark Spanish-style house.

  “We’re here,” he exclaimed, as if I’d know where here was.

  He took a case of Scotch out of the truck and nodded me to follow him up the driveway. A dog barked from inside the house, and it warmed my heart a bit. So many animals hadn’t made it after being without food or water for so long.

  Magnus trudged up the steps, setting the case of Scotch down, and knocked on the wooden door. Moments later, it opened, and a German Shepherd growled cautiously from behind a screen door. I eyed him warily.

  “How can I help you?” an old man asked, and I noticed him for the first time. Through the screen, he wasn’t much more than a dark top and a wisp of white hair.

  “I’m Magnus. My friend Slate told me you could be of service.” He lightly kicked the box of liquor at his feet.

  The man’s face came closer and he unlocked the door, pushing it open slowly. We ceased to exist as he licked his lips and looked down at the step.

  “Yes, yes, come on in. Jasper, be good to these fine folks.” With that, we entered the old man’s large home. It was tidy, but I got the sense it hadn’t been cleaned in a while. An odor wafted to me, reminding me of my history professor at university: seeds and shuffleboard dust.

  “Don’t mind the mess, I don’t get much company any longer,” he said, and led us past the large two-story foyer and into an office on the right. It was full of built-in cherry red bookcases and a large desk. The kind that didn’t hold a computer, just papers and a phone.

  He gestured to us to sit in the matching leather chairs on the opposite side of the desk, and we obliged him, Magnus leaving the Scotch on the floor near the door.

  “What’s this all about?” I asked Magnus, who still had that big goofy grin covering the lower half of his face.

  “You’ll see,” he replied.

  “I’m assuming you heard of me through some reliable source or another, which hopefully means you’re trustworthy. My name’s Herman, and that furry fiend is Jasper,” the older man said. I scanned the walls and saw pictures of what I could only assume was family. The big house seemed empty now except for Herman and his dog.

  He seemed to notice me looking and cleared his
throat. “My daughter is still with us. Moved to Africa to help with those remaining there. Water wells are their priority, but most of the population has now moved to plumbed-in areas. She says that in a few years, they should be able to cut back deaths related to bacteria in water by ninety percent over there.” He paused, and his eyes were misty with emotion. “My wife passed before everything… five years ago. Anyway, down to business. You need a couple of rings?”

  Rings? What did he mean?

  “Yep. Two of your finest engagement rings. Then some matching bands. For me and my partner in crime over here.” Magnus winked at me.

  The man leaned back in his chair. “Oh. I see. Well, congrats on finding each other in this tumultuous time.”

  Finding each other? “I think you may have the wrong idea. I’m recently engaged, so I get that, but Magnus…” I stopped and his smile grew even larger.

  “Going to ask the question right before we go. Figured we could have a big party,” he said.

  “I’ll be damned. Nat’s going to make an honest man out of you after all!” I was on my feet and so was my big friend. We were hugging, and I saw Herman looking at us like he knew a secret we didn’t. That look was enough to get me to stop our man hug.

  Herman used a key, turning it to reveal a sliding drawer. From it, he pulled a briefcase, which was also locked with one of those old spinning combination locks. He spun the individual rows until he had the right passcode and clicked the case open with his back to us.

  “Here we go,” he said, spinning around and setting the display case down on the desk. My breath caught as I saw a wide assortment of ridiculously large stones in various cuts, in numerous settings. But those weren’t what I saw first. A ring with a large green stone sat among the plethora of pink and white diamonds.

  “Where did you get that?” I asked, heart stuck in my throat.

  He looked at me for a moment and didn’t say anything. I could feel the pendant against my chest and had forgotten I’d even been wearing it. It was as if it knew another like it was around, causing it to make tiny vibrations. Probably just my imagination.

  “I’ve procured some interesting items over the last year. You see, I was a jewelry and stone trader before.” He didn’t have to say before what. “I heard about these magnificent stones and had to have one for my collection. I haven’t shown another soul, until I saw the Hero of Earth show up at my door. Thought you might appreciate it, Dean.” His voice was calm, a contradiction to what I was feeling.

  “Wait, I thought the government got all the stones back. Unless someone chosen didn’t tell them about it, and kept it,” I said, seeing the picture of his grown daughter on the wall. She looked athletic, strong, and just the type of person the Kraski would have selected for the mission. And she was now conveniently in Africa, away from prying ears and eyes. “Are you willing to part with it?”

  His eyes misted over lightly, just for a moment. “That depends on the bargain.”

  I hardly heard them negotiating, but in a few minutes, Magnus had the green-stoned ring in a bag, and we were looking at the other rings. Mary had told me she’d never cared about huge diamond rings. It was something she’d told Bob, but he hadn’t listened, and she’d spent the next few years walking around with a carat and a half on her hand. When I picked out a small pink diamond set on a thin band, they gave me inquisitive looks.

  “Oh, very elegant,” Herman said.

  Magnus had a huge princess cut for Natalia, and when we had matching wedding bands to go with the engagement rings, we were back at the door, the Scotch still in Herman’s office. Jasper got a last scratch behind the ear, and we were off.

  “What else did you give him in exchange?” I asked as the door shut on us.

  “I told him the Earth Defense wouldn’t come turn his house upside down looking for more alien jewelry. He was all smiles after that,” Magnus said, hefting the bag of rings in his left hand.

  “You knew the whole time?”

  “They were talking about a ring seller under suspicion of having one. Not sure how they knew. Maybe they found a way to track it, or they heard rumors of his daughter being one of those left behind. Either way, we have it, and I figured while we were at it, we can get our beautiful ladies some bling.” The word sounded quite funny coming from my large friend. I couldn’t fault his motivation.

  Herman’s daughter had been left behind like us. I wondered about her story and wished I could talk to her. Working on wells in Africa was something worthy of the title Hero of Earth, and I hoped she found what she was looking for. Most nights as I went to sleep, I dwelled on what it would have been like if someone else had gone to space and I’d been left back on Earth.

  We made a couple more stops, nothing too important, and in an hour, we were heading back to the base for the second-to-last night before the colony ship left for Proxima b.

  TWELVE

  “I can’t believe I let you talk me into this,” Mary said between big fake smiles.

  “Don’t blame me. Blame Magnus. It’s their last night, and he wanted a send-off. Our engagement was the perfect ruse for it,” I said, instantly regretting that phrase.

  Instead, she just visibly calmed and slid her hand into mine. That meant all was right in the world. We walked into the hangar, where a couple of the ships had been moved out. It was lightly decorated, and half a dozen folding tables had been placed inside, covered by some obviously borrowed tablecloths from what looked like an Italian restaurant from the seventies. LED lanterns were draped across the room, giving it a cozy backyard patio feel. It was perfect.

  Mary was wearing her ring, and the other Earth Defense members flocked around her, asking for a look, and I realized something like this was a great distraction for the whole base. It was an event that could make them forget for a night that Earth had been invaded, and that we were now fighting for our lives.

  Even President Patrice Dalhousie was there, with General Heart at her side. Slate, the oversized ED sergeant, loomed beside them. They waved at us, Heart sipping what looked like a Scotch while he stared at us over the edge of the glass.

  Natalia walked in wearing a sleek black dress, the skirt slit to the thigh. I let out a low whistle, getting an elbow for my efforts. Nat was smiling widely at the beautiful setting, pointing at the lights and decorations. Magnus stood tall and wide beside her, filling out what could only be a custom tuxedo. I laughed, knowing how much the man hated confining clothing on his large frame.

  “Congrats, you two lovebirds,” he said giving us a wink. “Dean, let’s go get a drink.”

  “Nat, you look beautiful,” I said, before being pulled away by Magnus. Mary and Nat were hugging and chatting. I hadn’t told Mary about the surprise engagement.

  “Change in plans, buddy.” Magnus shifted side to side, either nervous or excited about the proposal.

  I didn’t like the sound of that. “What do you mean? Don’t tell me you’re not going through with it. She loves you. You guys are perfect for each other.” I looked back, getting a wave from Mary, who was beaming at all the attention.

  “I really hate to do this at your engagement party, but just remember it was all my idea,” he said.

  The bartender walked up to us, and I ordered a beer, getting Magnus a double Scotch, and wine for the ladies.

  “Spit it out,” I said, tired of the drama.

  “I’m not just asking her to marry me.” He paused, a big grin cast over his face. It was infectious, and I was smiling now too. “I’m asking her to marry me tonight.”

  “Yeah, that was the plan.”

  “No. I’m asking her to marry me, then getting married tonight.” He was almost jumping up and down in joy, and I put my hand on his shoulder, trying to calm him down. Only then I noticed the white-collared young man leaning against the far wall, chatting with Clare.

  “Congrats to you, then. Don’t mind us. We’re the last people worried about wanting to be in the limelight. Take the spotlight. Take all of it!”
I yelled the last bit, the room looking my way like I was crazy.

  Lowering my voice, I told him he had my blessing. This got him laughing, and we hugged, quickly brushing it off as the room’s many eyes once again looked to us.

  “You will be my best man, right?” he asked with a raised eyebrow, as if he had to ask.

  “Only if she says yes,” I replied, and got a light shot in the arm.

  Mary and Nat crossed the room to join us, and I passed them each their wine glasses. I raised my beer glass, the other three following suit. “To us. May we find new happiness in our new worlds.” We all clinked glasses and took a drink.

  “Where’s Mae?” Magnus asked, and I felt a fool for not having noticed she wasn’t there.

  “I haven’t seen her. I think she’s getting her stuff together for the trip. I have seen her canoodling with a guard, so maybe she’s having her own little love connection,” Mary said, trying to divert how upset she really was by Mae not being there.

  The night was getting on, Dalhousie gave us a nice speech about love and hope, and we drank to it, me starting to get a little lightheaded with all the liquor and ambiance.

  Music played through some speakers, the hangar becoming a dance hall, and couples and friends alike paired up, slow-dancing to some nice music. This was when Magnus did his business.

  In the middle of a song, everyone walked away, circling the couple. Nat didn’t seem to notice, her eyes closed, her head nestled on his big chest.

  He stopped moving, got to his knee and held her hand.

  A tear slipped down her cheek, and the room was silent for a moment.

  “Nat, baby. I’ve loved you for years. The second I saw you…” He stopped, probably not wanting to ruin it by reminding her of her capture at the hands of Russian mobsters all those years ago. “My heart loved you even then. A scared young woman, who took that negative part of her life and turned it from a scar to a badge. You are the single strongest person I’ve ever known, and the most beautiful soul I can imagine. I know I’m just a big oaf who sometimes speaks before thinking, and shoots before negotiating, but I’ll be there by your side for the rest of your life. You may think that I rescued you all those years ago, but the truth is, you rescued me. I’m forever in your debt. Will you make me the happiest man on Earth, New Earth, and Proxima b, and marry me?”