by Merry Farmer
Danny nodded but didn’t add anything. Worry wormed its way back into Grace’s gut.
The sun was high in the sky, drowning out the glitter from Chronis’ ring, when they reached the wreck. ES5 was now a ghost of what it had been when they had crashed. Dave hadn’t been able to bring it back to life. Nearly everything that could be of use had been removed weeks ago, and even some of the metal panels had been harvested for building in the new camp. She was sure the rest of it would be picked apart eventually. The stones that marked Peter’s grave sparkled in the morning light.
Rather than linger where anyone else might discover them, they made their way down the hill to the river to wait. The restless bubbling of the river as it ran past them was the only sound or movement. Grace followed it up around the bend she and Carrie had climbed over their first day on the moon. Even with all of the problems before her, she wondered where the river had its source, if there were resources there they could use. She glanced across to the other bank, wondering what awaited her on the other side.
It seemed as though they had been waiting for hours and yet no time at all when they spotted Kinn coming toward them through the forest. Grace jumped to her feet. Adrenaline shot through her as if she was preparing to jump off a cliff.
“Please let me do this on my own,” she begged, holding her ground against Danny’s fierce stare as he stood.
“No. It’s too dangerous.”
“Please, Danny. I’ll be all right. I’ll make him see reason. I’ll be back with Caitlyn before nightfall.”
“I’m coming with you.”
Grace checked on Kinn over her shoulder, panic welling. He would be within earshot in seconds.
“I don’t want him to hurt you, but he will if you try to come.”
“He’ll hurt you if I don’t,” Danny argued, face flushed red.
“He won’t. I swear he won’t. He’ll see reason.”
“Hey Grace.” Kinn’s loud greeting cut the argument short.
Grace pleaded silently with Danny one last time, then turned to face her tormentor.
Kinn strode down the sloping hill into the clearing by the river, his crossbow slung over his shoulder. Grace stepped forward, distancing herself from Danny, face set in a frown.
“You’re already here?” Kinn melted into a self-satisfied grin as he sauntered toward her.
She felt Danny harden with fury at her back.
“I said I would be.” She held her ground with both men.
Kinn stopped, grazing her with hungry eyes, then looked past her to Danny.
“What’re you doing here?”
“He’s our doctor,” Grace answered for Danny.
Kinn’s jaw tightened. “Did he tell you anything he shouldn’t have?”
She heard Danny take a step forward but still didn’t turn to look at him. She was trembling badly enough already.
“No. Why would he?”
“Good. Then I don’t need to tell anything either.” Kinn sneered at him. “Scram, Doc.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” Danny said, low and menacing.
“He’s just looking out for me,” Grace insisted. She turned to glare at him. “I told him it wasn’t necessary.”
She met Danny’s eyes, careful that Kinn couldn’t see her face as she did.
“I can take it from here,” she tried one last time.
Danny stood frozen, staring at her. His expression betrayed nothing, but his eyes held a fire she knew well. He loved her. She’d never known such love. It would destroy them all if they weren’t careful.
At last he glanced to Kinn, then nodded and backed down.
“I’ll be here when you get back.” He covered his emotion with a dark, flat tone.
Grace suppressed a sigh of relief even as her heart swelled to painful fullness. He loved her enough to let her stand on her own, and now she had to walk without him into the greatest risk she’d ever taken.
“Don’t wait up, Doc.” Kinn chuckled and winked at Grace. Her stomach gave a dangerous lurch. “Come on.”
She didn’t look back at Danny. She couldn’t. As Kinn started along the path heading upriver she walked with him, a step behind. She had no doubt that Danny would wait by the river all day. She hoped it didn’t take that long. How long did it take to make a thug see reason anyhow?
They traveled up the riverbank for a while before cutting into the forest at the point where the river ran to rapids. Kinn attempted to make light conversation, bantering about the hunt his people had gone on the day before and the size of the bear they’d killed, about how bear meat wasn’t half bad, a little stringy, and how easy it was to make the bones into tools. He talked about the pregnant women in his camp, Julia and Megan and Avril, names Grace knew well from the times he’d asked her what to do about them. She gave her replies by rote, unable to pay attention as she rehearsed her negotiations with herself.
When they reached the bridge a new problem presented itself. Eight men guarded the end of the bridge. They were alert but let her pass with a nod from Kinn. Kinn hopped easily up onto the massive fallen tree then turned to offer Grace a hand. She stared at it, stared at the bridge and the rushing water under it, heart fluttering for a new reason. Once she crossed to the other side of the river, she would be on her own, come what may.
She forced courage into her veins and took Kinn’s hand. He helped her climb the gnarled roots to stand on the tree. Her resolve faltered.
“Come on, Grace, go,” Kinn grumbled. “It’s just a bridge. You’re not going to fall in. It’s stable.”
She swallowed and took in a breath, glancing warily up at him. He was the picture of calm and command, and she had to out maneuver him.
“You want me to carry you across?”
“No.” She shook her head and yanked her hand out of his. She could do this as long as she didn’t lose her nerve.
“Fine, then get moving.”
He stood aside so that she could precede him. Determination won out over fear. She put one foot in front of the other, slowly at first, and crept out over the rushing water. From behind her some of the soldiers started laughing.
“Hey, shut up.” Kinn defended her. The laughter instantly stopped. “Jenner, Bradley, you’re on latrine duty when you get back to camp.”
The soldiers replied with a curt “Yes, sir, Lieutenant.”
She kept going forward. On the other side of the river, rough boards had been put in place to widen the bridge where the trunk of the tree branched. It was easier to walk that section and she hurried across and jumped down on the far bank with a breath of relief.
Her relief was short-lived. Kinn hopped down by her side moments later and led her on.
The forest on the other side of the river wasn’t much different than her side. The trees and vegetation were the same and she spotted the same animals in the undergrowth, watching them from a distance. A well-worn path led away from the bridge into the forest.
“It’s a bit of a hike,” Kinn explained, slowing so that she walked by his side. He was noticeably more relaxed on his own side of the river and studied her face with a smile. “You look like you’re being death-marched,” he teased.
She refused to look up at him. “Aren’t I?”
“How come you got the idea that I’m gonna hurt you, Grace? Trust me, the last thing I’m gonna do is hurt you. I’m gonna be real good to you.”
“Most people wouldn’t define sexual blackmail good,” she seethed, face and neck hot with anger.
“Cut it out, Grace. I’m not exactly dragging you out here by your hair.”
She kept her mouth pressed firmly shut. She wouldn’t argue with him. Not yet.
As they continued through the forest, the path they walked on widened. Far out of sight of the river it had been lined with stones. The dirt was packed smooth and hard, and there were no roots or rocks in the way. What was more, long poles had been planted every twenty or thirty feet with torches fastened to the top. None of the torches we
re lit, but their stumps were blackened as if they had blazed recently.
Grace’s scowl faltered when they came across a side path, also lined with stones and torch poles.
“There’s a cave off that way,” Kinn explained. “It goes deep and it stays pretty cool, so we keep meat down there. We call it the Fridge.”
“Is that so?” She showed no curiosity, in spite of the urge to know more.
They walked on, the wheels in Grace’s mind turning. Kinn’s people had plenty of meat and skins, if what she had seen was correct. They had probably been able to find the same wild vegetation that her people had. What they didn’t have were tools or the seeds from the treasure chest. That was what she would use to negotiate. She might even be able to offer some of the medicinal knowledge about plants that Danny had discovered. She could buy her way out of this deal with knowledge at the very least.
“To tell you the truth,” Kinn spoke as though in the middle of his own string of thoughts, “I’m glad to finally show you what it’s like over here.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah. I’ve been kind of, you know, nervous about what you might think. I didn’t want anyone spreading rumors or anything.”
Grace paused, a knot forming in her gut. “Don’t tell me you aren’t actually prepared for the women you’ve twisted my arm into trying to bring over here. So help me, Kinn, if you’re living in holes in the ground like Kutrosky….”
He huffed a laugh. “No. It’s not like that. We’re ready.” He shifted closer to her. “I’m ready.”
She charged on, furious with herself for giving him an opening to tease. He continued to chuckle as he caught up to her.
“You’re gonna thank me for this, Grace. That’s what I keep telling you.”
She wasn’t sure how long they had been hiking when she heard a distinctive, man-made sound. Chopping. The echo of a cascade of chopping deep in the forest had her glancing around, looking for its source. Kinn watched her with a smug grin.
They turned a corner on the winding path and she began to see men in the forest, working with what looked like axes to chop down trees. She jumped when one of the trees cracked and the men shouted for the others to watch out. Across the distance she saw a tall pine-like tree sway and crash to the ground.
They had tools. One less thing she could negotiate with.
“Where did you find axes?” she asked, out of breath.
“We made ’em.” Kinn shrugged. “Outta pieces of our emergency ship.”
“How?”
He scratched his neck. “It started with the door. It was damaged in our crash, which gave it some sharp edges. I got a few guys that used to be army engineers in my camp, real smart guys. They came up with the idea of making the axes. Old Bessie here too,” he gestured to his crossbow. “And a few other things.”
“Army engineers?”
“Yeah.”
She swallowed. If it was true, they had at least some knowledge. Another loss for her. She scrambled to figure out what she had left. Danny. Danny and his plants and experiments. Danny who was miles away on the other side of the river, who had warned her not to go alone.
She was on the verge of turning and running when they rounded a hill and Kinn’s camp spread out before her.
Her heart stopped.
In a wide clearing about the size of a football field stood at least two dozen log cabins. They were roughly constructed, their roofs made from some kind of thatching patched together from branches and twigs. Each one was much bigger than the tents her people had. The logs had been fitted tightly together but some kind of pale brown mortar had been plastered between them. They had chimneys. They had windows. In addition to the ones that were already built she counted four more under construction. And in the center of the rows of cabins was a large well.
Her legs gave out and she sank to sit in a heap on the path, staring at the camp…the village, noticing the smell of cooking meat, seeing laundry strung on a line between cabins, hearing a woman’s voice singing tunelessly.
“What?” Kinn squatted by her side, brow dark with irritation at the pause.
Her people’s tools were useless, and their tents were a joke compared to what she was seeing. Even their seeds were a frivolous luxury compared to the settlement in front of her. It was safe. It was permanent.
“I’ve got nothing,” she whispered, holding the sides of her head.
“What?” He blinked, resting a hand on her shoulder.
She didn’t bother to shrug his hand off. “I’ve got nothing to bargain with. Nothing.”
It was done. Kinn was a man who got what he wanted. Always. He had made for himself everything that Grace had hoped and dreamed of for all of the survivors on the moon. He had the knowledge, the authority, and the manpower to do the same for everyone else. Kinn had the ability to make the world they could survive and prosper in and to be king of it. She needed him a thousand times more than he needed her. And she had only one thing to bargain with.
“Hey,” he said, massaging her shoulder as if he owned her. “None of that, Grace. What’s the problem?”
She swallowed, shutting her eyes to stop herself from giving up and crying. “How did you do this?”
He sat on the ground next to her. “We landed, like, two months before you did. The pilot of our ship said we got lucky and took a dead-straight path from the Argo to here while you guys drifted around for a while. And I got seventy-two men under my command. They got a lot of extra energy and they’re used to following orders. So I had ’em put it to use. The engineers put their heads together right after we landed and started looking around for building materials. There’s trees and rocks all over this place. I had the guys start making these right away while the women went out and did the hunting.”
“The women did the hunting?”
“Yeah.” His solid face split into a smile. “Most of ’em are soldiers too. Out of a hundred and three we’ve only got sixteen civilians. The women could track and kill a bear or one of them deer things in their sleep.”
“Oh.” She was too stunned to think of anything more to say.
“Come on.” He put a huge arm around her shoulder and helped her to stand. “Let me introduce you to some people. Are you hungry? Julia’s in charge of the cooking and she had just started making some bread when I left to get you.”
“Bread?” She glanced weakly up at him. “What kind of bread? Where did you get the flour? The yeast?”
“I dunno, you’ll have to ask Julia.”
They walked on into the heart of the village. Like her own camp, everyone was busy with some kind of project connected to survival and colony-building. A couple of women had a hide stretched on a wooden frame and were treating it with stones, reminiscent of pictures Grace had once seen of Native Americans treating buffalo hides on the Plains. Another small group of women worked at a table that had been constructed next to a large cube of stones, an oven of some sort. She gaped as she watched, wondering how her people had gone for weeks without attempting to construct a communal oven.
The men building cabins near the center of the village looked up as Grace passed. They eyed her with an uncomfortable mix of hunger and discipline. A pair whispered to each other, watching her every step. They were interested, but held back. Once sharp glance from Kinn and they returned to work.
They passed near the well and Grace strayed from Kinn’s side long enough to put her hands on the edge and lean over to stare into its depths. Someone had pieced together a bucket out of slats of wood and lined with what might have been wax. It hung from a rope woven from vines.
She stepped away when Kinn turned and strode to her, taking her arm and ushering her on. The concept of a well was so simple. She was sure she had seen plans for this design in their survival book. Why hadn’t they built a well? What had they been doing with their time?
“What?” Kinn asked her as they approached the women working at the table.
Grace let out a breath as she formulated
an answer. “Your camp is a lot more advanced than ours.” It stung to admit defeat.
“Yeah, I know, but we’ve been here longer,” he reminded her. “Besides, you guys have those tents and things. You’re portable.” She snapped her eyes up to his. “You could pack everything up and move in a couple hours if you had to. That’s real important.”
“How do you know about the tents?”
“I send guys to go scout your camp every couple of days,” he said. When she glared up at him he went on. “What? I wanted to make sure you were safe and defensible. I don’t trust Kutrosky not to attack you when your guard’s down. My guys tell me I have nothing to worry about. You and your people are just fine, and Kutrosky’s are undisciplined and desperate. They couldn’t organize a hunt last week, let alone an attack on an established camp. Hey Julia, this is Grace.”
If they had been alone she would have ripped into him with a ferocity that would have made him cower in his boots, no matter how much of a tower he was. If he hadn’t coerced her into coming across the river, she would have gone hoarse asking questions. She was forced to choke down the fury of his betrayal of trust and turn to the woman Julia with clenched teeth and as friendly a demeanor as she could manage. It wasn’t the woman’s fault.
“Hello.” She extended her trembling hand.
“You must be Grace. Kinn’s mentioned you.” Julia was likely close to Grace’s age and was solidly built. Her hands were dusted with flour. She wiped them on the chamois lying on the table beside a carved wooden bowl then took Grace’s hand. “What brings you over to our side of the river?”
“None of your business,” Kinn answered for her, then followed with, “Hey, I’m starving. You got something to eat?”
Julia eyed him askance. “Help yourself. There’s stew on the hearth but the bread isn’t done yet.”
Kinn nodded and wandered over to the stone oven to investigate.