by RS McCoy
“Let me see.”
“You’re a doctor now?” Theo could hear the pain in her voice.
“No, but I took a few advanced anatomy classes. I just want to see if you broke a bone.” He felt along her arm, down her elbow and wrist, and settled on the metacarpals in her hand. Then she pulled away.
“It’s not broken. I know better than that. Just sore.” The sounds of her shoes scuffed the dirt somewhere ahead.
Theo didn’t want to tell her how nervous he felt in the dark. It was more than pitch black. It was nothingness. It was endless.
He thought that must be what it was like to be in a black hole, though it didn’t make any sense. Maybe his nerves were playing tricks on him.
When Mable’s footsteps sounded too far away, he trotted towards her, only to rake his shoulder against stone.
“Keep your hand on the wall,” she said, maybe thirty or forty feet ahead. Theo did as he was told and walked fast enough to keep up with her, at least as far as he could tell from the sounds of her shoes in the dry soil.
“How do you know where you’re going?” he asked to fill the silence.
“You learn your way around after a while.”
“How long were you here?”
“Almost a year. A few others before that. They all connect through tunnels like these. You can live your whole life without seeing the sun.”
Theo wondered what that sort of existence must be like. Then realized he’d never seen the sun either. Not really. It was a digital hologram projected onto the dome or so obscured by haze it was little more than a bright area of orange. In a way, he’d been living underground, too.
“How far to the city?”
“Little over an hour.”
Mable was fast and quiet enough that Theo felt lost and alone at least a dozen times. He wondered if maybe some sort of lurking creature of lore or psychotic Untouchable would emerge from the gloom and steal him from the world. Maybe he would write a song about it if he lived to the end.
At last, a tiny pinprick of light appeared ahead. Theo had no idea when it started, but once he saw it, he couldn’t take his eyes off it. That little bit of light was so damn bright.
“Who goes there?” A gruff voice sounded somewhere ahead.
“Hey Ryk.” By the sound of her shoes, Mable was running. Theo trotted to keep pace.
Soon enough, a man only small by Knox’s standards, stood tall and blocked the beam of light. He had a thick beard that covered his face but his chest and arms were firmly wrapped around Mable.
He pulled back and held her at arms’ length, looking her up and down. “It’s really you? My Mable girl come home?”
“It’s me.” Theo could hear the smile in her voice as he arrived behind her.
“Ooh lordy, that Katherine gonna have a fit. You best watch youself.” Then he noticed Theo.
With narrow eyes, the man shifted a hand into his pocket and asked, “Who dis?”
“He’s with me.”
The man she called Ryk squeezed her again before letting them continue on their way.
“That guy lives in the tunnel?” Theo asked, half horrified, half amazed.
“No, not really.” She didn’t say any more and Theo got the distinct impression she didn’t care to elaborate.
Not five minutes later, a sour smell smacked him in the face. He covered his nose with his hand as if that would help. “What is that?”
Mable laughed. “Sauerkraut. A lot of food here is German.”
The smells continued, layering over each other until it was such a big swirl of new he couldn’t tell one from the other. When he thought he’d reached his max, the tunnel opened into a wide cavern. Booths and stalls lined the stone walls and dim blue lights shone from the stone ceilings. Busy people moved between vendors and Theo realized he’d seen a scene like this before, the same but still so different.
It was a market.
Theo felt like Dasia, a small-time kid in a big city. There was so much, so many people, so many sights, so many things to see he couldn’t take them in all at once.
Folks of all kind wandered, from bakers to mechanics to seamstresses to electronics dealers. There were old and young, tall and short, blonde, red, and black headed. Aside from the few with dry, scaly skin and strange bald heads, it looked to be a normal affair, only unique in its locale.
Mable grabbed the strap of his bag where it fell across his chest and tugged him through the considerable crowd.
Theo could only gape and stare.
Distracted by the commotion, he didn’t see the blonde head that wove through the crowd like a shark on the prowl. Mable released her grip and ran into the crowd, only to be knocked to the ground moments later.
“Mable!” screeched a girl, maybe fifteen with blonde hair nearly down to her hips. Her arms were wrapped tight around Mable where they sat on the floor. The two were hopelessly intertwined.
“Are you okay? Let me see you. I came back as soon as I could. Have you been eating?”
Big, fat tears streamed down the girl’s cheeks as she clutched at Mable, ignoring the torrent of questions.
Theo stood in the gathering crowd of spectators, unsure of what to do or say. He could only watch as the two girls stood, still mostly latched together.
Mable turned back to him and said, “Theo, this is Hadley. Hadley, this is Theo.”
“Oh my god! You brought a guy? No way!” Hadley smiled as she wiped at her tears. “I can’t believe you got a boyfriend and didn’t tell me!”
Theo felt the blush in his cheeks.
“No, not like that,” Mable said. She turned and shot him a mischievous smile. “He tried to kill me a few days ago.”
Hadley’s pretty face twisted into a scowl, though it wasn’t as intimidating as she probably intended. She stepped forward and rammed her fist into his cheek, knocking him backward with the unexpected impact.
Mable laughed and held out a hand to help him up. “Sorry, maybe should have left that part out.”
Theo’s cheek screamed and he knew it must already be swelling. He wanted to be mad, but he knew: he deserved that.
MICHAEL
LRF-AQ
AUGUST 29, 2232
Abigail entered with their usual evening tray in her hands, wheat for him and watermelon for her. She set both provision bowls down at the small table at the center of the room and collected two glasses of water from his modest personal kitchen.
Michael was neck deep in budget spreadsheets. Robotics was way over after losing an unprecedented amount of probes a few weeks ago. Colonies was short one researcher until the committee approved a replacement. Astrobotany needed to send their newest seed creations to colony ships more than twenty years out. Planetary Systems had worked more overtime than three departments combined. There were a lot of overages. He rubbed his forehead and sighed.
Abigail arrived behind him. Her hair smelled sweet, flowers maybe. She wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned her body against his shoulders. Even the weight of her felt good.
“Take a break,” she said, as if she were his boss and not the other way around.
“I’m almost done here,” he lied.
“Come on.” She pulled at his shoulders and urged him out of his chair.
Michael gave in, as he always did. He gripped her hand and pulled her back when she tried to walk away, kissing her hard when she reached him.
“Did you ever have a girl? As a youth?” She kissed him again, a small peck on the lips as she took her seat.
Michael chuckled at the memory. “I did once.”
“What was her name?” Abigail asked with a smile.
“Cherokee Running Bull. Her mother was convinced they were full blooded Cherokees, but there’s no way to prove that anymore.”
“Were they authentic? Did they hunt bison and live in teepees and all that?” Abigail teased him.
“Not in that way, but in others. They were polygamists, which I didn’t realize until we’d been dat
ing for a few months.” Michael started in on his bowl of provisions.
Abigail’s eyes widened as she leaned in. “Really?”
“They were Craftsmen, her mother a seamstress and her father worked one of the big farms outside Chattanooga. I planned on going Scholar, but that would have disrupted their polygamist lifestyle. I guess they thought they could convert me.”
“Convert you how?” Abigail asked, though her raised eyebrows indicated she already knew.
Michael felt the heat rise into his cheeks. He shoved a spoonful of provisions into his mouth.
“Oh come on, tell me. Now I have to know,” Abigail prodded with a smile.
Michael swallowed hard. “It was a normal day after class. I went to her house to see her. Cherry’s mom opened the door and insisted I come in.”
“Cherry?”
“Yeah, Cherry. I went up to her room. There was another girl there. Couldn’t tell you her name. I’m not sure I ever knew it.” Most of that day was a blur, a strange, vivid blur.
Abigail’s lips curled into a wide smile. “Okay, so you have Cherry and another girl in her room. What happened next?” She leaned in further and abandoned her dinner altogether.
“Well, Cherry left me alone with the other girl. And, let’s just say, I learned a lot that day.” Michael could remember every detail, the dream-catchers that hung from the window, the native pattern painted on the wall, the two dark-haired girls who sat on the bed and stared up at him with big, innocent eyes, hiding their plan until the last possible moment. He remembered his confusion, then rejection, and finally submission. He’d only been sixteen, after all.
“Wait, she left?” Abigail looked disappointed.
“Yes, but she came back later.”
“And you’d never touched her before?”
Michael shook his head.
Abigail threw her head back and laughed so hard she clutched at her stomach.
“It’s not funny. I’m pretty sure it’s assault,” he added, but he couldn’t keep from laughing, not when she laughed. It was contagious.
“So, the first time you touch a girl, you have two force themselves on you?” She coughed out yet more laughs.
“Yes, it would seem so. I don’t know why you think it’s so funny.”
“I can just picture you trying to rationalize the situation, talk your way out of it. I bet you tried to reason with them,” she said between snorts of laughter.
Michael pursed his lips. “Fine, I tried to reason with them. Only for a while,” he said in his defense, but it didn’t help. She was already lost to her laughs again.
He would have been upset at someone laughing at him, especially her, but he loved to see her laugh, to see her so relaxed. He enjoyed being the one to make her smile, even at his expense. Even if it wasn’t real.
“What’d you tell them?” Abigail asked, eager for details.
“Oh, I can’t remember.”
“Come on! Tell me,” she begged.
Michael snorted, anticipating her reaction. “I told them I didn’t think I could handle two of them at once.” Sure enough, Abigail hooted all the louder. “That’s when Cherry left. The friend was very persuasive, but Cherry came in later. I didn’t want to be unfaithful to her.”
“So, you really only touched Cherry?” Abigail laughed so hard her cheeks turned bright red and she struggled to breathe. Tears streamed down her cheeks.
“I don’t get it. Why is that so funny?” Sure, the whole situation was a little comical in retrospect, but he couldn’t imagine why that last bit had been the one to set her over the edge.
Abigail worked to get enough air in her lungs to explain. “Cherry popped your cherry.”
And that was it. Michael lost his cool and laughed right alongside her, both gasping for air.
Michael pushed his provisions aside and scooped Abigail from her chair. He all but tossed her onto the bed and crawled over her.
“Got excited reliving the glory days?” she teased.
Not in the least. Michael couldn’t keep his hands off her for one more second, not when she laughed like that. Not when she was so open and free, so far removed from her professional, business self. This was the Abigail only he could see. And he wanted all of her.
MABLE
SUBTERRANEAN CHICAGO, NORTH AMERICA
AUGUST 29, 2232
The warm air of the Root filled her lungs. She’d been excited to come back, to see Hadley and be someplace she felt safe, but she hadn’t expected it to feel as good as it did. She’d needed this trip, only she hadn’t realized it until they were here.
Her arm linked with Hadley’s, they walked through the market. She let Hadley tell her about all things she’d missed, all the latest boy gossip and juicy news Mable couldn’t quite manage to care about. She wanted to be with Hadley again.
“Mossa, you know that guy from the Arbor, he went back and took like thirty of the others. Mostly girls, I mean, who wouldn’t go with a guy with that face, but a lot of folks were pretty upset. You should have seen Luc’s face. He still hasn’t’ gotten over it.”
“Payten went? Yeah, I bet he was destroyed.”
“And, please, can I ask what’s going on with your hair? Is this a new look we’re trying? I seriously did not get the ecomm.” Mable smiled wide. She’d missed this.
“It’s a long story,” was all Mable could say in the busy market. Mable turned and shot Theo a look, but he was still pouting about Hadley’s right hook.
She’d have to wait to get back to their cave to tell her the details, though she was definitely going to leave a few of them out.
Hadley filled her ear all the way back to their quaint little cave, but stopped short when she entered. Her bed had new sheets. Tee-shirts and pants were strewn here and there. A masculine black leather belt and a pair of enormous combat boots gave it away.
“Hadley Wallace! You’ve had a boy living here?!” Mable held the girl’s shoulders at arms’ length and glared, hoping to force the truth out of her.
Hadley squirmed. “Just Rowen. Are you mad?”
“Who’s Rowen?” Theo asked from the cave entry.
“Never mind.” Mable didn’t want to get into it.
She was, however, relieved that Rowen had taken over care of Hadley. Not that the girl was helpless, but she was young, and she’d never known the parts of the world Mable and Rowen had seen. They both wanted to keep it that way.
“He’s down helping Mitt with something for the water system. I’ll have him move his shit out when he gets back.”
Mable sighed. “No, we aren’t staying.”
“What?!” Hadley’s mouth hung open as she crossed her arms. “You just got back and you’re leaving?”
“In the morning. But here, I brought you some things.” Mable hoped the giant bag of new clothes and supplies would soften the blow. Sure enough, Hadley set the bag on her bed and began to pull out the items on top, though the pissed off look never quite left her face.
“Where’d you get all this?” Hadley pulled out the black paisley sheets and set them into a rumpled pile.
“I’m in a program. They give us pretty much anything.”
“What kind of program?” She held up the mint-green pants and her eyes widened. Mable knew she liked them.
“It’s all pretty secret, but—”
“Careful.” She’d almost forgotten Theo was there. Despite his warning, she wasn’t going to tell Hadley anything. Mable wouldn’t put her in danger that way. She shot him a silencing look and continued. “But I’m doing some research. Pretty high-brow stuff.”
Hadley grumbled.
Mable sat on the bed and pulled at Hadley’s arm until the girl sat beside her. “I know you’re mad at me, and you have every right to be. And I know it’s hard to understand, but this is the best way to keep you safe.”
“Don’t talk to me like I’m a child. I’m fifteen!”
Mable pressed her lips together. “I know. I know you are. I just need you
to trust me. And I only get to be here for a couple days. So don’t be mad okay?”
Hadley simmered in her seat, her arms crossed and her eyes on the floor. Mable knew her well enough to recognize when she was only pretending to be angry.
“What’s wrong?” She put an arm around Hadley’s shoulders and pulled the girl into her chest.
“You were just gone. We went to that access port and there were all those guys and you were just gone. They brought me back, but I thought I’d never see you again.”
Mable realized at once. “You thought it was your fault.”
Hadley’s head nodded against her chest.
“It wasn’t your fault. Not at all. I chose to leave. It was my decision. It had nothing to do with you,” she lied. “And Arturo is a rat bastard. I knocked him out for you.”
“What? You went back?” Hadley lifted her head and searched Mable’s face for any sign of a lie.
“Yep. Punched him square in the jaw. Ask Theo.” They both looked up at him and thankfully, he nodded. He actually smiled a little, too. In fact, they all did.
Theo moved across the room and sat on Mable’s former bed. “He just fell into a pile.”
“A big pile,” Mable laughed.
“Man, I wish I could have been there! You’re no fun.” Hadley turned and pulled at the stack of shirts, holding up each one and admiring their fabric or details. “These are really nice. You sure I can have all this?”
“Of course, angel. No one else I’d rather have it.”
A deep, rusty voice sounded from the entry. “Well if I’d known we were supposed to bring presents, I’d have brought something.”
Like a phantom he appeared, dark and lurking like always. Rowen’s jaw was set tight, as if he were pissed to find her there.
Mable didn’t care.
She jumped up and flung her arms around his neck. “Hey May,” he whispered in her ear. His arms wrapped behind her and squeezed her tight. She knew their past fights were forgiven. He was just as happy to see her.
“And who is this?” he asked as he set her down. His voice was intentionally rough.
Mable touched back to the ground and said, “This is Theo. He’s just here to watch out for me.” Turning to Theo she added, “This is Rowen.”