Talbot had wept himself dry. He sat sideways in the shuttle seat, Tweet’s petite body partly on his lap. The little girl finally slept. Su was clinging to his arm, little Ngyap asleep on her lap. Across from them, Dya was cuddled with Tuska and Shine. Damien huddled by himself, sleep finally granting him relief from the grief and anger. Only so much pain could be packed into a body.
Only so much misery.
They’d buried Rebecca’s dress in a shallow grave in the cemetery beside Rondo’s marker. The same with Shantaya’s little dress. Those bloody, rent garments were the closest they could come to their loved ones’ last physical remains, which, after all, the blood and dried fluids were.
For most of the day, Talbot and his family had puttered around in shock, going through the motions while the folks from Port Authority did most of the packing, listlessly directed by Dya and Su.
Load by load, they used the Beta to haul belongings and materiel from the dome down to the shuttle where Talina stood guard at the ramp, her rifle chambered.
In the shuttle, Manny Batemen and Sun-Ho kept a constant eye on the sensors, wary of an approach by any thermal source. They got hits, of course. Faint readings as quetzals appeared at the edges of the trees, apparently to look, and then faded back into the forest.
As night had fallen, the last of the loads had been packed into the shuttle’s cavernous hold.
In the end, the ramp had been raised, and the shuttle had blasted its way into the air, leaving Mundo Base abandoned to the night. Devoid of any human presence for the first time since its founding so many years ago.
Was this all my fault? Mark wondered as he clasped Tweet’s delicate body close. The little girl’s eyes flickered in REM sleep, her rich brown hair curled around her face.
Had he not come to Mundo, the lift would still have broken. Maybe it wouldn’t have been Kylee who’d been injured. It might have been someone else. Or, if it had been Kylee, and the women were unable to fly her north to Port Authority, the little girl would have lived as a cripple. But she’d have been alive. With Rocket. And the quetzals would have remained mollified.
Rebecca and Shantaya would be alive. Damien and Tweet would still have a mother. A home.
Spiro came to Mundo looking for me.
He shook his head, feeling the guilt. Wondered what would have happened if the dome’s subframe had let loose in storm.
That might have killed his entire family. They didn’t understand how precarious their home had become.
And if they’d figured it out. If they’d had a chance to move to the ground?
“Stop it, Mark,” he whispered to himself. A hundred ifs were just ifs. Speculation. He had to figure out what to do next.
Dya shifted, blinked awake. She stared blankly at the shuttle floor for a moment, then rearranged Tuska and Shine. As only kids could do, they slept through their mother’s extrication, and curled together on the seat.
Dya pushed her hair back, stood, and walked back to the toilet.
Talbot eased Tweet off his lap and deposited her on the seat as she mumbled something under her breath; he was waiting when Dya stepped out of the toilet a couple of minutes later.
“You all right?”
She shook her head, hopelessness in her expression. He pulled her close, and she settled her head on his shoulder. “I keep thinking of her. Out there in the forest with those creatures. Did she see them kill Rebecca and Shantaya? Did she watch them eat . . .” She shivered. “God, Mark. What happened to her?”
“I don’t know. This is more than just Rocket’s death.”
“The molecules. TriNA is what Talina calls them. They’re screwing with her brain, Mark. Knowing that, is there any way to rescue her? Bring her back and deprogram what they’ve done to her?”
“I don’t know.”
“Damn. Talina was right. I hate myself for leaving her with those fucking beasts.”
“Kylee said they’d kill you if you followed. No reason not to believe her.”
“Doesn’t make it any easier.”
He kept her close. Let her cry on his shoulder. “One day at a time, Dya. That’s how we have to deal with this. If we do. If we’re smart and dedicated, maybe we can go back someday. Reclaim Mundo. That’s the goal. We just have to dedicate ourselves to reaching it.”
She pushed back, wiped at her tears, and stared up at him. “I couldn’t do this without you. You know that, don’t you? None of us could. Especially Su. She’s going to be the hardest hit by this. She’s going to need you the most.”
“We’re all going to need each other.” He gave her a reassuring smile as he pulled locks of her blonde hair back in a caress. “We’re family.”
She smiled faintly. “What happens when we get to Port Authority?”
“Talina says she’s got her people making a dome ready for us. Hell, we’re landing in the middle of the night. No telling how this is going to work out.”
“What are we going to do? How are we going to make a living? What about the kids? Will they let us educate them the way we want? How do we pay for things? Where do we get food?”
“One day at a time, Dya. But if we do this right, work hard, the time will come when we can go home again.”
“Back to Mundo.”
“That’s right.”
But even if they did, it would never be the same. Spiro had killed paradise with a single bullet.