Kelly didn’t join Shane in his rack again the rest of the week, and he wouldn’t have noticed if she did. Sleep deprivation and physical exhaustion cured the insomnia of those first nights, and when he was lucky enough to put his head to the pillow, he zonked out within seconds and saw her and the others do the same.
“Friday is fish and chips day,” Rebecca said, smiling at him as she piled fries onto his tray. She acted more cheerful than she had earlier in the week. Dr. Blain’s counseling sessions and her responsibilities with the children and in the cafeteria seemed to be helping to get her over the trauma she’d so recently endured.
“It’s Friday?” In his delirium, he’d lost track of time.
“Yes, silly,” Rebecca replied, laughing.
She must’ve thought he was joking. He smiled at her, looking forward to sitting down for a minute while he ate. His legs felt like jelly. They must’ve run over fifty miles during the week, on top of climbing the mountain to capture the stupid flag every day.
“Let’s eat with the little ones,” Shane said wearily, stepping off the end of the line. Kelly had hinted she wanted him to sit with them again, and after learning how much time Dr. Blain was spending with the kids, counseling them like she was Rebecca and the others, he decided it was critical he stay involved and make sure she wasn’t brainwashing anybody.
“Are you sure?” Kelly asked, appearing pleased.
“Yeah,” he replied, trying to sound as confident as he could.
He had an ulterior motive. She sat with her sister at every meal, and he was sick of wasting that time eating with the others, looking across the cafeteria at her. If he wanted more of Kelly, he was going to have to man up and be the big brother the little ones needed.
It made him ill that he felt he was ultimately responsible for them, and he was still trying to come to terms with the task. Kelly seemed to embrace her role as a guardian of the children, Nat being her primary motivation.
Following her across the cafeteria, balancing his tray in one hand and holding a bottle of water in the other, he thought about the bigger reasons he should eat with the kids. They needed adults, people who’d take a parental role. It wasn’t right for them to get used to looking to the aliens to fill that void, and Dr. Blain seemed all too eager to step in. For now, these rebels were allies. But when this war ended, they couldn’t allow them to take over.
It wasn’t that he wanted to be in charge, but he figured there were enough smart and resourceful teenagers left to piece things back together once the threat was dealt with. Earth belonged to humans, and it’d be wrong to give it up without a fight.
He did feel a little guilty for not completely trusting the rebels. They’d done so much for him and his people, and they seemed intent upon preventing the Anunnaki from enslaving the humans. However, wanting to be a good leader, he was determined to never forget that it was his duty to be vigilant and make sure no one was taking advantage of them.
Nat beamed when she saw him coming, and he felt bad for not eating with her earlier in the week.
“How are you, my lady?” he asked, bowing to her.
“They’re making us do homework,” Nat answered, sounding very disgruntled.
Shane and Kelly sat down, squeezing in on either side of her. Her complaint was refreshingly petty compared to the things troubling him.
“Well, that’s a good thing, right?”
“No way,” she replied, crinkling her little nose. Her big, blue eyes looked up at him like he was nuts. “How come you guys don’t have to go to school?”
“Oh, we’re going to school,” Kelly replied, sighing. “I assure you of that.”
“Why can’t we go home?” Nat crossed her little arms over her chest and stared at him.
“Nat, we talked about that,” Kelly gently scolded.
Some of the other kids grew quiet and looked at her with respect and affection in their eyes. Kelly smiled at them in a maternal way that made him ache, bringing to mind a memory of his mother.
He guessed Nat wasn’t satisfied with what her big sister had told her. Now she was querying him to see if she’d get a different response, attributing to him some authority or power greater than that of her sister.
“I don’t want to stay here anymore.”
“Yeah, but this is like summer camp,” Shane said clumsily, nervous under her scrutiny.
“No, it’s not,” she objected, glaring at him. “They wouldn’t make me do homework in summer camp.”
Shane looked over her head at Kelly, unsure of what to say.
“We can’t go home just yet,” Kelly said to her sister, her voice cracking. “But we’ll be able to soon enough. For now, just try to have fun.”
Nat stuck her lower lip out, looking like she might throw a tantrum. Worried that maybe his presence was upsetting her, Shane stood to go put his tray away.
“No,” Nat pleaded. “Take me home.” She slid off her stool and wrapped herself around his arm.
She wasn’t crying, just sincerely asking him to return her life to normal. He didn’t know what to say. Several of the other children seated nearby stopped eating, looking at him with the same pleading expression Nat had. Clearly, they thought he had the power to fix everything.
“Look, kids…” He paused, searching for something an adult would say. He cleared his throat and glanced at Kelly. She seemed at a loss for words too. They couldn’t lie to these kids forever. Their eyes seemed to beg for directness. Most of them already knew their parents were dead, though he’d heard some speak like they were still alive and they’d soon be reunited with them. “Y’all know there are bad guys out there that want to hurt us, right?”
“Sammy says aliens killed our parents,” Nat answered abruptly, pointing at a chubby kid with glasses. The boy looked at Shane with an expression that said, Yep, that was me. There was a strong glimmer of intelligence in his brown eyes.
“Sammy is right,” Shane said softly.
Kelly glared at him, obviously not happy about him being so forward with the children.
“It’s a lot to handle for little guys,” he continued, knowing he was out on a limb with them. “But we need you all to be tough now and do what you’re told. You need to go to the school they’ve set up for you.”
He glanced around the table. More of the children were quiet now, all looking at him like they’d been waiting for this talk. Like the teenagers, these kids had been forced to act more mature than they were. It was hard to look at them, knowing they’d been robbed of a chance at a normal childhood. It made the memories of his time as a kid seem precious. He used to feel sorry for himself for losing his mother, but he’d gotten to have her for far longer than these children did theirs.
“And you need to play and have fun,” Kelly said, sounding upbeat. “You’re kids after all, right? So try to be kids.”
“Are you going to put the aliens in jail?” Sara asked, looking at Shane with wide eyes.
“Yes.” He suppressed a chuckle. “Something like that.”
“I wanna help.” James, the bold little boy he’d rescued behind the grocery store in Leeville, said. “I’m strong.” He pulled the sleeve of his T-shirt up and flexed the muscle in his arm while giving Shane a very serious look.
“You know what?” Shane replied, trying to keep as solemn an expression as the little boy wore. “You are strong.” He looked at the rest of the kids. “You’re all strong. But we need you to go to school so you can learn everything you need to know. Then you can help.”
He hoped he and the others would be able to eliminate the Anunnaki threat before James was old enough to fight. Surveying their young faces, he succumbed to the fear that the fighting might go on for much longer than he expected.
James studied him, seeming to contemplate what he’d said. Shane kept his look firm, not breaking his eyes from the boy’s. After a moment, James nodded as if they’d made a deal. The other kids seemed happy with this answer too, returning their attention to their food and each other. Shane sighed and looked down at Nat. She gazed back up at him, still holding onto his arm.
“Will you come and eat with me tomorrow?” she asked with her sweetest voice, no sign of the outburst she’d just had. It amazed him how the kids could switch emotional gears so fast.
“Of course, and every day after that if you want me to,” Shane replied, smiling.
Apparently satisfied, she released him and climbed back onto her stool. Kelly smiled and winked, a sign that she thought he’d done well. Shane raised his eyebrows and tilted his head, asking for permission to slip away. She nodded, and he made his escape, relieved.
A week later, Shane came out of the shower and heard girls shouting in the barracks. He recognized Tracy’s voice and rushed to see what was up.
“Your mom moved to Leeville just so she could stalk my dad,” Tracy yelled, glaring at Laura. “What kind of a psycho slut does that?”
“What did you call my mom?” Laura screamed. She charged Tracy, murderous intent glowing in her eyes.
Shane got there just in time. He leapt out and caught Laura in his arms, holding her back.
“Your dad led her on!” Laura screamed. She twisted in his grip, trying to break free so she could attack. When she couldn’t get out of his grasp, she continued to spit venom. “My mom had no idea that lying, cheating, sack of shit was married. Maybe your mom was batting for the other team like you, and he wasn’t getting any at home.”
Tracy pulled her fist back and moved in to hammer Laura’s face. Maurice was there in an instant, grabbing her around the waist and pulling her in the opposite direction. Shane glanced over at Jules, worried she might try to step in. Jules was wide-eyed, standing back with a worried look on her face. But she seemed to know this wasn’t her fight, and she was smart enough to stay out of it.
“Now listen, both of you,” Maurice boomed in a voice that sounded custom made for the pulpit. “We are all brothers and sisters here. The crimes of our parents belong to them, not to us.”
“Her mom ruined my life,” Tracy snarled, only sounding a little deflated by Maurice’s words. Shane knew she loved and admired her stepdad, and learning he’d been cheating on her mom must’ve cut her to the bone. No wonder she’d been so cold to Laura from the start.
“She ruined your life?” Laura pressed against Shane’s arm again, trying to break free. “I was pulled out of my school, had to leave all my friends behind, and had to move to Hick Town because your stupid dad couldn’t keep it in his pants.”
“If it weren’t for these other people,” Maurice boomed, stopping Tracy from responding, “which is what your mom and dad are, just other people—then y’all would have no cause to dislike one another. Don’t let this come between you. As much as it hurts, those folks are gone. We’re the only family that matters now. All we have is each other.”
Other than the moment of doubt he shared with Shane in the cafeteria just after Lily had met with them the first time, Maurice had continued his pious behavior. He spent what little free time he had in the base chapel. Jones and some of the others even started referring to him as the chaplain, a title he didn’t object to. Shane was sure glad he was there to talk these girls down; he wouldn’t have known where to start.
The girls glared at each other a moment longer, seeming to try to come up with more insults to cast since Maurice and Shane wouldn’t let them go at it. Maurice’s words seemed to sink into them at the same time. Their shoulders drooped, as if accepting that they didn’t need to be at each other’s throats for what their parents had done was a great burden.
Once he was certain it was safe to let her go, Shane released Laura and slipped away to his side of the barracks, watching and ready to charge back in if it got heated again. Maurice talked with them in hushed tones. Just after the lights went out, they hugged, Laura in tears.