| |
After Matt left for Alpine, Darcy was beginning to hope that her life might be secure, peaceful, and even interesting. If it was lonely, at least she knew how to deal with that.
She saw Grandma Méndez every day, and other people on her runs and other outings. It wasn't as though she was on the moon.
She also felt better after talking to Mr. Braithwaite. She no longer worried about meteoroids.
Her little television had brought happy news the previous evening, if it could be believed. Apparently, all the people searching for her had been recalled! Instead, she had been invited to come forward and allow herself to be, well, she didn't know what.
In any case, she was resolved to decline. Her people would send an official delegation eventually, whether in 50 or 100 years she didn't know or care. At least when they arrived, they should find a viable planet.
Darcy was also cheered by Hleo's communication setup, which enabled her to email without fear of being located. Telephone conversations were not going to be frequent, but at least the staged call with Mr. Braithwaite had evidently been detected as Hleo had planned.
She was beginning to enjoy her computer. She renewed her ties with Hleo, who seemed to be lonely himself. He no longer doubted the wisdom of having helped her. She promised to send a report of his service to the Council, in case it was needed.
He welcomed her first-person reports from earth, which her people would be hungry to hear about. He even had some good suggestions for things she could investigate in the future.
It looked like they could still be a team.
After a bit of searching, she managed to find an email link to Dr. Sledd at the bottom of a webpage of one of his monographs on cryptography. She sent him a formal but friendly message, wishing him well and offering to resume their discussions by email, if he desired.
Next, she found the website of Sul Ross State University in Alpine, and through it was able to email Cheryl Ford. She thanked her for her support during difficult times and asked how her athletic career was going.
Several hours at the computer was all she could stand. She changed into shorts and went for a run. Later, having showered, made and consumed some excellent (if she did say so herself) tortilla soup with the wonderful local fresh green chilies, and watched the evening news, she read for an hour in Grout's History of Western Music. For some reason, that made her yawn uncontrollably.
That was no problem—there was little reason to stay up late.
She had just turned out her reading light and pulled up the covers when she heard the unmistakable popping sound of a car rolling over the gravel at the front of the house.
Sitting up, she saw headlights sweep around the adobe wall as the car rolled slowly up to her house and stopped. The headlights went out.
Her heart leaped into her throat.
In a flash she was at the back door. She opened it and slipped outside. Had she let her identity slip somehow?
Darcy stood still, listening. There was the sound of soft footsteps on her little gallery, only one person, it sounded like.
She rapidly calculated escape vectors: over the wall, through the gate in back, around the other side of her house and out the front. She was barefoot, but no matter—she would run if she had to. She silently eased along the side of her house until she could peek through the bushes at the corner.
A soft knock came from her front door.
"Ana? Ana, are you there?"
She knew that voice!
"Matt?"
The porch creaked as his weight shifted and he whispered in her direction.
"Darcy? Why aren't you in bed?"
And then she was in his arms. They hugged each other with an eagerness that surprised them both.
"Let's go inside," Matt whispered.
"We can't."
"Why not?"
"The door's locked."
"Oh, no! I'll get a rock and break a window."
"OK, but let’s try the back door first," she giggled.
Once inside, he hugged her again, fiercely. "Golly, I've missed you. I missed you so much!"
She was feeling strangely emotional herself. With her voice muffled against his warm chest she said, "I missed you too."
She pushed back a few inches.
"Wait! Is everything all right? I thought I'd never see you again! Why are you here? What about your article and the book?"
"The article went to press early this week. I brought you a copy. I thought you might be interested. Turn on a light and I'll go get it out of my truck."
When he returned he handed her a folded edition of the Alpine Avalanche.
"Front page, of course. Don't blame me for the headline. That was Crusty's doing."
She opened it to the headline: "Starchild Lands in West Texas, Remembered By Many Local Citizens." She looked at Matt.
"'Starchild?'"
Matt held up his hands in surrender.
"I told you; not my idea. Crusty must have seen too many science fiction movies in his youth. Sit down and read it. I'm going to get a drink of water and borrow your facilities."
While she sat by her little reading light, Matt wandered off on his errands, shaking his head at how comfortable he felt around her, feeling free to make her home his in a sense.
He'd never done that before. Yet he didn't feel presumptuous. One small step for a man....
Come to think of it, wasn’t it a guy stepping on the moon who'd said that first?
He returned to the front room and sat to her right on the couch while she finished his article. Darcy laid it in her lap. Her big hazel eyes settled on him.
"Well?" he said.
"It's a good article, Matt...."
"Yes?"
"Yes, it is. But...."
"But?"
"But...there's more to it, isn't there?"
"More?"
"Yes, more. You've mentioned most of the people I met, from Dr. Harcroft to the Delbosques to Cheryl and Coach Pérez, but..."
"But?"
"Oh, Matt! You know what I mean. This article makes it seem like all you know is what these people told you. You never say you know me yourself, beyond seeing me on the track with Cheryl and like that."
"Right."
"Well? Why did you leave that out? Wasn't your editor unhappy about that?"
"I never told Crusty I knew you. Remember? I was going to keep quiet on the story until you gave me the OK. Only Cheryl and Mrs. Williams know that we were friends, and both of them agreed not to mention it to anyone."
"But...but why did you do that? Are you saving it for your book?"
"There's not going to be any book, Darcy."
"No book? What do you mean, Matt? What about all the money you were going to make?"
"I don't care about the book anymore, Darcy. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that if I wrote it, I'd be so well-known that I could never see you again."
He swallowed. "I couldn't stand that. I'd rather be with you than have the money."
She stared at him, no expression on her face.
"I sold my house in Alpine,” Matt said. “I closed my bank account. I quit my job. I told Crusty and everyone else that I was moving back to Albuquerque to be close to my parents. They think I'm a loser, but I don't care what they think. If you'll let me be close to you, that's all I care about, Darcy.”
He barely touched her cheek with the fingers of his left hand.
“I love you, Darcy!"
He looked at her looking at him. In the light of the one lamp her eyes began to get shiny. She reached for his hand.
"Matt, you know people in my family only marry for money or power. I'm sure I told you that. Chief's daughters only marry for money or power."
He stared at her, petrified.
"But, Matt...I never believed that. Not then and not now. Don't go live with your parents, Matt. Stay here with me? Please?"
Now his own eyes were beginning to sting.
Matt drew her into his arms and slowly toppled sideways on the couch, pulling her on top. With her hair cascading all over his face he whispered into her ear.
"You got yourself a deal."
