Dark Demise

by Rebecca Royce

  That wasn’t going to do. Was there some kind of central location where they ate around here? I hadn’t seen anywhere else. There were two empty bedrooms left in this building and that was it. They were bedrooms, or at least the same size as the ones the guys were in. I didn’t want them to stumble to the Mess Hall starving.

  Decision made, I walked outside to go get them some snacks they could have upon waking up before they had a full breakfast. Snow came down on my head. I stopped to stare up at the whiteness. This was my first snow on The Farm.

  When I’d been a child, I’d sit with my nose pressed up against the window to watch the white flakes come down. On Sandler One, the flakes had been white, but they always had a lavender tint to them. I lifted my hand. I heard on Earth, where I’d never been, they were back to being white. Nuclear winter had changed things there for a long time, but they were returning to what had been before. These looked like Earth flakes.

  Snowflakes changed their color based on what planet they were on, and yet snow was snow. To some, they might be horrible, the bringer of cold weather and death. From my vantage point as a young girl, they had meant my father wasn’t coming. He hated the cold. To me, they were beautiful.

  I guessed it really depended on how a person chose to look at things. My mother had cried when it snowed. She said it reminded her of death.

  I shook my head. Enough musing. I had food to grab. I ran forward. These strange schedules I had started keeping were playing with my mind.

  6

  Fire Storms

  At eight o’clock in the morning, I pinged Paloma, needing to check on her. She invited me to come see the baby, so I ran over, cup of coffee in my hand, to visit. I didn’t have to work until late that night, and I should be sleeping. But I was wide awake. The snow had brought memories of my mother, and I wanted family around.

  I knocked on the door, and she let me in. The baby slept, swaddled, on his back in a small crib on the side of the couch. Paloma sat down next to him and beamed at me. She really seemed to be glowing.

  “We can talk. He sleeps through everything.”

  Big difference from several days before. “I’m so glad.” I looked around. I didn’t think I’d ever seen her alone before. She always had someone with her—my brothers or Diana. “Are you by yourself?”

  Paloma shook her head. “No. Quinn is out cold in the bedroom. He’s convinced himself that if something bad happens to Ben, it will be at night. So he has quit sleeping all night. Even when Ben and I are out cold, Quinn is wide-awake. When we teach Ben to sleep through the night, we’ll have to teach Quinn how to do it again as well.” She waved her hand in the air. “It’s fine. Tommy, Keith, and Clay are dealing with some things that happened last night.”

  I cleared my throat. “The intel the guys got back from their trip.”

  She raised her eyebrows. “That’s right. Forgive me, I forgot you’re in the know now.” She yawned. “I’m losing track of things, which is to be expected. Diana has taken over most of my duties. Yes, they are handling things from the intel. It was fantastic. They do such an amazing job.”

  I leaned forward. “I did notice something.” And it hadn’t really occurred to me when I was in the midst of it, but now that I sat with her, I couldn’t help but question something I’d seen. “Why isn’t Makenna’s name on the list of contacts for the intel on the special tablet?”

  She cleared her throat. “Wow. Yes. Okay. Listen, there are things to say. But not here. This isn’t a secure spot. I know this is my home; I should be one hundred percent confident in its security. I’m just not. Later. Trust me. Questions you have about Makenna, you get to know the answers now. I… I just can’t this very second.”

  Benjamin chose that moment to shriek. I leaned back in my seat. Poor little guy was all red in the face. He had probably gone to the bathroom. Paloma jumped up before picking him up in her arms. She said small soothing things to him, whispers really, before she whirled around to look at me. “Give me a second. I need to get rid of a poopy diaper.”

  I nodded. “Don’t worry. What we were talking about can wait. I came to see you, not be the Inquisition.”

  Answers were important, for sure. But understanding why Makenna wasn’t on the tablet fell in the less important category than keeping my relationship with Paloma. I didn’t want her to not want me around. I liked her. Even if she wasn’t married to my brothers, who I barely knew, I would like her.

  Quinn stumbled out of the bedroom. “Hey Waverly.”

  “Quinn.” I stood. “Sorry. I’m intruding. It’s early. I’ll come back another time.”

  “Sit.” He sounded gruff, but then he leaned against the door, his face coming across as exhausted, not angry. “Was the baby crying?”

  I nodded. Paloma had just gotten done telling me Quinn was tired. “Yes. Paloma is changing him.”

  “Diaper issue. Okay. Got it.” He rubbed his face. “I’m going back to bed then. Oh, and Waverly. You’re family. So if there is ever anything you don’t want or anybody you don’t want, please know, that you have our support. Okay? It’s fine for you to not be interested in something or somebody. Even if he…”

  “Quinn,” Paloma hissed before she pointed to the bedroom. “Go back to sleep before you say something you shouldn’t.”

  What was he talking about? He walked over to Ben and kissed his head. “She doesn’t have to want… you know. That’s all. If she doesn’t. I mean, maybe she does. I don’t know. But you were given an out, if you recall. On the floor outside the bathroom after the fight.”

  Paloma closed her eyes. “Not yet. Okay? Go to bed.”

  “Right.” He waved at me. “Night, Waverly.”

  “Get some sleep, Quinn.” I waited until he closed the door to question my friend. “What was that about?”

  She sighed, sitting down on the couch with the baby, now asleep in her arms. “He’s trying to be a good brother to you. He needs rest.”

  There was more to this. I was sure of it. It was hard to get frustrated with a woman holding an adorable infant close to her chest at eight in the morning. I decided not to do it. It was nice to know I didn’t have to want anything or anybody. That was what Quinn had said to me. I supposed maybe someday I’d appreciate knowing what inspired the fraternal display.

  A ping sounded, and then Diana Mallory stuck her head through the door. She had her daughter wrapped in a sling around her front. Helene was eleven months old. I’d been here when she was born, but I hadn’t been working yet.

  I got to see Helene when she came in for her checkups and the time she’d had an ear infection. Dane did all the pediatric care on The Farm, and I’d worked with him that day.

  “Oh, Waverly. How fun. You’re here.” Diana tended to speak in short sentences. She was kind and bright. Beautiful. Most of the women around were. She was also, I was told, brilliant. In the time I’d been here, she hadn’t been working much, but soon she was going to get back to running the technical side of The Farm.

  Helene was asleep, curled up against her mom. “I told Sterling to give me a few minutes. He’s going to go check in with the guys. Good work last night, Waverly. Sounds like they had quite the fact grabbing time.”

  “You’re better than me. I forgot she was there and not because I don’t care.” A tear slipped from Paloma’s eye, and she wiped it away. “I think there is something wrong with my brain.”

  “There is.” I sat forward as they both gasped and turned toward me. “It’s called sleep deprivation and hormones. Don’t worry. I’m not hurt.”

  Paloma pointed at me. “She’s so nice.”

  “She is.” Diana sat down gently, obviously trying not to jar Helene. Compared in size to Ben, Helene looked huge. Had my mother held me the way these two were holding their children? I knew she’d loved me. I remembered the feeling.

  It would be years until I realized the thing that had broken up my parents’ relationship was me.

  “So how is Rohan?”

 
I blinked. I’d been lost in my thoughts. Had Diana been saying something that involved Rohan that led to that question? “Rohan?”

  “Uh-huh,” she said, then kissed the top of her daughter’s head. “How is he?”

  I thought about two in the morning when he’d been talking about shadows and ready to battle for me. “He’s doing well. I think. I mean, I don’t know him that well. He’s very sweet to me. I think he wants to be friends. He brought me coffee and food. Rohan seems… kind.”

  Diana widened her eyes. “Kind?”

  “Yes.” Did she not agree? I sat up straighter. Diana and I had made the first steps toward friendship. That didn’t mean I wouldn’t tell her just what I thought the same way I had with Wade. I’d stand up for her, too, if someone said something bad about her.

  She nodded. “I don’t know him that well. I guess kind wouldn’t have been the word I’d have used. But you’re right. Sterling is kind. One of the five kindest guys I know, so yes, Rohan is kind. Being a Super Soldier doesn’t negate that. I was just wondering how the two of you were getting along.” Diana leaned back on the couch. “He came by to see Sterling a few days ago.”

  “Do they get together a lot?” Did Canyon go? Did Super Soldiers meet for drinks?

  She shook her head. “Rohan tends to keep to himself. Canyon and Sterling know each other better. They might even have some of the same genetic material. They managed to both live through the same hellish nursery together. No, Rohan wanted to know about relationships. How they work.”

  “Funny.” Paloma’s voice was low. She stared at the table in front of her. “Ari talked to my husbands about something similar.”

  Diana’s eyebrows shot up. “Did he now?”

  “Yep.” Paloma’s leg shook. “I think he’d be a really good match… for a relationship. Don’t you, Waverly?”

  Rohan had wanted to know about relationships and so did Ari. I tried to pretend the idea didn’t bother me. We were just becoming friends, and now there would be women in their lives who wouldn’t like me hanging around.

  My friends both regarded me from their spots on the couch.

  “I think they’d both be great in relationships. They’d both have their pick. Ari flirts with everyone but me, so I think he’d have his choice, considering. Women love him for the way he makes them feel, and what he looks like doesn’t hurt. And Rohan is so handsome. Mysterious in some ways. But… also simple. He says what he means, and he means what he says. I… I think whoever they picked would be very lucky.”

  Paloma sat forward. The baby issued a sound of discomfort, and she soothed him. “What do you mean he doesn’t flirt with you?”

  “Ari.” Diana closed her eyes and shook her head. “I bet he’s clueless.”

  “How so?” I asked Diana, but Paloma touched my knee so I answered her. “No, never. I can’t blame him. I’m not really a woman men flirt with. You, two, yes. Me? I’m… not marriage material.”

  Tears leaked from Paloma’s eyes again. “I hate Garrison. I. Hate. Him. So much.”

  She started to weep, and her son’s wailing followed immediately. The limbic system. They were still so connected. Mommy cried, baby cried. I squeezed her knee. “I don’t know what’s going on, but let’s not talk about my father right now. Let’s talk about how much Benjamin has grown. A whole pound past his birth weight, I’d guess. That’s huge.”

  She smiled at me through her tears. “I love you, Waverly. I’m so glad you’re in our lives. And you’re beautiful.”

  There. I’d done it again. I did that awkward thing where people had to say that to me. Paloma shifted to feed the baby. Across her head, I saw Diana. She watched me with quiet, dark eyes. “We are really glad you’re here, Waverly. You just might save us all.”

  What did that mean?

  My shift was quiet. Two guys from the engineering corps came in with burns. They hadn’t followed Tommy’s plans close enough, and they’d been hurt in the process. Wade treated them and sent them home.

  He sat back on his table. “Where is your Super Soldier?”

  “He’s hardly my Super Soldier.” I shrugged for effect. “Busy, I guess.”

  I wasn’t going to share any information that would be private. Wade leaned against the wall. “He’s probably in the secured place that no one can go into. What do you think they do in there?”

  I was done with this conversation. Anything that would give me a way out was good enough. The medical waste bins were looking a little overflowed. I swallowed my disgust. “What’s going on with the garbage?”

  He turned to look at what I meant. “Oh, I guess they haven’t been by the pick it up.”

  “There really should be a time that they come to get it every day. Same time every day.” I grabbed a pair of gloves and put them on. “I’m going to take this out. I’ll drag it to the trash room.”

  Wade put his hands on his hips. “We have people to do that. I mean, they get credits to do it.”

  “Right, well, it’s bugging me.” And I needed to get away from Wade and his questions. I didn’t want to touch the garbage, but I could drag the bin and dump it into the chute that took it to the incinerator room. I’d dump it down and come right back. By then, I hoped Wade would have moved on from this line of questioning.

  I dragged the bin down the hallway. Sometimes I didn’t mind being bigger than the other women. I was strong, and I could do things others might need help with. No one I passed stopped to ask me if I needed help, and that was fine. Even if I couldn’t imagine Paloma or Diana doing this without five different men running after to help.

  Not that they’d have to. Neither one of my friends was ever without their guys very long. And this was medical waste. I wore gloves. Other people shouldn’t really be handling it without the proper equipment.

  I hummed to myself. The disposal room wasn’t too much farther. I got there, wrenched open the door, which I then held, awkwardly, with my leg, and shoved myself and the bin into the room. In another few seconds I had all the garbage down the chute.

  The door swung open, and I turned to nod at whoever else had the task of taking out the trash. Three men came through. They were big guys. I’d never seen them before, but that wasn’t surprising considering The Farm had thousands of people here now.

  Two of the men had long beards, and one of them had a snake tattoo on his neck. They all stared at me, and one of them whistled.

  Okay, I wasn’t sure what was going on, but I wanted to get out of there. “Excuse me.” I pointed at the door. “I’ll get out of your way.”

  “You’re Waverly Sandler, aren’t you?” The man with the longest beard asked me. I knew his accent. It sounded like home. He was either from Sandler One or he was from a nearby planet. There weren’t that many people here from Sandler space.

  I cleared my throat. Was it dry in here? The air seemed to move differently, like I was suddenly aware of every breath I took. “I am.” I pointed at the door. “Excuse me.”

  The biggest guy pushed the door closed, sticking his body directly in front of it so there was absolutely no way I was getting out or anyone was getting in.

  “Do you have any idea what we’ve lost?” The smallest man, the one with the Sandler tattoo stepped forward. He was slightly shorter than me, but the other two were bigger. Either way, the shorter one was broad shouldered and strong.

  I stepped back, hitting the wall behind me. I could defuse this. I’d had people angry around me before because of the Sandler name. I just had to stay calm, apologetic, and appeal to their best sides.

  “I am so sorry. What did my father do?”

  Longest beard sneered at me. He was missing a tooth. I didn’t know why I fixated on that, but I did. “We lost our younger brother. He was killed during one of the raids your father made on our mines.”

  I tried to find sympathy for them, but couldn’t muster any. They were deliberately trying to intimidate me. I would have to fake it. “I am so sorry. I don’t know anything about raids.�
� I swallowed through the lump in my throat. “What are your names?”

  “I think we’re scaring her,” the younger one announced, pleased. “That’s good. You should be afraid. He took someone from us, and we’re going to take someone from him. We’ve been waiting all this time to find you. All these weeks. You’re hard to get to. Where do you go? Why are you never around? It doesn’t matter. Here you are.”

  I put out my hand to shove at him just as he rushed toward me. It didn’t matter. He was stronger. “Please don’t do this.”

  “Oh, she said please.” He hit me right across the face. I hit the floor hard. Colors passed in front of my eyes. This was happening. He had struck me. They were going to kill me. Right here in the garbage room.

  One of them hauled me up. “It’s not like anyone will miss you. When they find you beaten, they won’t even notice any change to your ugly face.”

  Something hot scorched my arm. What was that? I couldn’t even see.

  “Please.” I cried again, utter horror making me desperate. “Help. Someone help.” Were there cameras in here? I didn’t know. Someone would have to be looking.

  “She’s calling for help?” The third one, by the door, laughed. “Hit her again.”

  The short one did. “Maybe we should have our way with her, too.”

  I crawled forward. My vision was blurry and whatever had burned me hurt, but I wasn’t going to live through this if I didn’t get to the door. I’d grab the one guarding it where it would hurt, and then I’d run, I’d get to help.

  Longest beard kicked me, and I went down. Who was I kidding? I wasn’t getting to the door. Everything hurt. My ears rang. He kicked me again. And again. By the universe, they were laughing and…

  The door burst open behind the giant guarding it, and he went down. The door actually shattered. My attackers whirled around, and I lifted my head. My eyes didn’t want to work, but I could have sworn I saw Canyon.

  How was that possible? He was asleep. Would be for hours and hours still…