After a long pause, Helgid asked, “Do you think he will make it through?”
The healer chewed his lip. “I hope.”
Helgid watched Raj, murmuring some prayers to the heavens. Too often, tragedy found a way through them.
Another knock sounded at the door. Helgid headed back to answer it. She tensed, prepared for another nosy stranger, but found Amos instead.
“How is he?” Amos asked. The bags under his eyes showed he hadn’t slept much, either.
“There hasn’t been much change, for better or worse.”
Looking over his shoulder, where a few colonists unabashedly stared, Amos said, “Jamie, Paula, and Randy offered their help, but I told them you are fine for now.”
“Too many people are concerned with getting the latest rumor, instead of helping.” Helgid sighed.
“Unfortunately that is the way of some people,” Amos said.
Changing to a more pressing subject, she asked, “Have you heard any news about Neena?”
Amos shifted. It looked as if he had something to say. “I spoke with The Watchers at the Comm Building this morning. I told them about Raj. I’m not sure it will do anything, but it was worth a try.”
“You did?” Helgid smiled with appreciation. “Thank you, Amos. You are a good friend.”
“I just want to let you know I’ll be here to help you, whatever you need,” Amos said, putting a hand on her shoulder.
Chapter 18: Neena
Footsteps echoed on the other side of the annex door.
Neena stepped back, her heart hammering. A key hit a lock.
The door swung open.
A Watcher stood on the other side of the threshold, holding two worn bowls in his hands. She recognized him as one of the men who’d dragged her away; he looked no more than a year or two older than she was. He eyed Neena warily, looking from her face to the end of the annex, where Kai stood at his cell bars with equal trepidation.
Neena’s eyes searched past him and through the door. A few Watchers milled about the main room, but she didn’t see any of The Heads of Colony. The Watcher stepped inside, closing the door behind him. Keeping a watchful eye on Neena, he walked to her cell, stooped, and set down a bowl. She eyed the clear liquid inside, which looked like some sort of broth. The Watcher stepped back quickly, as if she might harbor some plague.
“Thank you,” Neena said, to no response.
The Watcher headed for Kai’s cell and set a second bowl down.
With his duty done, The Watcher returned to the door. As he passed her, Neena reached out her hands.
“Wait,” she said.
The Watcher kept to the far side of the hallway.
Neena held up her palms, making it clear she meant no harm. “Can I speak with you?”
The Watcher glanced nervously toward the door. He didn’t respond verbally, but he was more of an audience than she’d had, yelling at the door.
Thinking of the things she’d discussed with Kai earlier, Neena said, “I don’t know what came over me yesterday. I was dehydrated. I was speaking nonsense, when I first came back here.”
The Watcher eyed her, looking as if he had a foot on the other side of the door.
Forcing herself to look guilty, she said, “I think The Heads of Colony were right yesterday. I was having delusions. After some water, and some rest, I see that now. I only have a vague recollection of what I said, but I must’ve sounded crazy to everyone.”
A flicker of something that might be sympathy went through his face, but The Watcher said nothing.
“If I could just explain to Gideon, I’m sure he’ll understand,” Neena said.
The Watcher took a few more steps away. Without acknowledging her request, he said, “I’ll bring you more water later.” He put his hand on the doorknob.
“Wait,” Neena said, reaching through the bars. “I feel badly for what I’ve done. I’d like to apologize. At least give me that.”
The Watcher opened and closed his mouth, thinking carefully about his answer. He turned the doorknob.
“Is Gideon here?” Neena asked.
“Gideon isn’t seeing anyone now.”
“Later, then,” Neena said, trying to keep the desperation from her voice. “Please tell him.”
The Watcher said nothing.
Changing tactics, Neena said, “I think I’ve seen you patrolling the alleys. What’s your name?” She gave him the look that usually distracted busy men from their duties.
She was surprised when the guard quietly said, “My name’s Eric.”
“Will you tell Gideon what I said?” Neena asked, trying to catch his eyes one more time before he left.
“I can’t promise anything,” Eric said over his shoulder.
Then he shut the door.
Chapter 19: Gideon
Steam rose off the broth and the portioned slices of Rydeer meat on the table. Next to the plates, flasks sat, waiting for the men to drink. Gideon looked around at the few men with whom he’d called a meeting: his Heads of Colony. Thorne and three representative Watchers kept company alongside them.
“The Watchers have already constructed the platform at the colony’s edge,” Wyatt said, to the grim nods of those around him. “We need to make the address soon.”
Wyatt, Saurabh, Brody, and Horatio exchanged glances, but no one had immediate answers. For much of the night, and earlier in the morning, they’d debated their plans. Too many arguments had sprouted among men who usually agreed. Too many vague, uncertain threats lingered. Arguments festered.
Hoping to unify the group, Gideon said, “Red Rock needs us to make the hard decisions.”
Wyatt nodded firmly.
“How are things on the cliffs?” Gideon asked, turning to Thorne.
Thorne spoke with authority. “We’ve seen nothing of interest in the deserts. The returning hunters have been instructed to stay within the colony’s confines, until they hear otherwise.”
“Have you run into trouble?”
“None yet, sir,” Thorne said, “but the colonists are nervous. They’re asking questions about the stranger. We’ve seen more than one group huddling. That, coupled with the reduced rations from the sandstorm, has caused unrest.”
Gideon stroked his chin. Of course, he’d expected that answer.
Thorne said, “My men do their duty without question, but they have worries.”
“We still need to decide what to do with the prisoners,” Gideon said, returning to one of the main points of contention. “Perhaps we should discuss that first.”
A young, dark-haired Watcher named Eric spoke up, addressing Gideon. “I’ve been feeding them and giving them water, as you ordered. They’ve been mostly quiet.” A hesitation crossed his face.
“Is there something else?” Gideon asked.
“The girl, Neena, asked to speak with you. She maintains that the stories she told were delusions. She says that she doesn’t remember what she spoke. She wanted to apologize.”
Gideon looked at Wyatt, who rubbed his fingers. “A ploy to gain her freedom?” Wyatt asked.
“She seemed sincere,” Eric continued. Reading the look on his leader’s faces, he added, “But then, so do all the prisoners who try to shorten their time in the cells.”
Another Watcher spoke up. “When we were outside, patrolling the perimeter, one of the girl’s neighbors approached us, an older man named Amos. He told us that the girl’s little brother is very sick. He said he might die. We’ve asked around discreetly about the girl. Her parents died some time ago. She has two siblings, but no other close relations, other than an old woman with whom they sometimes keep company.”
“Not many to miss her,” Horatio said quietly, to an annoyed look from Brody, with whom he’d had a disagreement the night before.
“So you still propose that we kill her and the stranger?” Brody asked, repeating Horatio’s argument.
“It is certainly better than feeding them with food we do not have, until they die n
aturally,” Horatio said.
“The stranger is one thing, but how do you think that will look to the colonists, whose trust in us has already been eroded, if we kill one of their own?” Brody shook his head.
“And yet you have no alternative…” Horatio goaded.
“How would you propose killing her?” Brody asked, taking the other leader up on his argument. “Would you pull her in front of the crowd on the platform and slit her throat?”
“Of course not. That would incite a riot,” Horatio returned.
“Maybe we can drown her in the river,” Brody said angrily. “Or hang her from the Comm Building.”
“There are plenty of ways to dispose of a threat without such savage means,” Horatio said. “We could say that she died from a heat-borne illness. We could dispose of her quietly.”
“The colonists will suspect the truth,” Brody said.
“The people saw how she acted when she arrived. They’d believe it,” Horatio insisted.
“Maybe so, maybe not, but are you willing to take that risk? Her brothers will mourn her. Sympathy for them could turn into something ugly.”
Taking control of the argument, Wyatt said, “Brody might be right. It wouldn’t take more than a few passionate people to turn a crowd into something dangerous.”
Gideon sighed. Looking to The Watcher who had spoken last, he asked, “Does it seem as if the old neighbor speaks the truth about the hunter girl’s brother?”
“It would be easy to find that out,” The Watcher said. “We could always check on the sick boy. But it seemed as if the old man spoke honestly.”
Gideon sighed. “I’m no monster, but we would be fools to let her out of the annex.”
“I agree,” said Horatio. With a smug look at Brody, he added, “And of course, we can’t let out the stranger.”
The table fell silent, as the leaders focused on their internal thoughts.
After a long pause, Wyatt cut in. “Maybe the girl’s freedom will benefit us more than her imprisonment.”
“What do you mean?” asked Gideon, surprised to hear a new suggestion.
Wyatt looked as if his idea was still forming. “If the people see that she is released, they might be less likely to fear. By releasing her, we are saying she is no threat.” Wyatt shrugged. “It is just a thought, of course, but we might gain back some of their trust, or at least eliminate some of their unease.”
“It would be too easy for her to convince others of her delusions,” Gideon said. “We know how quickly rumors spread in Red Rock. It was hard enough containing the gossip last time.”
“She’ll stir a panic,” Horatio said.
Murmurs floated across the table. Horatio spoke too many of their fears.
Scratching his chin, Wyatt traded a hard look with Gideon. “If she cares about her brothers, she’ll keep quiet. We’ll warn her.”
Brody shrugged, considering Wyatt’s point. “Setting her free might eliminate some of the tension among the colonists. It certainly sounds better than what Horatio suggested.”
Horatio scowled.
Gideon looked around at his men, who awaited his pronouncement. They were his advisors, but his was the final word. “Without question, the stranger will remain here. He is the face of fear in the colony, and worthy of no one’s trust. Seeing him will have the opposite effect as releasing the girl. We will keep him here until we make another determination.” With an authoritative lift of his chin, he said, “Bring me the girl. I’ll talk to her, and then I’ll decide what to do.”
Chapter 20: Neena
The straight, stiff chair seemed as if it had been waiting for Neena as she took a seat across from Gideon. Unlike before, the other chairs were empty. The faint smell of cooked Rydeer hung in the air, a smell that might’ve comforted her if she didn’t feel as if her life hung on the balance of a discussion. Even without his men filling the empty seats around him, Gideon was just as intimidating. His face betrayed nothing as he clasped his hands firmly and set them on the table.
Neena kept her face stoic, afraid to move or speak the wrong words.
Behind her, two Watchers shifted, guarding her with their spears.
“One of the guards mentioned that you had something to tell me,” Gideon said, implying that she might lose her courage.
Neena sat straight in her chair, steeling herself for the words that might set her free, or condemn her. “I do not recall much of what I said when I arrived in Red Rock, or in the meeting, but I remember enough. I was clearly delusional, as one of your Heads of Colony suggested. I knew not of what I spoke.”
Gideon sat back in his chair, listening without reaction.
“Too many days in the desert confused me,” Neena continued, trying for courage. “When I woke today, I realized the severity of my mistake. I came here to apologize.” Putting conviction into her words, she said, “I wanted to assure you that my mind is clear. With a night’s rest, and some hydration, I realize that. I am ashamed of the stories I told.”
Gideon shifted in the chair as he looked from her face to the strange piece of metal on the table. Neither he nor The Watchers spoke.
Feeling as if her time was running out, Neena kept on. “I saw nothing strange in the desert. The only thing I saw in that desert was a criminal, who tricked me into leading him back here.” The words stabbed her stomach. But then, she knew they would. “I should have left him behind, as you said. If my head was clear, I would have done it.”
She fought the urge to look over her shoulder at the annex, where she’d left Kai behind. Kai had told her to speak those words. And yet now she wished she could take them back. She’d never forget the look in his eyes as they led her from her cell. It was the look of a man who knew his fate was determined, no matter what happened to her.
Her last sentences hung in the air. Gideon leaned forward, his eyes tracing the relic. He reached toward the center of the table, his fingers grazing the end of the smooth, dull metal. “It takes courage to admit our faults.”
A small hope built in Neena.
Waiting a long moment before he spoke, Gideon said, “We all know the stresses of life in the deserts, and the pressure to find food for our families. We realize the difficulty of a hunter’s life, don’t we, men?” She turned to find The Watchers nodding curtly. Gideon folded his hands and looked at her intensely. “Too often, emotion takes over for logic, when our families are involved.”
Unsure if an answer was required, Neena simply nodded.
“When I was a child, I used to stare endlessly at this centerpiece, wondering what it did. I used to think of the ships that flew high above us in the stars, and the people on them. I used to dream of the messages we sent them, and the people lucky enough to know of Earth.” Gideon stared wistfully from the object to the domed roof. “I hoped that one day I’d go back to that planet, where I’d fill my stomach with new, delicious foods, and discover things on that planet no one knew.” A small smile turned into a frown as he remembered something else. “One day, when we were at this very table, I asked my father about Earth. I was in the spot in which you were sitting. My father pounded the table with his fists, silencing me. And then he told me something I have remembered to this day.” Gideon paused, drilling her with a stare. “For each moment I spent dreaming, I could’ve fed my people, or patched a weakening hovel. I could’ve taught someone a skill to survive. Dreaming of impossible things distracts us from survival. And that is what you have done, with your stories and delusions.”
Dread settled in Neena’s stomach as she considered imminent failure.
“You have two brothers at home.”
The words were either a statement or a question, but she chose to answer, “Yes.”
“What are their names?”
“Raj and Samel.” Neena immediately regretted speaking the names aloud.
“If you want to stay with Raj and Samel, you will speak nothing of the stories you have told. You will speak nothing of the stranger, or his colony
. You will walk away from this building without a word. Your delusions will die in this room.”
Neena nodded, shaking, as Gideon leaned across the table, around the relic.
“Later today, I will address the people, easing their minds, smoothing over the damage you have done. It would be in your best interest to avoid that meeting.”
Neena didn’t argue.
“If you speak more of your nonsense, you will not receive the privilege of a jail cell, water, and food. You and your brothers will be cast out, where you will spend your last days in exile in the desert, until you die. Do you understand?”
Her voice shaking, Neena said, “Yes, I understand.”
Chapter 21: Neena
Neena squinted into the bright sun as the Comm Building doors opened, and The Watchers pushed her forward. Fuzzy shapes moved back and forth on the path—people she never thought she’d see again. She raised her hand over her eyes as the colonists came into focus, traversing the path in all directions, carrying water buckets or cleaned game. More than one looked over in surprise as she exited the building. It felt as if she’d climbed from some deep, dark hole, stiff, hungry, but alive. The day and night she’d spent in prison—coupled with the time she spent in the desert—felt like weeks. Streams of people became a small crowd as they stopped their tasks and stared.
“Get going,” one of The Watchers said curtly.
She glanced over her shoulder, as if The Watchers might change their minds, grab her, and haul her back to the annex. Perhaps this was a test she could fail.
“Go on,” barked another.
Neena didn’t wait any longer.
She walked quickly away, heading for the path and the colonists, putting distance between herself and the ugly cell where she’d spent too much time.
It took her a moment to notice the two figures standing in the path about fifty feet away, silhouetted by the sun. When she did, Neena ran. Her feet carried her faster than she’d moved in days as two of her family members called her name.
“Neena! Neena!”
“Samel!” she returned, unable to believe who was in front of her. “Helgid!”
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