by J. Thorn
The questions came faster as Maya’s pace picked up. So much for a restful afternoon before dinner.
She’d been walking through so many corridors that she couldn’t quite tell which ones she’d already been down and which ones she hadn’t. It wasn’t until she recognized the bandana tied to the door handle, the one that had been around Reno’s neck, that she began to realize how few choices remained. He was probably in there resting, like she should have been. Or maybe he was plotting to leave.
If they couldn’t stay here, though, where would they go?
She’d seen what had happened to Nashville, the death and destruction that would take decades to recover from even if the aliens high-tailed it back to their cosmic home tonight. And her city wasn’t the only place with a dome. From what she’d heard, many cities across the globe had been domed, and most of those domes were still in place.
Would she whisk Aiden and Laura away to a cabin in the mountains somewhere? An abandoned farmhouse in southern Ohio? Then what? Maya wasn’t exactly made for country living unless working on a Mustang counted as being a rancher. And even if she could find such a place, and even if the aliens couldn’t, what would come next? She couldn’t imagine the three of them getting her mother and then living the rest of their natural lives milking cows, churning butter, and strumming an acoustic guitar around the campfire at night.
Reno wanted to leave, and she knew he’d take her and the kids with him. But he hadn’t seen what Luke, Cameron, and Maya had seen on the road. It wasn’t just the aliens anymore. Roving gangs of rapists and thieves had filled the space between law and extraterrestrial threats. Just because you left the base and found a secluded place to live didn’t mean you were safe.
It was hard to tell what Gerald wanted, either, and as much as she’d warmed up to Cameron, the girl was still his puppet. Gerald would be loyal to his men, and he’d clearly achieved some level of rank after things had gone south. And as much as she didn’t want to admit it, he was still the father of her children, and he had a right to have some input in what was next for them.
At some point, Maya’s feet had brought her back to her room, its door open and the light on. The hard, fluorescent lights and military-grade mattress didn’t inspire visits from the sandman.
She stepped inside, shut the door, and laid down on the bed. Maya had never been much of an afternoon napper, but intellectual strain had brought a fatigue that might fade with a few stolen hours before dinner. She set an alarm to go off in ninety minutes, shut the lights off, and pulled the cover over her head.
32
When Maya arrived in the lounge for dinner, Gerald, Reno, Cameron, Laura, Aiden, and Luke had already sat down at a table. She stood in the doorway for a moment, looking at everyone’s smiling faces as they laughed and joked together. Cameron was the first to notice her, looking her way with a big grin on her face.
“Hey!”
The others waved, greeting her and saying her name.
“We weren’t sure you were ever going to wake up,” Gerald said.
“It was only a few hours.” Maya didn’t go on the attack. That was as friendly as Gerald would get, too, so she decided to let it ride.
Cameron moved her hair out of her face and chuckled. “Been a rough couple of days.”
“You know it,” said Maya.
“Well, come in here and take your mind off it,” Cameron said.
“I even grabbed a plate of this, um, ‘food’ for you.” Aiden pushed the plate to an open spot at the table next to him. Someone had had the idea to put the contents of the MREs and canned goods on plates, but it was still canned food—slightly microwaved.
Maya walked over and kissed her son on the top of his head, and thanked him before sitting down.
As she took the first bite of mashed potatoes that scorched her tongue but had frozen chunks in the middle, Maya looked around the table. “So, what were you guys laughing so much about?”
“Uh, well, Dad was just telling some funny stories,” Laura said.
“Yeah? About what?”
No one replied, and when Maya looked up again, everyone was staring right at her. She swallowed her food, put down her fork, and stared coldly at Gerald.
“What are you telling them?”
Gerald put his hands up. “Nothing.”
“We never knew how good of an ice skater you were, Mom.” Aiden looked at Laura, the siblings exchanging grins.
The group laughed again.
Maya stared at Gerald. She couldn’t help but smile as she shook her head. “You had to tell them that story?”
On their second date, Gerald had suggested they go ice skating. It had surprised her because he hadn’t seemed like the kind who would be into skating, especially being a Southerner. But she had agreed to go, figuring it would be fun and a way to cut loose. And she’d been really into him. The problem was that she had only skated once in her life, at a friend’s birthday party in the 3rd grade. Gerald, on the other hand, had been skating with his buddies every weekend through most of high school. He’d been able to pick her up every time she’d fallen to the ice.
“It was so funny,” Gerald said. “You tried hard, but you weren’t any good. You looked like a drunk duck. And then, on our next date, you were sitting all uncomfortably at dinner and wouldn’t tell me why.”
“Yeah, well, if you had seen the bruises on my backside, you would have understood.” Maya couldn’t help but laugh, and everyone joined in.
“We had some good times,” Gerald said.
In the uncomfortable silence, Maya happened to glance at Reno, who along with Cameron, we’re the only two in the room not smiling. Reno looked down at his plate as soon as Maya looked at him. Aiden reached over and took Maya’s hand.
“I’m really glad you’re here, Mom.”
“Me, too, sweetie.”
Gerald sighed and stood up. “I’ll gladly toast to that.” He held up his plastic cup filled with watered-down tea. “Here’s to my lovely ex-wife, Maya, my beautiful girlfriend, Cameron, and our new friend, Luke.”
Everyone stood and brought their cups up to the center of the table to toast. Reno held up his cup, as well, but his eyes were on the door.
“I guess I should also toast to our new, great life here,” Gerald said with a sarcastic grin on his face.
Reno looked at Gerald then, his face contorting into a snarl. He slammed his cup down on the table, its contents splashing up and onto the others seated around the table. Then Reno moved toward the door.
“Whoa, Reno,” Maya said.
“Yeah, dude, what’s your problem?” Gerald asked.
“What’s my problem? I don’t know, maybe I don’t want to be sitting around pretending everything is cool, waiting for those things to attack us.”
“You’re not going to find a better place to go than here, but if you want to leave, then leave. I’m sure as hell not stopping you.”
Reno crossed his arms over his chest and spun his entire body to face Maya.
“What?” she asked.
“Your kids aren’t safe here, Maya.”
“Those are my kids, too, you bastard. You don’t have a damn right to tell her what to do with them.”
Maya narrowed her eyes as she turned on Gerald. “No, he doesn’t. But neither do you.”
Gerald rolled his eyes. “Come on. Don’t pull out the custody card right now.”
“It’s not a ‘card.’ It’s the law. I am responsible for them.”
“Yeah?” Gerald crossed his arms. “And what ‘law’ is that now? The only rules that matter now are the ones that get us to tomorrow. But go ahead and leave if you don’t like it here.”
“Gerald.” Maya looked at Laura and Aiden. “Can we talk about this privately?”
“I’m leaving.” Reno looked at Luke, Cameron, Aiden, and Laura. “And anyone else who wants to live can come with me.”
“I’m not going without Dad,” Laura said.
Then Aiden started shou
ting at Laura. Luke tried calming down the kids while Maya stepped in between Gerald and Reno, who had started their own shouting match. Maya closed her eyes and put her fingers on each temple.
“Everyone, stop it! Now!”
The group went silent and looked at her. Maya took a deep breath, scanning the faces of her family and friends.
“I’ll be deciding whether my family goes or stays. And no matter what I do, you are all free to stay, or go.” She looked at Gerald and Reno respectively as she said those last words. “But I will make the decision for my children without anybody’s help, thank you very much.”
Maya brushed past Reno and Gerald on her way to the door, trying her best to be strong for the sake of her kids while hiding her tears.
33
She’d been in the bathroom for too long, and knew Laura or Aiden would come knocking, asking if she was okay. Still, Maya needed a few minutes alone, away from everyone, to clear her head and prepare herself for the battle she knew was coming.
After splashing some water on her face and weakly smiling into the mirror, Maya headed back to the room where everyone had been eating earlier, and where the argument between Reno and Gerald had broken out. She hadn’t had enough time to think about whether she would leave with the kids or stay, but she knew she would be forced to make the decision sooner rather than later. Reno would probably leave the base soon, but she hoped she could talk him into giving her the time she needed to decide what she wanted to do.
When she walked into the lounge, Maya heard water running and dishes clanking. She opened the door to the kitchen to see the room empty except for Cameron, who stood in front of the sink with a stack of dirty dishes in it. She glanced back when Maya opened the door, flashing a quick smile before returning to scrubbing the plate in her hand.
Shoving her hands into her pockets, Maya walked past the pile of dirty dishes and stood next to Cameron.
“How about you wash and I dry?”
Cameron grinned without looking up from the dirty dish water. “Sounds good.”
Maya grabbed a rag and started to dry the dishes as Cameron handed them to her.
“Where did everyone go?”
“Gerald and all three of the kids went to play video games.”
“You mean the four kids went to play video games. And Reno?”
Cameron shrugged. “Don’t know. He took off out of here right after you did. Probably went back to his room if I had to guess.”
Maya needed to talk to him, but she wasn’t ready. She didn’t know why, but her internal voice told her she had to figure some things out first.
“So, I guess you patched everything up with Gerald?”
“Yeah, I’m still pissed at him, but I’m mostly over it. He explained why he did what he did, and I still don’t agree with it, but life’s too short to be so angry. What about you?”
Maya scoffed. “I don’t think I’ll ever get over what he did.”
“I understand. I mean, I don’t have kids of my own, but I can see why you’d be upset.”
Maya couldn’t get Cameron to make eye contact with her yet, as if the woman was trying to avoid getting into anything deep or vulnerable with her. Maya wouldn’t relent, so she prodded. “But?”
Cameron sighed, and she set down the dish that was in her hand, then looked at Maya. “What would you have done if you were in his shoes?”
There wasn’t any spite in her voice. It was an honest question.
“I would have come after my kids. But I wouldn’t have kidnapped them, not telling Gerald where I was headed. And he left my mom helpless after treating her like shit. I would never have left her there the way he did.”
“And he regrets that. He feels awful about it.”
Maya took a step back and tilted her head to the side. “He said that?”
“He did. You really need to talk to him again. I know he put you through hell, but his intentions weren’t cruel. You have to know that.”
Maya sighed, looking down at the counter. As much as she wanted to keep her anger burning, Cameron made her pause. If she had been in Gerald’s position, she would have done nearly the same thing. But she still wasn’t sure she’d be able to forgive him any time soon. He’d caused her so much angst, so much pain. And maybe she was being selfish—the kids were fine, but she wasn’t. Maya had been taking his actions as a stab at her instead of as a parent looking out for his kids.
“Besides,” Cameron said. “Think about it. If he hadn’t done what he did, you wouldn’t have made such an awesome friend like me.”
Maya chuckled. “Yeah, I’d probably still think you were just a ho.”
“I highly resent that, bitch.” Cameron laughed, bumping shoulder to shoulder with Maya.
Maya laughed also before turning to Cameron and grabbing onto her hand. She used her other to lift Cameron’s chin until they were staring into each other’s eyes.
“You know, moving forward, I want things to be different. I had all the wrong ideas about you. You’re a good person, and I want to stay your friend when all this is over. Hell, the kids adore you anyway.”
“Oh, shut up.” Cameron gently slapped Maya’s hand away and refocused on a plate with spaghetti stuck to it. “No, they don’t.”
“They do. I mean, I tuned a lot of it out when they talked about you, but some of the better stuff made it through the filter.”
Cameron’s face twisted. “Thanks?”
Maya winked at Cameron before picking the dish rag up to dry the last couple of dishes.
“In all seriousness, it means a lot to hear you say that, Maya. And I want you to know that I think you’re a natural leader, and that whatever you decide, I’m going to support your decision. If you choose to leave with Reno, I’ll do my best to help convince Gerald that we should all go. And if you decide you want to stay, then I’ll support you on that, too.”
“Thanks. I really appreciate that.”
Cameron handed the last clean plate to Maya and then let her hair down as Maya dried it. She exhaled and stepped back from the counter.
“Now that this is done, I’m gonna go grab that shower I’ve been dreaming about.”
“Go enjoy it while you can. It’s quite nice.”
“I will. And you let me know if you need anything.”
Maya watched Cameron leave and felt a twinge in her stomach. She had begun to care deeply about Cameron, like she did her best and oldest friends, but something told her that Gerald would never leave the base, and that Cameron would fall back into old patterns.
34
Maya headed down the hallway toward Reno’s room. She regretted that she hadn’t spoken much to him since arriving at the base, but her mind had been occupied with other things—like her children. Seeing Reno had shaken her, too, because she’d thought he was dead. So, unfortunately, other than their initial conversation, she hadn’t talked to him. Maya knew her partner well, though, and it had become apparent that something had been troubling him. Something more than just the rotten situation they had all been thrown into.
She eased the door open and knocked at the same time.
“Reno?”
He stood beside his bed, a bag sitting on top of it. She pushed the door the rest of the way open before walking inside. Then Maya noticed another man standing on the other side of the room.
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. We haven’t met yet. I’m John. You must be Maya.”
Maya shook his hand. “Nice to meet you, John.” Then she turned her attention to Reno. “What are you doing?”
“What’s it look like?”
She took a step back and took a breath. “You’re leaving?”
“I am.” Reno zipped up the bag and tossed it over his shoulder.
John turned his eyes toward the door. “Speaking of which, I should probably step out and let you two talk.”
“It’s fine, John,” Reno said. “We need to get going anyway.”
“Tonight?” Maya
shook her head and looked at her wrist, where a watch might have been at one time. “You can’t leave now. It’s too dangerous out there at night.”
“No more dangerous than it is in here. This base is on borrowed time. Gerald can pretend like we’re safe here, but we’re not. They’ll destroy this place just like Nashville.” Reno shook his head. “I know you want to keep your family together with their father. I understand that. But remember all the shit he put you through, and now you’re going to put your life and your children’s lives in his hands? I don’t know, Maya. I thought you were over him.”
“I am.” Maya felt her face flush. “I’m not obligated to anyone.”
“Clearly.”
Maya went to Reno and grabbed his arm. “Please don’t do this. Stay a little longer and think about it.”
Reno glanced down at Maya’s hand on his arm. Then he looked up into her eyes.
“I’ve made my decision. I’m sorry.”
Maya thought back to the last time she’d seen Reno in Nashville, the way he had held her and kissed her before selflessly telling her to go and find her kids. She found herself squeezing his arm harder now, as if that would keep him safe. Reno put his hand over hers.
“You don’t need to stay, either. The aliens are coming. It’s not if, but when.”
She couldn’t go with him, though. The aliens could attack the base, but they almost certainly would attack on the roads. Gerald or no Gerald, she had gone through hell to find a sanctuary, and she wasn’t about to give that up yet.
“Reno, you can’t—”
“All right, buddy, you’re all set.” The male voice had come from the hallway, drawing Maya’s attention to the door.
Gerald walked in, his eyes darting between Reno and Maya. He looked at Maya holding onto Reno’s arm, and Maya let go. In one hand, Gerald held a portable spotlight, and in the other a set of keys looped through one of his fingers. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed.
