Fall of Venus

by Daelynn Quinn

  “We need to get out of here. No doubt they heard the explosion. They could be here any moment,” he says.

  I catch a glimpse of something on his face, just under some straggly strands of hair, before he drags me out of the clearing. The same mark tattooed on his temple. It must have been hidden by his hair before. Not that I would have seen it anyway, running away from him.

  He tries to run while holding on to my hand, but I keep tripping over my feet, unable to gain my footing. I’m still dazed from the explosion. At some point I think he actually puts my arm around his shoulder and partially carries me. Finally, he slows down to a fast walk, and eventually the dizziness subsides and I am able to walk on my own.

  After that ordeal, my body is screaming for water. I pull out the canteen and start chugging. The water tastes like sweet honey gliding down my throat, despite the fact that I fished it from a dirty pond.

  I can’t help but notice my companion is staring at me, his lips slightly parted. Or maybe he’s staring at the canteen. I’m not sure which, but since he saved my life the least I could do is share it. When I finish about half of it, I offer him the canteen. He shakes his head slightly as if to clear his thoughts and takes the canteen graciously, downing the rest of the water. He seems a little disappointed. I know how he feels. That scant bit of water did little to satisfy my thirst.

  An hour passes. Or it feels like it anyway. We’ve been walking in silence since the explosion. A silence that has grown uncomfortable. Why is he so quiet? Who is this guy? Where did he come from? And how did he know that car would explode? Finally, I can’t take it any more and break the silence.

  “How did you know?” I ask him.

  “How did I know what?” he says.

  “About the car. How did you know it would explode?” I ask.

  He stops for a moment, looking straight ahead. Then he turns to me. “They’ve got traps all over the place: cars surrounded by landmines, sheds set to explode, even cabins with rifles pointed at the doors, rigged to go off as soon as they open. Didn’t you even notice there were no roads up there?”

  My head droops down. I didn’t notice. I was so caught up in the moment, it never even occurred to me. An abandoned car at the top of a hill with no roads leading to it. How stupid could I be?

  “No, I didn’t. Who are they?” I ask.

  We begin to walk again. “Not sure, really. To be honest I don’t know what’s going on. I woke up in the woods a few days ago. Can’t remember how I got here. I’m Marcus, by the way.” He looks down at the pack around my waist. “That was Clover’s. He was with me when I woke up.”

  “My name’s Pollen,” I say. “I take it that band of rednecks killed him?”

  “They shot him in the head while we were getting water. Fell right on top of me. I barely had time to push him off me before I got away. Glad you managed to grab his pack. There’s some useful stuff in there,” Marcus says. “We actually almost killed ourselves getting it.”

  I raise my eyebrows curiously and he continues, “We found an abandoned shed. Almost blew ourselves to bits, but Clover was some sort of electrical genius and found a box connected to the shed with wires. He recognized it as a crudely made bomb and was able to dismantle it. There wasn’t much there. Just some food, clothes, and what’s in that pack.”

  “Yeah, well, I managed to grab it just before those guys started shooting at me,” I tell him. He looks at me sadly, almost with a hint of regret.

  “What happened?” Marcus asks, tracing a line over his face that mimics the gash on mine.

  “I don’t remember. I woke up like this. And with this.” I reach my fingers up to my temple, sweeping wisps of hair to the side, revealing the infinity fly tattoo. “Do you know anything about these marks?”

  “No more than you do. Clover thought it might be some sort of identification. I thought we just had a crazy night on the town,” he says. I can’t help but chuckle, thinking back on my theory. Marcus cocks his head and smiles, “I think Clover’s idea made more sense.”

  I let that sink in. Some sort of identification. Why would I need to be ID’d? What is it that puts me in the same class of people as Marcus and Clover? Why do I find Marcus hauntingly familiar? So many questions and nobody around to answer them. I need to give my mind a rest. The rhythmic rumbling in my stomach gives me another subject to focus on. I reach into my pouch and pull out my reserved berries, offering some to Marcus.

  “Have you found much food? I mean, other than berries,” I ask.

  “Food is hard to come by. No animals to hunt. Not much vegetation in the woods this time of year. Those berries were a stroke of luck. It’s hard now, but I’m afraid it’s only the beginning,” he says.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Something has happened,” says Marcus. “Something seriously wrong. I’m hoping it’s just localized to this region and not widespread. I’m sure you’ve noticed there are no animals around. Or live animals anyway.”

  I nod, noticing the crimson feathers of a lifeless cardinal under a nearby tree, “Yes. It’s so quiet without the birds.”

  “But it’s not just the birds and rabbits and deer. Listen,” he says.

  I listen again, but all I hear is silence.

  “No insects,” he continues. “No bees. Without bees, we have no pollination. No more fruit, no more berries. No more seeds. No more food.” Marcus’s eyes are wide and grave.

  “We could self pollinate,” I tell him. But somehow I already know what he is going to say.

  “True, but that would be a full-time job itself. By the time other people figure it out, it will be too late,” Marcus says.

  We continue walking for a while, stopping occasionally to listen for others. Then aimlessly walk some more.

  “Marcus, do you know where we’re going?” I ask, rubbing my earlobe nervously. He looks at his feet and snickers under his breath. “I have no idea. You know how to get out of here?”

  “Not a clue,” I say, smiling. I think this is the first time I’ve smiled since I woke up in this forsaken place. I have to admit it’s nice to have someone to talk to, other than myself, even if I don’t really know him.

  “Wait!” I stop and hold my hand out in front of Marcus. His firm chest bounces back against my hand and I can feel lumpy protrusion of his abdominal muscles press against my outstretched fingers. I miss Glenn. His abs aren’t as solid as Marcus’s and he did start to develop some love handles last summer. But he loves burgers and fries, so it was bound to happen at some point. It never bothered me because I love him, no matter what his body looks like. And I like having something to hold on to anyway.

  “Do you hear that?” I ask. The sound is so distant I’m not even sure if I hear it myself, or if I am just imagining it because I’m so thirsty that my lips are beginning to crust and peel.

  He pauses for a moment, eyes wide open and unfocused. “Water,” he says.

  It’s hard to make out, like the sound of a vacuum cleaner running in the basement when you are in the attic. But it’s there and we both hear it. We break into a run, racing toward the sound of rushing water. We only run for a few minutes, probably no more than a mile, but it feels like a lifetime. As the sound grows louder, my feet move faster. I hadn’t realized just how dehydrated I was until I heard the flow of water.

  Water never tasted so sweet. I open my lips to the edge of the gushing river and allow the cool, foamy water to flood my mouth. I can’t seem to swallow fast enough. Marcus is lying next to me on his belly dunking his entire head into the water, slurping on his way up.

  It reminds me of all of the simple things in life that I have taken for granted, like a simple glass of clean water. Who would ever think to be so thankful for that? We drink it every day without a second thought. It becomes such a part of us that it is hard to imagine ever being without it. There are so many nameless things in life that we place value upon, but the truth is, they are worthless. Televisions, computers, high-tech gadgets. Will these thing
s save your life when you are at death’s doorstep? Probably not. But when dehydration sets in, what is the only thing left in the world that can save your life? That simple glass of water. My mind starts to wander to the other things I take for granted: Glenn’s hand clasped around mine, the toxic smell of my dad’s grease-stained clothes after working in the garage, Eve’s contagious laugh that sounds like tweeting birds, the succulent spice of my mother’s baked apple pie, the satiny soft pillow that cushioned my cheek at night, the safety and security of my previously dull life. I could go on and on. I have a feeling nothing will ever be dull and secure again.

  With my belly bloated with water, I sit up on my knees and stretch the collar of my shirt up to wipe my chin. I gaze up and down Marcus’s backside as he continues to drink. He must work out. A soft flutter ripples down my body. If I didn’t have Glenn, I don’t think I could resist flirting with Marcus. As he stops and sits up I’m sure he catches me gaping and I quickly avert my eyes.

  We sit for a moment, catching our breath, and give our bodies a chance to release the pent up tension. I remember the canteen and dunk it into the water. It fills quickly, gurgling bubbles when the water reaches the top.

  “We should probably head upstream,” says Marcus. “It’ll be safer to cross.” I nod and we begin walking along the river’s edge.

  “So, who are you, Marcus?” I ask, realizing the moment it came out of my mouth how terse I sound. “I mean, what did you do before all this happened? Did you have a family?”

  He chuckled at my nervous chatter. “Not really. I was married, but we divorced a couple years ago. We didn’t have any kids, so I’ve pretty much been on my own ever since. Well, I take care of my mother, too. She’s not well, but she likes to think she can take care of herself. I think she just wants me to have a life. Other than that, I just keep myself busy working.”

  “What do you do?” I ask.

  “I’m in construction. I could have gone to college on a football scholarship, but I gave it up for her.”

  “Your mother?”

  He chuckled, “ No, Siera, my ex-wife. We were high school sweethearts.”

  “Oh. That would explain your accurate throw earlier,” I smile, recalling how the rock landed perfectly in the car before it blew up.

  Marcus closes his eyes and snickers, “What about you?”

  I think about Lex and how I had to put my ambitions on hold when he was born, and then again after he died. That strikes a painful chord in my heart; not only for Lex, but also for the life I put on hold, the life that I may never catch up with. I can’t tell Marcus about that so I come up with the most vague response I can think of.

  “I’ve been trying to get into college. Just doing some odd jobs here and there. Babysitting and stuff.”

  “What are you going to major in?” he asks.

  “Teaching. I love kids. I’m always taking care of my niece, Evie. She lives with us. Me and my parents, that is.”

  Marcus has a distant look in is eyes. As if he is absorbed in his own deep thoughts. I wonder if it was something I said. Acknowledging my pause, he shakes his head and says, “Go on.”

  “My boyfriend Glenn wants me to move in with him, but my parents never really liked him. And I don’t want to leave Evie. Not yet, anyway. It’s too soon after Drake died.”

  “Drake?” asks Marcus.

  “He was my brother. He died in the Deimosian War last summer. Stepped on a land mine.” My voice quivers as I say those last few words. I’ve never really talked about Drake since he died. Part of me is in denial, wanting desperately to believe he is still down there, serving our country; that the dismembered limbs they found belonged to some other poor soul. Speaking of his death makes it feel undeniably real to me. That’s an emotion I just can’t handle right now.

  “I’m sorry,” says Marcus.

  I press my lips together to hide their trembling and bite my tongue to keep the tears from flowing. A discreet nod is all I can do to respond.

  “This looks like a good place to cross,” I say, pointing ahead at a narrow point in the river.

  We approach the spot where several large stones are scattered among the crushing rapids. It’s hard to discern, but they look close enough together for us to hop across the river.

  “Are you sure?” shouts Marcus. “The rapids look pretty fierce here. We could go a little further and see if there’s a safer place to cross.”

  The foamy, white water is a ferocious stampede. Getting caught in its path would mean certain death. I know it’s risky to cross here, but I need to quiet my thoughts before I get too emotional in front of this total stranger.

  “We don’t know what’s up ahead. I’d rather just cross now and get it over with. You scared?” I raise my brow and smirk.

  Marcus cocks his head and grins back, “You’re quite the daredevil, huh? Okay, looks like an adventure. Let’s do it.”

  Marcus insists on going ahead of me. He’s turning out to be quite the gentleman. And to think, just this morning I was running from him like a fox from a hound.

  We climb up onto a large stone on the bank and assess the crossing. There are seven gigantic stones between the stone where we stand and the opposite bank. It looks almost as if the stones were placed here intentionally for a crossing. They all look large enough to hold both of us at the same time. The distance between them should be narrow enough for us to jump over, although it is difficult to judge the distance between the stones at the other side.

  Marcus hops onto the first stone then I follow behind him, wobbling a bit on the slippery, uneven surface. He stays there until I regain my balance, before hopping to the next stone. The first jump was easy, with only about a two-foot distance between the stones. The next jump I almost lose my footing, but Marcus grabs my waist, keeping me from falling into the spumy deathtrap. Despite the danger that encompasses us, I find myself titillated by his touch. The sides of my waist tingle with his residual energy, distracting me from the task at hand.

  Marcus hops to the third stone and turns to me. I extend my leg and leap across. Marcus catches my arms and steadies me, as if he knew I would need the extra support.

  The next stone is a very short hop, but my mind is no longer in the moment. I skip across and the first thing I notice upon landing is that my shoe is soaking wet and water is quickly climbing up the leg of my capris.

  Chapter 4

  My overconfidence and distraction caused me to miss the stone completely and I’m quickly sinking into the river. But Marcus’s quick reflexes react and he grabs my right hand before the river washes me away. He clenches his jaw. His face reddens and strains, forming deep wrinkles on his forehead. The veins in his arms protrude like the mountain ranges on a textured map. He’s playing tug of war with the river, and right now we’re losing. From the lack of food, we are both weak and tired. It seems we used our last bit of energy sprinting for the river.

  The velocity of the cool water smacks my face like a thousand sharp fingernails scratching my skin. Water penetrates every orifice of my body—my eyes, my nose, my ears. I’m even swallowing more water than I can handle and I cough violently as I inhale it into my lungs.

  Despite his tight grip on me, I can feel myself slipping through Marcus’s rough hands. Jolts of panic are erupting throughout my body. Fear and hysteria slither through my veins. I’m not ready to die. Not like this! The thoughts racing through my mind are incomprehensible. Visions of Glenn, Evie, and Drake pop in and out, like a game of whack-a-mole. Even images of Marcus and other faces I don’t recognize appear in my mind. But there’s no time to analyze my thoughts. I just need to survive.

  Somehow, underneath the rushing rapids, my foot catches a hard object, a rock perhaps, and I am able to anchor myself and push up high enough for Marcus to grasp my slippery left hand. He mouths something to me, but I cannot hear over the whooshing deluge of water encasing me.

  Again, he yells out. This time I can make out the muffled words, “Hold on!” With my foot
pressing against the rock I give one final push before the rock dislodges and once again my feet are suspended among the galloping white currents. But it doesn’t matter anymore. Marcus has a good grip on my hands and hauls me up onto the stone. I don’t know how he managed to harness the strength to lift my 130-pound body. But I’m grateful.

  “That was close,” he says, panting breathlessly.

  I’m so winded, I can’t even speak yet. I wrap my arms around his neck and hold on tight as if one slight shift would land me back in the water. He holds me as well, despite my soaking wet clothes. His heartbeat pounds against my breast. I really thought that was it. That I was going to die. Marcus saved my life--for the second time today. Had we not found each other, I’m sure I’d be dead already.

  My body is shaking tumultuously, either from the cold water or the surge of adrenaline. Marcus guides me to sit down on the stone. We both rest for a few minutes, catching our breath and trying to regain some strength to finish our trek.

  But sitting here, surrounded by the gushing water, only enhances my fear. I need to get to dry land. Now. Adrenaline is still pulsating through my body and I stand, ready to make the next jump and get it over with. Marcus follows.

  “Are you sure?” he asks.

  I nod and finally I manage to find my voice, “If you are ready, let’s finish it.” He nods and takes his place in front of me.

  There are only three large stones left to cross. He jumps to the next one cautiously and turns to me, ready to catch me if I should slip again. But I don’t. We pause on this stone knowing that rushing through this could be a fatal mistake. Marcus raises his eyebrows as if to ask me if I’m ready to move on. I nod.

  As he turns to jump, my eyes focus on a little patch of moss atop the large, slippery stone. When I was little, I wanted to have a yard full of nothing but moss. We had a few patches of it at my home growing up. I used to take off my shoes and walk barefoot over it. It was so soft, like walking on a fluffy pillow. And I never had to worry about snakes or spiders or other creatures that might hide, camouflaged, among long blades of grass. The moss was comforting, safe. But it turns out to be the opposite at this precise moment.