“You don’t believe me,” Simon stated. “Who are you people? I mean, for God’s sake, it’s been working for years. I can show you the gear. I can’t say I know all the details, but I know how to keep it running—Deb made sure of that.” He took a breath as if Lyndsey was trying his patience. “It’s not about the strength of the field. She realized that from the outset, and anyway, we didn’t have the capacity to power anything that needed a strong current. But her system doesn’t need much juice, it all runs off the photoelectrics.”
“So how does it work?”
“It’s the…you know…the…” He made a circling motion in the air with his hands. “The frequency. You have to make this field the right frequency, and it sets up some kind of wave that keeps flipping back and forth. Deborah always said that once she’d figured that, she was home free.”
Lyndsey didn’t speak for a full second while her mind worked overtime. On the face of it, what he’d said was crazy; there was no way to turn a chain-link fence into some sort of electromagnetic barrier. But something had been keeping the symbiont out, and Deborah had apparently been an engineer. There was a slim chance she’d found a way to make it work. “Show me,” she said gently. “Show me the gear, and then we’ll see about reaching your old shipmates on the comms.”
“Sure.” Simon headed for the door. “It’s wired up to the fence outside, but the field gets generated in the comms room, so we can kill two birds with one stone.”
“Lead the way,” Lyndsey said. “Lead the way.”
CHAPTER 14
The Hill
Connor woke to total darkness. And then the pain closed in, waves of agony throbbing through his tortured arms, his legs, his head and neck. Dry dust stung his throat, and he coughed, cruel spasms clutching at his chest like hungry fingers.
He heard something. The rattle of stones. And then a voice: “Connor. Don’t move. It’s me. Parry.”
Relief flooded through Connor. Parry had come for him. He was going to be all right. He was going to make it. He heard stone grating against stone, grunts of effort, another voice. Someone else was there. A man. Light filtered through Connor’s eyelids, and he squinted, seeing nothing but rocks and dust. He took a breath, but it was hard when his chest was so tight.
Something lifted from Connor’s back, and it hurt worse than before, a stab of searing agony lancing along his spine. Don’t let me be paralyzed, he thought. Anything but that.
“Almost there,” Parry said, his voice louder now. “In a minute, you’ll be able to…”
Able to what? Connor wondered. Why didn’t Parry finish his sentence? How bad am I hurt? Connor flexed his fingers and felt movement. He could move his toes too. It hurt like hell, but it was wonderful, glorious.
“Careful!” Parry snapped, and the other voice mumbled an apology.
Stones slid over each other, rattling like wave-washed pebbles. It was easier to breathe now; the air cold but still filled with dust.
The noises stopped.
“I don’t know if we should move you,” Parry said. “But I don’t see what choice we have.”
“This cave isn’t safe,” the other man said, and now Connor recognized the man’s voice. Derek. Derek Kline.
“The roof could come down at any moment,” Derek went on. “I’m sorry, but we can’t wait any longer.”
“All right.” Parry’s tone was grim. “I’ll support his neck while you roll him onto his left side. Gently though. Nice and slow.”
Connor lifted his arm, trying to push himself up.
“Wait,” Derek said. “Let us help you.”
Connor felt strong hands grasping his neck, his shoulders, and he let himself be rolled over, the movement bringing new jolts of pain. But as he shifted position, his breathing eased and his mind cleared. He lifted his right hand, and it was fine; cut and scratched but in full working order. “I want to get up,” he gasped, and when he struggled to sit, Parry and Derek helped him. Once sitting, his strength began to return, and he waved them away. “I’m fine. I don’t need holding up.”
“All right, but just wait a second,” Parry said. “Here, have a drink.”
A bottle appeared in front of Connor, and when it was tilted to his lips, he drank, swallowing the cool water down as if it were chilled champagne. “Thanks. I needed that.”
“Good, but we have to get you out of here,” Parry said. “Do you think you can stand?”
Connor glanced up at Parry. “Sure. I’m all right. I don’t think I broke anything. I’ll live.”
“All right, let’s do it.” Parry hooked Connor under the armpits, heaving him upward, and Connor made it onto his feet.
Connor paused for a second to catch his breath, and he turned to look back into the cave, seeing nothing but a wall of stone. “Mac’s in there.”
“Then he’s probably dead,” Parry stated, turning Connor around and leading him away. “There’s nothing we can do right now.”
“But—” Connor began, but before he could finish the sentence, a fresh shower of stones fell from the cave’s roof.
Parry urged Connor toward the entrance, supporting his weight. “Hurry. Derek, help me move him.”
Derek put his arm around Connor, and with Derek on one side and Parry on the other, Connor staggered into the light.
“Keep walking,” Parry said. “Could be a landslide. We’ll stop when we’re clear.”
Connor gritted his teeth and forced his legs to keep moving, his head spinning as Parry and Derek half carried, half dragged him down the slope. Soon, they were on level ground, and from behind them came the thundering rumble of falling stone.
“There goes the cave,” Parry said.
A few loose rocks rolled down the hill around the three men, but they kept walking, the only sound their labored breathing. After a while, Parry slowed their pace. “This will do, Connor. We’ll set you down on that boulder, all right?”
“Yeah.” Connor didn’t say more. After the adrenalin rush of his rescue, the pain of his injuries had returned with a vengeance, and every movement sent jolts of agony searing through his muscles; if he opened his mouth, he’d start roaring to the skies. He let them lower him onto the boulder, and when they let go, he sat up as straight as he could, tentatively rolling his shoulders and testing his arms and legs.
“What happened with Mac?” Parry asked. “Did he make a run for it?”
Connor nodded and looked away.
“I knew something was wrong,” Parry went on. “That bastard sent me on a fool’s errand. There was no soldering gun. I looked everywhere, tore the place apart, then I figured I’d been had. I couldn’t raise you on the comms, and I reckoned he might’ve jammed your signal or something, so I set off back. That’s when I ran into Derek—just as well, the way the things turned out.” Parry paused, shaking his head in disbelief. “Mac! I can’t believe I fell for his bullshit.”
Derek grunted under his breath. “That was always Mac’s specialty—making fools of people. He had a talent for it.”
Connor glanced at Derek, a flicker of disquiet stirring in his stomach. The man was not to be trusted, but he had helped to pull him free, and without his assistance, things might well have ended differently. “Thanks, Derek,” he offered. “Appreciate it.”
“Yeah,” Parry said, patting Derek on the back. “I don’t know what I’d have done if you hadn’t been here. I wouldn’t have got him out in time. Hell, we’d both have been buried.”
Derek shrugged awkwardly. “I’m just glad I could do something useful. I wanted to help.” He chewed at his lower lip. “I’ve got a lot to make up for.”
“Paid in full,” Parry said, but Derek shook his head sadly.
“Nowhere near,” he mumbled. “Nowhere near.”
Parry broke the uncomfortable silence. “What do we do about Mac? I was thinking—he might be trapped in an air pocket or something. Maybe I should go take a look.”
For a moment, Connor relived the fraught seconds leading up to
the cave-in, hearing once again Mac’s voice from the shadows, the whine of his rifle, the manic fury in his final roar. “He did it on purpose. He made the roof come down. He wanted to die, wanted to take me with him.”
No one spoke, and Connor felt strangely disconnected as he watched the conflicting emotions playing out on the faces of the two men, their eyes clouded with doubt as they struggled to come to terms with what he’d told them.
“Even so,” Parry started, but Connor cut him off.
“I’m sorry, but we can’t risk going back in there—not even to take a look. You got me out because I was near the entrance, but Mac was way back inside. We’d never get to him. If we had the right equipment, it might be feasible, but as it is, there’s nothing we can do. You wouldn’t even be able to get near him. We can inform the council, but that’s it.”
Parry took a step back, turning away and scraping his hand down his face. “I don’t know. I feel like I ought to do something, to find out one way or the other.” He faced Connor. “But…I guess you’re right.”
“These caves are treacherous at the best of times,” Derek put in, “and that one practically came down around our ears.”
“I know,” Parry said. “We can’t have any more accidents, that’s for sure.” He heaved a sigh. “I’ll call it in. I’ll have Phoebe talk to the council. Meanwhile, we should get you home, Connor. Are you ready to move?”
“I’m ready,” Connor replied. “But I don’t need to go home. We’ll go back up to the lookout.”
Parry started to protest, but Connor talked over him. “I’m going back up there whether you two help me or not. We still have a job to do. I have no idea how the hell we’re going to complete it without Mac, but we have to try.” He pushed himself to his feet, taking a sharp breath as a sudden pain shot up from his right knee. “Are you coming with me, or what?”
“All right,” Parry replied. “We’ll head back up. Derek, you can go home. You’ve done your part.”
“No, it’s okay,” Derek said. “I’ll come up with you. It’s a bit of a climb, and you might need help.”
“Thanks, but we’re fine,” Connor insisted, but when he saw the forlorn expression on Derek’s face, he hesitated, a memory stirring in the back of his mind. “Derek, you and Mac went way back, didn’t you? I remember seeing you on the ship together.”
Derek frowned. “We worked together a few times. You know, I was in control systems, and we sometimes worked with the electrical engineers. Plus, I was on that side of things in the old days, just like Mac. I guess I thought we had something in common.” He scowled as if reprimanding himself for his own stupidity. “I was an idiot. I couldn’t see what he was. And somehow, I let myself get drawn in.”
“How do you mean, on that side of things?” Connor asked.
Derek shrugged. “You know, electrical systems. It was a long time ago, but it’s where I got my start.”
Connor hardly dared ask his next question. “Any comms experience?”
“Some. We all did a basic course. Feels like a lifetime has passed since then, but…” Derek brightened. “Hey, is that what Mac was doing with you guys? Comms?”
“We were hoping to rig up the long-range set, get a message back to Earth.”
Derek lowered his eyebrows. “Wow. Ambitious.” He rubbed his chin. “But yeah, I can see how that might work. Interesting. I think…yeah, I reckon I could help with that. Definitely.”
“What do you think?” Connor looked to Parry, trusting to his friend’s judgment. “Has to be worth a shot, right?”
Parry nodded. “Sure. Why not?”
“Okay,” Derek said, wiping his hands down the front of his shirt. “Okay. Let’s see what we can do. Lead the way.”
And despite everything, when Connor saw Derek’s face light up with newfound enthusiasm, he just had to crack a smile.
CHAPTER 15
The Hill
Siobhan marched into the big tent to face the council, but when she saw how the space had been arranged, she faltered. The chairs had been laid out in a ring, and instead of the council members sitting in judgment behind a table, they’d taken places in the circle. Seeing her enter, Evelyn stood and beckoned her toward a chair. “Please, have a seat, Siobhan. We’re not so formal today.”
“Okay.” Siobhan shrugged her backpack from her shoulder and sat next to Evelyn, scanning the faces of the others present. Katherine Rhodes was looking pensive, Jordan Beech was on the edge of his seat, and there were two people she hadn’t expected: Una and Phoebe. Siobhan’s stomach fluttered. She’d practiced what she wanted to say, but she’d counted on a smaller audience, convinced that, with Evelyn on her side, she could get her point across to the others. The number of people doesn’t matter, she told herself. I’ve got this, I can make them understand.
“If I can get things rolling,” Evelyn began, “I’d like to welcome the new members of the council, Una and Phoebe, and thank them for stepping in to take the place of Matt, who we all miss, and Derek.” She paused. “We’ve arranged ourselves like this today in view of the position I find myself in. Since I was on the mission alongside Siobhan, I think it’s best if I’m not here as the leader today, so Katherine will take that role. Over to you, Katherine.”
Katherine cleared her throat. “So, this valley, Siobhan—what are the chances that it will remain free from the grunge, er, the symbiont?”
“From what I’ve seen, the chances are very high,” Siobhan said. “We found no traces of symbiont, and the vegetation was well established. As far as we could tell, none of it had been touched. Also, despite the damage to Tessa’s suit, she had no burns. None at all.”
“What about this new kind of symbiont?” Jordan asked. “If the spores are as bad as we’ve been told, surely they’ll get everywhere—even this valley.”
Siobhan hesitated. “I don’t think so. The airborne spores might’ve drifted down to the ground, but they haven’t developed or grown. My theory is that the magnetic field in the valley stops them from reproducing, it makes them non-viable.”
“It’s what Ben always said,” Evelyn put in. “He always thought that the magnetic field on the hill was what made it safe for us to live. And if the field in the valley is even stronger…”
“It is,” Siobhan stated firmly. “A lot stronger. And I’ve been thinking about that.” She licked her dry lips. “Ben once told me that our hill was formed when the underlying bedrock was pushed upward, but in the rift valley, it’s the other way around. The valley floor sunk, exposing the bedrock on either side. Do you see?”
There were murmurs of agreement from the group, although Una looked unhappy, her lips pressed together.
“Whatever this rock is,” Siobhan went on, “it gives off a strong magnetic field, and it’s not like the magnetic pole back on Earth. It’s not stable. It shifts constantly.”
“Oh boy, you’ve lost me,” Una said, shaking her head. “What does that mean exactly? And what’s it got to do with there being no grunge? I thought we were safe up here on account of it being high.”
“Well, Ben wasn’t the only one who thought the type of rock we have up here is important,” Katherine replied. “We know the symbiont has a metal component, so it makes sense that it would be affected by a magnetic field, especially if it’s as strong as you say it is.”
Siobhan sat up straight. “You don’t have to take my word for it. I have the data to back it up.”
“I can confirm that,” Evelyn said smoothly, fixing her gaze on Una. “And don’t forget, I’ve seen this place with my own eyes—it’s every bit as impressive as Siobhan suggests. There’s an abundance of food there, and fresh water in plentiful supply.”
“About that,” Jordan put in. “I understand you took samples. Did the water come up clean? Anything we need to know?”
“Unfortunately, we only managed to get one sample, but we put it under a microscope, and there was no symbiont and no spores,” Siobhan said. “The only life we found in the water w
as natural.”
Jordan frowned. “I find that hard to believe. Up here, if we leave spring water in the open, even for a short time, we get airborne spores landing in it.” He looked around the group. “We all know that. But somehow, this valley has a stream running through it, and there are no spores? I just don’t buy it.”
“Why not?” Siobhan asked. “The spores would have to fall down through the valley before they hit the water, and the field makes them non-viable before they hit the water.”
“And there’s the evidence of the mist too,” Evelyn offered. “We’ve always believed the mists on the hill to be caused by some property of the rocks up here. And while we were in the valley, the mist appeared much more quickly, and it was incredibly dense. Whatever force helps to protect us up here, it’s even stronger in the valley.”
The group fell silent for a moment. They’re not taking me seriously, Siobhan thought. Time to play my ace. She picked up her backpack, reaching inside. “Perhaps this will give you an idea of what we’re really talking about.” With a flourish, she pulled out the dirt python she’d killed in the valley and laid it on the floor at the center of the circle.
Una gasped, laying her hand on her chest, but her eyes were alight with hunger rather than revulsion. “Amazing,” she murmured. “I could feed my kids for a week on that beauty.”
“This is the one that bit Tessa?” Phoebe asked.
Siobhan nodded. “We weren’t ready for it. If we’d known the snakes were out there, we’d have been more careful. Next time—”
“Wait a minute,” Jordan interrupted. “You might not be going back. We haven’t decided anything yet.”
“Oh, come on!” Siobhan had been expecting this kind of response, and she was ready for it. “Think of the food and water we could have. Think of your friends, your families, your children. Sure, we make the best of what we have on the hill, but it doesn’t have to be like that. We could have so much more. There’s enough for everybody. All we have to do is take it.”
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