over.
They came to the opening and saw a rather pleasant sunset. Terri was tired and said she wanted to stay where they were and enjoy the view. “It’s not like we have any pressing engagements,” she said wearily.
He nodded and found a comfortable place for them to sit.
“That is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen,” she replied as they gazed through the broken clouds to see the red colored horizon.
He understood what she meant. These moments would be precious to her. They remained where they were until morning. It was on the western side of the mountain complex, in an area he had never been before. It was likely at least a three-day journey to the main entrance on the other side. They were not going in that direction.
He set the pace and found the easiest route through the rocky slope of the mountainside. There was no trail, but he did recognize the faded signs of previous travelers. His thoughts went to those few who had been expelled over the years.
The terrain on this side was not the same as the other. There were more mountains and hills in the distance compared to the wide-open spaces on the other side. Terri was able to keep up if he kept the pace slow. They rested frequently and walked more out of a necessity of having something to distract their attention than for going to anywhere specific. They came across some small streams and drank their fill. They saw no animals or any other signs of life. He was able to forage some edible plants and berries. He knew they would not be much help, but it had a psychological benefit for his wife. After six days, she said she could not go any further. She sat on a large rock, and gasped for air. “This looks like a nice spot,” she said as she tried to catch her breath.
He sat next to her but did not say a word. There was nothing to say. She leaned her head into his shoulder and her breathing eased a bit. She nodded off for a few moments then lifted her head from him. “I know the timing for this is terrible, and I debated on whether to let you know, but I have to tell you. I’m pregnant; about 3 weeks now. I wanted to wait until you came back from your last trip, then it just wasn’t the right time to say anything. I’m sorry.”
He did not trust himself to speak. He did not say anything. He pulled her to him and kissed the top of her head. He held her there and realized that she was no longer breathing. Her face was peaceful. The ground beneath her feet was covered in blood. She had been coughing up small amounts of blood the previous night, but she had not complained to him about any other problems.
He pulled her back to him and held onto her until the remnants of the sun started their slow descent into the skyline. When he finally released her, there were no more tears to be found in his body; not now, not ever again. Even as the darkness cast its shadow, he did his best to dig a proper grave. His heightened sense allowed his vision to adapt to the minimal light available in the shadow of the mountains. It was a shallow grave, but it would suffice. When the earth was packed firm over the grave, he started collecting rocks to place on top of it. They were the size of boulders, none of which an ordinary man could carry by himself. When he was through, he knew that no animal or creature could ever get to her remains. He was determined that she would not be violated any more than she already had been.
He wiped the sweat from his brow, and made a mental note of his bearings. They had been traveling west mostly because it was the easiest country for walking. Now, he would go south. He saw no reason to travel through the mountains as food supplies would be more difficult to come by. He knew wild life existed on the plains. He would find what he needed, and learn. He had a will to live now, which had escaped him since going into the mountain so many years ago. He also had a purpose.
EIGHT
Frank Bishop and Martin Maddow met not long after Keith and Terri had been expelled. It was Frank Bishop’s decision to use Gibbs for that. He knew he was the man for the job and explained his reasoning to his friend, “He isn’t like the others Martin. We’ll always need, and have always needed people like him.”
“I just don’t like him.”
“Neither do I, but then, we don’t have to.”
“I still need the planarian,” Dr. Maddow said.
“Nothing has shown up yet?” Bishop asked.
“No. We’ve certainly gathered much useful information from what Keith recovered, but still no planarian.”
“Then, we’ll just have to wait until Jim is up and running at full speed. We have suits and vehicles ready to go. When we can, we’ll send others out several at a time to turn over every rock and log within our available range. We‘ll tap into every water source there is,” he said confidently.
Dr. Maddow just shook his head because there was nothing else he could do. “Do you really think letting that information out would have been more than we could have handled?”
Frank Bishop knew the question was coming. Martin understood why the decision had been made, but he was not happy about it. Bishop did not think it was so much for the loss of his son, or another lab assistant in his department, but because his son was able to give Martin what no one else could.
“Everything we have done up until now has been calculated and controlled. I wasn’t about to let this set us back. We are ahead of schedule and the past is going to have to stay in the past. Our future is more than just survival; it is a way of thinking and a behavior to accompany that thinking. That starts with us. It will succeed and nothing is going to interfere with that. Not even my son or his naive wife,” he said authoritatively.
While neither man was the literal subordinate of the other, they knew they were inseparable when it came to decisions. They each had their talents and shared the same vision. They only differed, from time to time, on issues like this.
“What about Lucas, he’ll have to be told something.”
“I’ll deal with him, and Gibbs will deal with his men. I’ve placed Gibbs in charge down there. He is working for me, and he knows it. You’ll need to deal with your own people,” he said in reference to Terri.
Dr. Maddow nodded his head in acceptance. He knew there would be some speculation, and even rumors, but over time other things would became the focus of attention. “How far along is Jim on sealing the dome,” Maddow asked moving on to another subject.
“He said a few weeks, a month at the most. He expects to have an airtight seal by then. After which, we can run tests to determine when we can start assigning more people to work out there.”
“Any word from communications?”
They had been trying, on all operable wave bands, and frequencies, to contact all other known underground bases, both foreign and domestic, since their first week of settlement.
“No, nothing.”
“What about the other information Terri found? Have you discovered the source?”
“Gibbs is working on it. I trust he will take care of that problem. There can’t be more than a few people who had the necessary type of clearance and access. When that is resolved, I’ll make sure it never happens again.”
“And your son? What if he decides to show up on our front door? What then?”
“You don’t know him like I do. He won’t hurt someone else to get to me. He isn’t rash or compulsive. I don’t doubt he’ll want to get to me, but he won’t do anything now. And, who knows, he might never get a chance to do anything. It isn’t a very friendly environment out there. From his reports, water and food are quite scarce. He still needs them to survive.”
Martin looked at his friend understanding the person behind the words. While they would seem cold to most, he understood him as a realist. He did not mince words and rarely took chances without the odds being handily on his side. If they were to survive, it would take the two of them to pull it off. He was not, however, in agreement
