Eve of Man (The Harvest Book 2) (34 page)

“I don’t like it, any of it. Changing our DNA,
volunteering to be a food source. None of it makes sense. In fact it’s way off
key. If those are our options, I’d rather take my chances here on Earth,” Zack
said, putting it all out there in one breath. “I like my freedom.”

“Can I show you something?” Eve asked, sliding out
from the booth to stand next to Zack. He hesitated when she held out her hand
to him. Austin encouraged him with a nod. Eve took his hand. “I will show you
what freedom looks like if you stay here on Earth.”

Before Zack could mutter a single syllable of protest,
Eve whisked him into another time and dimension. Behind him, the diner remained
visible, but as he watched, rising waters swallowed it whole. The water was
murky black, having an oil like consistency. Eve touched Zack’s arm and pointed
to a mountain range that hadn’t been visible a moment ago. The foothills appeared
miles away, and the mountain peak disappeared into the clouds above.

In a blink they were high up in the mountain walking
along an uneven path carved into its side.  The path was three feet wide in most
places, narrowing to two in others. Every ten feet they passed a cave opening.
At one of these openings Eve stopped and again pointed. Zack followed her
direction and saw water, vast and wide. It was everywhere, and everywhere he
looked was the water. From behind him he heard a baby crying.  His daughter’s
cries. Crying because she was hungry and cold and alone. The sound pierced his
heart. At that very moment he felt the desperation of the entire planet. He
looked back out over the water, left to right, as far as he could see. And not
a single mountain range was visible from where he stood. They were alone. Zack
fell to his knees and covered his face.

Once upon a time he’d experienced flooding. It was after
torrential rains dumped six inches of water in less than twenty-four hours down
on parts of Colorado. Mass flooding affected several places in central Colorado
and Governor Parks had declared a state of emergency. Zack had done his part to
help out those in need by sending boats, supplies, food and as much marijuana as
anyone might want in such desperate times. Not surprising to Zack, he sold out
all stock in the flood’s first week. In desperate times he knew alcohol and drug
sales went through the roof. That he’d been high through most of it hadn’t
inhibited his ability to grasp basic economics.

After three weeks went by, many places had remained under
water. He and some buddies decided it a good idea to stock up and tour the
flooded areas by boat. In the beginning it was fun. Avoiding the law was easy,
selling the pot was easy, making money was easy. In the end Zack gave away his
supplies, playing it off as being a Good Samaritan, as buying his way into
heaven. The truth of it, which he wouldn’t have shared with any of his so
called friends back then, was he had a conscience. The desperation on the faces
of the people who had lost everything bothered him deeply.  He’d gone back the
next day and the next, trying to help in any way he could. He’d even rented out
an entire hotel, paying for families to stay for as long as it took.

During those days he remembered coming home, taking off
his clothes and falling into the bed exhausted. The next morning he would pick
up his clothes from the floor and the smell of the flood water would bowl him
over. He’d thrown the clothes in the garbage. Not even Tide Extra Duty could do
the job on that smell. A week or so later, he could still smell the stench of
the flood waters, as if it was somehow ingrained in every pore. As awful as
that had been, it paled in comparison to what Eve presented to him. In his
clothes, in his nose, the stench of the water remained. A damp stinking odor
that clung to him, much the same as the feelings of desolation clung to his
mind.

Zack opened his eyes, bracing for the horrid sight,
relieved to see they were back in the diner. “I can’t do that to my daughter,” he
said, although he couldn’t help thinking they were simply trading one impending
death for another. A lesser evil? Maybe so. A quicker death? Maybe not.

“It’s the right decision Zack,” Austin said. “You’ll
be safe on Paru. You have my word.”

Zack chuckled, a half amused, half sarcastic little
laugh. “I’m not worried about you keeping your word. You I get. You’re human. We
think alike. The Adita not so much. The Elders? Haven’t a clue. So, while I
appreciate your word and know you’ll honor it come death do us part, forgive me
if it doesn’t provide much in the way of assurance.”

With that being said and nothing more to decide,
Austin called Ed, Jenny, Colin and Charlie to the diner at which time Eve
changed back into Roxanne. Three of the four reacted in much the same way as
Zack; at first fear and concern and then arriving at the same conclusion. Charlie,
who sat next to Roxanne hugging her arm, couldn’t have been more excited about leaving
the planet, starting new, meeting the Elders. Again Austin felt that twinge of
concern for Charlie’s delicate mental state, for where her mind had settled. Upon
hearing his thoughts, Roxanne reached out and touched his hand. A small
unnoticed gesture, a touch that conveyed much and justified his concerns.
Austin’s hand went to rubbing his head. Charlie’s problems would have to be addressed
soon.

The next group was called to the diner, and they went
through the same process, having the same reactions. When the news about Caleb
was shared the girls were beside themselves with worry and tears were shed.
Austin assured them Caleb was being well taken care of and that Agra’s
intentions were not to harm his son.

Two hours later all of the residents were present and marinating
on the Elder’s offer. As was expected, convincing them to trust the Elders, to
accept their deal, was the more difficult sale. In the end, the promise of life
much as what they had been accustomed to pre-aliens clinched the deal. Unlike
asking them to offer up their veins on demand, the decision to become improved
versions of themselves seemed to be a no brainer for everyone. After all
questions and concerns were exhausted, votes were cast on each. In each vote
the group arrived at the unanimous decision of yes.

Change never comes in neatly wrapped packages with
specific directions on the best way to handle. For the bunker’s residents, preparing
to move was filled with anxiety, doubts and one question after another. The full
blown realization of where they were going was sinking in hard and fast. They
knew Paru wasn’t an industrialized planet. They wouldn’t have factories or
corporations to work in, supermarkets to buy food, malls to shop at, and no
electronics, so where would their necessities come from? For Austin to say the
Elders would provide for them meant little to anyone, including on occasion, Austin.
The Elders hadn’t volunteered specifics and he hadn’t asked for them. He’d
witnessed their power to move and create, to build and destroy and was basing
his trust on this knowledge.

Not all worries were of the same enormity in regards
to consequences. For the girls, simple things like clothing and make up, as
well as more complicated things, like tampons and razors were topics of concern.
How much could they take? How long would things last? What happened when they
ran out? Could they come back? The questions never ended, with one leading into
another.

Jenny, who had stepped into Madison’s shoes as den
mother, took the brunt of the girl’s questions. She did her best to keep
everyone calm, but each unanswered question caused their anxiety levels to
increase. At one point, while discussing the possibility of no indoor plumbing
on Paru, she thought the girls would stage a mutiny. The fault wasn’t theirs, and
over the past week, for reasons of her own, she didn’t feel as confident they
were doing the right thing. She’d held it together while in front of the girls,
but at night she fell exhausted into Ed’s arms.

On the day of the move Jenny chose quiet over
pandemonium. She, with Ryan’s help, sat in their living room neatly folding
clothes and placing them into suitcases. On the outside she smiled and laughed
with her son. On the inside she was in knots. Each time she thought about going
back to Paru, panic reared its ugly head, threatening to overwhelm her. Ed had
asked about her time in the warehouse, but she’d lied, telling him she couldn’t
remember anything before opening her eyes and seeing Roxanne standing over her.

But she remembered everything, from the very start,
from the day the Svan came for her and Ryan. She could recall each minute
detail of that morning when she walked into the kitchen and saw the Svan for
the first time. She’d been holding a tray of mugs filled with hot chocolate,
which she’d hurled at the hulking beast as it moved towards Ryan. Her only
thought was for protecting her son, but the Svan moved too swiftly. One moment
Ryan was there, the next he was gone, and then they’d come for her. She’d
screamed for Ed. She’d heard him banging on the door and then the window,
trying to get inside.  

For a while everything was dark and quiet, almost
peaceful, almost as if the entire experience had been a nightmare. When she
awoke, she’d quickly understood the nightmare was beginning in earnest. The
tubes stuck in her body, the Adita watching over them at first, then leaving
them alone, to slowly die. Lying naked on that table, not feeling anything, not
able to speak, only able to watch the life draining from her body. Somehow, even
though surrounded by death, she’d held onto her will to live. Her strength came
from Ryan, from knowing he lived. And from Ed, her pillar. She knew they were alive,
that her son was alive and he dreamed of her.

All of this remained vivid in her memories, not to be
shared with Ed, not now. Maybe later she could tell him, when she felt certain
he could handle it, but for now she must think of Madison and Zack’s baby.
Jenny’s hand went to her stomach, where a small bump could already be felt.
Soon they would have to make the announcement to the others, but that worry
would have to wait until after the move.              

***

On the other end of the bunker, Zack dealt with
concerns of his own in regards to the move, a primary worry being medicine.
He’d made a trip to the Colorado Springs drug store, stocking up on everything
and anything he thought might be needed in the future. To his surprise, Austin
had gone with him. Not for any other reason than to spend some time with Zack
before they left for Paru. That Austin wanted to spend time with him made Zack
laugh, thinking back to when the captain had first arrived at the bunker. A
dumb kid who sold pot for a living had been Austin’s opinion of him. Zack had
tried hard to impress him, without making it too obvious it mattered to him what
Austin thought. Funny they should end up as close as they were, but life was
funny that way. For a fleeting moment Zack thought about Madison, but chased it
away. Counting boxes of aspirin and wondering how long their supplies would
last was a safer place to be.

Planning a move for eighteen people was logistically
more challenging than keeping pot inventory up to date in a few stores. CVS or
Walgreens didn’t exist on Paru and, despite Austin telling him not to worry, he
worried. Worrying had never been his thing, a fact his mom would have attested
to and explained being due to his inability to take responsibility, for
anything. How times had changed. No shortage of things he’d taken
responsibility for these days, and worried over plenty. The bottle of Jack had taken
a back seat to a bottle of Rolaids, which he chewed on like candy. The chalky
little tablets would be ineffective against what he knew was an ulcer in the
making.

“Things have changed mom. Boy have they changed,” Zack
said, talking out loud to keep from hearing his own thoughts.

***

In the teen quarters, the noise and activity caused a buzz
like a disturbed beehive. Out in the common area suitcases were propped open on
the floor, clothes spilling over, leaving little room to walk. Every available
space was covered with someone’s things; the couches, tables, desks, nothing
was spared. A madhouse of sorts fed by their nervousness over what was to come.
  

Sue and Jane helped McKenna pack her things, while
Anne and Grace fussed over which baby toys to take. In a corner, away from the
noise, Charlie sat folding her clothes and placing them in her suitcase. The
move didn’t bother her. She couldn’t wait to leave Earth and start over. She
wasn’t worried about the Elders either. They wouldn’t harm anyone, especially
not her. She was Eve’s special friend and soon she was going to be like her. The
others could become improved versions of themselves, but not her, she was going
to be better than everyone. Eve had said she’d think it over and let her know today.
Nothing mattered more to her, more than becoming someone else, more than
shedding her body for a new one, for one her father hadn’t touched. Yes, she
thought, new and fresh and clean. She glanced at her watch. Only a few more
minutes and she would know her fate. Please, please, please say yes, she silently
begged, thinking that if Eve heard her, she’d know how much it meant and couldn’t
say no.

“Charlie!” Anne said for the third time.

Charlie looked up. “Uh, sorry.” She pulled her ear
buds out. “What’s wrong?”

“Do you have room in your suitcase for this?” Anne
held a stuffed bunny rabbit out to her.

Charlie reached for it. “Sure.”

“You ok?” Anne asked, observing Charlie closely. The
captain had asked her to keep an eye on Charlie, to let him know if she was
acting strange. A hard thing to determine since Charlie was kind of odd and
withdrawn anyway.

Charlie smiled, an empty sort of smile that held no
joy. “I’m ok. You ok?”

“Yeah,” Anne replied and, after a moment of
hesitation, turned away. She didn’t have time to babysit a teenager; she had
two real babies who needed her attention. Still, Austin seemed more than concerned
and she couldn’t, in good conscience, blow him off after all he’d done for them.
She turned back, but Charlie was no longer there. Anne looked all around the
room. No Charlie. Her shoulders dropped. Should she alert the captain? Was
Charlie acting strange or just being Charlie? She wrung her hands together
trying to decide.

“Anne, the girls are up.” Grace called from the door.
“Do you want help feeding?” And with the call of motherhood, Anne forgot all
about Charlie.

***

The barn was empty when Charlie arrived, so she walked
around looking in the stalls, waiting, and hoping. She paused at the door,
running her finger along the metal bars. Replacements for the locks her
father’s men had destroyed trying to find her. A smile played on her lips.
She’d outsmarted them. Each and every last one. She’d escaped and made them
look stupid. Her only regret was not being able to see her father’s face when
they told him his prize possession was gone. When she’d heard that the captain
had shot her father in the head, she’d wished it had been her pulling the
trigger.

“Hey Charlie.”

She spun around almost falling over. “Austin. What are
you doing here?”

“I could ask you the same, but I already know why
you’re here.”

“You do?” She regarded him with suspicion. Had Anne
said something to him? Had Colin?

“Eve told me about your request.”

Charlie balked. “She told you.” Eve had betrayed her?
How could she have told the captain? It was their secret, no one had to know.
From behind Austin, Charlie saw Eve step out of the shadows. Tears filled her
eyes, spilling over and down her cheeks.

“Please don’t be upset,” Austin said, stepping closer
to her, wanting to take her in his arms, to make her pain go away. “She only
wanted to protect you.”

Charlie shook her head. “You don’t understand. No one
understands.”

Austin took her hand in his. “I do understand Charlie.
I understand what he did to you. I understand that you can’t forget no matter
how hard you try, no matter how much time you spend cleaning. You can never
clean the memories away.”

“How’d you know about the cleaning?”

“Colin made a remark, nothing much. And when Eve told
me what you asked of her, I put two and two together. But it’s ok. It’s going
to be ok.”

She shook her head. “Does that mean you won’t do it?”
she asked Eve.

“I thought it would be nice to have you be like me, to
have a friend Charlie, but we can be friends as we are now. You don’t want to
be like me.”

“But I do want to be like you.” Charlie walked up to
Eve. “I want to be stronger than everyone. I want to not care about anything or
anyone.”

“Is that what you think being Adita means? Is that
what you think of me?” Eve asked, knowing it was exactly what the girl thought
and perhaps on some level it bothered Eve because it was true.

Charlie searched Eve’s eyes, but only saw her panicked
expression reflected back. “You promised you would change me. You promised!”
She pulled up her sleeve and tore off a bandage wrapped around her wrist,
revealing a fresh wound. “Here, I’m offering myself to you. Take my blood, take
it all,” she begged. “I’d rather die than live another day as his daughter.”

Eve took Charlie by the shoulders and pulled her
close. “You are no longer his daughter, you are mine,” she whispered in
Charlie’s ear. “But not as an Adita, not that way.” Eve stepped back and placed
her hand on top of Charlie’s head. “This will hurt.” And with that she passed a
bolt of energy through Charlie’s body. Her entire body glowed, she screamed and
fainted. Austin caught her as she fell. He laid her on the ground, cradling her
head. Eve came to stand next to him.

“Will she remember this happened?” he asked.

“No. The pain of her father will no longer be her
curse to carry. She is whole again. She is better.”

Austin smoother Charlie’s hair from her face. “Is
everything set?”

“Yes. We should leave directly after sending them to Paru.
You have much to learn and we have many places to visit.”

“Do you foresee any major problems? Any real
resistance?”

Eve glanced over at him and said, “With your species,
there’s always resistance to logic when it does not meet expectations or fit
neatly into preconceived notions. However, the proper motivation can subdue
even the most stubborn of humans.”

***

Charlie opened her eyes feeling disoriented. She
stared at the ceiling trying to get her bearings. She was lying on a bed in
someone’s room, but couldn’t remember how she came to be there or whose room
she was in. The door stood ajar and she could hear the other girls talking.
She’d been packing. That’s right, she thought, and she’d been tired, so tired,
but she wasn’t any longer. In fact she felt great, but that wasn’t all, something
more had changed.

Anne knocked and stuck her head inside. “Are you
feeling better?”

Charlie swung her legs over the side of the bed. “I
feel great. I guess I was really tired.” She smiled at Anne. A genuine smile.

Anne smiled back. She couldn’t help noticing Charlie
seemed different, brighter maybe. As if her dark cloud had blown away. Whatever
the reason, Anne was glad. “So everyone’s meeting in the diner in five. Last
minute instructions I guess.”

“Ok. I’m coming.”

***

The noise in the diner was a subdued murmur, as
everyone waited for Austin to arrive. They sat in the booths, or at the counter,
talking in voices above a whisper. Zack stood behind the counter, leaning over
across from Ryan, who was working a bowl of cereal to the bottom. Every now and
then Zack’s eye wandered over to the booth where Jenny sat with Barbara and
some of the other girls. He didn’t gaze for long, not wanting Ed to catch him
watching her, worrying over her and his baby growing inside of her. The whole
surrogate pregnancy thing bothered Ed more than he let on.