Aurora (The Exodus Trilogy) (12 page)

“So, Maria… What happened out there?” he asked. She closed her eyes, and it seemed she had a hard time holding back the tears. She spoke, her voice shivering, and Kenneth had to move closer to hear.

“I was on my way home when I almost ran into a group of protesters. There were soldiers there, with guns…” Kenneth listened intently as she told the whole story, his disgust growing as he realized he was listening to a tale of cold-blooded mass murder. When her words subsided, Geena took over.

“I heard the shooting and wondered what was happening. And then, just as I saw the dead bodies, I found her. If the soldiers had seen her, they would have shot her too.”

“You did well to bring her here, Geena. I’m glad you did.” No one spoke for a while, until Maria suddenly broke the silence.

“They have to be arrested. They shot them, every one of them. Killed them.” Kenneth met Geena’s eyes, and it seemed she had come to the same conclusion as he had.

“Remember what happened to that kid?” Geena said softly.

“There will be some sort of investigation, surely,” he said. “But this is too big to explain away, so instead they will blame the protesters. They attacked, and the soldiers were forced to defend themselves.” Maria looked at him, wide eyed.

“But… but they were killed, all of them,” She stammered. He looked at her and saw the realization slowly dawning upon her.

“That’s what a cover up is,” he said gently. “A lie, presented with enough facts to be accepted for truth. There is only one problem…” he paused, emptying the last of his cup. Then he leaned forward, looking at Maria.

“You.” He leaned back again, before explaining.

“You were there, Maria. You saw the whole thing. You know the truth, and you’ve just told two others. Who knows how many others you could tell?” Geena suddenly got up and stepped over to the door, checking the lock.

“They will come for you,” she said, her face ashen.

“They will find out, and they will be looking for you. My God, Kenneth, what do we do?” Kenneth didn’t have an answer, so he did the only thing he could think of.

“Just wait,” he said, as he picked up his tablet, and typed a message. Then he encrypted it, using the software Thomas had given him. He pressed
send
, and laid the tablet on the table in front of him. No one spoke, but as the seconds passed, he could see Maria grasping the situation, and she sobbed as Geena held her shoulders.

They all jumped when the tablet buzzed. Kenneth grabbed it and read the message.

“What do we do?” Geena said slowly. Kenneth looked at them both and motioned for them to hold on. Then he made sure he had deleted the message before answering.

“We leave. Right now. Just give me a couple of minutes to pack up a few things.” As he stood up, Maria looked at him, and he noticed something in her eyes. Of course. It wasn’t just that she was in danger; it was also the fact that both her parents were here. Leaving meant more to her than to Kenneth and Geena.

“Where do we go?” she asked.

“There’s only one place we can go.” Geena said, and paused for a moment.

“Somewhere with a lot of people who won’t necessarily buy into the stories, who will protect us. Where the soldiers won’t get to us. The people there won’t let them.” Kenneth nodded. On Aurora, there were really just two places to be, if you didn’t want to take your chances in the unexplored areas surrounding them. It was either here, in Havelar controlled Fort Andrews, or…

“Port Hammer,” he said.

GREG HAMILTON

Greg Hamilton stood waiting for the Fort Andrews delegation to come inside. At first he had wondered what Havelar had been thinking sending Ramon Solis to lead the negotiations, but now he thought he’d figured it out. Greg and Ramon had always kept a friendly tone, and he figured Havelar had more faith in Ramon being able to broker some sort of agreement than anyone else. And he might be right. Greg hoped this could still be resolved peacefully, but the rumors that were spreading right now would make everything harder. He expected Ramon to ask about Maria, and he had decided to tell him the truth. Just yesterday she had come here, frightened and confused, and after hearing her story, Greg had promised to keep her safe here as long as she wanted to stay. He didn’t think Ramon knew everything that had happened, so he had no way of knowing whether Ramon understood the implications for his daughter.

He waited until Ramon had sat down on his side of the table before taking a seat for himself, on the opposite side. Right behind Ramon stood two assistants, a heavyset, stern-looking woman of perhaps forty-five and a younger man, tall with just a few wisps of hair, and a sleepy look about him. In the back of the room, two armed guards had been allowed in. The soldiers didn’t blink or show emotion, but being here, surrounded by potential enemies, he knew it had to be unnerving.

“We are worried,” Greg said as Tina joined him and took a seat beside him. “The way we see it, we are moving in the wrong direction. We should be exploring. Instead we are fencing ourselves in. People should be allowed their freedom, but instead, there’s a curfew in Fort Andrews and everything needs to go through administration. Whatever happened to free enterprise and the frontier spirit?”

“In Fort Andrews, we worry too,” Ramon began. “We worry that we are about to split up, just when we need to stick together.” Before anyone could respond, he pressed on.

“There are great challenges facing us. To create a viable colony, we need to expand, and do so in an orderly manner. Human expansion will demand much of us, and we can’t afford this split. We cannot accept it.”

“A viable colony…” Greg mused. He recognized the thinking, and now he would speak up. Of all Havelar’s cronies, Solis would be the most likely to understand.

“A colony, that’s how you see it in Fort Andrews, right?” He shook his head, with a smile that never touched his eyes.

“Back on Earth, we had no choice, and I for one was proud to serve, even though I never agreed with the politics. But here we should decide for ourselves. Have you seen how many have come here just in the last few weeks? Have you ever wondered why they’ve come? People are tired of it all. They want to take back what should have been theirs to begin with, their freedom.”

“So you propose anarchy? No rules and regulations? Just let people do whatever they want, go wherever they choose to, even if it means they expose themselves to whatever dangers might be out there?” Ramon cocked his head, obviously waiting for a reply, to negotiate his way into an agreement where Port Hammer got a few concessions as long as they submitted themselves to Havelar’s authority.

Greg would have nothing of it though. He was fed up, and just to make his point, he slammed his fist on the table. He noticed the soldiers tightening the grips on their weapons. Behind him, he heard the shuffling of Dean and the others. Nice to know Solis’s guards weren’t the only ones with guns in the room.

“No, we cannot accept this. Our rights are being taken from us, one after the other. In fact, most were gone years ago, before all this. And here we are, trying to make a fresh start, just to find our so-called governor continuing the work of his long-dead president.”

“What rights?” Ramon barked right back at him, leaning across the table. “We’re talking of survival here. And not just the personal survival of you, me, and everyone in this room. We’re talking about the survival of our species. You should know better, a military man and all.” He slumped, and some of the air seemed to go out of him, but he pressed on.

“Admiral… I know you don’t see eye to eye with Governor Havelar, but I also know you’re man enough not to let that cloud your judgment. Let’s try to stick together now; we really need to. We can always talk politics down the road, when our colony is fully established. Let’s just get through winter first.” Greg didn't answer as he stood up, and walked over to the coffee table next to where Dean and Kim stood. He deliberately took his time pouring a cup of coffee for himself, then another for Ramon. He wanted Ramon to notice the character of those standing next to him, the fierceness in Dean’s eyes, the easy way Kim handled her weapon as she moved it slightly away when he passed her. Then he returned to the table and handed a cup to Ramon, as he sipped from his own. It was too hot, so he put it aside.

“No,” he said. When Ramon didn’t immediately reply, he continued. “It’s time Havelar started listening to others.”

“Havelar is the legally appointed governor, appointed by the president himself.” Ramon blurted, spilling some of his coffee on the table. Tina hadn’t said anything so far, but now she cut him off.

“President Andrews is long dead. However we feel about him, or felt about him, he holds no jurisdiction here.” She sat there, with her jaws set and her eyes unflinching, as Ramon turned toward her, and almost spat out the words.

“He was our legal president, and you sit there…” He fumed. Then he spoke again, slow and deliberately.

“Yes, it was a different world. And yes, we need to find our own way. But he is still our last elected president, and Governor Havelar is his chosen representative. So, if all this talk of freedom and rights holds any meaning to you, we should honor the memory of our dead, and respect their wishes for our future. Besides, last time I checked, we haven’t invented any laws here. We even have legal experts making sure every policy of the administration is in accordance with the law.” He broke off, clearly taking notice of Greg’s smirk.

“You talk about American law, Solis. And yet, you come here expecting us to respect and honor those who took apart the Constitution, who took away liberties once taken for granted.” He paused briefly, and stood up, hovering over the other man.

“You would do well to study your history, Solis. People have tried to impose their rule on others from worlds apart before. It turned out people dislike those sorts of rulers, and every nation that has tried this has wound up on the losing side. I’m quite certain that is still the case.” Ramon slowly stood up and looked at him for a long time. Then he looked at Tina, and then Dean and Kim, and the others in the back. He sighed.

“Well… I had hoped you would bring these people back on track, but it seems you would rather lead them toward their own destruction. For that I am sorry. There is no way we can accept this, and I’m afraid the governor will have no choice…” He shook his head slowly, and suddenly Greg thought he looked sad. As he reached the door, Ramon stopped and turned toward him.

“Admiral... Greg… Please, tell my daughter that I think she ought to come back. And if she chooses to stay, please keep her safe…” Then, before Greg had a chance to reply, he turned away, and quickly stepped outside, followed by his assistants and the guards. When the doors closed behind them, Greg turned toward Tina.

“Well, there’s no going back now,” she said quietly.

“I’m afraid we just opened Pandora’s box,” he said, almost whispering.

TINA HAMMER

Tina looked around as everyone took their seats. It had been less than an hour since Ramon Solis and his group had left, and she was still a bit surprised. Even though Solis was more mild-mannered and easier to like than his old buddy Havelar, she knew he was also a tough businessman and well versed in the art of negotiating. She had never seen that side of him though, and seeing him for the first time as a leader had made her more aware of what they faced. Many would follow such a man, even some of those who were skeptical of Havelar’s leadership. Tina could see Solis as a possible heir, should Havelar triumph.

On her left side sat Greg, calm and poised. He had been the only person to stand up to Havelar early on, although his sense of loyalty had made him pass what he called the burden of command over to the appointed governor. He was their natural leader, and Tina expected him to be well aware of his fate if Havelar managed to break them.

To her right, on the edge of the table, her old friend Henry sat. Since the meeting with Solis, Henry had been unusually quiet, and Tina thought she knew why. Henry seemed to agree with most of what Solis had said, and he’d never made a secret of his support of the Havelar administration.

On the opposite side of the table, Kenneth Taylor had taken a seat. He had come with the girls, after the massacre that Maria Solis had witnessed, and though he’d known this would be the safest place to take them, he still seemed wary. In the last few days, he’d opened up a little, and it seemed he shared a lot of the views prominent in Port Hammer. Sometimes Tina thought being able to talk freely almost scared him. No surprise really, as he’d probably grown so used to hiding his views that it had become second nature to him.

“So, how long are we going to play rebels?” Henry said. Tina eyed him sideways, waiting for him to continue.

“Come on, you know what I mean. We are hiding a girl who should be questioned as a witness. To be frank, I don’t believe a word she’s saying. I don’t know why she says these things, but she’s a civilian. She wouldn’t understand a tight situation, and interprets it differently than someone who’s been under fire.” He looked at Kenneth, a look that said he didn’t trust him one bit.

“It’s gone far enough already. We’ve got to stop playing at stubborn frontiersmen, not contributing one bit to the common good. Jeez, at some point they will have to react! You all heard the man, we need to stick together, or the colony will break apart!” He leaned back, clenched his jaw, and refused to meet Tina’s eye. She felt her cheeks flush and faced him directly.

“Taylor, Solis, and Travis shall be safe here,” she said.

“This is one place Havelar doesn’t control, and I intend to keep it that way. And I will absolutely not allow his henchmen to take any of them away if they try. End of discussion.” She was tired of listening to Henry’s talk and needed to set things straight. This wasn’t Fort Andrews. Greg nodded approvingly and, when he spoke, it was in a soft voice, which nevertheless sounded like the authoritative voice of a commander.

“Henry, we have come too far to be the colony of a nation long dead. And it seems Port Hammer has become the focal point of this struggle. So I think you need to make your decision. I respect your disagreement, but I also need to trust the people around me. And so far, you seem to be more at ease beside Havelar and Solis, than here.” He broke off, but Tina knew he had just given Henry an ultimatum; you’re either with us, or you’re against us. It had a sour taste to it, but she knew there was no other way around it. She hated the way this was going, but she agreed with the admiral. She couldn’t risk treason in their midst, and right now she didn’t trust her friend. She noticed Henry looking around. He had kept his old sidearm, but she didn’t expect him to do anything stupid. Besides, Dean stood leaning against the wall, quiet for once, and the leisurely way he held his rifle didn’t fool her. He was 100 percent loyal to Tina, and Greg had quickly gained his respect.