Mask by C.C. Kelly Page B

They carried two others — that made nine in total.  Lane did the math.  Forty-three adults, six teenagers and five little kids were still in the Outpost.  Two of those kids belonged to him.
    He felt hands run across his waist and turned to look into his wife’s emerald eyes.  Catherine smiled up at him and kissed him gently, then laid her head against his chest.  He hugged her close and looked across the room to see his own children, Lily and William playing a vid game with the other kids.  Lily was five and William would be seven next week.
    He squeezed Catherine to him and tried to choke back a sob, but it escaped and he began to cry softly, burying his face in her dishwater blond hair.  She shook in his embrace, fiercely squeezing back.
    “There’s no other choice,” she said, “We were both there, we know.”
    “What if I’m wrong?”
    She pulled back and took his face in both of her delicate hands and spoke slowly, “You’re not wrong.  You know that.”
    “Do I?”
    “Yes,” she sniffed and ran the back of her hand across her eyes and then reached up and kissed away Lane’s tears.
    “Glenda and some of the others took the enviro-suits and made a run for it,” Lane said.
    Catherine took Lane’s hands and turned around to watch their children and leaned back into his chest, wrapping his arms around her.  “I know.  Corporal Dix went with them.”
    “He did?  He was suppose to come see me first, doesn’t matter.  Who ran the lock?”
    “Me.”
    “You?  I was worried she was going to start in out here and panic everyone, but she kept her promise.”
    “No she didn’t,” Catherine said, “she started talking to Father Timmons as soon as she came out.  A few folks gathered around and they were talking about being too far from Earth for God to find them and guide them to Heaven.  They started to panic, for their souls I guess — wondering if God could hear their prayers.  Then she started to address the group, but I was done with her by then.”
    “And?”
    “And now her little group is out there,” she said pointing blindly out the window.  “She was bat-shit crazy, better for her not to be here.  Better for us.  You know?”
    “I know.  How did she get the recruits to join her, the God thing?  Never mind, it doesn’t matter either.”
    “What do you think is going to happen to them?” she asked.
    “If they’re lucky, they’ll die from painful toxic poisoning when their scrubbers run afoul.”
    “And if they’re unlucky?”
    He kissed the top of her head, “You already know the answer to that.”
    “Want to hear something interesting?”
    “Sure,” he said.
    “A coupe of days ago, before the, before, we re-aligned the orbital telescope and found another earth-like planet.  It’s just over a light year from here.”
    “Another planet we should never go to.”
    “Probably.  I sent the information back to earth anyway, before the jamming started.  I’m curious what they’ll do.”
    Lane wrapped his arms around her tighter.  “They’ll come, but they’ll bring more soldiers than scientists this time.  This is the beginning of an inter-stellar war, Cat.”
    “We should have stayed home, huh?”
    Lane looked up through the dome again at the alien stars.  “It’s been an adventure.  I’ve loved almost every moment of it, but I think I’d rather be back in our little South Side apartment.”
    “I loved that place.”  She turned again and looked up at him.  “I love you Lane, I love you so much.”  She sobbed again.
    “I love you too, Cat.”
    He watched his children play as Catherine sobbed into his chest.  They had no comprehension of what was happening, what was about to happen.
    He scanned the stoic faces of the other parents — moist eyes and brave smiles.  Squeezing their spouse’s hands and not letting on by paying too much attention to their children.  They fought against every instinct to hold them, to protect them, but instead,