The Lonely Whelk by Ariele Sieling Page B

near to the speed of light?
What kind of life had he had? Had he been married, had other
children, lived fully? She had known when they split up that this
would happen; she hadn’t realized it would hurt so much. She took
another rasping breath and hit play.
    “ He died from old age,”
Hawkings continued. “He worked as a philanthropist from the money
you sent him, and because he had no other children when he died, he
donated everything that was left to an orphanage in the name of you
and your son. And of course, you’re going to ask – why an
orphanage, and not a research facility? It was because he met a
young man at one of the orphanages who reminded him strongly of
your son, and he felt the money could be spent supporting children
just as well one way or another.
    “ I’m sorry you’ll be
getting bad news when you wake up, but I knew you would want to
know. They sent his digital possessions, photographs, letters,
etc., in a massive file which I’ve downloaded under your name, and
protected with your access code since he had no other living
relatives.”
    He paused for a minute, glanced behind him
again, and leaned even closer to the screen. “Sis, I know it’s
going to be rough, getting all those people down onto the planet
and settled and organizing a governmental system, not to mention
surviving in general, but if anyone can do it, it’s you. You’re
like a slither-horse in a saltwater stream – you can take any
problem the universe decides to throw at you. I love you.”
    The video ended.
    Holland dropped her head into her hands. It
was too much. She had barely started and she was ready to quit.
    But he thought she could do it.
    Hawkings was dead. Lord and Lady Mastin were
dead. Her own husband was dead. Twenty-eight thousand good people
dead. She had so much grieving to do, and not enough time to do
it.
    Holland took a deep breath and pushed her
pain, her tears, and her emotions as far into the back of her mind
as possible.
    “ Computer,” she stated
clearly. “Begin the waking process for all medical
personnel.”
    “ Waking process initiated,”
the computer replied.
    “ Don’t begin any other
processes until I give the word,” she ordered. She hoped the
computer wouldn’t just start doing things, but Lady Mastin’s voice
made her a little nervous.
    “ Acknowledged.”
    Her job – she would focus on her job, and
worry about being sad later.

 
     
     
     
     
     
    Maxwell strolled slowly from the house to
the Globe – he had the rest of the day to complete his assignment,
after all, and it was only lunchtime. He linked arms with Maddy and
smiled as he enjoyed the pleasant weather.
    “ I think it’s a hot dog
day,” he said to Maddy. She agreed, of course. She always did. It
was like she could read his mind.
    He headed to Dalmatian Park, where the hot
dog man sold hot dogs to people and dogs alike. It was always
bustling, and he felt home in a crowd of people that didn’t know
him. He felt special, knowing that he carried secrets untold to any
man (Maddy didn’t count, as she was a woman).
    “ Hello,” the hot dog man
greeted him. “Beautiful day!”
    Maxwell smiled and nodded.
    “ What can I get
you?”
    “ Two hot dogs, ketchup,
relish, no mustard.”
    “ Two hot dogs, coming right
up!” The hot dog man began to prepare the lunch. “And how is Maddy
today?”
    A giant grin split Maxwell’s face. He hated
it when people ignored her. “She’s great, aren’t you, Maddy?” He
looked at her, in her blue circle skirt, red belt, and red pillbox
hat and veil, and wondered how anyone could ignore her. She was
perfect.
    He paid for the two hot dogs, turned away
from the stand, and offered one to Maddy. She loved hot dogs.
    “ So here is the plan,” he
began. “We have until the end of the day to find Boris, but I
thought maybe we could go outside and wait for him right around
now. Maybe we can get him during the lunch hour! Then if we don’t,
we can try again when he gets out