Page 10

“ James , we are still processing all the components in this soil, but our preliminary scans show the soil to be rich in many of the same minerals your plants needed to grow successfully on Earth . I cannot say that all plants will flourish here, but I do believe, worst case scenario, we can find additional ways if need be. Soils can be brought in and greenhouses built.”

James nods his head then walks over to Carla , taking her hand in his. They stand together looking out over the water, and I wonder how much easier all this would be to take in if I had someone to lean on right now. The Commander’s voice echoes around us.

“ We have a little more time if you want to spread out and explore further.”

I’ve always been a beach girl, but something about these massive trees seems to call to me.

Without thinking, I start to head back into the cool, calm atmosphere their canopies provide.

Looking back at where most of the others are still gathered, I suddenly feel very melancholy and extremely alone.

Even though I didn’t have many friends, and my family consisted of Papaw , at least I knew that if I needed anything, he was only a phone call away.

Now , … well, I can’t let myself think about it, or I’ll fall apart.

So , I take a deep breath and make myself focus on what’s around me.

My footsteps are silent on the soft forest floor as my fingers trace the base of the monster trees.

Looking around, I try my best to find anything familiar, but there is nothing, not a random ant on a tree or a butterfly in the sky.

I never thought I’d miss the aggravation of a gnat or a mosquito, but in this silence, I would love to hear a cricket or the screech of a blue jay.

Only when I hear someone calling my name, do I turn back. A few minutes later, I find Briar standing at the edge of the forest with a frown on her face. “ Ok , what part did you not understand when they told us not to wander off?”

“ I didn’t go that far, Mooommm .”

“ If I was your mother, I’d bust your ass. So , from now on, you stay where I can see you.” Once again, we’re interrupted.

“ I didn’t know you two were kinky like that. Can I play along? I would hate to miss anything, and I’d love to hand out the spankings.”

“ Go bug someone else, Eric . Neither of us likes nor wants your attention.”

“ Briar , right?”

“ Yeah , not that I took the time to introduce myself, creep.”

He actually backs up, holding his hands out in surrender. “ Hey , it appears we got off to a bad start, and I just want to be you guys’ friend.”

Just as I’m about to say it’s fine and that we’re all just on edge, Briar goes on the attack.

“ I bet neither of us falling at your feet is really putting a damper on your ego, isn’t it, ERIC ?

Let me spell this out for you so that you understand this clearly since it’s apparent you can’t take a hint.

Unbeknownst to you, I was standing right behind you when you started bragging about what a stud you were and how you planned on knocking up as many little beauties as you could in order to make sure your family name prospered in this new world.

And how you boasted about your stamina and the fact that you could wrap any girl you wanted around your little finger.

Don’t look shocked or try to say I misunderstood you.

I may be, in your eyes, a hole to fill when you feel like it, but I’m not stupid.

Good luck with the other survivors. Lord knows I pity the girl who can’t see past your fake charm. ”

Red -faced and angry, he turns away from us, heading back to where everyone else is.

“ Wow , remind me not to piss you off.”

“ Guys like that make me so mad and the sad part is how easy it is to fall for someone as shallow as he is. If I hadn’t heard that conversation, neither of us would’ve had a clue about his true intentions.

His pretty face and well-placed words would have probably worked exactly like he said.

I hate to admit it, but most of us girls are going to be pretty vulnerable.

We’ve lost everything, and it’s in our nature to want a family.

Creeps like him will continue to grow more like him, and that’s a shame. ”

“ Ahh , who needs a guy anyway? Right now, that’s the last thing on my mind.”

“ Yeah , I agree, but that won’t always be the case. When all this calms down, and it will, what then? So , what do you think? The place seems beautiful, but I just proved once again that being pretty on the outside doesn’t make you pretty on the inside.

“ Him being like that really upset you, didn’t it?”

“ I was just hoping for more after everything we’ve been through.

It’s sad that guys like that are the ones who survive.

Not someone who is kind or has morals. We couldn’t get lucky enough to find a guy who wants more than a convenient piece of ass.

It just seems so unfair, and I’ll be honest, it side-swiped me when I walked up on that conversation.

I didn’t expect anyone to say or act that way—not now in the mix of this hell we’re all in. ”

“ Well , at least everything makes more sense now. Your dislike of him was very apparent from the beginning.”

A sharp whistle has us turning, and when SCOUT motions us forward, we walk back toward the dropships.

Breaking back through the atmosphere was smoother going up than coming down, and before we know it, we find ourselves back on the main ship, returning to the Destroyer .

For some reason, we seem to get back quicker, or I was simply distracted—one or both of the two.

The Destroyer comes into view gradually, but it doesn’t take long for it to practically take up the entire front viewer. The Commander , who spent the entire time in the front of the ship talking to James and Ricky while SCOUT navigated, stands up.

“ Before we go any further with the plans for E -311, do any of you have other concerns that you have not spoken to me about? If not, I would like to see a show of hands if this is where you would like to relocate.”

I don’t hesitate as I lift my hand; Briar looks over at me and then shrugs her shoulders before lifting hers as well. The vote is unanimous, and as the ramp lowers on our ship inside the Destroyer , I wonder what’s next.