Chapter Twenty-Four
Stepping down into the shuttleport at Catena was as disorienting for Vivian as the day she’d first landed on Mars.
In Arcadia, the open plaza had been full of well-dressed Martians with elaborate headwear, with only a few Earthers serving as porters and bodyguards.
Here, Martians and the occasional Earthers freely mingled, clad in form-fitting black outfits.
If Xavier hadn’t known to bring alternative clothing, they would have stuck out immediately.
She hoped the rest of his knowledge would prove effective.
In the gathering darkness, the port was dimly lit and disorganized. A long line snaked around as people waited for a single human ticket seller. Empty cups and papers littered the dusty ground.
One food merchant sold an unrecognizable brown stew, and Vivian mentally thanked the Dorsey staff for the cultured roast beef sandwich she’d eaten in the aircar. Even if the stew did give her a sort of anti-nostalgia for her mother’s cooking at Sumter.
“Come on.” Xavier lengthened his stride, and Vivian hurried to catch up.
They arrived shortly at a four-story building with a brightly painted mural of a jungle under an orange sky on the outer wall and a single sign above labeled Hostelry. At the desk inside, Xavier told the human attendant brusquely, “One room with two beds.” He’d dropped his usual refined manners.
“Only one bed per room in these parts, so close to the port. I can get you two rooms if you’d like,” the bored clerk drawled.
Xavier glanced at Vivian, and she gave a slight jerk of her head. She didn’t want to be separated from him in this strange place. “One room is sufficient.”
The modest rented room was simply furnished with an en suite bathroom, side chair, and a built-in platform bed with two pillows. Xavier held up one finger to her and pulled a silver rectangular handheld device out of the bag. He moved the device deliberately along the walls.
“All done,” he said finally. “The room isn’t bugged.”
Bugged? Such a possibility hadn’t even occurred to Vivian, and she was grateful once again for Xavier’s willingness to help her. She wouldn’t be able to do this on her own.
Vivian moved to peer out the window at the street below.
Mopeds flitted through the narrow street around larger vehicles in a maze of traffic so different from the wide, pedestrian-friendly streets of Arcadia.
Two Martian men argued on a street corner under a flickering yellow light.
A cacophony of noises—music, honking, shouting, and laughter—penetrated the thin windowpane.
Xavier gently steered her from the window. “We don’t want to draw attention to ourselves.”
“You know, I don’t think I’ve seen a single child since we’ve landed.”
Xavier activated the window’s blackout screen. “Not many children are born here.”
Vivian thought of Delilah, pregnant and alone. “How does the population grow then?”
“Through defections from the other domes. People dissatisfied with their current situations and looking for a change.”
Vivian rubbed her arms. An entire dome full of people who disliked the status quo on Mars enough to uproot their lives. “What do we do now?”
He returned the detection device to their shared duffel. “We get some sleep. In the morning, we call on my old friend.”
“Should we go to Chancellor River? They’d help us, right?’
Xavier ran a hand over his short hair. “Would they? You saw how River encouraged you to defect to Catena. I’m not sure they’d be on our side. Especially since Delilah left willingly.”
Vivian nodded in reluctant agreement. “Do you trust your friend?”
The muscles in Xavier’s shoulder moved under his thin T-shirt as he shrugged. “I trust her to be honorable. If Silas is here, she’ll know where to start looking.”
“I wish we knew what he wanted with Delilah. I still can’t believe he brought her here.” Vivian sat on the bed. “But maybe I should’ve guessed something like this would happen.”
“You can’t blame yourself. The information I shared was intended to be in confidence.”
She shook her head. “Not that. A month or so ago, Silas—he kissed me. And more. It happened very fast. He didn’t seem to care about what I liked.”
Xavier’s heavy eyebrows drew together. “Did he force himself upon you?”
“No, no, of course not. I wanted … something. Anyway, it’s not as if I told him to stop. And Luz interrupted us before things could go very far. But I should’ve warned my sister.”
Xavier sat down on the chair opposite the bed. “You did nothing wrong. It’s Silas who’s violated the basic tenets of Martian values.” He stared blankly at the ground and murmured, “Again.”
Vivian thought of what Dr. Chavez had told them. A lifetime ago. “Consent. Communication.”
His eyes snapped back to her face. “Just so. Consent is highly valued here. It’s the reason the Intelligence has given you the illusion of choice in a partner. To do otherwise would be too grave a violation of Martian custom.”
“Consent was not considered important at Sumter.” Vivian picked at the light blanket on the bed.
“I’m not … experienced, but I always assumed that being carried away in a moment of passion is the end goal.
I thought, for a moment, I achieved that passion with Silas.
But the fantasy was different from the reality. ”
“He didn’t ask permission?” Xavier’s dark brown eyes regarded her intently.
“Permission?” she asked with some surprise. “In the heat of the moment? That would’ve been out of place.”
He made a sound low in his throat. “Not if you do it well.”
“Explain,” Vivian whispered, her mouth suddenly dry.
Xavier knelt in front of her. His face was at height with hers.
Leaning forward, he moved into her space, eyes locked on her own.
“If I wanted to kiss you, I would make you yearn for it. I would hover right out of your reach. I would let the air between us crackle with anticipation. And then, I would ask you.”
“Ask me?” She couldn’t move away if she tried.
“I would say, ‘Vivian Bowen, may I kiss you?’ ”
His lips were so close to hers, and she felt a mindless yearning well up inside her. Xavier gave a small, satisfied smile and moved gracefully away from her, returning to the chair. Vivian let out a slow breath. Perhaps she wasn’t broken after all.
“I see,” Vivian said, struggling for composure.
Xavier looked amused. “Take the first turn in the bath. There’s a sonic laundry built into the wall that we can use to refresh our Catena-style clothing.” He turned away but not before Vivian saw him shiver.
She rummaged in their pack for her things, avoiding eye contact, and went into the bathroom. The hostel had a rusted sonic shower, to her chagrin. She could have used a water shower right now. A cold one.
Xavier stared at her very hard in her Arcadia-style nightgown when she emerged from the bath, and Vivian felt herself regaining the upper hand. “Bath’s free,” she murmured and slipped past him to lie down on one side of the narrow bed.
Despite a half-formed desire to wait for Xavier, she felt the pull of sleep almost immediately. Her endless day was finally at a close. She opened her eyes when she heard the scrape of the chair. Xavier was arranging the other pillow and his overcoat on the threadbare carpet.
“Don’t be an idiot,” Vivian whispered. “You need rest to be alert tomorrow.”
Xavier straightened in the dark. He was wearing a white nightshirt that exposed his calves. “I didn’t want to impose.”
“Come on then.”
She felt the weight of the bed shift as he lay down beside her. She hadn’t moved, and her back was to him. He adjusted his body and then was still. Vivian listened to the comforting sound of his breathing as she drifted back to sleep.