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Martin approved for the time being. Best to listen impartially until the few
available facts were sorted out.
Rosa looked at them, worried, but kept quiet.
"It was black," Alexis said with an effort. "Big. Alive. It didn't make any
sound."
She knows it isn't credible, what she saw
.
"That's all you saw?"
Alexis Baikal fixed on Stephanie's eyes and nodded. "That's all I saw."
Hans stood and stretched his arms, flexing his shoulders as if they had
cramped. "Where did it go?"
"I don't know," Alexis said. "I turned to run, and it was gone."
The door opened and three Wendys came in, Nancy Flying Crow, Jeanette Snap
Dragon, and leading them, Kirsten Two Bites. Kirsten said, "These two have
something to report."
"We are not cowards," Nancy Flying Crow said.
"You should have told us," Kirsten Two Bites chided. "Martin, they've seen
things, too."
"We didn't see anything we could identify," Nancy said.
"Did you see anything while you were together?" Stephanie asked.
"No," Jeanette said.
"Ask them what they saw," Rosa interjected.
Martin pointed to Nancy. "You first."
"It was a man," Nancy said. "Not one of us. Not one of the children, I mean.
He was dark, wearing dark clothes."
"Where did you see him?" Martin asked.
"In the second homeball. In the hall outside my quarters."
"And you?" Martin asked Jeanette.
Jeanette Snap Dragon shook her head. "I'd rather not say, Martin."
"It's pretty important," Martin said gently.
"It doesn't make any sense. I can't fit it into anything," Jeanette said, face
wrinkling in anguish. "Please. Rosa started this& I didn't see what Rosa saw."
"What do you mean, Rosa started this?" Hans asked.
"Don't gang up on me!" Jeanette wailed. "I didn't want to see it, and I don't
even know if I
did see it."
"I didn't start anything, sister," Rosa said in a hissing whisper, shaking her
head. "Don't blame me."
"I saw my mother," Jeanette said, looking down. "She's dead, Martin. She died
when I was five. I saw her dressed in black, carrying a suitcase or something
like a suitcase."
"That's bolsh," Rosa said.
"Be quiet," Stephanie said.
"Rosa, please," Ariel pleaded.
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"This is all crap! She couldn't have seen that," Rosa said.
"Why the hell not?" Ariel said, face red. "Does everybody have to see what you
saw?"
"They just want to be in on it. They're making it up. What Alexis and I saw "
"That's enough," Martin said, raising his hand.
"We saw something!" Alexis cried out. "This is all crazy!"
Hans muttered, "Righto."
Martin raised his hand higher, nodding his head forward, lips tight. "Quiet,
everybody
," he said. "Rosa, nobody's accusing anybody of anything, and this is not a
competition for weirdness.
Understand?"
"You don't control me," Rosa said. "You "
"Smother it, Rosa," Ariel said. She looked sharply at Martin
Don't take this cooperation for granted
.
"Why is everybody down on me?" Rosa screamed, tears flying. "Everybody get out
of here and leave us& leave Alexis and me alone."
"No thanks," Alexis said. "I don't know what I saw, or what it means. I just
reported it."
Martin smelled the sweetness of flowers from Rosa's garden, tried to think of
some way to conclude this meeting without damaging delicate egos.
"Nobody knows what anybody saw," he said. "Nobody blames anybody for seeing
anything.
Rosa, you reported what you saw, and that's according to the rules. Whatever
anybody sees, they come to me and tell me right away, understand? No
embarrassment, no hiding, no shame. I want to know."
Stephanie nodded approval. Hans seemed less than convinced.
"Have there been other sightings?" Martin asked. "This is not snitching. Have
there?"
Nobody answered.
"I'm going to talk to each of you individually for the next hour, in my
quarters," Martin said.
"There's no time to waste now. We have to be disciplined, and we have to think
of the Job. Got that?"
Heads nodding around the room, all but Ariel's and Rosa's.
"We have to make a judgment if we're going to make one before partition by
tomorrow morning. This is a very serious time, this is why we came here. Not
to worry about our sanity and our egos. Think of Earth."
One by one they came to his quarters. Martin recorded their words in his wand.
Alexis Baikal came first, full of doubts, tearful in her apologies for having
seen anything
. Martin tried again to convince her there had been no crime, but his efforts
seemed less than successful.
Ariel was cool, as if regretting her tacit support of Martin in Rosa's
quarters. "I think the moms are doing something," she said, folding and
unfolding her hands. "I think they're experimenting with us, like when they
made us screw up the first external drill."
"You'll never trust them, will you?" Martin asked.
Ariel shook her head. "We're trapped. That's what Rosa thinks, too, but she
hasn't said it directly. She's desperate."
"You think she's seeing things, making them up?"
Reluctantly, Ariel nodded.
"That doesn't make sense. You think the moms are fooling with us, but you
think
Rosa's making up things, too?"
"I think they're weeding out the weak ones," Ariel said. "They might
jeopardize our doing the
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