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 not cowards," Nancy Flying Crow said. 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 want to see it, and I don't even know if I to see it, and I don't even know if I did did see it." 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.

"This is all c.r.a.p! She couldn't have seen that," Rosa said.

"Why the h.e.l.l 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, everybody," he said. "Rosa, n.o.body's accusing anybody of anything, and this is not not a compet.i.tion for weirdness. Understand?" a compet.i.tion 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.

"n.o.body knows what anybody saw," he said. "n.o.body 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 embarra.s.sment, 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?"

n.o.body 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 part.i.tion-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. anything. Martin tried again to convince her there had been no crime, but his efforts seemed less than successful. 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 Rosa's making up things, too?"

"I think they're weeding out the weak ones," Ariel said. "They might jeopardize our doing the Job. I don't say I know what's happening. You just wanted our ideas."

"Rosa's weak?"

"I don't want to get her into trouble."

"Ariel, she's having real problems."

"I know that."

"Can she do her work?"

"She's been doing pretty well, hasn't she?"

"Will she keep it up?" Martin asked.

"I think she will. But the children need to accept her."

"I get the impression she she isn't accepting the children." isn't accepting the children."

"Whatever," Ariel said.

"You're her friend. Can you bring her in?"

"We talk. She doesn't tell me everything. I don't think she's anybody's friend. I just make it a point to talk to her. You don't. n.o.body else does."

Martin could not deny that. "I'm talking to her next."

Ariel lifted her chin back. "Are you going to be her friend?"

You are a b.l.o.o.d.y-minded b.i.t.c.h. "I'll try," he said. "I'll try," he said.

Ariel left. Rosa Sequoia came into his quarters a few minutes later, face set like stone, eyes wide with fear and that ever-present defiance, an expression that made Martin want to kick her.

"Tell me what you think you saw. Just me," Martin said.

She shook her head. "You don't believe any of us."

"I'm listening."

"The others...they saw something different. Why should you believe any of us?"

Martin lifted his hand, crooked his finger encouragingly: Come on. Come on.

"You think I started it," Rosa said.

"I don't think that. Do you think you started it?"

"I saw it first." Under her breath. "It's mine."

"If it belongs to you, can you control it?" The conversation was getting looser and loonier. How far would he go to bring her in? Rosa was too sharp to be deceived. "Do you claim it?"

"I don't have it. I don't have anything." She hung her head. "I don't know what I've been doing."

This reversal caught him by surprise. He opened and closed his mouth, then folded his legs beneath him. "Jesus, Rosa."

"I'm not saying I...I'm not saying that we haven't seen anything."

"No...Sit. Please. Just talk."

Rosa looked to one side and shook her head. "I don't want to go against the Job. I'm afraid this might hurt us. Hurt the Job."

"What is it? Do you know?"

She sobbed and held her head back to keep the tears in her eyes from spilling. "I didn't make it up. I swear to Earth, Martin. I wouldn't do that. I don't know about the others."

"Is it real?"

"It is, to me. I've only seen it once, though. It was more real than I am. It was more real than the Job. It scared me, but it was beautiful. Should I be ashamed of that?"

"I don't know. Talk."

"I do my work," Rosa said, "I try to be competent, but I don't belong here any more than I belonged on the Ark. Or on the Earth. You don't think much of me because I'm causing trouble...But n.o.body thought anything anything of me when I was nothing at all." of me when I was nothing at all."

"You can't own a...Whatever it is. It can't be yours alone."

"If it was important, it would make me useful. People wouldn't look through me."

Martin asked her to relax and again she refused. "I want to go back. I want this forgotten."

"What about Alexis? What she saw?"

"I don't know what she saw. It sounds like what I saw, but it may not be."

"You didn't make this up, I know that. But is it real?"

Rosa shook her head. "Alexis thinks it is."

"Then maybe it is," Martin said. "I'm not going to doubt what my fellows see. You and Alexis. You'll continue to do your duties and attend all the drills. When you're off-duty, you can keep a look out. Look through the ship. Until part.i.tion. If it doesn't show up any more after that, we forget it. All right?"

"Jeanette and Nancy?"

"Jeanette saw her mother," Martin said. "Nancy saw...a man. They didn't see what you saw."

"Maybe it can take different shapes...read our minds."

Martin controlled his shudder. This was a real risk. Lancing the boil-acknowledging its existence-might do more than just drain the infection; it might spread it.

"You're a part of us, and whatever happens to you is important."