Metafire

"No." Randy figured it probably didn't matter anymore, but he decided to go ahead and lie.

"Yes." Erisa just plain figured it didn't matter. "He's not my Jack. My Jack is somebody else. This guy's a policeman, though. He told me."

"Erisa, you're right, it doesn't matter. Randy, I think you should just admit who you are. It doesn't matter anymore." Angela actually did not care. She wanted these kids to know she cared about them as people.

Randy decided not to say anything. He was now holding onto a wall several feet from Erisa. It was clear that he had failed to seize the initiative after he awoke. But he was still groggy from the poison that had put him to sleep. He only wanted to go back to sleep.

Angela made quick work of George's wound. A similar incident had occurred six months before on another colony. Several people died and the colony had been damaged severely. All capsules now carried surgical probes, like those used for getting bullets out. A meteorite would not leave infection and this one had stayed intact.

When George woke, he asked Angela to get everybody back to their jobs. He remembered, although groggy himself, that he had to get the team back on the bombs and the conversion of the power supply. It was still going to take several more days. People settled back into their jobs. Isolova took care of getting nylon cloth from the cave to wrap Steven's body. They would have to wait for an opportunity to get his body into an airlock and out into space.