Station Chronicles III: Martin Advance by Mary Brick

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The Station Chronicles: Martin Advance (2/6)
by Mary Brick

CHAPTER 2

(Present)

Bess listened as the door closed and she knew that Morgan had gone. She knew their journey tomorrow was the cause of his restlessness and when he got that way, he frequently left to take walks around the station. Her own restlessness stemmed not from fear of what was coming but from sadness at what she was leaving behind.

Bess Martin didn't fear the unknown. She had lived with worse than that and survived. But she didn't like change, though that never seemed to stop change from happening. Only the great love she had for her husband allowed her to take the recent drastic changes in her recent life in stride. She was a pragmatic woman and learned from her father that one had to look life in the eye and take it as it came. She always hoped that the good would outweigh the bad. Sometimes it did. More frequently it did not.

Just as Morgan did earlier, Bess realized that sleep would elude her this night. She threw off the covers, put on the robe Morgan had discarded when he changed, and walked out into the living room. Siting on the couch, she curled up near the end. She let her mind wander, back in time, trying to place the exact moment where her journey began. The journey that led her to this night of unrest.

***

(16 years ago)

"Bess Amelia Klempt. Get over here now, child!"

But the little girl with the shaggy golden curls didn't seem to hear. Her eyes were glued to the large monitor where a blond woman was sitting behind a desk reading the latest news from the stations.

"And in Business News today, Adair Consolidated has been awarded the most recent Government contract to build the largest station ever built. Designed to house 5,000 families, this latest station will also feature..." Bess' attention was diverted by a sharp tug on her hand.

"Bess, didn't you hear me? I said we have to go."

Bess turned her head to see her mother looking down at her, a look of impatience on her face. With a quick shake of her head, Bess remembered the job at hand and proceeded to follow her mother through the market center. But as they finished making their purchases and headed home, Bess couldn't get the name "Adair' out of her head nor the stories she heard about them on the satellites from which all Earth Residents got their news of the life on the stations.

"Mom, are we ever going to be rich like the Adairs?" Bess asked, causing her mother to stop in her tracks.

"Why do you ask, honey?" Helen Klempt looked at her daughter, a small trace of fear on her face.

"I don't know. Just wondering," Bess replied with a small shrug as they resumed walking.

"Would it make much of a difference to you?"

Bess noticed the tone of her mother's voice. It always seemed to get like that when Bess asked questions about the stations and the people who lived there. She didn't know why, but she knew instinctively that she shouldn't ask. But sometimes, like now, she couldn't help herself.

"I don't know. Maybe," was her vague reply.

Bess and her mother reached their home and entered the front door. Their unit was like all the others in the zone, a leftover from the days of the biodomes. A time after the Earth became uninhabitable but before the majority of people left for the stations. It was old and worn out, but still moderately habitable; not that there was anywhere else to live. Boasting two bedrooms, a living room, and kitchen, Helen Klempt did the best she could with the meager salary she and her husband made working in the mines. But it was clean and as happy a home as she could provide for her growing daughter.

Placing their purchases on the kitchen table, Helen followed Bess as the child wandered down the hall into her room. Standing in the doorway, she watched as Bess took out her most prize possession, the only doll she ever had. Bess sat on the edge of her bed and rocked the doll in her arms. Feeling she was being watched, Bess looked to her left and gave her mother a smile.

Picking up a brush, Helen sat next to Bess and started to comb the unruly mess her daughter's hair became at the end of every day.

"Bess," her mother whispered, "are you happy?"

Bess knew what her mother meant. They lived on the ravages of what was the remains of a once beautiful planet with no hopes of ever leaving. Their existence was hand to mouth, jobs scarce; comforts scarcer. A four-room housing unit was a palace. Three meals a day was a feast.

But what other answer could she give?

"Of course I am, Mom."

***

(Present)

Bess let out a sigh. "Ah, Mom, would you look at me now?" she whispered into the darkness. "Your little Earth Res has moved up to the stations and is about to go further than your wildest dreams." Thoughts of the next day brought another face into her mind. A face with a more stern countenance and yet no less loving.

***

(9 years ago)

"Daddy, I'd like you to meet Billy."

Maynard Klempt looked up from the report he was studying to see his 17-year old daughter hovering around the latest boy she had brought home. "This one's no better than the rest,' was his first thought. But he suppressed any expressions from crossing his face as he saw the hopeful look in Bess' eyes, pleading with him to be nice. Putting the report to one side, he stood and shook hands with the young man.

"And where are you taking my daughter tonight?"

Billy quickly cleared his throat. He'd heard the tales about Bess' father. That he was strict and demanding when it came to the boys who dared ask his beloved daughter out on a date.

"To, uh, just out to the arcade, uh, with a bunch of friends," was the stuttered response.

"The arcade," Maynard said. He continued to stare at Billy, causing the boy to squirm under the intent gaze. Just when he knew the boy could take it no longer, Maynard spoke again. "And what time will you be returning my daughter?"

Relieved that he wasn't to be denied his date with Bess, he blurted out, "Any time you want!"

With a gleam in his eye that only Bess recognized, he taunted, "2100 then."

The boy's face fell. He swallowed hard as he worked up the courage to argue. "But, sir, that's only an hour from now."

Maynard smiled. "You can tell time; that's very good." His smiled disappeared. "So when I say that you are to bring my daughter home at midnight sharp you will do so. There will be no coming in late with a lame excuse that you lost track of time, will there?"

The boy shook his head emphatically. "No, sir. Midnight on the dot. Yes, sir!" Billy fled for the door.

Bess stood in front of her father and gave him a peck on the cheek. "Thanks, Daddy," she said ruefully. "We'll try to have a good time." She followed Billy out the door.

Maynard looked at the closed door for a moment before returning to his seat. He tried to work but found his thoughts were miles away from the report in his hands. His gaze wandered to the closed door. It was a long time before he could concentrate on his work again.

Several hours later, Maynard looked up at the sound of the key in the door. He watched with no small pride as his daughter entered the shabby living room, noticing once again how she always managed to brighten up any room she was in.

Humming a little tune, Bess walked across the room and sat next to her father. Giving him a kiss on the cheek she smiled at him.

"Still up?" she asked.

"Of course," came the abrupt reply. "Did you think I'd not wait until you got home?"

"Ah, Daddy. I'm a big girl now," Bess replied. "You don't have to wait up for me."

Knowing all to well that his little girl was no longer little didn't do much for Maynard's disposition. But Bess was his cherished daughter, all he had left. Never risking to alienate her with harsh words, he took his resentment out on the boys she dated.

"So, what does this one do?"

"The same as the others...works in the mines." Bess never whitewashed the truth. No boy would ever be good enough for her at least that's what her father thought so there was no point. And what did it matter? Who did he think she would end up with anyway? A Station Res with a sterling pedigree?

"Works in the mines. Did he finish school or is he so industrious that he went to work right away."

Bess sighed. "No, Daddy, he didn't finish school."

"An uneducated mineworker with probably very little ambition." Maynard looked at his daughter sadly. "Bess, you can do better than that," he said brusquely.

Bess looped her arm through his and rested her head on his shoulder. "No, I can't, Daddy. But it's nice that you think I can."

***

(Present)

Bess smiled to herself as she thought of her overprotective father. He wasn't a highly demonstrative man, but he knew he loved her deeply. He was her foundation and unwavering champion as she ventured from childhood into womanhood. She knew she would miss his gruff affection and keen advice as she ventured forth into her unpredictable future.

END OF CHAPTER 2

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