Chapter 3:
Clara and the others were rounded up hours later and led, by Marik, to a tiny and fairly dingy room. Marik went to a wall and punched in buttons. He said, “We load as much fresh stuff as we can of course, but we have to rely on the printers for food often. They go out equally often. We do our best, and you won’t starve, but we have some rules around cargo here.”
Clara glanced at Margie. As soon as she’d turned her back, the door to her chamber had closed, and there had been no way to open it from the inside. Jessica wore a wary expression. Ariel and Margie looked stunned and exhausted, and there were clear tracks along Ariel’s cheeks that indicated she’d been crying. Clara had no idea where the other women were and worry set in. What were Renall’s plans for them?
Marik continued, “Only take what you need. We don’t ask that you starve or do without if you’re hungry, but if it’s not something you need, don’t take it.”
The printer whirred. Food appeared. Clara eyed it suspiciously. Marik lifted the top of the small box he held to reveal some sort of oddly shaped things that were either fruit or vegetables. Clara was not sure which. He said, “I’ll leave you now. Do any of you know how to work the printer?”
They all nodded. He said, “Very well,” and walked out. The door closed behind him. Clara darted to the door and felt around. “Dammit. No inner latch on this one either.”
Jessica asked, “Did you expect there to be? I think we’re in the hostage quarters.”
That made sense. Clara drew back to the short-legged table and took a chair. They all reached for food. Ariel poked a finger into the box. “What is this?”
Jessica said, “No idea, but if it doesn’t bleed or fight back, we should probably eat it.”
Clara chose a small thing from the box. It was the size of her fist and a violent purple color. It was crisp and sweet when she bit into it. “It’s pretty good. It tastes like an apple, sort of.”
Ariel gawked at her. “You’ve had an apple?”
Clara felt a smile form. “Once, and I only got one bite. There was a very rich man who liked the tables, and he had a greenery house on his property. I heard tell he had apples by the thousands there but all he brought to the table one night was one.”
That had been a good night. Clara’s eyes filled with tears she blinked back. She asked, “Have they said anything to any of you about what they want?”
Jessica nodded. Her skin looked like it had been stretched too tight across the high bones of her face and she applied herself to the food issued by the printer with real gusto despite its being nothing more than a pasty series of vitamins and proteins shaped like small round cakes. Between bites, Jessica said, “I think they have different plans for us than the rest. And each other. Talon came to see me. He offered me a chance to act as a security officer, on the ship and beyond. At their gaming house.”
Clara’s eyes fastened on the fruit in her hand. “I’m to run a table.” She didn’t mention the rest of the terms.
Margie spoke up. “He asked if I could really sing like my crypto file said.”
“Singing is illegal,” Ariel pointed out.
“Only on our planet,” Jessica replied. “What else did he say?”
Margie’s lips compressed. “He said if I want to be a singer in one of the halls, he will give me money and my crypto at the end of a year.”
But not the surgery?Clara didn’t ask. She had a feeling that Margie had been offered that and was keeping it to herself in case the rest hadn’t been. Smart girl.
Ariel sighed. “Talon talked to me too. Said I could marry if I chose. That I could find a husband in the halls if I wanted one. Or that I could be a Gurley girl.”
In other words, a prostitute.Clara looked away. Ariel added, “But he also said I could have part of what I make if I chose the latter. Better than what our government offered, I guess, but still not a big choice.”
Jessica took a break from the food to ask, “Anyone talk to the others?’
Ariel shook her head. “No, the doors closed before I knew it was happening. I think they were all in one room though. Not like us. All of us got our own rooms.”
The special treatment had to mean something. Clara asked, “Why are they not here eating?”
Jessica said, “I don’t think they find any of them valuable.”
Ariel’s mouth hung open, revealing a bit of food. “You don’t think they plan to not feed them do you?”
Jessica stopped eating. A shadow lay on her face. “I don’t know.”
Margie began tucking the printer cakes into a pocket of her suit. Ariel asked, “What are you doing?”
Margie said, “The doors open from the outside. Maybe we can sneak them some food.”
