Speechless by Madeline Freeman

Author:Madeline Freeman [Freeman, Madeline]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Laurealinde Publishing LLC

Chapter Twenty

Enrique Martinez stared out over the water as the first evening stars blinked into view on the darkening eastern horizon.

According to his father, the live stream that had broadcasted every second of his life since they’d touched down on Martian soil almost four years ago should be off by now.

He never thought he’d be thankful for a solar storm, but many things about life on Mars had been unexpected.

When his dad first told him the Agency selected them to go, he imagined they were about to become pioneers who tamed the Martian wilderness. Instead, the ship had landed on an island full of prefabricated housing materials and pre-packaged foods. He’d begged his dad over and over to take him on an adventure, to go with him and explore the rest of the surface, but his dad’s answer was always the same.

Later, son.

Enrique wondered if his father wouldn’t have been more inclined to go along with his plans if it hadn’t been for Phoebe, Enrique’s stepmother. The two had married a year before word came down that they’d been selected to travel to Mars. They would be part of the first colony to live on the formerly red planet without being limited to the confines of glass domes, like the first scientist settlers who had helped in the terraforming process. In his recollections, his father had been much more fun before Phoebe came along, but maybe that was wishful thinking.

Checking his surroundings once more, Enrique pulled the compressed raft up on its end and reread the inflation instructions for what felt like the millionth time.

If his father wouldn’t take him on an adventure, it was high time he go on one by himself. He was eighteen now. On Earth, that would mean something. He’d be considered an adult there—able to move out of his family home, to choose his career path. Those things didn’t apply here on Mars, but Enrique longed for his age to mean something. He wanted to have an adventure. He wanted to escape.

Escape wasn’t the right word—although part of him wished it were. He wanted to explore the areas of Mars that people had yet to step foot on. But soon into his planning, he realized there was no way he could haul enough provisions for a long journey without drawing attention to himself. So he had to settle for the next best thing.

According to the map and his calculations, it should take about eight hours to paddle across the water to the nearest shore. It would be faster if he could use one of the motorized haulers, but they wouldn’t start up without the proper passcode, which he didn’t have. But even with the travel time, he could explore for about six hours and return before the cameras started up again. It wasn’t perfect, but he’d take it.

Enrique laid the compressed raft down at the water’s edge and pressed the red tab in the corner. As it inflated, he tamped down guilt that roiled in his stomach.

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