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Back Daughter of Eden
Chapters (68)
  1. Title page
  2. Dedication
  3. Part I
  4. One
  5. Two
  6. Three
  7. Four
  8. Five
  9. Six
  10. Seven
  11. Eight
  12. Nine
  13. Ten
  14. Eleven
  15. Twelve
  16. Thirteen
  17. Fourteen
  18. Fifteen
  19. Sixteen
  20. Seventeen
  21. Eighteen
  22. Nineteen
  23. Twenty
  24. Twenty-one
  25. Twenty-two
  26. Twenty-three
  27. Twenty-four
  28. Twenty-five
  29. GAIA YOUNG. SUBJECTIVE IMPRESSIONS.MISSION DAY 20. 20:25 MT.
  30. Part II
  31. Twenty-six
  32. Twenty-seven
  33. Twenty-eight
  34. Twenty-nine
  35. Thirty
  36. Thirty-one
  37. Thirty-two
  38. Thirty-three
  39. Thirty-four
  40. Thirty-five
  41. Thirty-six
  42. Thirty-seven
  43. GAIA YOUNG. SUBJECTIVE IMPRESSIONS.MISSION DAY 22. 20:05 MT.
  44. Thirty-eight
  45. Thirty-nine
  46. Forty
  47. Forty-one
  48. GAIA YOUNG. SUBJECTIVE IMPRESSIONS.MISSION DAY 25. 15:30 MT.
  49. Forty-two
  50. Forty-three
  51. Forty-four
  52. Forty-five
  53. Forty-six
  54. Forty-seven
  55. Forty-eight
  56. Forty-nine
  57. Fifty
  58. Fifty-one
  59. Fifty-two
  60. Fifty-three
  61. Fifty-four
  62. Part III
  63. Fifty-five
  64. Fifty-six
  65. Fifty-seven
  66. Fifty-eight
  67. Also by Chris Beckett
  68. Copyright page

Then the woman’s voice sighed. ‘You don’t have to know much about polly ticks to know there’s not going to be much support back home for getting the other ship ready to come and fetch us. And that’s assuming they haven’t yet scrapped it, which Dixon reckons they may well have done, given the way things have been going. I mean, who’s going to want to go to all that trouble, just for a couple of people on the far side of the glacksy, when there’s so many needing help right there, in Merka, and Inglund and everywhere else? I mean, think of those millyuns flooded out of their homes in Chiner, and all those people in Mecksy Koh. Who’s going to sacrifice millyuns for the sake of two? Our only hope is that they’ll think this place might be useful to them in some way.’ The woman gave a short little laugh. ‘Though I really can’t think how.’

There was another pause. Through that crackly fire-and-­waterfall sound, we could just make out the sound of this stranger breathing.

‘Dixon threw the idea out recently that it’s possible the ship might go back on its own,’ she said at last. ‘That was news to me, and I asked him why the fuck we’re talking about anyone going back, if that’s the case? Why couldn’t we all wait here while the ship goes home on its own and brings help? He said he didn’t think there was much chance of help coming for us any time soon, even if the ship did get home to tell people where we are and what’s happened. He’s got kids, and feels he’s got to do everything he can to be with them. Michael’s got kids too, of course, and so has Mehmet. He showed me their pictures: four beautiful little kids, back home in Tirkee. Which is a shame, because I like Mehmet the best. He’s funny. And kind too, I think. I don’t know why, but I feel I could forgive Mehmet for stealing the starship and bringing me and Michael here. I could forgive him in a way that I don’t think I could forgive Dixon and Tommy. I wish he could be the one to stay with me.’

We could faintly hear her sigh as her voice trailed off again, and then there was only the crackly waterfall sound for a bit.

‘Whoever stayed here would have a long long wait,’ she said after a while. It was strange how close her voice sounded when she started speaking after a long silence. It was like she was right next to you, murmuring into your ear. ‘Maybe a whole lifetime. Maybe even . . .’ Again there was a long pause. The waterfall hissed, the fire crackled. ‘Maybe even forever.’