Sorrel stood outside with Emrallie, Genus and Lichen. They were all naked and every rib was visible. Their pelvises looked scooped out. They turned their faces upwards to the pulses of rain and did not look at each other. “You’ve had enough,” Rashelope said from the cave. “Time for someone else. The rain might stop anytime.”

Being washed clean by the rain improved morale and afterwards, they sat around, eating the small amounts of food shared out by Caroni – alganola, two dried insects each, one piece of dried fruit. They had drunk so much their stomachs felt full. “Tomorrow we’ll send a group to the camp at dusk,” Caroni said. “Another group will try to find the valley with the town, if Sorrel can find it on the PlAK. And we must find the end of the tunnels.”

Next morning, Caroni sent girls to explore the tunnels, led by Emrallie. “Go to the end of one tunnel at a time,” she said. “Spread out, but don’t lose sight of each other. Rashelope, you take a group to the army camp as soon as it’s cool enough. See what’s possible there, even if just to steal some food. I’ll take a third group to see if we can find the valley town we saw. We’ll take double rations.”

“At night?” Sorrel said.

“Just give us a direction. I have a compass. We don’t have a choice. We’ll die here if we don’t find food. You’ll stay and keep using the PlAK. I’m going to leave the band’s food with you. Ration it carefully.”

“I won’t be able to see anything from the satellites at night.”

“No, but you can still visit chat rooms. We need information. Maybe we have to go down instead of up. Or into the middle of the island. Look for news of the dust storm.”

Those exploring the tunnels had left. Rashelope was getting ready with her group, sorting possessions, leaving everything unnecessary behind. Caroni’s group were resting. For those remaining in the cave, it was going to be a long day of waiting.

Sorrel took the PlAK to the entrance and settled down to her search. The sky was finally clear and, on the screen, Cibao seemed close enough to touch. Rashelope’s group walked past her. No one spoke.