As answers went it did not explain much. Perhaps one day they would all sit down and talk about it. Arnaud doubted it, though. Some mysteries remained unsolved.
Like Nathaniel’s journal. It was now full up to this morning, every day of their journey from Earth accounted for, including a poem. Arnaud did not know how it found its way into the journal, or indeed how Nathaniel even knew it. It was the poem Arnaud himself had recited when he thought Nathaniel was sacrificing himself for his friends. And it had not been in the journal then.
To his knowledge, Nathaniel had no idea Arnaud had sneaked a peek at the journal, yet Arnaud could not help but feel that the poem was a message from Nathaniel to him…
Do not write—I am sad and just wish to expire. Lovely summers without you are but a dark night. I have closed up my arms, which can no more reach you, And to strike at my heart is to strike at the grave. Do not write!
Do not write—Let us learn for ourselves how to die. Ask only God…and to yourself if I loved you! In your absence’s depth to hear that you love me Is to hear heaven without ever getting there. Do not write!
Do not write—I fear you, and too my memory; It keeps the voice that calls often to me. Do not show one running water who cannot drink. A dear handwritten word is like a live portrait. Do not write!
Do not write me sweet words I no longer dare read. It seems your voice spreads them upon my heart And that I see them searing through your smile, It seems a kiss imprints them on my heart. Do not write!
Epilogue
“Leaving Mars”
No one had spoken of their experiences since arriving on Mars, although Folkard found himself watching his crew more closely. Annabelle seemed more content, and he could only imagine that she, too, had found some kind of peace in Heaven. Every so often Folkard would catch a distant look on her face, one, he’d wager, he often wore himself, and he felt that she, too, had visited Heaven when
Esmeralda 2
had been pulled apart by the aether tear.
As to the others? Mister Fenn, taken into custody upon their arrival on Mars, and shipped back to Earth before they had returned from Phobos, did not protest. He simply looked at his captain with a serene acceptance; no doubt he had also found his own peace. Folkard intended to speak in Fenn’s defence once he returned to Earth—the lad had served the mission well, without a single blemish on his service record since joining
Sovereign
for its maiden voyage to Luna. Folkard was well versed in the brutality the Russians could engage in when they needed information; Fenn had seen little combat, although he had acquitted himself admirably during the fracas at Messor Base on Ceres. And, of course, the Russians had threatened Fenn’s family. Folkard could understand the need to protect one’s family.
Fontaine had not been much changed by their experience, and continued to be his usual buoyant self, and his experiences had proven invaluable on Phobos. But Stone… There Folkard paused. The man had undergone some kind of change during the journey from Earth to Mars, although he would not discuss it, but Folkard felt that Stone had become a bit more…not adversarial, but he seemed to be prodding people more, as if he wanted to see how they’d respond to certain things. Yes, that was it, like when they had been trying to destroy the Mercurian plate, Stone seemed to be observing people. Folkard wasn’t sure why this bothered him so, but something about it did not sit right with him.
In return, he decided, he would have to pay more careful attention to Stone, too.
For himself, though, he knew he had definitely been affected by his short visit to Heaven. Seeing Charlotte again, and finally meeting his daughter… For the first time in years Folkard felt a certainty about his future. He did not know where his career would take him after his current mission was over, but he did know one thing. Charlotte and Felicity awaited him.
“I will see you both soon,” he muttered, looking out to the stars around him, as
Esmeralda
2 left Mars and began its final journey back to Earth.
To Be Continued…
in
Horizons of Deceit, Book I