Botanicaust

squeezed her hand in reassurance.
    Tula wasn ’ t so sure. Were the girls ahead of or behind them? She didn ’ t know whether to drag her feet or break into a jog. Pressure built in her throat as she fought the urge to call out.
    “ Don ’ t fret. They run ahead, fall behind, but always manage to catch up. They ’ re like dogs. ”
    A shot of fear quickened her already racing pulse. “ What is dogs ? ” Something about the word “ dog ” frightened her.
    Levi let a laugh. “ An animal. You ’ ll see when we reach the Holdout. ”
    True to Levi ’ s prediction, the girls scampered down the trail behind Tula and Levi as dawn enveloped the morning star on the horizon. They flung themselves against the adults, jabbering with abandon.
    “ We heard you crying in the water. ”
    “ You passed us on the bank. ”
    “ But the men hunters didn ’ t come. ”
    “ We watched. ”
    “ They ’ ll hunt the other side. ”
    Tula pressed her cheeks against their hair, arms around their shoulders. “ Thank you, girls. I ’ m so glad you ’ re safe. ”
    Levi wrapped all three of them in a bear hug and grunted. “ Safe. ” He repeated the word in Cannibal and the twins beamed at him.

    Haldanian Protectorate
    Vitus blinked itchy eyes at the unfamiliar face on the monitor and leaned forward across his desk. The fiber optic light was off, leaving the room with only the dusky light from a single fluorescent bulb overhead. “ I need those injections! ”
    The woman who called herself Dr. Rice nodded, her black skin and red eyes even more disturbing than Kaneka ’ s. “ We ’ re working on accessing the data, but his notes are encrypted. ”
    Kaneka had missed his usual checkin, and Vitus had been forced to contact the Fosselites through official channels. He was overdue for his treatment by sixteen hours, and his skin had already begun to leach of color. Plus, his eyes had developed a light sensitivity he needed to talk to the doctor about. He snorted with disgust. “ What good is immortality if you can be killed falling down the stairs? ”
    Dr. Rice cleared her throat. “ There were … circumstances. ”
    He narrowed his eyes. “ What do you mean? ”
    “ I believe you know this woman? ” An image of Tula Macoby appeared in the data stream at the base of the screen.
    Vitus ’ s nostrils flared and he looked back up into Dr. Rice ’ s eyes. “ Why? ”
    “ She and her companion were involved in Dr. Kaneka ’ s death. We are not sure how to proceed. ”
    “ She killed him? Where is she? ” He slapped his hands against the desk, causing the screen ’ s image to flutter. A stabbing pain inserted itself through his right temple.
    “ Escaped. We believe they are travelling back to the man ’ s settlement. ”
    “ Well, find them! ”
    “ We would like to. But we cannot travel by day, Dr. Dedecus. Perhaps your people would be willing to aid us, to return her to stand trial for murder … ” She stared at him expectantly through the camera.
    He sat back in his chair and considered. The Board could not know he ’ d been aware of Tula at the Fosselite compound. But he wanted her dead. “ Contact Councilwoman Arnica. ” He gave her to com code to the woman ’ s office. “ Tell her Dr. Macoby tried to steal telomerase. That she murdered Dr. Kaneka in the process, and you hold the Protectorate responsible. Do you know where they went? ”
    “ We have a general map location. We hope an airborne search can locate the settlement. ”
    “ Fine. Oh, and do not mention my name, do you understand? ”

    Amarantox Plains
    The sun had reached its zenith when Ana pointed to the sky behind him, her eyes wide and full of fear. Tula swiveled and jerked back with alarm. A fat plume of greasy yellow smoke billowed into the air, not far to the southwest.
    “ Cannibals? ” she asked.
    One of the girls shook her head. The other child whispered, “ Flame runnas. ”
    Terror plucked Tula ’ s heart. Levi shook his head, looking up and down the river. “ They caught me near here last time. ”
    He hurried them around a bend where the stream had stacked driftwood into a tangled pile. Pulling on a trunk, he freed it from the mess. “ Let ’ s hide here. ”
    Tula yanked logs free and helped create a lean-to against the pile, while the girls scattered small sticks over the support beams. Soon the four of them sat beneath the cramped shelter with crossed legs.
    “ How long should we wait? ” Levi asked.
    Tula