The Preserve(53)
Author: Ariel S. Winter

“Go on,” Laughton said. “Up.”

Erica turned, and trotted back upstairs, running ahead of him. Her bed hit the wall with a crack as she leapt into it, laughing.

“Settle down,” he said, coming into her darkened room.

She threw the covers off her face and yelled, “Boo,” and then laughed and rolled back and forth on the bed.

“Erica.” She kept laughing. “Erica. Erica, stop!” And she always made it so difficult. He knew that she was excited to see him, that she knew enough about what had been going on to have been scared as well, but knowing that was what was causing the behavior didn’t make it easier to handle. The discomfort in his face tightened. “If you want me to tuck you in, then stop.”

She settled, curling up, allowing him to cover her. “Will you sit with me in the dark for five minutes?”

Laughton sat down on the edge of her bed, and then leaned over her, kissing the top of her head, and then allowing the weight of his upper body to rest on her. She liked feeling the two of them squished together. He had to struggle to not fall asleep.

“Mom said everything’s okay now. You fixed it,” she said.

“And Uncle Kir,” Laughton said. “And others. Not just me.”

“But mostly you,” she said.

The hero worship felt better than any medal, and Laughton smiled in the dark. They were both quiet for half a minute. Then it occurred to Laughton to make sure if Erica knew what had happened at all. “You know what happened?” he said.

“You found the antivirus that’s going to stop robots from dying, so they’re going to leave the preserve alone,” she said.

Of course she knew exactly what was going on. She was Erica. “Yes,” he said.

“Will they really leave the preserve alone?” she said.

“Yes,” Laughton said. “For now.” Betty would have been annoyed at him for adding the “for now,” but he didn’t believe in shielding Erica too much. Not knowing could be worse than knowing. “Probably for good,” he said. “There are enough robots who support it. It’s convenient to have us out of the way. If that’s a good thing.”

“Why wouldn’t it be a good thing?” Erica said.

“I don’t know,” he said, not wanting to get into the thoughts he’d had on the boat, about the importance of learning how to live together and share. It made him remember the dolphins. “We saw dolphins today,” he said.

“Eeeeee,” she squealed.

“Uncle Kir videoed them. I’ll have him send the video tomorrow.” If he said he already had it, she’d want to watch it then, and that would only wind her up again.

“So jealous,” she said.

“I said you’d be jealous.”

“Can we go see them too?” she said.

“Maybe we can try,” he said.

Erica was silent for a while then, but holding her breath, clearly thinking something more.

“What?” Laughton said.

“I don’t want to leave the preserve,” she said.

Hearing her say it, a part of him inside sank, and he realized that maybe he had wanted to go to Washington with Kir, join the Department of Health and Human Services, protect everyone, not just Liberty or even Charleston. But his mind settled back into the shape of their life here, in stark opposition to the assault on the island, and he knew, they wouldn’t ever leave Liberty. “We’re not going anywhere,” he said. “You don’t have to worry about that.”

She was quiet for another half minute, and then said, “I love you,” twisting under him to settle on her side.

He sat up, leaned over, and kissed the top of her head. “I love you, see you in the morning,” he said. He pulled the door closed, but not latched, as he left the room.

The light was on in the bathroom, visible under the closed door. Betty was getting ready for bed. Laughton went into their bedroom to wait for his turn in the bathroom so he could brush his teeth, sat down on the bed, pulled off his shoes without untying them, and then lay back. The next thing he knew, Betty was tucking him in. He didn’t wake up enough to go and actually brush his teeth, or even change out of his clothes.

“Good night,” Betty said, close to his ear.

And with his last conscious thought, he hoped in the morning he’d feel recharged.

The Preserve(53) Author: Ariel S. Winter

The Preserve(53)
Author: Ariel S. Winter