Page 21 of The Red Woman on Mars

“You think that now, but what if you change your mind? What if your first pregnancy has complications, and it’s unsafe to continue?”

They had reached a fork in the walkway, and Xavier turned to the left decisively.

“They’ve said they’ll make an exception if our life is in danger.” Vivian wasn’t sure why she was defending the arrangement. She’d only agreed to it as a way to escape. But it was better here, wasn’t it? She’d gained weight on the ship and more since they’dlanded. Her skin was brighter. She had more energy. She’d even slept through the night.

“An exception determined how?” Xavier frowned down at her. “And by whom?”

Vivian crossed her arms. “I’m not playing games with you. If you know, tell me.”

“By my aunt. And the Intelligence, of course. I’m no longer certain who works for whom. Do you think the Intelligence’s risk tolerance will match your own? Does it even understand the concept of pain? It’s programmed to make decisions based on what’s best for the long-term interests of the dome.” Xavier let out a breath. “Believe me, Miss Bowen, the Intelligence cares nothing for the quality of life of one Earther woman.”

“I’m not expecting the institutions on Mars to care about me when the American government was actively causing me harm. You can’t imagine what our lives were like.”

“I know what life was like for my Black American ancestors. They left to found a world not plagued by a legacy of racism. I have no wish to replicate Earth’s suffering on my planet.”

“I’m not suffering!” Vivian protested. She had never met a more exasperating man. “I have enough to eat. A comfortable bed and nice clothing.”

“Is that enough, Miss Bowen?” Xavier looked intently at her with his dark brown eyes. “Does it take so little to make you happy?”

“Happy?” Vivian sputtered. “I’m not expecting to behappy.”

Xavier gave her a little bow. “You should expect more.” He walked away, leaving her speechless alone on the path.

Upon her return to the house, Vivian banged open the side door. “I hate him. I’ve never met a bigger asshole.”

At the dining room table, Ivey looked up from her reader and regarded Vivian with amusement. “I’ve always been fond of X. I enjoy his candor. I may even persuade him to marry me if I cannot hook an Earther woman.”

“Marry him!” Vivian plopped down on the cushion of an ornately carved enormous dining chair. “That sounds horrible.”

Ivey gave an amused snort.

“If you want to marry him, why are you trying to wed a Red Mother?”

Ivey poured Vivian a fresh cup of coffee in a delicate mug embossed with teal flowers. “I want a child. Children. Look at this beautiful home, so lonely except for Casp and me.”

Vivian took a sip of coffee and tried to let the warm liquid soothe her frustration. “Why not have your own?”

Ivey laughed bitterly. “I must have a word with Reverend Adair. Can it be that he hasn’t explained the full situation to you?”

“I’ve only been here a week.” Vivian swallowed around a sudden lump in her throat, frustrated by her lack of knowledge. “There’s still so much I don’t understand.”

“I can’t have children,” Ivey said. “No native-born Martian woman has successfully carried a child to term. My Martian foremothers tried, for many years, in many different ways. Nothing worked. Eventually, we stopped trying and now every Martian with a uterus receives a permanent contraceptive implant by age sixteen.” She pointed to the bare skin of her inner arm. “The Founding Families found a way to make their households the best option for Earther women to marry into. They looked to a beloved aristocratic era in Earther history for inspiration and set up Houses and walled estates and elaborate costumes to make their lifestyle attractive.”

“So that’s why your mother was an Earther?”And Xavier’s?

“Vivian, my dear,everyone’smother is an Earther. But my mother had no business making the attempt to have children. She was born on Earth, yes, but she spent her adolescence in Martian gravity.” A tiny sigh escaped Ivey’s lips. “She managed to carry Casp and me. We were both premature and underweight, but we survived. Before and after us, she had many, many miscarriages.The last one killed her.” Ivey looked down at her coffee cup and swallowed. “Casp and I apportioned half our estate to run the hospital in her honor.”

“I’m sorry,” Vivian whispered. She had known, of course, that Martian women struggled to bear children. It was the reason for the gene modifications and in-utero treatments, after all. But she hadn’t realized it was impossible. She felt a sudden sympathy for Secretary Yarrow. She had found a way to save her people. Of course she would make any decision, no matter the ethics, to create this chance for Mars.

Ivey waved one long hand in dismissal. “It was a long time ago.”

Vivian hesitated, then ventured, “Can I … Can I ask you about the Intelligence? Xavier said it was indifferent to individual human life.”

“X is hardly an unbiased source on the nature of the Intelligence.”

“But do you think he’s right?” Vivian persisted.

Ivey gave a shrug of her elegant shoulders. “I’ve no idea. I believe that without the Intelligence, we would not have the same quality of life. For nearly two hundred years, it has guided us to a life of abundance on a cold, deadly planet where the standard of living could easily be one of subsistence. But I am not qualified to gauge the Intelligence’s priorities. I’ve never spoken directly to it. Few of us have.”