Jake Morrison's Arc

Chapter 40 of 54

The three boats crossed the last mile at dusk. Jake cut the engine near the dock. The island rose ahead, cabins stacked up the slope, solar panels dark in the fading light. Marisol stood on the dock with the twins. Marcus ran down the ramp. Behind him came Sofia, one hand pressed to her belly, her face tight with pain. The surgeon leapt out before the hull touched wood. "Get her inside," she said. "Now." They carried Sofia up the steps to the largest cabin. Marcus stayed at her side and gripped her hand. The surgeon and her team hauled crates through the door. They cleared a long table, laid out steel trays, and set a lamp above it. Sofia's water had already broken on the boat. The baby was coming weeks early. "Everyone out but the father," the surgeon said. Jake waited on the porch with Marisol. He heard Sofia cry out. He heard Marcus talking low, steady, telling her she was strong. Then a sharp silence. Jake's chest went tight. Marisol found his hand. The silence stretched. Then a thin, angry wail broke through the wall. A baby's cry. Jake let out a breath he had held too long. The door opened. Marcus stepped out with red eyes and a wide grin. "A boy," he said. "Sofia's fine. He's small, but he's breathing." He laughed and wiped his face. The surgeon came behind him and nodded. "He's early. We watch him close for a few days. But his color is good. His heart is strong." Jake gripped Marcus by the shoulders. The deal had held. The surgeon had arrived in time. The baby lived. The ten settlers unloaded the boats by lamplight. Frank called on the radio from the cave island fifteen miles out. Jake told him the boats were sending some of the new workers his way. Frank welcomed them and said his crew would start on housing and the first garden dome at dawn. Two settlements, growing at once. Jake set down the radio and let the weight of it settle. More people meant more food, more space, more mouths. But tonight it meant hands to build. Later Jake climbed to the top cabin with Marisol. The twins slept in a basket between them. Below, the docks glowed with lanterns. The last light of the sun spread red across the water. Marisol leaned her head on his shoulder. "You brought a doctor home," she said. "You brought a whole town home." Jake watched the boats rock at the dock, the new settlers moving crates, Marcus in the window holding Sofia's son. He had left to save one friend. He had come back with a surgeon, ten farmers, and a newborn who lived. The island was full now, and growing still. Tomorrow he would have to feed all of them. Tonight he only watched the sun go down.