About Sisterland (36 page)

As she made for home along the riverbank, a flash of green alerted her to a frog hopping into the water. Harper would feel less homesick for his forest if he could walk here and observe the city’s wildlife. But the only men she saw in the river’s vicinity were dredging it. Men’s free time was spent resting before a return to work. That was another of those inconvenient facts which she had discounted, before knowing Harper.

In the unit, she noticed the absence of the Silenced for the first time. A patch of red by the main entrance showed that flowers continued to be left there, but the bouquets were few compared with earlier mounds.

“No Silenced?” she asked the unit-minder, who was helping herself to a rosebud.

“Vanished like melted snow. You don’t mind, do you?” She held up the flower. “I’m going up to Beloved Park later. Always like to leave a token by her statue.”

“I don’t mind. You might have trouble reaching the statue, though. There was an incident earlier.”

“Saw it on my entscreen. But the day a sister can’t leave Beloved a little something is the day the world stops spinning.
”

“I wonder what Beloved would make of Sisterland now?”

“Take a tip from me, sister. Keep thoughts like that to yourself.” The unit-minder walked away.

Constance headed into the dine-all, which was emptying out as she arrived. She was working her way through a dressed rock-nut casserole – a protein boost which her body craved – when a Buzz driver who lived two floors above joined her.

“Don’t often see you eating in here, sister,” said the driver, whose name was Justice.

“It was handy tonight.”

“Guess you’re eating for two, right?”

“Right.” Hungry though she was, the next words made Constance set down her fork.

“A sister is interested in meeting you.”

“Am I interested in meeting her?”

Justice held Constance’s eyes. “Five o’clock tomorrow morning, by the universal sisterhood memorial on Integrity Street.” Without another word, she left.

Constance mopped up the last of her meal with a corner of spiral bread. Five a.m. was a time when few sisters would be going about their business. She couldn’t presume the meeting had anything to do with her appeal to the Silenced leadership. It could just as easily be the Nine losing patience with her. Perhaps they intended removing her unobtrusively. If peers were sent into Shaperhaus for her, or if they turned up at her oneser, they’d be seen. It would cause speculation. Especially in view of Silence. She pushed away her empty bowl and went home, qualms spiking about who might be waiting for her tomorrow.

Indoors, she stood by the window. No Silenced beneath it. How quickly their focus shifted. No wonder they were easily manipulated. She activated the blankout, and settled down in front of the entscreen to a documentary on Sisterland’s flowers and fauna. But doubts intruded, insistent as insect bites, over the next day’s appointment. She abandoned the documentary, undressed, and set her comtel to wake her at four a.m. Despite the uncertainty, she couldn’t afford to miss an opportunity to help Harper.

It was almost six the following morning when a noise in the communal area outside her door disturbed Constance’s sleep. She’d slept through the alarm, missing the rendezvous. In a foggy state, she rang across to the dine-all to say she’d breakfast there – starving again – before washing and swallowing her popper.

When she arrived, the Buzz driver was sitting at a table, eyes trained on the door. Constance went to the counter to order.

“Good morning, Constance. Won’t you join me?” called Justice.

Constance sat opposite Justice, who picked up her knife and started hitting it against the table by the handle. “I heard a catchy tune last night on my entscreen – it goes something like this. Do you know it?” She kept knocking with the knife. Under cover of its rhythm, she said quickly, “Lucky you didn’t show up. Integrity Street was watched. We’ll try again. On your way into work, stop at Beloved Park. You’ll be met by the entrance.”

Under a hazy sky, Constance walked up Virtue Boulevard, the clouds suspended so low it seemed as if they might sink to earth under their own weight. Her joints ached. Standing sentinel by the park gates was her progress-monitor. Patience called out her name, and Constance had little choice but to advance.

“I heard the giant sunflowers here have grown to the size of dinner plates, and decided to see for myself. Isn’t nature wonderful? Considering we’ve had hardly a blink of sun in years? Walk with me.” Patience linked arms with Constance.

She was not the sort of sister who touched others, and Constance was nonplussed. Still, she aimed for a show of nonchalance. “I wasn’t expecting to see you here.”

“Who doesn’t like a stroll in the park?”

Constance felt trapped. Discreetly, she flicked her eyes round as they walked, wondering if the sister due to make contact with her was watching and waiting, or if she had backed away.

“Looking for someone, Constance?”

“You never know who you’ll run into in Beloved Park.”

“I thought you might be keeping an eye out for a friend of mine – Goodwill.”

“You know Goodwill?”

“We share common interests.” She turned her head and looked at Constance. An intent look.

Constance was astounded. The moe fizzed through her, unchecked. Patience was in the Silenced leadership!

“I am,” said Patience. “And by the way, your moe responses are exceptional. You’d have made an excellent co-keeper. Except it wasn’t to be.”

Constance marshalled her thoughts. She hadn’t been aware that Patience could mindmap.

Patience was watching her. “Constance, we can do something for you, but will you do something for us in return? We’d like you to be part of our plans.”

Constance considered lying. Just long enough to get Harper away. But she couldn’t do it – lies would trip her up. “I’m not much of a joiner. Besides, I’m babyfused: my baby comes first.”

She felt Patience tapping for admission as she tried to mindmap. She resisted. Patience’s mouth turned down, and she tried to convert it into a smile.

“I’m running ahead of myself. Of course your baby has to be your priority. We can talk about this again. Now, we’ve considered your suggestion about helping this man to escape. But we can do better than that. How would you like to have him live with you here in Sisterland?”

Constance stopped walking. “Is that possible?”

Patience halted too. She stepped close to Constance, so close she could see where her skin was attached.

“The Nine wants us silenced. But why not silence the Nine? Why not replace it? Constance, we can have a Silent Revolution! And afterwards, we’ll set up new structures.” Her
tone became confidential. “Some of us have been
disappointed with the way our society has developed. It’s too controlling. Too closed against new ideas. We’d like to see Sisterland progress along different lines.”

“No more separating men and women?” A nod. “Would we be allowed to live together? In families?”

“I’m afraid that won’t be possible for every sister. Not at first. But for some, yes. For exceptional sisters, like you.”

“There’s nothing exceptional about me.”

“You stand for something. Silence isn’t with us. But you are – you’re a link to her. You can be our figurehead. And in return, you’ll find us willing to reward sisters loyal to our vision. We could arrange for you to share a twoser with this man you appear to have bonded with.”

Constance was dumbstruck. The Silenced were offering her the chance to make a home with Harper. It was beyond anything she had dreamed was possible here in Sisterland. Delight surged. But even as it did, the terms being set snagged on her joy.

“A figurehead? I wouldn’t know how.”

“It’ll be a walk in the park.” Patience had an unconvincing laugh. It tinkled now. “Just be yourself.”

“You wouldn’t expect any more from me?”

“Some speeches, as well. You have talent. Your oratory will swing sisters all over Sisterland to our cause.”

“I’m not interested in causes.”

“You’re interested in a different way of life, though. The benefits will be tangible. You’ll have incentives, Constance. Sweeteners.”

Temptation nibbled, and she struggled against it. “We’re all meant to be equal in Sisterland. Privileges are wrong.”

“They exist already. Some of the perks are hidden in plain sight, and some are hushed up. Let’s see. The Shaper Mother has a private chef. The Peer Mother has a travel permit. Some of the mating mothers have the right to Himtime without a babyfusion licence. Mothers in all disciplines who reach certain targets are entitled to larger living spaces, and join a waiting list for threesers.”

“I never even knew they existed!”

“You’d be surprised what’s available to the top tier. This society needs to be reformed, Constance, and to do that we need talented sisters like you.”

“But you’re offering me perks! That flies in the face of reform.”

“It’s not ideal. But let’s focus on the positives. In time, we’ll extend as many privileges as possible to every sister. For now, we intend to start by offering them to those we consider friends.”

Again, Constance felt Patience’s willpower circle her mindmap, hunting for admission. She fended it off. “And when I have my child? Does she live with me, too?”

A ripple whisked across Patience’s face, and she dropped Constance’s arm. “We don’t seek to sweep aside everything in Sisterland. That’s wasteful. Girlplace works well. We’ll maintain it. Your daughter stays with you for the first year, then she goes to girlplace. You can see her often there. Maybe we could bend the rules about no source visits during the first month.”

“I want to keep my child. I don’t want her sent away.”

“But who’d look after her when you’re carrying out your duties?”

“Harper.”

“Is he the man you want us to help?”

Constance nodded. Patience beat her fingers against her mouth, considering the proposal. On tenterhooks, Constance watched her. What a gift, if she was allowed to keep both her baby and Harper beside her.

However, Patience shook her head. “You overestimate a man’s capabilities. Your bond with him blinds you to his limitations. After the Nine is replaced, we can set up an education programme for men. In time, some will manage to accept certain responsibilities. But childcare is the highest calling – not even an outstanding man would be fit for it. We mustn’t expect too much, or rush the pace. It’s unfair to make them take on more than they’re capable of.”

“Harper knows how to love. That’s all he’ll need to care for our child. You’re offering me a deal, Patience. Those are my conditions.”

“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to be an agent for change. Yet you’re half-hearted about it. Though you show a great deal of interest in how the Silent Revolution can improve your life.”

“I have to look out for myself.”

Eyes glittering, Patience scanned Constance. Without further speech, they reached the flower gardens. Patience stopped by a Harmony Parks worker combing the grass to make it grow in the same direction. “Where are the sunflowers, sister?”

“Gone. They’ve been vandalised. Someone hacked them down overnight. Such a sorry sight this morning. All those golden heads lying in the dirt.”

“Why would they do that?” asked Constance.

“Your guess is as good as mine,” said the gardener.

They moved on.

“It must have been your supporters,” said Constance. “Attacking beauty isn’t the way to challenge Sisterland.”

“Some of them can be a little misguided.”

“Perhaps it’s because even flowers are controlled – their scent, their flowering seasons.”

“Let’s inspect the damage.”

There was no sign of wreckage, however. Already, it had been cleared up, and anemones grew where the sunflowers had blossomed.

“Sisterland remains beautiful,” said Constance.

Patience did not acknowledge the sarcasm. They continued on their circuit, and arrived at Beloved’s statue.

“I saw the red scarf on Beloved yesterday,” said Constance. “It was a declaration of war, wasn’t it?”

“War? That’s overstating the case. What’s warlike, after all, about a red bow? But it made the case that Beloved doesn’t belong to the Nine. She belongs to all of us.”

They steered towards the Virtue Boulevard gates, Patience cloistered inside her thoughts, while Constance hoped against hope that Patience would give her what she wanted. She supposed asking for both Harper and her child was excessive – it looked as if the gamble hadn’t paid off. Constance longed to be indoors, and able to remove her skin. A rash was itching beneath it – either babyfusion didn’t agree with her skin, or her skin didn’t agree with it. Who was she to make conditions? This Silent Revolution was her best chance of survival. She considered telling Patience she’d changed her mind, that her child would go to girlplace like every other Sisterlander. But loath to look weak, she held off.

“Goodbye, sister,” said Constance.

“Wait. You strike a hard bargain. But you have your deal.”