An Astronaut's Life (21 page)

‘What about the letterbox?' Maddy says.

‘How do you think the postman's coming? In a row boat?' says Meghan. She's still
in her bikini, but she's shivering.

It's supposed to be like a slumber party with all three girls in the upstairs living
room, but there are no late-night ghost stories, no pillow fights. By dark, even
Catherine is sleeping. In her dreams fish smack their heads against the windows trying
to get in. She wakes and stares at the ceiling. All she can hear is rain.

‘Cath?'

It's her father.

‘Catherine?' He's whispering.

She leans up on one arm.

‘I thought your eyes were open,' he says from the doorway. ‘Come on, I want to show
you something.'

Eddie leads her to the bathroom, where, instead of the neat row of toiletries that
usually lines the sink, there are piles of dirty towels and a ladder. It reaches
up and out the skylight.

‘Go on,' Eddie says. ‘I'll be behind you.'

She's barefoot and the ladder is cold. She forgets about the dream until a mist of
rain starts to make its way onto her face and then she pauses, uncertain.

‘Go on,' Eddie says.

It's calmer outside than she expected. She pokes her head through and Eddie steadies
her waist as she pulls herself up, hands then knees, onto the roof tiles.

The town's green spaces are gone. There are no lawns or parks. She stands up and
her father joins her, resting his hands on her shoulders. They're surrounded by a
lake, its surface divided by treetops and powerlines. Entire houses are under water.

‘Dad?' she says.

She finds her footing on rough tiles and turns.

Eddie has set up the telescope while she was sleeping. And an esky of food, some
flashlights, blankets and chairs.

He tells her to look through the eyepiece.

She does, but all she can make out is a blurry yellow ball.

‘What is it?'

‘That's Saturn. Can you see it?'

She puts her eye back over the viewfinder and presses down to focus.

‘Not so hard. Just relax.'

‘I see it,' she says. ‘I can see the rings.'

Eddie wraps a big plastic jacket around her and zips it while she's still looking
in the telescope.

‘What are they made from? Are they just dust and rock?'

‘No, that's ice. Millions of pieces of ice,' he says.

‘Wow.'

Eddie curls an arm over her shoulders.

‘We're okay up here,' he says. ‘We're safe now.'

Catherine keeps her eye on the soft shape of Saturn as he lifts the hood of her jacket
and covers her from the rain.

MANY THANKS TO :

Rebecca Starford and Mandy Brett;

The Varuna Publisher Fellowship program;

Marc Lieberman, for permission to reproduce
his photograph of Francis Crick;

Michael J Gratton, for advice on nanobots;

Andrew Smith, for insights into sleep labs,
and for perspective;

Bel Schenk, my trusted first reader;

and Stephen Griffiths, for constant and invaluable support.