Page 9 of The Red Woman on Mars

“Girls.” Delilah spun around the room, her white nightgown swirling around her. “We did enough bickering on the ship. Play nice. We’re all in this together.”

“If you insist.” Camille gave her an indulgent smile. All the women doted on Delilah—the baby among them. And how could they not? Her optimism had made the tedious and claustrophobic nine-month voyage toward an unknown future bearable.

“I can’t wait to be courted.” Delilah giggled.

Vivian made a face of distaste. If yesterday was anything to go by, she wasn’t going to enjoy anything about this experience.

“Come on, Viv.” Delilah smirked. “You must have loved all those tall men dressed like they stepped off the cover of a Regency romance novel.”

Vivian snorted. “Tall and well-dressed? Is that all it takes to impress you? You really haven’t met any decent men.” Not that Vivian had either. Except in her books.

“I’ve met Dad.”

Vivian’s chest tightened. Surely by now her parents had received their message that they’d safely landed on Mars. Why hadn’t they sent their daughters a response? Vivian tried to push away her unease. She’d left. The Rinaldi brothers would have no cause to harass her family now that she was gone.

“None of us have met any decent men,” Felicia said. “I think they make them especially mean in Louisiana.”

“Preach,” Camille murmured.

Another woman, Shiloh, barked a humorless laugh. “Then you’ve never been to California.”

Delilah rested her head on Shiloh’s shoulder. “We’re on Mars, now. All the men are perfect gentlemen.”

The outer door opened of its own accord, and a two-foot-tall metal box creeped in on skinny legs.

“What the hell is that?” Camille shrieked.

The box opened and an inner shelf raised with a whirring sound to place a collection of envelopes on the dining room table. With a final beep, it turned around and departed, closing the front door behind it with a spindly metal claw.

The women stared after the robot for a moment. Then Shiloh moved to pick up one of the envelopes. “Real paper. Can you believe it? This one’s for you, Delilah.”

Delilah eagerly ripped it open and scanned the contents. “Caspian Hayes wants to … What does ‘promenade’ mean?”

“Walk,” Luz said. “Pretentiously.”

“Caspian?” Vivian frowned. “He wants you for your looks. Yesterday, I heard him call you the most beautiful girl he ever saw.”

“Did he? Well, Iamthe most beautiful girl he’s ever seen. I think he’s good-looking, too, in the strange Martian style. I guess we’ll get used to it.” She grasped Vivian’s hand to pull her from the wall and spun her in a circle. “Who did you find yesterday, Viv? Xavier Dorsey was staring at you the whole lunch.”

“With disgust.”

“No, more like—” Delilah took on an exaggerated deep voice. “Vivian Bowen, I despise you, but I can’t help myself! I want you. I need you.” The women around them giggled, and Luz raised her eyebrows at Vivian.

Vivian snorted. “Absolutely not!”

“We’ll see.”

Vivian thought about how he’d toyed with her. Flirtatious one moment and rude the next. “I wouldn’t pick him if he were the last person on this planet. He’s an obnoxious, horrible man.”

The other women were snatching up their own letters and passing them out. Shiloh shoved one into Vivian’s hands.

“Caspian’s coming!” Delilah exclaimed, brandishing a letter. “Here! In one hour. I have to get ready.” She scampered from the room.

Vivian put her letter to the side unopened and went to the now-blank console. She toggled through options on the screen until she located her electronic mailbox.

Empty.

Her parents possessed no tech. They would need to pay for access or rely on the kindness of an aid worker. But her friend Evie owned a hard-won solar-powered comm. Sure, it was glitchy, but she should have gotten it to work by now.