Then the door buzzed.

Dad should’ve been home hours ago, Kara swallowed the hard lump in her throat. Deep down she knew her mother wouldn’t answer, that she’d have to peel away from the viewscreen and make the long walk to the door herself. But she couldn’t. Not yet. She didn’t want confirmation of what her gut already knew was true.

Knock knock!

She turned from the window viewscreen. Her mother was sprawled on the dusty couch as usual. The red and green lights of the neuro on her left temple were solid, indicating she was lost in some holo fantasy, unable to detect audio or visual signals from the outside world. Any responsible parent would at least set their device to augmented reality rather than full immersion while home alone with their eight year old child. But it had been a long time since Guri Aland’s neuro lights flashed red and green.

Knock knock knock!

Adjusting the fit of her too-large nighty, Kara jumped down from the window ledge. She set her jaw and shuffled through the garbage to the door. Taking a deep breath, she deactivated the lock and it slid open revealing two muscular giants.

“Is Guri Aland home?”

Kara shook her head.

“You’re here alone?”

“No.” Kara peeped, “She’s here. She’s just…busy.”

The guards exchanged skeptical looks, one of them peered into the room from the threshold, his face wrinkled in disdain.

The other continued, “Sorry kid. We need to speak with her.”

Kara stepped back from the door and gestured to the coach. Immediate recognition flashed across the first guard’s face. “C’mon partner. Let’s get this over with.”

The two of them entered the room, both striding past Kara, one headed to the coach and the other to the window viewscreen where Kara had watched their arrival.

“Mrs. Aland?” The first officer tapped Guri’s shoulder. When she didn’t respond, he repeated himself louder and shook her forcibly. She jumped out of her holo fantasy with a start. “What the fuc-,” she stopped herself and slapped indignance on her face, “Just who do you think you are? I’m a woman! Home alone with my daughter! And…and you two…brutes just…just…”

He cut off her tirade with a swift hand gesture, “We’re Gurkha ma’am, I think you know that. My badge number is 0356 and my partner here is 0578.”

“That’s better! You should announce yourself when entering a home. What do you want?”

0356 continued, “Are you aware of the time, ma’am?”

Clearly checking her neuro’s HUD, she hesitated, “I do indeed. It’s…22:50.” She glanced over at Kara, who quickly lowered her head and made circles on the floor with her big toe. “Why aren’t you in bed?”

Without raising her head, Kara whispered, “I’m waiting for daddy.”

Guri’s anger flared up, putting on a show for the two guards, “I put you to bed, not daddy. You should have been asleep hours ago! Now go!”

Kara wiped her nose, her lowered hair hid the tears, but the dripping betrayed her. She already knew what these guards were gonna say. But she wanted to hear it. She refused to move.

“I said bed! Now!”

0578 put his arm around Kara and asked her to show him her room. She didn’t want to leave, but took his kindness as the best available option. Grabbing hold of his big finger, she led him down the hallway.

0356 continued, “Ma’am there’s been an accident tonight. A carp attack on the sky train. Your husband was…”

Kara allowed 0578 to guide her down the hall. When they got to the door, he moved to close it and head back to the living area. “My dad’s dead, isn’t he?”

He stopped, unsure of what to do. How do you lie at such a time? How do you tell the truth?

“I think it’s best for your mom to tell you.”

“She won’t talk to me.” Kara looked up, revealing her puffy eyes and red cheeks, “But I know. You don’t have to tell me. I know.”

0578 squatted down, “You loved your dad a lot huh?” He watched Kara nod slightly, “Sounds like he was a good father.”

Kara didn’t respond. She just hugged herself.

“Your mom.” 0578 looked down the hallway, “She a good mom?”

Kara hugged herself tighter.

Sighing, 0578 stood up. “Try and get some rest kid.” He closed the door and went back to the living room.

Kara waited for the sound of the front door to close before she headed back out to the living area. Her mom was once again immersed in her holo, but she could see fresh tears on her face. That was something.

Heading back to the window viewscreen, she watched as the guards walked back to their drone. She waited for it to take off, but after a few minutes it still hadn’t moved. She chewed at her fingernails, a bad habit her dad had said.

After a few minutes, 0578 exited the drone again. 0356 chased after him. Both were yelling. Kara didn’t know what they were saying, but she felt a measure of hope without knowing why. 0356 threw his hands in the air while 0578 strode back to the building.

A few minutes later, a soft knock came to her door. This time, Kara opened it without hesitation.

“C’mon kid. I’m getting you outta here.”

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By day, the misty veil cast a drab grey upon their concrete world, protecting them from the harmful radiation that lurked above clouds. Mawmaw was pointing beyond all that to the white cluster known as the “Milky Way,” a galaxy within which our own planet is but a speck of dust.

On this night, she passed another story to her granddaughter: A cloud of white to the west that could once only be seen in the night sky. A great cloud substantiated by the souls of their ancestors.

“Some nights, when the wind is just right, if you squint so hard your nose crinkles, you can see it. Your namesake. The single little star, not yet a part of the cluster, defiantly shining its light back upon us.”

Little Star crimped her nose as she listened, imagining the light. Never had she seen such a thing with her own eyes, but she believed every word Mawmaw had ever told her. Why wouldn’t she?

After some time she gave up and returned her gaze to the cityscape in front of them. Blinking as her eyes adjusted to the bright neon pinks, yellows, and blues advertising all manner of products they couldn’t afford. The worst were the pushy AR ads that projected on blank surfaces; augmented-reality intrusions advertising star maps, physics courses, and whatever else was garnered by eavesdropping on her conversations.

Her stomach growled. Little Star clenched reflexively, a futile attempt to quiet the noise.

“Here. Take mine. I cannot finish it.” Mawmaw offered the half eaten acorn bread, wrapped in a napkin.

“No thank you.” Little Star stared straight ahead, her eyes locked on an advertisement for male enhancement- whatever that meant. Her ears burned red, angry at her backstabbing stomach.

“I’m old. I could barely finish the first half. Really, take it. You’ll sleep better.”

“No thank you.”

It was hard to tell sometimes who was more stubborn. That will serve her well, grandmother nodded to herself as she sat the bread down on the ledge between them. “Maybe the pigeons will enjoy it.”

“Maybe.”

Mawmaw sat in silence with her granddaughter. Looking up at the sky, breathing deep and steady as she ignored a passing banner offering a free two-month energy drink subscription.

“Mawmaw.”

“Yes child.”

“What happens to them now?”

“To whom?”

“The people who die. If they can’t find the great cloud at night, where do they go?”

Mawmaw let out a breath, “I suppose they are ghosts. Walking the earth until the day the sky finally clears.” She put her arm around the child to comfort her, noticing the gooseflesh forming on her arms. “But don’t worry. You remember the story of Coyote. How he convinced the dead to stop taking the living.”

“Yes.” Little Star lowered her head, still not able to meet her grandmother’s eyes. “But, Coyote set them on fire so they could become the stars.” She looked back up to the sky, ignoring her own banner advertising a free child-friendly bible in exchange for her biometrics. “I think they are in the clouds now. Trapped. Still on fire. That’s why the rain burns.”

She hugged her granddaughter closer, knocking the bread off the ledge to the street below. “Maybe you’re right. I do not know of such things.”

“I thought you knew everything.” The words came out in a giggle.

Now squeezing her grandchild, “Ha. You’ll soon know more than me.”

Little Star knew Mawmaw was talking about her maths. She didn’t know why, but the numbers came easy to her. She found it comforting how they all fit together perfectly. She hadn’t yet come to the inherent contradictions that would one day plague her with greater frustrations than she’d care to admit. For Little Star, the numbers were still an endless source of comfort. The numbers and Mawmaw.

“It’s late. Time to sleep, child.”

“Why?”

“You have school in the morning.”

“You’re my school. We can do it whenever we want.”

“No.” Mawmaw used her firm tone. “No matter what they say about their fake AR daylight, it is important to follow the real sun.”

“You mean the real sun we can’t see. Because of the clouds? Because of the dead?”

“It’s still there. And we will follow it.”

This time grandmother was the more stubborn one. But further tests would come for Little Star.

As they descended the stairs to their room, Mawmaw offered consolation. “Tomorrow, we’ll start by learning about the frog in the moon.”

“The what?” Little Star laughed as she opened the door.

“You’ll see in the morn--Back child!” Mawmaw shoved Little Star behind her in the doorway, putting herself between her granddaughter and the ganger with the bat.

“Aww shit. They’re home, Nate!” The young man spoke to his compatriot down the hallway via their neuro sync. Nathan had stationed himself by the front stairwell to alert Gabriel if anyone were to come. Neither of them expected people to arrive by the emergency stairs.

“Who is it Gabe?” Nathan was already running to help.

“Just some old lady and a little kid.”

Mawmaw’s instincts kicked in. As calm as she could muster, she offered the young man whatever he wanted without conflict.

Looking at the old lady and the young child, Gabe’s heart hurt. But the growl in his stomach hurt more. The smell of fresh bread had kept him here too long as he searched for the source. “Where’s the food?”

“It’s gone.” Mawmaw answered truthfully one hand behind her back ushering Little Star to the door pressed against the wall as Nate arrived.

“Bullshit! It’s fresh. I can smell it.”

“Mawmaw doesn’t lie!” Little Star yelled, sticking her head out through grandmother’s protective barrier. A barrier that collapsed following a dull thud from Nathan’s bat.

“Now I know you’re full of shit.” He smiled, looking down at the heap, “Everyone lies.”

Nate continued into the apartment while Little Star cried at her grandmother’s form. Blood pooled from her head and smeared the floor and she shook her body.

No one came. No one helped.

The two men tossed the apartment. Taking what trinkets they could find. But Mawmaw’s final words rang true- there was no bread to share.

Nathan found an old copper coin jammed between the springs under the cushion of the ancient coach. A penny. Worthless now. A small thing without value.

On the way out, the two men pushed past Little Star, still on her knees in a futile attempt to revive her Mawmaw. He flicked the coin, “Here kid. For your trouble.”

The coin bounced off her head and toppled to the floor. It had corroded over the years, but Little Star detected a small glimmer in the center as her grandmother’s blood pooled around it. A little speck, defiantly shining through an ocean of death.

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