Member Harjas’ Gustaf Three presented the results of the preliminary investigation into the possibilities of a mushroom farm. The idea was to construct a system of farming chambers that could double as a shelter in case of a catastrophe or incident. The chambers would be separated by heavy doors, allowing for isolation of any one area if needed. However, the construction plan had to be revised:
Harjas’ Gustaf informed the meeting that the geoscientists have encountered an exceptionally hard type of rock at a hundred-foot depth. It has proven resistant to all tools and methods at our disposal. Ellars’ Karin suggested making an exception and consider the use of large-scale architecture.
Architecture? The term didn’t make sense here.
Ellars’ Karin’s proposal was voted down unanimously, citing the catastrophe in Colony 5 and subsequent legislation. The committee rules that the mushroom farm be constructed in one level only, and the area doubled to compensate for lost space.
Had Ellars’ Karin wanted to talk the tunnels into existence? But they had decided not to. And yet, Ivar had fallen through the floor and found something underneath. Someone else had made the tunnels, that much was clear.
The sound of footsteps coming down the stairs made her stuff the files back into the drawer as quickly as she could. Just as the drawer slid shut, the secretary appeared in the doorway. She was much taller than she had looked sitting down; she almost had to hunch to fit through the door.
Vanja held out the key. “I just finished.”
The secretary gave Vanja a gentle smile that somehow made her feel as though she’d been caught red-handed.
She went over to the library after work. Evgen was alone at his desk. He waved at her when she entered.
Vanja sat down at the table in the middle of the room. “Don’t you ever have any other visitors?”
Evgen joined her at the table, sitting down where he could keep an eye on the door. “Two or three a day, maybe. Fewer all the time.”
“I went outside this morning. I saw the pipes with my own eyes.”
Evgen listened wide-eyed as Vanja retold the events of the previous night. “Listen,” Vanja said, leaning closer. “One of them is a little out of the way. You can’t see it until you’re right on top of it. I don’t think anyone’s spotted it yet. We could go there.”
“And have a proper look?”
Vanja nodded.
“Didn’t Ivar say there was something down there, that he was scared of something?” Evgen said.
“He did. But I want to know. And so do you.”
Evgen drummed his fingers on the table. “That’s true.” He slammed his palm down with a bang. “Let’s do it.”
The door to the library opened. Two older women in baggy overalls with blackened knees came inside; farmers, probably, from the plant houses.
Evgen stood up. “Come back tomorrow, and we’ll see if the book has been returned.”
“Thank you very much.” Vanja turned around, almost collided with one of the farmers, mumbled an apology, and left.
The rhythmic noise came from the wall to Ivar’s room. Next to her, Nina sat up in bed. It was still dark. Vanja felt dazed; her eyes ached. She couldn’t have been asleep for more than a couple of hours.
“What is he doing?” Nina whispered.
In one fluid movement, Nina slid out of bed, stood up, and opened the door to their room. Vanja followed a little more slowly.
Nina crouched next to the bed with her hands on Ivar’s knees. Ivar himself was naked among the sheets, leaning against the wall. He was painfully thin. “Get a blanket from our bed, Vanja,” Nina said without turning.
When Vanja came back with the blanket, Nina had sat down next to Ivar. Vanja helped her wrap the blanket around him.
Nina cradled the back of Ivar’s head in her hand. “He was banging his head against the wall.”
“I’m sorry,” Ivar said. “I didn’t realize. That I was making noise.”
“Should we take you to the clinic, Ivar?”
Ivar shook his head, as much as he could with Nina’s hand holding it. “No. No, no need. I just need some rest. Maybe something to help me sleep.”
“Are you sure?” Nina bent forward, forcing him to look her in the eye. “Are you absolutely sure? Look, I know you don’t want to be a burden. But you’re allowed to be a burden right now, Ivar. I need you to be. If things are this bad, we need to get you some help.”
“It’s all right. I promise. It’s just a bit of anxiety. It’s nothing I haven’t been through before. It’s not like I was trying to hurt myself or anything. It was just like”—Ivar waved his hand forlornly—“like swinging your legs from a chair, you know.” He pulled the corners of his mouth up in an attempt to smile.
Nina sighed. “I’ll get something to help you sleep. And then I’ll sit with you. If you won’t let me do that, I’ll fetch someone from the clinic. Understood?”
Ivar nodded.
Nina walked past Vanja where she stood in the doorway. “I’m getting him a pill.”
Vanja sat down on the edge of the bed and looked at Ivar out of the corner of her eye. When Nina’s steps had receded sufficiently, she leaned closer. “Would it help if you knew that what you saw was real?”
“They say it wasn’t real. But it felt real. But then again, I’m not well, you know.” He leaned his head against the wall.
“I believe you,” Vanja said.
Ivar slowly rolled his head from side to side.
Vanja got up when Nina came back with something in her hand. “Here. It’ll calm you down.”
Ivar swallowed the pill and lay down. “I don’t want to go to the clinic,” he mumbled. “They’ll drill a hole in my head.”
“No, they won’t.”
Nina tucked the blanket around him. She gently stroked his forehead with her thumb, over and over again, until he closed his eyes.
Vanja took a deep breath. “I’ve seen it.”
Ivar opened his eyes again. Nina’s head slowly turned to look at her. “I’ve seen it,” Vanja repeated. “The pipe that Ivar climbed out of. It’s really there.”
“Before or after?” Nina said quietly.
“What?”
“Before or after. Did you see it before or after Ivar came out of it?”
“I… after.”
Nina stared at her without speaking.
“Is it my fault?” Ivar’s voice was thin. “Did I do it?”
“Shh. You did nothing.” Nina went back to stroking his forehead.
“You don’t know that,” he muttered.
“Yes I do. Now be quiet. Breathe in. And out.”
Nina turned her back to Vanja and bent over Ivar. The two of them formed a little unit of their own. Vanja left the room. She crawled into her own bed, hovering between sleep and wakefulness until it was once again time to go to work.