The quiet side of the moon
Isla had been flying for most of the afternoon, and somewhere past the second ring of stars the engine had gone quiet. Not broken quiet. The other kind, the kind that means you have arrived and nobody has told you yet.
Below the window was the side of the moon nobody photographs, all soft grey hills and long blue shadows, and in the middle of it, a light. One light, small and steady, the way a kitchen looks from the end of a garden.
Somebody down there was expecting company.
Sleep well, Isla. Tomorrow at bedtime, at 7:30, we land and find out who left the light on. Be here on time. Somebody down there has been waiting all day.
Part 4 unlocks at 7:30 tomorrow.


