Midnight at the Electric

Adri is nervous about the meeting with Lamont and the uncertainty of whether he will sign the contract with her. The weather gets colder, Adri helps Lily set up Galapagos’ enclosure for winter, and Lily decorates for Christmas and helps look for information about the Godspeeds but doesn’t find anything. Lily is frustrated because she wants to tell Adri about the Ragbag Fair but can’t remember what it was. Then Lily asks if Adri wants to see the care facility she will move to when her dementia advances.

Lily and Adri go to “The Holy Redeemer Home for the Aged” (156), and they tour the facility. On the way home, Adri asks why Lily didn’t contact her when she found out they were related; Lily thought about reaching out but assumed Adri wouldn’t care about her.

Lily comes to Wichita with Adri the day Adri is meeting Lamont to sign the contract. Lamont tells Adri not to worry and that he fought for her when the board argued that Adri was too socially isolated. He is happy to sign the contract but is concerned about Adri, feeling she is “holding back.” Adri considers his words, wondering what would happen if she chose not to go to Mars. Lamont decides not to sign the contract yet but suggests they meet again after Adri finds the closure she needs.

On the way home, Adri and Lily stop at the archives. They see exhibits about the Dust Bowl, and Lily suggests Adri feels connected to the Godspeeds because they are distant and their fate is sealed, so it isn’t as scary to feel vulnerable about them. Adri fills out a request form for information and is upset to hear it will take up to six weeks to hear back, as she only has one month before she leaves for Mars. As soon as they leave, Lily asks why they were there, having forgotten.

Lily and Adri spend Christmas Eve together watching movies, and Lily gives presents to Adri to open, including a string of Christmas lights. Adri argues Lily should be less wasteful, and Lily responds by saying she loves Adri—“I love you even when you’re judging me” (168).

Adri asks what will happen to Galapagos when Lily is gone and asks if Lily will remember her. Lily doesn’t know what will happen. She asks Adri not to fall asleep but then falls asleep herself. While Lily sleeps, Adri whispers aloud that her heart is broken but she doesn’t know why.

Adri’s birthday, December 27^th, passes without anyone noticing, and on the 30^th, she starts a publicity tour for the Mars colony with fellow colonists Alexa, Saba, and D’Angelo. They go to New York first, where they meet with investors and taxpayers to make a good impression. They share a suite, and Adri stays in her room while the others stay up talking, smoking cigars, drinking, and playing cards. D’Angelo comes to get Adri, insisting that she come out and watch the ball drop for New Year’s Eve. When she comes out, she sees her crewmates have gotten her a birthday cake. It reads “Happy Birthday, Minty” (173), which is Adri’s nickname since she once refused a mint, saying she was trying to quit them. Adri spends the night talking and laughing with her crewmates, and they talk about how their next New Year will be on Mars.

Adri returns to Lily’s farm, greets Galapagos, and finds Lily under the sink trying to fix it. The house is too hot, and Lily has the temperature set at 96 degrees. Lily nods when Adri asks if she has been alright. After showering, Adri finds Lily outside with Galapagos, and Lily says she doesn’t know where she is and asks Adri to get her medical attention.

Lily is triaged and admitted to the hospital, though she refuses to stay in the gown. She says the problem is her age—“I’m old. Things just give out. They can call it dementia or whatever else, but the condition is really just being a human for too long” (177). Lily also says earlier generations should have known better and that they were too self-absorbed. She admits she is jealous of Adri, saying that internally she feels young. She says again that she loves Adri.

Lily is released after two days, and that night there is a snowstorm. Adri asks if Lily would come to Mars if she could, arguing Lamont said Adri could ask for whatever she wanted from him. Lily wouldn’t go, and she says she would be miserable if Adri decided to stay with her. Changing the subject, Lily asks Adri to talk about the Godspeeds. Another two days pass, and Adri gets a letter from the archives explaining that they could not find anything on the Godspeeds.

It is Adri’s last week on Earth, and she is eating and drinking special foods to prepare for the voyage. She is allowed to bring 25 pounds of belongings, and she is disappointed that all her items combined weigh less than that. On Wednesday, Lily suddenly remembers where the Ragtag Fair used to set up, and she and Adri go out into the winter night to find the location. They search around and discuss how The Electric was a hoax. They talk about how people go back and forth, making mistakes and forgiving each other. Adri thinks that she doesn’t know how to forgive, but Lily counters that Adri is just scared of losing people.

They return home, and on the drive, Adri has the idea to look in Ellis’s secret hiding place in his bunkhouse. She checks the bunkhouse and finds several items in the compartment, including a photograph of the Godspeeds, a straw bracelet, and two bundles of letters—some from Lenore to Beth and some from Catherine to Ellis.