Dystopian Girls 4

by Rodzil LaBraun

  Riley kept watch for anyone that might notice us up on the roof. I would have done that myself, but I couldn't manage to take my eyes off of Alexa. I missed her so much. I fought back the emotional impulses and deep breaths, trying to focus on our mission of rescuing her. It wasn’t that easy.

  At that moment, she didn't particularly look like she needed rescued. I was sure that if she tried to make a break for it that Camilla could use her power of confusion to foil the attempt. With that in mind, the lack of guards made some sense. Her body appeared relaxed, though, like she was not in any danger. Maybe she had not been suffering much this whole time after all.

  I felt like one of those men reporting my missing wife to the police. The more that they questioned me about our relationship the more that I considered the possibility that my wife ran off. But that couldn't possibly be the case with Alexa, right? We were very happy. Or, at least I was happy. She was competing for my affection with several other women before. And I was encouraging the competition. Did something like that make her snap? If so, why did it happen while Tamika was tied to a chair and I was busy fighting the military group?

  That scenario just didn't make sense to me. I was open to the possibility that I could be totally blind to some of the things that Alexa was feeling, but not to that point. It wasn't feasible.

  Another option was that Camilla was also a captive. The two of them sitting in the courtyard alone would be reasonable then. Either the doors were locked, or guards were posted inside. The setting did resemble a prison yard. What once was a nice garden with paths had become overgrown and downtrodden.

  While all of that was racing through my brain, Bianka was using her super feline hearing to pick up as much as she could of their conversation. The play by play explanation that I was hoping for was not forthcoming. The gorgeous blonde at my side just sat motionless staring at the two women below. Just when I was about to make sure that she was okay and not mesmerized by some unseen mutant, she turned to me and spoke.

  "They are talking about you," Bianka said. She held up her hand to prevent me from speaking. I took it as she wanted to clue me in on the dialog of Camilla and Alexa quickly, then return to eavesdropping. "Camilla believes, or at least claims to believe, that we were all killed by the militia attack. Alexa doubts her but says that she is unsure. Your wife is not free to leave, but it appears as though Camilla is. I can't make out whether she has teamed up with Tamika or has just joined the group."

  When she turned to face the courtyard, I knew that was all I was going to get out of her at the moment. So, I returned to watching my lovely wife as she talked.

  Alexa looked healthy enough from my vantage point. I doubted that they were starving or torturing her. She was wearing the same shorts that she had on the day that she was kidnapped. The blouse was new, but still her style. Light blue, maybe a size too large, tied above her belly button. I missed resting my hand on her stomach as she laid beside me in bed.

  I watched as she crossed her sexy legs, the way she always did at home when sitting on the sofa. She pushed her silky blonde hair back over her left ear as she talked. She did not appear to be angry or frustrated. Maybe she had come to terms with her imprisonment. With Camilla and others trying to convince her that I was dead, combined with the fact that I had not yet attempted to rescue her, that was understandable. Once again, I regretted not coming for her sooner.

  Bianka continued to listen, even longer than the first time, before filling me in. I tried my best to be patient, focusing on good things. Alexa was indeed alive and healthy. We found her, so we should be able to devise a way to rescue her. Even if she previously thought that I was dead, I knew that she would be excited to discover otherwise when I swoop in to save the day.

  "Alexa was kidnapped by Tamika, as we thought," Bianka eventually said. "Camilla is indeed a partner but has a hard time convincing Tamika of anything. Apparently, she has a way to block Camilla's power to confuse. Alexa's ability was somehow blocked as well when she was kidnapped. I don't understand how yet, but Tamika's powers are not just strong, they are very effective against other mutants."

  I had a ton of questions, but Bianka turned to hear more. I judged whether or not any of my queries were worthy of interrupting her, eventually deciding that they were not. She told me what she knew already. It wasn’t like I could have her ask questions for me. All that she could do was listen to a conversation between people that were unaware of our intrusion. Fortunately, Riley returned from patrolling the roof to talk to me.

  "The guards are continuing their patrols," she told me as she squatted down beside me. "I've only seen six people so far, not including Camilla or Alexa. If they have twenty or more people, they are either inside or on a mission of their own."

  "Any sign of Tamika?"

  "No," Riley replied.

  When I turned back toward the courtyard, I saw Alexa tense up. She placed her hands flat on the table and straightened her posture, still staring at Camilla. I wondered what the sexy Brazilian woman had said to her.

  Alexa maintained her rigid body language until Camilla had stood up and walked toward the door. Alexa then slowly turned her head and looked up in our direction at the roof. She had sensed our presence, already identifying us with her gift.

  None of us bothered to duck for cover, of course. Alexa was the only person that we wanted to see us. My wife quickly returned to staring forward at the empty chair where Camilla was recently seated. Then slowly, with both hands, she made the thumbs up signal. She had to know that we were here to rescue her. But someone was observing her too closely for her to take a chance of giving us away.

  I watched intently as she took several deep breaths like she was about to hyperventilate. Then her hands went to her face as her body began to shake. She was crying. And not just crying either. She was bawling uncontrollably. Realizing that we were still alive, and coming to rescue her, had an overwhelming effect. I had to fight off the tears myself as I watched, unable to turn away.

  "She's crying," Bianka told me, as if it was apparent to anyone watching. "Alexa knows that we are here."

  "She's going to tip someone off," Riley said. I was thinking the same thing. Or maybe they would assume that she was just sad. Perhaps she had cried several times since her arrival at the school. Or they might think that Camilla said something to upset her. If they knew Camilla like we did, that would be an easy assumption.

  Then Tamika rushed into the courtyard. It was apparently to comfort Alexa. She had noticed her crying and came out to put her arm around my wife. She was using the good cop routine, I surmised. I seriously doubted that she really cared, but that was because I spent the last couple days hating her for taking my wife away from me. While secured in our living room, the attractive black teen was almost likable.

  Alexa stiffened once again when she realized that Tamika was there and attempted to stop crying immediately. Her hands went back to the table and she worked to control her breathing. I couldn't tell what exactly was happening. I wondered if Tamika was using a mutant ability on her. If she was, why would she do it at that particular moment?

  "She's asking Alexa what is going on," Bianka explained. "She doesn't look as concerned as she sounds. She thinks Alexa is up to something."

  A moment later, Tamika turned to look directly at us. We ducked for cover that time, but it was too late. Did Alexa tell her that she saw us? Why would she do that? Was that Tamika's power? Could she force someone to give honest answers?

  "What do we do now?" Riley asked.

  "We leave quickly!" Bianka replied before I could. "They'll be putting the compound on high alert." When I hesitated, she grabbed me by the shoulder and said, "Mason, we have to go! Now!"

  I had high hopes of rescuing Alexa on this mission, of course. I knew there was a possibility that we would have to make a second trip, but I was dreading leaving her behind. However, with Tamika knowing that we were there, we didn't have much of a choice. It would also make our future rescue att
empt more difficult. They would be ready for us.

  Riley reached the edge of the roof where the ladder was, then turned and informed us that there were two guards passing by. They apparently had not yet been notified to look for intruders. Looking over the edge I spotted the two people strolling along, each with a rifle on their shoulder. And I recognized both of them. Teenagers, one boy and one girl. They were members of the previous schoolhouse gang.

  The brunette female was still walking with a barely noticeable limp from the spear wound when we first met. That was the day that we stumbled across Riley. She was young and scared back then. I figured that she had more battle experience since. Her disposition on dealing with people of other clans might not have changed, though.

  The teenage boy was the one that we encountered the day that Jada and I found Seiko. The adult male that was with him had to be killed to save our new female friend. But we spared the boy and let him run back to his people.

  I remembered the two of them inside my old house when their gang attacked us. Stella and I wiped out everyone on the main floor of our home except for them. They took off running just before they could see their leader killed.

  "I know these two," I informed Bianka and Riley. "They are not bad kids. They are just trying to survive. Let's get the drop on them and take them with us."

  "We don't have time for that," Bianka said sternly.

  "I think that they'll go with us willingly," I answered. "If not, we'll leave them without weapons. I don't think that they'll report us. I bet we can get even some valuable information from those two. We can’t pass up this opportunity."

  "I don't understand why you think this way about them," Bianka looked doubtful of the information that she just received. "But that plan might be better than waiting until they pass by."

  The two teens were not overly observant. If it weren't for the rifles you would think they were just kids that went to this school, flirting with each other as they looked for someplace more private to get intimate.

  When we stepped out from behind cover, they were startled and scrambled with their firearms. When I thrust my hand forward, they both dropped their weapons. They apparently knew about my deflection ability.

  "Hello, again," I said to them. They waved timidly. Scared, but not as much as I would expect. I could tell that they didn't think that I would kill them.

  "I have some questions for you two," I told them.

  "Okay," the boy replied. I got the immediate impression that he had no interest in withholding information from me.

  "We may have been spotted, so I need you to join us in those woods over there," I pointed the way that we had come. My women snatched up their discarded weapons and checked the couple over for secondary units.

  The boy nodded agreement, but the girl said, "I can't run very fast, but I'll go."

  We darted from one small building to the next on our way to the safety of the woods. There was a concession stand and a construction office trailer alongside the baseball field to provide us some cover. I was surprised each time that we looked back that there was no pursuit. Either they didn't know which direction that we went, or Tamika was not all that interested in chasing us down. Again, a lack of personnel could be the issue.

  The girl was slow alright. I was tempted to grab her up and carry her, but that would put her within reach of my weapons. I couldn't take that chance. Once inside the concealment of some overgrown bushes we stopped to catch our breath. I motioned for everyone to take a seat. Bianka was the only one to remain standing, keeping watch in all directions but mostly toward the school.

  "What are your names?" I asked. The boy was Judah and the girl Lenah. "How many of your gang survived the attack on our house?"

  "Thirteen," the girl replied without hesitation.

  "No, only eleven," Judah corrected her.

  "No, two of them died later," she explained.

  "But it was from injuries sustained in the battle..."

  "Okay, okay," I stopped them. They were more like brother and sister the way that they argued with each other. "You got some new members since then?"

  "Five," Lenah revealed. "Plus Tamika."

  "Is she in charge?" I asked. When they both nodded, I asked about Camilla. They said that she was more like second in command but didn't really care much about how the place was run. She just wanted to boss around the others. It wasn’t all that hard to believe.

  "Tamika kidnapped my wife," I told them. They nodded, so they already knew. "Have you met Alexa?"

  "Yes," Lenah replied, almost excited. "She's very nice."

  "And very pretty, too," Judah added, which earned him a smack on the knee from his friend.

  "Are you boyfriend and girlfriend," Riley asked with a smile. The way they were acting begged for clarification.

  "Yes," the boy replied quickly, but the girl shook her head no. "What do you mean?" he asked her, obviously offended.

  "I'm available, Mason," she said as stared at me, giving me a Stella-like look of innocence.

  "And the list continues to grow," Bianka muttered from nearby.

  "I like this girl," Riley announced.

  "If we want information, we better get it quick," Bianca told us. "I can see Tamika and two others coming our way."

  "Just three of them?" I asked. "How long until they get here?"

  "At least a couple minutes," Bianka replied. "They don't appear to be in a hurry."

  "Huh," I said. Then turning back toward the young pair, "What is Tamika's special power?"

  "She is a mirror," Lenah answered. "That's what they call her." When I asked that she explain, she continued, "She can reflect back the powers of other mutants. Kind of like copying them, but not. Someone said it only works when it is directed at the mutant that she is copying, so she is a mirror instead."

  "She can reflect your wife's sensory perception," Judah told me. "And Camilla's confusion. Anything that you use against her she'll be able to use it right back."

  "Shit," I heard Bianka whisper from close behind me. I could tell it was because of what she just heard the two teens say, not what she was seeing approach.

  That was how Tamika knew that we were on the roof then. She was reflecting Alexa's gift somehow, sensing our location.

  "How many other mutants in your group?"

  "Just Alexa and Camilla," Lenah replied. "But I'm guessing you'll be taking both of them with you soon."

  "Mason!" I heard Tamika yell from the middle of the baseball field. If neither of the people with her were gifted, she would only be able to mirror our gifts. My deflection, Riley's speed and immunity, and Bianka's cat-like abilities. I couldn't see how that would make much of a difference unless there was a gunfight.

  "I just want to talk to you," Tamika yelled.

  "I'm assuming that they are armed," I said to Bianka.

  "The two women with her have rifles, but she has no weapon visible," my friend replied. "She's probably like Camilla, overconfident in her ability. Just the same, maybe we should just go. We won't have any trouble outrunning them."

  "I might," Lenah then said. Apparently, she wanted to go with us. Judah had no comment.

  "I'm pretty sure that Mason will talk to her," Riley informed our sexy blonde friend.

  "Why?" Bianka asked.

  "He's polite like that," my second wife responded. "And, it is possible that he can talk Tamika into releasing Alexa."

  She knew me alright. I instructed the two teenagers to step out of the brush in front of us. Hopefully, Tamika wouldn't shoot through them to get to us. Even if she did, I could still deflect the bullets. Once they were in position about ten feet into the open, we stepped out behind them. Our weapons were raised, but Tamika ordered her guards to lower theirs.

  "It's good to see you alive, Mason," Tamika said with a genuine smile. "Your clan is the only one that I know of to survive an attack by the military. That is impressive."

  "Why did you take Alexa?" I asked, not trying to mask my anger as
much as I should have.

  "I thought I was rescuing her. I was sure that you all were gonna die. Of course, she didn't believe me. I just couldn't stand that pretty face going to waste. Or her skill, either."

  "Now that you know that we survived, will you release her?"

  "Of course," Tamika replied like it was a given. I was not so sure that her response was entirely honest. "She's so excited. You all probably saw her crying when she noticed the three of you on the roof, didn't you? Well, she's getting ready right now. Let's go back to the school and talk. I have a proposition for you."

  "I'm kind of in a hurry, Tamika. Maybe you could just have her come out here to us." Surely, she didn’t really think that she could use my wife to lure us into a trap.

  The sexy milk chocolate skinned girl in charge of the new schoolhouse gang sent one of her comrades back to the main building. Hopefully it was to retrieve Alexa and not to assemble an attack force.