Jesse noticed her distress.
“It’s okay,” he reassured. “You’ll be fine. But we are going to have to keep a low profile. You don’t have a CitCard yet, so we can’t let any Wardens get near you.”
“Understood,” Angela said.
“We can’t just walk in. Let me make a phone call,” Jesse said, walking her over to a dirt road in the forest that Angela hadn't noticed before.
Jesse pulled a small, neon-blue object out of his pocket. Angela watched curiously as he poked at it with his fingers and then proceeded to look into the screen and talk. She once found a similar object in her father's box and knew it was a phone, but she had never seen one in use.
“My father said phones don’t work anymore,” Angela stated. Had her father lied?
“They work locally, inside settlement boundaries,” Jesse clarified. “But we can’t contact anyone outside our settlements. You wouldn't get any coverage living out there with your father. We are close enough now.”
She walked over to stand behind him and peered over his shoulder. There was a tiny face on the screen, moving and talking back to Jesse. Angela could see that it was a woman with blonde hair. Angela moved away and waited for Jesse to finish his conversation.
“Freedom. Hi. Guess who's back?” He laughed and smiled at the phone. “You know I can’t stay away from you guys for that long. Pretty sure that Warden forgot about me by now. You’re right. Yes, I have a friend with me.”
Jesse smiled at Angela. “Freedom is coming.”
And for the first time in her life, Angela did not like the sound of freedom. She wanted to apologize for wasting Jesse's time and to go back home, play her piano, and eat soup with her father. It took all her willpower to keep her mouth shut and her feet still.
Chapter Five
A sleek black car drove up the dirt road and parked a few feet away from where Angela and Jesse waited. Angela had never seen a car before. She wondered what propelled its wheels forward and how it knew what direction to go. Realizing she was about to meet another stranger, Angela nervously grabbed onto Jesse's hand. He glanced at Angela and didn’t pull away, but his attention was focused on the car.
The door opened and a tall blonde girl emerged. Her black leather boots kicked up dirt on the road as she made her way to where Angela and Jesse waited. Angela recognized her as the girl from the screen. She looked older than Jesse, possibly in her early twenties, and had an athletic build. She wore gray skinny-jeans, a black leather jacket and a black tank top. Sunglasses rested on top of the curly hair that fell down the sides of her shoulders.
The girl glanced at Angela and Jesse’s interlocked hands, causing Jesse to take his hand away.
“Oh, crap, he’s back again,” she said with a smirk.
“Nice to see you again, too,” Jesse said. She rolled her eyes at him, but seconds later a smile spread across her face. She pulled him into an embrace.
She turned to Angela, then looked back at Jesse. “What do we have here?”
“Hi, I’m Angela,” Angela introduced herself.
“Like an Angel,” Freedom said. “How nice. So, what loony bin did Jesse steal you from?”
Angela didn’t know how to respond. She looked at Jesse, confused.
“She wants to know where you are from,” Jesse said, giving Freedom a stern look.
“I’m not from anywhere,” Angela said to Freedom.
Freedom’s green eyes glared at her.
“She’s not lying. I found her right in the middle of nowhere. But it was a very nice part of nowhere,” Jesse stood up for Angela.
“Then how the hell did he convince you to come to this dump?” Freedom asked.
“I want to find a new home for my father and I. We have lived alone for so long, it would be nice to have some type of community,” Angela said.
Freedom stared at Angela’s dirty bare feet and messy hair. She turned to Jesse.
“Is she worth the space?” she asked.
Jesse winked. “There is something special about her.”
Freedom nodded at Jesse, but Angela could sense that it was not merely a nod of acknowledgment. They were communicating some bit of information that Angela was left in the dark about. Angela looked into Jesse's eyes questioningly.
“Get in the car,” Freedom barked at them both. Angela suspiciously walked over to the machine. She touched the car, wondering if it were hot, and realizing it wasn’t, she ran her fingers along the outline of the door. She pushed her fingernails between the tiny crack and tried to pry the door open, ignoring the handle. Jesse helped her open the door from inside the car while Freedom watched and laughed.
Jesse slammed Angela’s door shut and the car skidded off towards the settlement. Jesse reached over and helped Angela buckle her seatbelt. Angela did not understand why he was strapping her to the car. She started to panic.
“What are you doing?” Angela asked.
“It’s to keep you safe in case of an accident,” Jesse’s voice was soft. “Normally I wouldn't bother, not a lot of traffic these days, but I promised to protect you and I will do so in every way I can.”
She watched as he strapped himself to the car as well, and decided it must be safe. He showed her the button she needed to click to release the belt when the car stopped.
Freedom watched their exchange thoughtfully from the front seat. Angela noticed Freedom’s hands on the wheel, causing the car to turn left or right. So that's how it works, she thought.
Angela looked out of the window and watched the forest float away as they entered an industrial portion of the city. Most of the buildings had patched and boarded windows, the roads themselves were full of craters and debris that caused the vehicle to bounce as they chugged along. At one point, Freedom had to reroute because a sizable portion of a skyscraper was resting in the middle of the road.
“It’s incredible,” Angela sighed as she looked out of her window.
As they ventured further into Chicago’s ruins, Angela could see two other cars bouncing along the mostly empty roads and she spotted a few people travelling by foot.
Angela could hear a soft, melodic sound separate from the roar of the engine. It took her a moment to recognize the unfamiliar instruments and high-pitched voices as music.
“Where is that music coming from?” Angela asked Jesse.
“The car has a radio,” Jesse said sleepily. “It plays music.”
Freedom laughed, “Boy, Jesse, you really know how to pick ‘em.”
Jesse’s face tightened, but he said nothing. Angela didn’t fully understand the implications of her words, but knew it was likely an insult directed at her. She felt a tinge of anger. Why was Freedom being so mean? She was starting to regret coming to Chicago. She was in a strange city, with strange people, and was on her way to meet more people who probably wouldn’t like her either. Every inch of her being felt like she didn’t belong.
Angela looked out of the window. She had imagined civilization before, but her ideas weren’t even close to this reality. For one thing, she didn’t expect a settlement this large to be so empty. She had imagined houses like her father’s, dozens all together, and one big workhouse where people would make pencils and soap and pianos. In the center of it all would be a palace. She had always pictured a palace. In the fairy tales her father read to her as a child, there had always been one.
Angela knew civilization would not be exactly like her father’s stories, with horses and carriages, gladiator arenas, and knights and princes aiming to save damsels in distress. But she expected to at least find the ruins of such a kingdom, instead of the remnants of an alien land. She had not expected to be strapped inside a self-moving cart, rushing past massive, dilapidated buildings. She had not expected that, despite its size, the settlement would feel as bare as the forest surrounding her father's home. Five hundred people in one settlement sounded like a lot to her before, but in a space this vast, she felt lucky whenever she noticed signs of life.
The few people she saw outside her car window did not remind her of her father — still, sure, and calm. They were more like moving pieces of artwork; their clothes, skin, and hair painted in magnificent colors against the grey backdrop of the settlement. Yet, there was a sense of unrest with all of them. She wondered if everyone would be as high-strung as Freedom.
She never saw anyone walking alone; they migrated in pairs or small groups. Her father had always been a keep-to-yourself kind of guy, and Angela expected the rest of the world to be this way too. She wondered if the pairing up was for safety.
Jesse was not even giving his window a glance. He dozed off, leaving Angela alone with Freedom in the car. Freedom didn’t speak again for the remainder of the ride, so neither did Angela.
With Jesse asleep and Freedom silent, Angela found her mind drifting back to her father. She pictured her father waking up and realizing she was missing. It was an image she had been purposely blocking out of her brain for the two weeks she had been traveling. She wondered how he had reacted when he became aware of her disappearance. The reality of what she had done started to settle into her thoughts, and she struggled to keep her worries at bay.
The car found its way to its destination, an old and dilapidated warehouse, and came to a sudden stop.
Chapter Six
As the car came to a full stop, Angela pinched the skin on Jesse’s arm to wake him. She tugged and pressed her seat buckle, but was unable to free herself from its clutches.
Jesse jerked his arm away and slowly opened his eyes. Only half conscious, he looked out of the window, then looked back at Angela and smiled.
“Welcome to your new home,” he mumbled sleepily.
Angela didn’t attempt to mask the worry and disappointment from her eyes. The car had stopped sooner than Angela would have liked.
This building was not tall like the skyscrapers, but it was wide. Boards with stylized letters painted on them covered its broken windows. Angela wondered why this place, of all places, was where Jesse and his friends chose to live. This was not what she expected.
“Come on, Angel,” Freedom said, hopping out of the car. She made the word, ‘angel,’ sound like an insult.
Angela made a show of trying to unbuckle herself in front of Jesse, and he swiftly released her and opened her door. When Angela got out of the car, her bare feet burned as she stood on the hot cement. Freedom walked ahead, unlocking the building’s door as Angela and Jesse trailed behind.
The air in the settlement was full of debris and unpleasant smells. The scent inside the building was only a slight improvement. Angela was surprised by the amount of dust that floated through the room, coating the broken furnishings. It did not look as if anyone lived here.
Freedom and Jesse lead her to what they called an “elevator.” A yellow paper with handwritten words scrawled upon it was taped to the door. Jesse explained that the sign told outsiders the elevator was in need of repairs. Freedom summoned the elevator with a click of a button. Angela watched in amazement as the doors magically opened without assistance.
“We have no guards, no gate. The best hiding places are right out in the open,” Jesse explained as they boarded.
Using the shaky elevator made Angela’s stomach queasy. She could hear its bolts rattling as it inched its way down into the unknown. Jesse put his arm around Angela’s shoulder until the elevator came to a sudden, shaky stop. The doors crept open and Angela found herself at the end of a long hallway. She could see a dim light shining from around a corner; its source was in another room.
“Have fun, Angel. I’ve got to go, kids,” Freedom said while Jesse walked Angela off the elevator.
“You’re not coming?” Jesse sounded genuinely disappointed, which troubled Angela.
“No, I have other business to take care of. I’m sure you’ll help her feel right at home.” Freedom sent the elevator up as Jesse’s face tensed.
“She seems pleasant,” Angela said sarcastically, once Freedom was on ground level and out of earshot.
“She’s not as bad as she pretends to be,” Jesse said. “Come on, there’s some people I’d like you to meet.”
They walked through the narrow hallway towards the light. Angela could hear laughter and chatter coming from the room. She inhaled deeply and let it out slowly, praying that the butterflies in her stomach would stay still.
Angela peeked into the room before they walked in. It looked clean and modern, therefore out of place in the old dusty building.
Sitting on top of rectangular desks were thin, square devices with illuminated screens. The moving images that danced across them reminded her of the screen on Jesse’s phone. A boy sat behind one of them, pressing buttons on a flat device connected to the screens. On one of them, she could see Freedom exiting the elevator. She realized that they were being used to monitor the building. Jesse’s prized television sat in the corner, streaming a show.
“Life isn’t fair, it’s just fairer than death, that's all,” one of the women in the room said in unison with the person on the television screen.
Angela was amazed at both the technology and beautiful imagery she saw on the television. Whatever they were watching looked much closer to how Angela had imagined the world to be: a bright green forest and a sky painted blue. The man playfully shoved the shoulders of the woman who had spoken, and they both laughed.
“They are watching this crap again?” Jesse groaned.
Angela raised her eyebrow at him.
“You ready?” he asked, reaching out to hold her hand again. Angela offered a slight nod as he squeezed her hand tight. In unison, they stepped into the room.
The conversations stopped as three pairs of curious eyes looked over at Angela. Angela smiled sheepishly at them all.
The first face was attached to a tall woman, older than Jesse, with chestnut-colored skin. She had a nose ring, blue fingernail polish, tightly coiled hair, and brown eyes. She was wearing jeans and a black t-shirt that showed an image of four men playing musical instruments. She had been the one quoting the television. Jesse said the woman’s name was Rain and that she was their resident medic.
The second face belonged to a male in his early twenties. He wore a blue t-shirt and denim shorts and his skin was extremely pale, whiter than both Jesse's golden tone and her father’s fair skin. He was taller than Jesse and his hair was so black it was almost blue. His slim face and wide eyes stared blankly at Angela until he finally twisted it into a crooked smile. He was the one who had playfully poked Rain. Jesse told Angela that his name was Zinc and that he was a coder.
The last face belonged to a petite teen girl in an off-white sundress. Angela figured the girl was at least fifteen, but she could pass as much younger. She had olive skin, large brown eyes, and a heart-shaped face. Her most noticeable feature was her bright blue hair that fell just below her shoulders, and the soft pink ribbon she was using as a headband. Angela learned that this girl was named Emi and that she was a recruiter.
Emi was the first of the three strangers to approach Angela, which she did by running over and giving her a warm hug. Angela, surprised at the sudden show of affection, whispered a barely audible, “Hello.”
“It’s so nice to have new people on the team!” Emi greeted.
“Jesse, next time you better bring us a cute guy back, okay?” Rain told Jesse, giving Angela a small smile.
“I’m already here, baby,” Zinc said with a goofy grin, before turning back to his computer screen.
“Please.” Rain rolled her eyes.
“So, what’s your name and where are you from?” Emi inquired. She was still peering up at Angela with a huge grin on her face.
“Angela. And I’m more interested in where I’m going.”
“You like adventure then?” Emi asked.
“I’m not sure, yet,” Angela admitted. “But I know that I would like a better life. If that entails adventure, so be it.” She was surprised that no one had said anything about her messy appearance y
et.
“Well good, because we need all the help we can get,” Emi stated. “May I ask why you decided to follow Jesse back to Chicago?”
“I want to find a happy ending, for my father and I,” Angela said. “And, I suppose, for the rest of the world as well.”
“That's what she thinks,” said Jesse. “But I think she already had a pretty happy life, and grew bored of it.”
“I was a little bored,” Angela admitted. “But you can't have a happy ending without first reading the full story, and I’ve never even been taught how to read.”
Emi eyes widened, “Really? That's a shame. We have quite the library here. We have collected six books.”
Angela laughed. “Just six? You should meet my father.”
“Look, Angela,” Rain spoke up. “It’s great that you want to help us, but you are looking a little rough. I know it’s been a long trip, do you want to wash up?”
A bath sounded like heaven to Angela, and she eagerly nodded as Rain beckoned her to follow.
Chapter Seven
Even after Rain explained how the shower worked and taught Angela how to turn on the water, it still fascinated her. There was no fire to boil the water that streamed from the metal tube that hung over the bathtub. Angela wondered how the water became warm. Closing her eyes and enjoying the feeling of the water hitting her tired skin, she decided it didn’t matter. There were many strange things about this settlement, and she knew she would not figure them all out in one day. She washed her hair, relieving it of the dirt from the forest and causing it to curl into tiny ringlets; then her face, letting the white bubbles float down her body.
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