by Ella Storm
Maverick’s outburst provided the distraction I needed. I inhaled deeply to calm my nerves and whispered computation commands that sounded like gibberish.
“What the hell are you saying?” The officer saw me mumble under my breath but wasn’t close enough to hear what I was saying.
I stared straight ahead. “I’m saying a prayer.” He couldn’t know any different, since I recited a few choice words from the Bible loud enough for him to recognize.
He pulled the trigger just as I was giving the last command, and gasped as a jolt of electricity coursed through the arm strapped to the gun. The system had frozen and he no longer had the authorization to use his weapon. The fingerprint saved in the chip didn’t match the fingerprint of the person holding the gun.
He cursed in protest and dropped the weapon. “Don’t think it’s your lucky day because of a technical glitch. I hate these newfangled gadgets. I keep this with me in case of emergencies.” He had pulled a Colt 1911 from the back of his pants. Those older weapons were out of circulation and kept as collector items, and worse, they didn’t have a computer chip to access.
The officer was speaking, but I couldn’t hear him over the roaring in my ears. I thought of how Maverick’s contribution to society died in its embryo stage, and of how I had taken my first baby steps out of my house in eight years. I had often thought of taking my life when I was lonely, but now that I was about to die, I was terrified and wanted to live.
A low rumble started in my tummy and grew into a hysterical laugh, shaking my body. I was too unaware of my environment to perceive the low hum of the drones in the distance, getting closer with every passing second.
Chapter Seven
The saying, “The calm before the storm,” was never truer. It was ghostly quiet until the drones fired from the sky. Jason had reprogrammed them with new commands.
Three drones converged on the officer, and they no longer identified his uniform as off limits. He became the suspect to neutralize. Rubber bullets spat from their cannons, aimed at him. The first shot ricocheted off the hand holding the gun. He cried out in pain and staggered back to the house to find suitable cover.
Maverick and I threw our bodies to the ground and rolled off the walkway in opposite directions. The drones flew over our heads, ignoring us and firing at every window and door. I crouched on my heels and shouted commands at my tablet. The manacles loosened, giving us enough room to slip them off our wrists and ankles.
My heart broke when I saw the state of my family home. The house looked like a prop straight out of Battlefield Glory. Dents from the impact of the bullets marred the facade, and every window had shattered. The officer’s foot stuck out from beneath the kitchen island where he sought cover from the onslaught of bullets. He peered from around the counter and pointed his gun at me. Another barrage of bullets had him ducking back to hide.
Maverick grabbed my hand and yanked me up. We ran. I followed him, trusting him to take me to safety. We avoided the main road, dodged between houses, climbed over fences and crouched while crossing back yards. Because nothing existed out here; no vegetation, no children playing, no pool parties, the outdoors remained deserted, and no one stood at their window to see in which direction we fled.
I had never felt true heat from the sun until this moment. Our protective gear and homes were climate controlled. The sweat running down my chest and back in rivulets glued my sweater to my skin. Perspiration had plastered my hair to my forehead, and my throat, dry and thirsty, itched. I had a hard time keeping up with Maverick. I didn’t exercise, and it showed. I tripped and fell, scraping my hands while trying to brace my fall. The scratches stung like the sting of a thousand bees. I heard that expression in a documentary about bees and it stuck with me.
After a while, Maverick stopped and left me under the cover of a wall. I was too numb to notice my surroundings. The sound of metal scraping over asphalt jostled me back to reality. He was pulling the casting off a storm drain. We were going underground.
He glanced at me and said almost apologetically, “We can’t stay out in broad daylight. The drones will find us.”
I didn’t have the courage to object. He was right. Today, I had faced my greatest fear when I walked out of my house. Now I would face my second fear. Rodents! He jumped in first and held up his arms. I sat on the edge and placed my hands on his shoulders for support. He took hold of my waist and lowered me down, my body sliding against his. When my feet touched the ground, he didn’t immediately let go. I noticed his pupils had dilated in his baby-blue eyes. I wondered if I had imagined him leaning in a fraction and quickly pulling away. Stepping aside, he returned the casting to its place, took hold of my hand, and led me down the tunnel, our feet sloshing in ankle-deep water.
“Where are we going?” I whispered, afraid my voice would carry in the tunnel.
He stopped and tugged a loose strand of my hair behind my ear. “There’s no need to whisper,” he whispered back. His lopsided smile had the same effect on me as chocolate. I felt hot pleasure settle between my legs. He was so handsome and tall, I guessed six feet, and I was so average and short, just five-four. Whew!
Since my parents’ deaths, I’d been alone and avoided human interaction. Most of the people I knew I’d never met in real life. Jason was the only person who ever visited me. In grade school we were both dubbed gifted, and instead of it being a cause of rivalry between us, it bonded us in the face of rejection and bullying from the other children. We hated school and vowed to graduate by the age of fifteen, and we did.
“Jason!”
“What was that?”
“I need to let him know we made it.”
“Helios, you can’t tell anybody where we are.”
“But Jason is the one who saved us. He reprogrammed the drones to attack the officer so we could get away.”
His baby-blue eyes probed my emerald-green ones, weighing the risk. “Ok,” he relented, “but you won’t find a signal down here. You’ll have to wait till we get above ground again.”
“So, where are we going?” I asked again.
“It’s a surprise.” He smiled. “You trust me, don’t you?”
I nodded.
“Good. Trust me to keep you safe and to lead you out of here. It will take us a few hours, but I know where I’m going.” This time, he actually leaned in and placed his lips on my forehead.
After what seemed like walking for a full day in dirty water, dim lighting and with rats for travel companions, I was ready to give up. Each time my steps lagged, Maverick would slide his arm around my waist and pull me under his shoulder. I didn’t want to disappoint him or slow him down so I pushed forward, all the while thinking of how I liked the feel of his body against mine. Eventually, a bright spot in the distance appeared. It grew bigger with each step we took.
“Come on, we made it.”
Maverick sped up, his steps almost skipping. His excitement was contagious. I found renewed energy in the melody of his laughter and chased after him. He stopped at the outlet of the drain tunnel, turned around to face me, and put out his arms to hold me in place.
“Close your eyes.”
“What?”
“Just do as I say.”
“But this is silly. Besides, I need to look out for the rats.”
“Just do as I say and we’ll be out of here in a jiffy.”
I crossed my arms beneath my chest, not wanting to give in too easily. The movement pushed my breasts up and stretched my sweater over the generous mounds of flesh. His gaze leaped to my bosom, and I heard a sharp intake of breath before he exhaled slowly and dragged his gaze back to my face. Embarrassment washed over me, and I was certain I must be blushing. I’ve always been subconscious of my enormous chest. My petite size was not blessed with two perky apple- or pear-sized breasts that could fit in a man’s palm. Instead, I was bosomy, and my breasts had their own center of gravity.
He crossed his arms over his chest, mimicking my pose, and affected a stern a
ttitude by tapping one foot. But the twinkle in his eyes gave him away. I couldn’t resist smiling at his antics. Was this flirting?
“All right, you win.” I closed my eyes.
“No peeking.” He moved behind me and covered my eyes with his hands. “On the count of three you can open your eyes. One… Two… Two and a quarter… Two and—”
“Come on, already.” I laughed.
“Did anyone ever tell you good things come to those who wait?” The brush of his breath over my skin gave me goosebumps. The great ones, not the bad ones you get when you are cold or afraid.
“Ok, you can open your eyes now.” He didn’t remove his hands but separated his fingers just enough for me to peer through them. The sight was unbelievable. I slid his hands off of my face.
“Oh my. This is real?” I asked over my shoulder. He smiled and nodded, placing his hands on my waist.
Everything was green. I had only seen such scenery on the National Geographic rerun episodes of Earth before the meltdown. Vegetation flourished everywhere, which baffled me. There were trees with real leaves that fluttered in the wind. Not as tall as the artificial ones with stiff leaves planted in the cities to remind people of how it used to be. Wild grass danced in the wind, and you could hear the murmur of music when a breeze swept through the blades. A clear blue stream snaked through the trees, the water sparkling in the sunlight.
Never had I seen a more beautiful sight.
Chapter Eight
I staggered out of the drain tunnel and into the open sky, my gait unsteady, as if drunk from the sight in front of me. Different emotions choked me. I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Maverick squeezed my hand. I hadn’t realized I still held onto his.
“Wh—where are we?”
“Outside the city walls.”
Everything looked perfect. Just like in the nature documentaries I loved to watch.
“This is what I discovered a few years ago.” He swept his hand in front of him. “After I stumbled upon evidence that Mother manipulated the atmospheric spheres, I just knew something was off and had to dig further. I assumed the truth lay outside the city, in an area outside the domes. My grandfather had a cabin outside the city limits that he abandoned when everyone had to move to live under the artificial atmospheric spheres. But I had no way of getting there from above land because of the wall boxing us in, so I stole the underground sewage plans. Long story short, I got lost in the network of tunnels and accidentally ended up here.”
“Did you find it?”
“Did I find what?”
“Your grandfather’s cabin.”
He smiled the lopsided smile that made my insides turn to mush. “I did, and that’s where we’re going. I’ll explain the rest when we’re sheltered.”
My legs trembled from having done so much walking already. I needed rest and nourishment, but I put on a brave face and smiled back.
We followed the river but stayed concealed in the trees in case the drones were looking for us. The forest was alive with activity. Birds sang while sitting and flying among the branches. Insects buzzed around my face, causing me to slap myself while swatting them away. The sound of my feet treading on the soft ground, the cracking of twigs and crushing of leaves were all alien to me. The air smelled fresh, and, I imagined, organic. I had never breathed in a natural environment before.
By the time we arrived at his grandfather’s cabin, the sun sat low on the horizon. The old cabin seemed alive with green moss growing on the logs and tree branches covering the roof. The outside looked disheveled with a few panes of glass cracked but not broken and the green paint peeled with age. But it was otherwise intact. I stepped onto the rickety porch, and the boards creaked under my feet.
“That’s my alarm system.” Maverick said while fiddling with the lock. “And before you ask, I don’t want to put on a new lock in case the patrols stumble upon this place. They won’t know somebody has been here recently.” The lock clicked. He pushed open the creaking door, bowed low and with the sweep of his hand invited me in. “Welcome to my castle.”
I straightened my posture; pushed back my shoulders, lifted my chin, stared straight ahead of me, and majestically strolled past him and into the cabin, only to choke on a cloud of dust. So much for my elegant entrance. The wind from the open door disturbed a thick layer of dust covering every visible surface.
“Sorry. I try to keep the place looking deserted. That means disturbing the dust as little as possible. But no worries, I keep the furniture clean under the plastic covers.” He explained that the cabin was off the grid and lighted a few candles he found in the kitchen. An underwater well supplied fresh water for the cabin.
His pantry hid a treasure throve. He kept all sorts of canned food and dried biscuits. He heated a can of chili that we ate embarrassingly fast. When we put our spoons down at the same time and glanced at each other’s bowl wiped clean, we erupted with laughter. It felt good to laugh again. I couldn’t remember the last time I had shared a meal with someone. After he washed up and made some tea, he settled down to explain the mess he had dragged me into.
“When I discovered this place and the growing vegetation, I had more questions than answers. I already knew that Mother manipulated the temperature to keep it scorching hot underneath the domes, but I couldn’t understand how just a few miles outside the city walls, nature thrived, but inside the walls the land remained barren.”
He racked both hands through his hair, causing his strands to poke in every direction. I squeezed my fingers together under the table. They tingled with the urge to touch the softness of his tousled hair.
“I collected samples of leaves from the various trees and bushes around the area. It would have been impossible to analyze them in my lab at Sento Technologies without being discovered. So I contacted someone trustworthy.”
His hand trembled slightly when he stirred his tea. He was nervous. I remained silent, and waited for him to continue. His following words startled me.
“I contacted Dr. Stephen Fleming.”
“Wh—What?” I jumped out of my chair, sending it crashing behind me. I had to get out of there.
He had expected my reaction and leaped out of his chair to catch my hand before I could take two steps towards the door. “Calm down, Helios. Stephen and I have been collaborating in secret since my discovery.”
He picked up my chair and gestured for me to sit. I was too much of a coward to do otherwise. He returned to his seat and poured us more tea. He made sure his movements were slow and calm, to reassure me he wasn’t a threat.
“I’ve been coming back here every few months to gather fresh samples of vegetation and to plant various species of vegetables Stephen gave me to test how they would fare in this environment.”
My gaze lowered, out of habit, I suppose. But the revelations spiked my curiosity, and I looked at him from beneath my lashes. Dark circles that I hadn’t noticed before shadowed his eyes. He looked tired and vulnerable. He rubbed his eyes with his fingers. I wanted to say something comforting, but remained silent.
“After months of testing and analyzing, Stephen confirmed that the sun was no longer a danger. We weren’t sure how long ago the ozone had healed itself, but from the luxuriance of the vegetation we guessed anywhere between three to five years.”
“Then why isn’t anything growing in the city and why is the sun still dangerous?”
“Well, that is more difficult to prove. We believe that the government is deliberately keeping us under the artificial atmospheric sphere. They keep the temperature blazing and the artificial sun rays intense so people think they would burn if they ventured outdoors. We also think they are spraying with an odorless pesticide to kill any vegetation that might grow.”
“But why?” I ventured to ask.
“Our guess is to keep the ninety-nine percent of the population poor and dependent on the one percent, wealthy and powerful.”
This was too much for my mind to take in. I couldn’t fathom h
ow a government could keep its own people in servitude and deny them a decent life. I wanted to refute everything he said, but the undeniable truth was right outside that door.
“But you have no proof?”
He shook his head. “I have proof that nature is healthy, and the ozone is replenished, but I don’t have proof to assert our theory that the government is forcing us to remain indoors or underground. Getting this supporting data is how we got caught.”
“What do you mean?”
“Stephen and I had devised two plans. In the first scenario, he would go to the government and bluff that he had unveiled the truth about the protective domes. He had enough influence that we expected the government to take him seriously.”
“What happened to Dr. Fleming? The officer said you killed him.”
Maverick didn’t answer. He got up and poured the rest of his lukewarm tea in the sink, then leaned against the table, close enough for his knee to touch mine. I held my breath. I didn’t know what to expect from him.
“Helios, look at me.” His voice was soft. “I swear to you that I did not kill Stephen. He was my friend and ally.”
“Then who killed him?”
“I don’t know, but I’m guessing a mercenary did the job. Only three people were aware of our findings. Stephen, me, and a friend of Stephen’s in the army. I’ve never met him, and I don’t know his name. Early on, Stephen and I decided to keep my identity a secret. We suspected he’d be under surveillance and muzzled if Plan A backfired. If no one knew of my existence, I could continue with Plan B. I can only assume the killer was from the army.”
“What was Plan B?” I ventured to ask.
His eyes bore into mine and his mouth set into a flat line. “Plan B was to find you.”
Chapter Nine
He saw my panicked glance towards the door but I didn’t move. I wouldn’t be able to outrun him. A lengthy pause ensued while Maverick waited for my reaction.