The Phoenix Project

by M. R. Pritchard

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  The grey moonlight fills the sky and filters through the leaves. The branches have been trimmed back creating a soft glowing tunnel. Lina is still sound asleep on Adam’s shoulder. The light is getting brighter and I can see that we are nearing the end of the tunnel. Adam slows, creeping towards the exit. I do the same and reach down to hold Stevie’s collar, preventing her from bounding out into the clearing. I can see the shadow of the large black train in front of us. Adam pulls back a thick branch that covers the exit. He waits, looking up and down the length of the train. Then he looks back to me, for the first time in hours.

  “Let’s go, quickly.” He holds the branch as Stevie and I walk past him. The train is seven cars long. Adam brings us to the sixth car and pushes open the heavy metal door.

  “Stevie up.” I pat the floor to the train car and she backs up, running and leaping into it. I place my hands on the floor of the train car and jump, struggling to pull my lower body into the car. I feel Adam push up on my feet to help.

  “Don’t touch me!” I snap back at him. Once I get myself inside I turn around to get Lina. Adam passes her to me then reaches up to pass me his flashlight. I take it from him, refusing to look at his face. He grabs my forearm.

  “Andie, I need you to trust me, now more than ever.” He waits, holding my arm until I look at him. But I can’t bring myself to look in his eyes, he’s hurt me far more than I think Crane ever could have.

  “You should have thought of that before.” I yank my arm away from him so hard I almost fall over.

  “I’m sorry, Andie.” With that he slides the heavy door to the train closed.

  I catch one last glimpse into his eyes just before the door closes.

  I lean back against the hard metal wall of the train car. It smells old, musty, there is a heavy layer of dirt covering the floor. Stevie wanders through the large cargo area. I flick the flashlight on and look around. It is empty and almost pitch black with the flashlight off. Somehow, Lina continues to sleep.

  Now we wait. I fume over Adam’s lies to me, barely noticing that there’s a tiny tingle of joy over being free of the District, finally, and getting to see Sam after over a year without him in our lives. Suddenly, I am hit with a wave of nausea, similar to what I would experience after a night of work in the NICU. I lean my head back against the wall and close my eyes, hoping that maybe if I can get a little bit of sleep it will help pass the time.

  The dull heavy sound of the train horn wakes me and the train car jerks hard into motion, sending me falling onto my side and hitting my head against the metal wall. The train starts moving slowly.

  “Mom?” Lina wakes up.

  I sit up and pull her onto my lab. “It’s ok, Lina. It’s just the train.”

  “What happened to the seats?” She looks around the car with the flashlight.

  “It’s not that kind of a train. Just sit with me until it gets moving. I don’t want you to fall.”

  From a small crack, between the metal walls, I watch the trees pass in the moonlight as the train moves. Adam said the train travels for about five miles before it reaches the Gateway then he has to get out and punch in the code to get the electric fence to open. At this rate it feels like it will take forever to get through the five miles.

  Lina lies against me and I un-wrap the scarf from her head, and mine, placing them in my backpack. “We aren’t coming back are we, Mom?” She asks. I should have known she would sense that the trip wasn’t right, sneaking out at night, walking through the woods, and now the train.

  “No, honey. I hope not.”

  We sit in silence and listen to the train, the way it creeks and groans. When it stops I look out the crack. I can see the electric fence stretching through the forest, it must be twenty feet high with a thick curling of barbed wire on top of it. “Look, Lina, we can see out through this crack.” I point to the thin strip of pale light on the wall. Lina adjusts herself so she can see out of it.

  “Mom, why are there people outside?” She asks.

  “What?” My heart starts fluttering.

  “Look.” She points in front of the car. But I don’t need to look. I can hear men arguing, and the voices are familiar. Before I have time to stand up and run to the other side of the car with Lina, the heavy door concealing us opens.

  There stands a group of men, mostly Volker. As my eyes adjust to the bright light I see Crane looking very out of place in his suit and Adam, standing behind the crowd, his arms crossed over his chest, angry.

  Crane speaks first. “Andromeda? How very odd it is to find you here,” He smiles his signature smug smile. “We have Catalina also, and even the dog.” Stevie growls at him from the open door. “Come now, Andromeda, get yourself out of there so these fine men can escort you home.”

  My gut drops, my heart races, I’m sweating. We had been wanting to escape for weeks, months even. And then Crane waltzes in destroying our hopes of escape. Adam watches me intently. I do my best to climb out of the train car and turn to reach up for Lina. Once she is in my arms I don’t set her down. She buries her face in my neck, scared.

  “You see, Adam. I told you that you were hauling precious cargo.” Crane looks expectantly between me and Adam. He must have known, or sensed something between us. This must be why Adam had been ignoring me for so long, trying to lead Crane away from our relationship, so he wouldn’t sense that we were plotting behind his back. I know that I have to at least try and preserve Crane’s trust in Adam. Because even though I am angry with him, he kept his word. And he is the only one who can save us from whatever punishment Crane has planned.

  “I followed him,” I tell Crane, my voice shaky. “He didn’t know, he had nothing to do with this.” It’s the best lie I’ve ever told, it even sounds believable coming out of my mouth.

  Crane raises his eyebrows. “You followed Adam through the woods, at night, with a child and a dog? I find that hard to believe, Andromeda.”

  “It’s true. I’ve been watching him, for months. Keeping track of when he leaves, what truck he drives. We snuck out, at dark, hid in the trunk, waited under a blanket and the trail was easy to follow.” I do my best to keep my face calm and relaxed so Crane will believe me.

  “Well, this is some interesting news. All this time, I never suspected you would try this, that you could plan it. I never took you for a stowaway. Are you so unhappy with our service here, Andromeda, even after all you have been provided with, the status you’ve been assigned?”

  “I miss my life, before this.” That was easy to tell him, because it was the absolute truth.

  “Well, I am sorry for you. District rules supersede here. You will be brought back to your living quarters.” He turns stoically to Adam. “My apologies Colonel Waters, you may continue on with your duties, Godspeed.” Crane waves his hand in circular motion, signaling the Volker to collect us.

  We are ushered to a small road near the fence where there is a waiting line of black SUVs. I carry Lina and Stevie follows us closely. The Volker break up, some of them walking back towards the train and the gateway, a few others get into waiting SUVs and driving off. One guard remains; he opens the back door of a vehicle. I tell Stevie to get in and place Lina beside her and buckle her in. I close the door and walk around to the other side of the SUV with the Volker; he opens the rear door and waits for me to get in. There is a loud, static crackle from the radio inside the truck. He opens the front door, reaching for the radio. And that’s all it takes, one small distraction.

  Suddenly someone is pulling me by the arm, backwards, away from the SUV where Lina and Stevie are. I hear Stevie barking and Lina yelling my name.

  “Help, help!” I yell just before a hand clamps over my mouth.

  The Volker looks up from where he is stretched across the driver’s seat trying to answer the radio. He slams the door shut, locking Lina and Stevie inside. Then he is yelling for the other Volker who should be nearby. He doesn’t run for me, for whoever is dragging me
, to stop them. I’m thankful that he doesn’t leave Lina’s side that he stays to protect her.

  I hear the hustle of people running through the woods from where we came, footsteps, shouting. But it’s too late. I turn see who is pulling me, only to find it’s the last person I want to be stuck in a vehicle with. Crane. I struggle, but somehow, he’s stronger, much stronger than the last time he tried to manhandle me, months ago in the lab. I am unable to push him away.

  “In the car, Andromeda!” He yells fiercely at me.

  “What are you trying to do, Crane?” I struggle with him trying to push him away from me, slapping at him, but all it takes is one hard shove from him and my head hits the side of the SUV, hard.

  I can feel the warm trickle of blood down the side of my face and just before I crumple to the ground he shoves me hard, again, pushing me into the back of the SUV. I fall onto the bench seat, my vision blurry, my head fuzzy. Crane slams the door, then climbs into the driver’s seat and starts the car. He doesn’t give it time to warm up before he accelerates, fast, I hear the tires kick up rocks and hit the vehicle that Lina and Stevie are in as we pass them. I sit up and turn to see a row of Volker standing, watching as Crane drives away. Some of them have their pistols aimed, ready to shoot. But no one fires. No one wants to risk hitting me with a bullet.

  Crane speeds down the dirt road kicking up dust and rocks in his wake. He skids onto a paved road, hitting the incline hard, causing my head to hit the roof of the SUV. I reach up touching the top of my head, trying to hold pressure on the sharp stinging sensation. It’s when I slide my hand down the side of my face, feeling something wet and sticky that I remember Crane bashed my head into the side of the vehicle. I pull my hand away and stare at my palm caked in thick, dark blood. And I’m not sure if it’s the blood, the two hits to the head, the lack of sleep, maybe it’s everything combined which is just enough to make me pass out.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  Somehow, I am back on the train, this time Lina is sitting next to me on a plush bench and Stevie sleeps at our feet. We watch out the window as we pass by the trees and houses. Lina excitedly points out deer and birds and horses that we pass. Her hair is flowing, a mane of curls, so blonde they are almost white. I reach up and run my hand over her hair, pulling her to me and hugging her. “I love you, little Catalina,” I whisper in her ear. She smiles up at me. I haven’t seen her so happy in so long. I look around the train and it’s empty, except for us. Then I remember we left the District, we are on our way out. We are finally free.

  But something is wrong. My vision isn’t as clear, the edges are cloudy, the sun too bright. The train jolts to a stop and I hit my face on the seat in front of us. When I look back to Lina she is no longer there sitting next to me. I hear her voice, yelling, screaming, calling me. But I can’t see her anywhere, except when I look out the window I see a man dragging her away. He is tall, slender with blonde hair. I know who he is before he even turns around. It’s Ian, dragging Lina away from me. I try to stand, to run after them, to stop him, but my hands and feet won’t move. They’re heavy like they are stuck to something. The train jerks into motion again, hard, causing me to smash my face onto the seat in front of me, my vision fades away quickly and everything goes black.

  --

  This time when I wake I am in a dark room, with damp cement walls, my cheek pressing against a musty, pale linoleum floor. There are no windows, just a single bare bulb hanging from the ceiling, and a door with a small square window. Dread fills me, this is not a dream. This is real. This is Crane’s doing. The Volker would have deposited me back at the loft to resume my duties. They would not be involved in whatever Crane has planned. I try to push myself up off the ground but my arms are secured together, in front of me, with a plastic zip tie. The door opens and in walks Crane carrying a chair. He closes the door behind him and sets the chair down, sitting in it. He sits there, watching me, like I’m nothing more than a caged animal.

  “Where’s Lina?”

  “You needn’t worry about your child any longer. We had an agreement, you broke it, you’ve lost her, for good this time.”

  “No!” I scream at him, at the thought of losing her. His words should crush me, but instead they infuriate me. “What do you want from me?” I ask him, annoyed.

  “I’m just observing, Andromeda. Trying to figure out where I went wrong with you.” He taps his index finger on his chin and continues to stare at me.

  I struggle to sit myself up. Somehow I manage by raising my leg and pushing off the hard floor with my elbow. I adjust myself, sitting cross legged, letting my tied arms lie in front of me, my fists resting on the floor.

  “We are not compatible, Crane.” He sits there, tapping his chin, waiting. “We cannot be paired.”

  “What makes you think that?”

  “First of all, I can’t have any more children and you are genetically incompetent.”

  “Really?”

  “Did you think I wouldn’t find it, that you could bury it in your piles of data? It was almost too easy to find it, Crane. You carry a bad gene. You know this though, spinal muscular atrophy. Any child you bring into this world, with your DNA will most likely suffer a horrible, incurable death. But I’m sure I don’t need to explain this to you. You seem well educated and knowledgeable. You know this already.”

  “You know, Andromeda, we could have worked around both of these issues. I’ve found ways to work around them before.”

  “It doesn’t matter, Crane. I want nothing to do with you.”

  “Yes, I have begun to realize this; you’re blatant disrespect for me, even after all I’ve given you is quite obvious. You were different before. I never saw this in you, the deceit, the defiance, the poor attitude. Perhaps it was simply muted by the hopes I had for us.”

  “What did you think was going to happen when you ruined my family, when you ruined my life? Did you think I would run to you, willing, with open arms? With all your power and knowledge, this is your fatal flaw, Crane. This is why your little experiment here will never work. You can’t control people’s emotions. You can’t force someone to want you; no one can manipulate the human heart that way, especially you.”

  “Yes. I suppose you are correct, Andromeda. Still, I was hoping you’d be different. I was hoping you would see what we are trying to do here. The Funding Entities will be saddened to learn of what you’ve become. And it pains me to know we can never replace you.” He continues tapping his chin. I listen to his words, trying to understand what he’s saying to me, and the only thing I can conclude is that he’s going to kill me. He raises his index finger in the air, pausing for a moment. “Yes, well, I cannot replace you, but I can make sure you never try to leave again. I was hoping it wouldn’t come to this, Andromeda, but it seems you need clarification on the rules of the District. Of all people, I was certain you would understand this the most, well, with all that you have to lose.”

  He stands and walks towards me, there’s something shiny in his hand, silver and pointed. I flinch as he points it towards me, expecting him to cut me with it or stab me, but he just cuts the zip tie that was holding my hands together.

  “Just to make it fair,” he says.

  I scramble to my feet, not knowing what to expect next. The sudden movement causes me to sway, and my head to feel heavy. Crane picks up his chair and walks out of the room closing the door behind him.

  I wait for a moment, looking around the room. I can hear the sound of deep voices outside the door and I walk over to listen. I’m not tall enough to see out the small window and there is nothing to stand on in here. Someone wiggles the lock, I back up to the middle of the room. The door opens and in walks a large man, a dark man. It takes only a few moments for me to recognize him, which is easy, because last time I saw him he was dangling my body over a bridge.

  “Baillie,” I whisper. This causes a loud burst of his familiar laughter to erupt from deep within his chest. “I thought you were dead. The Volker shot y
ou. I saw you lying in a pool of blood.” He keeps laughing and for a moment I think I must be dreaming. I look around the room, trying to find an escape a weapon, anything. I rub my eyes hard, trying to wake myself up, but when I open them he’s still in the room with me.

  “It’s amazing what modern medicine can do these days, isn’t it?” he erupts in laughter again. I’m not sure if he’s laughing from his statement, which really wasn’t funny, or from my bewildered response to him entering the room. “Crane tells me I was reassigned to the convict faction. He only just withdrew my medications to deal with you.” His heavy southern accent is the same. He talks slowly dragging out the conversation. But I want him to stop, to stop talking and leave. “According to him, if I do a good job, he will reinstate me.”

  “Oh God no,” I hope he doesn’t hear me talk under my breath, still he erupts in laughter.

  “Enough with the talking. I’ve been waiting to do this since I first met you.” Baillie cracks the knuckles on both of his hands. Crane should have left my arms bound, because there is no way in hell that this could ever be a fair fight.

  I am not a fighter, but I will not just stand here and make it easy for him. Baillie is at least double my size, a monster, but I am short and quick, I hope. He lunges at me and I kick him in the shin as hard as I can, then I sprint to the other side of the room. Baillie just laughs, lunging at me again. This time I aim for his groin but I miss hitting the inside of his thigh, provoking another bout of laughter from him. I try the same method of sprinting away from him but his long arm shoots out hitting me in the face. I drop backwards falling to the ground. I try to roll, but it took me too long to recover, Baillie is looming over me in no time. I look to the door to see Crane watching from the small window, and for the first time ever, I think he might actually look sad. His image is just enough to distract me from trying to get away from Baillie, from trying to brace myself, and I’m not sure if he is truly so strong or if it’s the anticipation of the pain that makes Baillie’s second hit feel like a Mac truck is running into my face.