"Yes, I did."
"Excellent. I would shake your hand, Mr. Athill, but it doesn't look like you want to stand up, so we'll just show ourselves out. Thank you for your time."
The complex chief yells at our retreating backs, "It won't pass. Don't waste your breath, and if by some miracle it does pass, you will be personally responsible for the financial downfall of our country."
Brock turns around long enough to say, "Good day, Mr. Athill."
The door is almost shut when we hear, "I look forward to personally pinning a red button on your son when he arrives in a couple years, Mr. Hamble. You don't want me as an enemy."
"It's too late for that." Brock's hands are shaking when he forcefully shuts the door.
Chapter 24
We move silently from the conference room to the front door together. I look furtively around for anyone I might know down the long gray hall and I'm rewarded with a glimpse of Maxine carrying a box of something from the doctor's office, I'm guessing, to who knows where. I almost call out to her, but I stop myself.
Brock's bodyguard collects his weapons at the door and we stroll to our cars before speaking. I sidle up to my brother. "You were amazing in there, Brock. I was afraid you'd let him push you around like one of his employees, but you showed him who's boss."
My brother's frown turns into a smirk as he clicks off the camera on his briefcase. "He's worried. Could you tell? That is a very good sign for us."
Damon shakes his head. "I can't believe that last biting remark about your son. What a jerk."
Brock's jaw clenches. "I know. He's going to regret that." He then turns to his assistant. "Thank you, Jiang. I'm sorry I didn't let you get a word in edgewise. I'll see you tomorrow." Jiang bows respectfully to my brother. "Yes, Mr. Hamble, sir. I will see you tomorrow." My brother turns to the rest of us. "Damon, make sure you send me a copy of your notes."
"I will."
"Hop in, and I'll get you two home." We climb in and I become an Elira sandwich again, much to Damon's delight. I try to scoot my legs away from my admirer. I really miss Garth.
I look at my brother curiously. "Where are you staying tonight, Brock?"
"I think I'll stay at Mom and Dad's, and then I'll take the monorail in the morning. I'm too tired to travel more tonight."
"Will Chantilly be okay with you doing that?"
My brother's eyes dart around nervously. "Um, she decided to move in with her parents for a little while, so she doesn't even know where I am right now, unless she's watching the news, I guess."
I reach for his arm. "I'm so sorry. What happened?"
My brother keeps his eyes low. "She told me that if I tried to repeal the Complex Law, she'd leave me. She wasn't kidding. She left two days ago with Joy."
That woman doesn't deserve my brother. I feel so bad for him. "I'm sure she'll have a change of heart once the baby is born. She'll love him so much, she'll want you to ensure his freedom."
"I hope so." Ring, ring.
Brock's burly bodyguard turns around. "Mr. Hamble, sir, do you want me to answer your car phone?"
"Yes, please."
The bodyguard's voice is deep and smooth. "Hello? Oh, yes. He's right here."
The bodyguard seems almost speechless for a moment. "Mr. Hamble, sir, it's the President of The United Cities on the line for you."
Brock raises his eyebrows. "Really? Put him on speaker phone." He quickly clicks the camera back on and takes a deep breath. "Hello? This is Senator Brock Hamble."
There is a long pause before we hear the President's deep voice. "Hello, Mr. Hamble. I feel like I know you so well, even though this is my first time speaking with you since I swore you in."
My brother chuckles. "Yes, I could say the same thing about you. Your changes to the Complex Law are legendary."
"So, you're letting me know that you don't like me, from the start."
Brock nods. "Basically."
"Well, to be honest, I don't like you either."
I love the smile on my brother's face. "Why not? Most people do these days."
"Cheeky. I don't like you because you are trying to undo 40 years of hard work-my life's legacy, you could say."
Brock looks at all of us with a self-assured smile before he answers. "I would say the timing of my actions is perfect for you. You are turning 80 in a year, are you not? I doubt you are looking forward to the accommodations at the Adanlay Complex for the Elderly."
The President's deep voice says slowly, "I am not as decrepit as you think I am, Mr. Hamble."
"I don't think you're decrepit at all. In fact, when I repeal the Complex Law, you won't have to go to the Complex for the Elderly."
"I have no intention of going into the Complex for the Elderly no matter what happens, young man."
"But our laws apply to everyone in the country, don't they? Even you?"
The President sniffs. "When you have spent 40 years of your life in public service, you will agree that you deserve a few perks for your efforts."
"So, you believe the law applies to everyone but you."
There is a lengthy pause. "Mr. Hamble, if you switched sides on this thing, I'm sure I could make an exception for your immediate family as well."
"Well, that is something for me to consider, but do you think that it is fair to the rest of the country if they have to follow the laws that we wrote, but we don't?"
The President raises his voice. "Life isn't fair, Mr. Hamble. I have worked hard all my life to make this country one that we can be proud of. You don't want to undo all of that, do you?"
Brock shakes his head in disgust. "The thing that is different about your pride in our country and my pride in our country is that I think everyone has the right to make their own life what they want it to be; you think that only people who look and function like you do."
There is an audible sigh on the other end of the line. "I have been thinking about the comforts, or lack of them, in the complexes lately. I understand why you're doing this, Hamble. I don't agree with it, but I understand it."
Brock raises his eyebrows at me. "So where do we go from here?"
"I want the protests to stop. I want to be able to leave my house in peace again."
Brock leans toward the camera. "I want that too."
"If this joke of an idea doesn't pass, will you convince the people to stop accosting me?"
Brock pauses. "Yes, if you let us vote on it, I will convince my supporters to leave you alone, no matter how the vote turns out."
"You'll have to get one million signatures in order to get an emergency vote for this despicable thing. At least 51% of the people will have to vote for it to pass. If it does, you have a lot of social restructuring to do in every city so that the infrastructure of the country doesn't collapse."
"I have a plan in the works for a new infrastructure too. I want the best for this country, Mr. President. I will take care of everything."
"I'm sure you believe that, but if you have forgotten anyone or anything, the citizens of this country will be furious at you. You will go down in history as the man who took a peaceful country and dropped it on its head to bleed out until it ceased to exist."
Brock raises his eyebrows yet again. "Mr. President, I plan to go down in history as someone who did something brave, new, and ethically-correct for all citizens."
Chapter 25
I wake up to someone banging on our hideout door. Why did we tell so many people where they can find us? I slide out of bed and open the door. Damon is standing there smirking at me. "Good morning, sunshine. Okay, so we need one million signatures in order to get an emergency vote. Are you ready to divide and conquer?"
I wipe my eyes unenthusiastically. "Sure. That's what I do these days."
His smile droops. "Are you gett
ing tired of this?"
I look around the room as I figure out a response. "Uh, I want the law to change, but-I want to go home. I miss Garth."
Damon's bright eyes lose their sparkle. "I-I thought maybe you liked this time away from him. We've been working so well together."
I hate hurting my friend, but he agreed to be friends, didn't he? "Damon, I like you. You are an amazing friend and a political genius, but I miss Garth. I-love him."
Damon rolls his eyes. "Okay. I can see you are burning out. I was going to give you and Greggory all of Herrington, but I've changed my mind. Could you pass out flyers on this side of town at least?"
He is such a go-getter. I should help him. He's helping Brock, and me. "Yeah. I-we can do that." I look at my brother who nods unenthusiastically from the couch.
Damon shifts his weight from foot to foot. "Do you at least want to meet me at the protestor's rally tonight?"
I really don't want to. Doesn't he ever take a break from politics? It gets exhausting after a while. "No. I-have something else I need to get done. I'm sorry, but maybe another time."
Damon takes a deep breath in and lets it out. "All right. Here's the flyers. Take care of yourself." Damon frowns as he squeezes my hand and walks out the door.
Greggory is looking at me with raised eyebrows from the couch. I slump next to him and scowl. He turns my grouchy face towards him. "I wondered if you were going to forget about Garth and fall for that guy."
I throw my hands in the air. "No. He's a great guy, but he's all work and practically no play. He is exhausting me."
"I don't know why he wants us to go door to door again. If they broadcast where people can sign the petition on the news, I bet half the city would flock there on their own."
I scowl at him. "Why didn't you tell him that?"
Greggory grins. "I liked watching you two make each other miserable too much."
I punch my brother in the arm. "That's not-nice."
He laughs. "I'm sorry. You deserve better." He kisses my forehead.
The wet spot on my forehead makes me realize how much my brother has done for me lately. I smile at him. "I know I haven't said it like I should, but thank you for helping me through all the craziness since we put the video on the news, Greggory."
He smiles at me and punches me back in the shoulder. "I finally realize after spending this time with you how much we missed out on while you were in the complex." He points to the picture of our family that we took with us from the news station. "You deserve to be happy. I see how much you miss Garth. He brings out the best in you."
The thought makes me a little bit teary. "Yes, he does." I nudge my brother with my elbow. "Does anyone make you happy?"
His eyes dart away from me. "Well, I do have someone on my mind a lot. I'm the Damon in that story though. She's taken and she's not going to change her mind for a black sheep like me."
I hope he's ready to talk about this. "Avra?"
Greggory flips his face around to face me. "How did you know?"
I smile as I remember what my brother was like the first time I met him. "You became a kinder, gentler person after you met her. I've seen the affection you have for her in your eyes."
My brother frowns. "Well, it's a wasted effort. I need to be happy for her and Scott."
I pat my brother's knee in sympathy. "Yeah, probably. Avra and Scott are great together. Answer me this, what do you see in her? From what I gather of your former life," I gesture with my arm around the room, "it doesn't seem like she would be your type."
He smiles. "True. I don't know. I guess I like that she has so many problems and still manages to be happy and beautiful and kind. Not all girls are that way."
I smile at my rough-around-the-edges brother, because his character is shining through. "I get it." I look at the picture of our family again, and remember his promise to give it to me if I did something for him. "Hey-if I put in a good word for you with Avra, will you give me that picture?"
Greggory smiles to himself. "Yes. I will accept that deal."
I laugh to myself. "I promised Scott that I'd tell you to stay away from her."
He raises his eyebrows. "So does this mean that you're on my side?"
"More or less." I grin at my brother. "Why don't you call Damon and tell him your idea about advertising on the news."
He stands up. "Okay, why not." Greggory calls Damon on our ancient phone and explains his idea. "Perfect. We'll just wait on the flyers till after noon then. Good luck."
I just had a thought. "Does the government have any pull on what goes on the news and what doesn't?"
Greggory snorts. "Yeah, they do. In fact, Damon thinks he can sneak onto the news by sending protestors with the information on where to sign the petition on their giant signs. The news reporters love to show the annoying blockades that protestors and their signs cause on the news even if they've been told not to encourage the Complex Law repeal."
I nod my head. "That might just work."
My brother yawns and stretches his arms. "We're supposed to hold off on taking flyers until we've heard from him at noon."
I might have a free day... "Good. I-I want to break into Mom and Dad's house-to see Garth."
"Elira, that is a bad idea."
I feel my hopes evaporate. "I know, but I don't know if I can handle being away from him one more minute."
"There is a peace officer in the house at all times."
I look around the room for something that will help me. "What if I dressed up like a carpet cleaner or something? There has to be a way to get in there."
Greggory nods at my ingenuity. "We don't have a carpet cleaning machine though."
"Well, there must be something I can be."
He shakes his head like thinking hurts too much. "I can't think of anything that would make sense to fix in the basement."
I bat my eyelashes at him. "You could come with me and see Avra..."
My brother struggles within himself whether to be reckless or responsible. "I-I want to, but we are undesirables number one and number two right now."
I think of a compromise. "How about this-if Damon gets the news to broadcast where to sign the petition, we celebrate by breaking in to see our friends. If he doesn't, we spend the rest of the day going door to door with flyers-again."
Greggory shrugs. "Okay, I can live with that."
I shriek with delight. "Turn on the news. I want to know the minute your plan works." I get the paper and a pen out of the roll top desk to write Garth another note. Knock, knock. Who in the world can that be?
My brother leans against the door. "Who is it?"
"It's Jack Long. You are trespassing on my property."
I run behind the wall of boxes and signal with my hand that Greggory is going to have to deal with his friend. Greggory opens the door. "Jack, my friend! It's so great to see you after all these years! You've put on a pound or two."
Jack doesn't sound as enthusiastic. "You are such a punk, G. You could've at least asked for permission to use this place."
I can almost hear the smile I'm sure is on Greggory's face. "Sorry, man. We were in a bad situation and this was the only hiding place I could think of."
"That's funny, because when I was watching the news yesterday, the peace officers were completely bewildered how you could be hiding so well in this city. I knew immediately where you were. I came to see if I was right, and it looks like I am."
"Ha, ha. You were always a clever guy. Is this going to be a problem? We've cleaned up the place; it was an abandoned mess when we got here."
"Who's we?"
"Uh, my girlfriend and me."
"Nice try. Your escapee sister is here too, isn't she?"
Greggory sounds nervous to me. "No, man. I had a girl here fo
r some fun the other day, but she's gone now. Do your parents know I'm here?"
"I'm sure my parents don't know and wouldn't care either. I-on the other hand might need a little somethin'-somethin' to keep my mouth shut..."
My brother's voice hardens. "Really, Jack? I thought we were friends, man."
"We are. I could turn you in for $20,000, but because we're friends, I won't do that. The thing is, my parents have kicked me out of their basement, and I'm a little short on cash. You're a little short on a hiding place, so I think we can help each other out. What do you say?"
"I don't have much, Jack. I'm away from my parents."
Jack's voice is insistent. "Open your wallet and let's see what's inside." I peer around the wall of boxes to see what my brother will do.
Greggory opens his wallet and pulls out the $150 that we have left to our names. "If I give this to you, I'm going to starve down here."
"That's not my problem. This will keep my lips sealed for two days. I'll be back in a couple days for your next installment of-rent."
Greggory raises his voice. "If I'm paying rent, then I demand some improvements in this hole."
"Not a chance, this is the best you're going to get. Have a nice day."
Chapter 26
As soon as the door clicks, I walk out from behind the wall of boxes. "Well, I think my idea to go to Mom and Dad's house is getting better and better all the time."
My brother won't look at me and keeps shaking his head. "Jack is such a selfish jerk. I can't believe he would do that to me."
I smirk as I remember the first time I met Greggory. "I believe you wanted to know how much I was worth the first time you meet me."
My brother is silent for a minute. "I-yeah. He and I were one and the same for years. Please tell me I'm less disgusting than him now."
I pat him on the back. "You are night and day different."
"Good. I'm going to estimate how much food we have left." He walks to the refrigerator. "We have about four meals in here, and Jack will be back for more money in two days..."
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