“Hey, where’s Feenix?”
Charlie dropped the slice of bacon he had just picked up and looked at his friend. Then he looked over Deron and lowered his eyes.
“She passed away a few days ago.”
“I’m sorry, man. I thought that dog would live forever.”
“She seemed like she was going to. She went way past the average for her breed. But I guess it’s best that she did, considering everything that’s happened.”
Deron struggled not to cry at this news, which on top of everything else was just too much for him to take. To his surprise, he found himself thinking about his mom and missing her too. He pressed his lips together, trying to keep control, but he lost it when Michelle went to comfort him by reaching for his hand.
Everyone was silent for a moment as Deron struggled to regain his composure. He squeezed his eyes shut for a few seconds, swallowed, then said, “I’m going to miss Feenix. She was the best.”
Charlie nodded. Emile wanted to change the subject. This was too depressing. He glanced around the table to see everyone’s progress with their breakfast.
“Anyone need more to eat?”
Deron and Michelle declined and thanked him for the offer. Charlie said he was just about stuffed as he finished off his scrambled eggs.
Emile got up and took his coffee with him as he walked onto the lawn and lit a cigarette away from the kids who were still eating. Deron told Michelle he’d be back in a few minutes and followed Emile, asking the older man if he could spare a smoke.
Michelle looked at Charlie with a measure of hope in her eyes and asked, “Will your friend take us to this free zone place, Mr. Young?”
“I think he’ll take us as close as he can. And then it’s up to us. I can’t promise we’ll even find it, but we can sure as hell try. Deron and I don’t have any other options at this point. But you still do. Say the word and I’m sure Emile will drive you back home.”
Michelle pushed the food around on her plate, thinking. Then she said, “There are things I’ll miss in my life, but I feel like I’m where I belong and this is the right thing to do.”
“What about your parents?”
“Honestly? I think they’ll act like they’re all concerned but they’ll be secretly pleased to be free of the burden I am to them.”
“I can’t imagine anyone thinking of you as a burden, Michelle.”
“I can,” she said, looking down at her hands in her lap.
Charlie’s heart felt like it was breaking for the poor girl. Looking at the crusted blood on her face made it even worse. She and Deron were good kids and were entitled to have good lives. He vowed that they would never feel unloved or unworthy. He would die if that’s what it took to prevent anyone from ever harming either of them again.
Emile came back to the patio with Deron trailing behind him, looking tired but hopeful.
“Charlie, I don’t know if the cops will find a link between us, but we should assume that they will, and that they’ll do it quickly. I think everyone should take a very quick shower, and in the meantime, I’ll pull my truck into the garage and act like I’m detailing it. Then we’ll slip you guys into the back and I’ll drive you as far as I can into the mountains without being too suspicious.”
“Sounds like a plan. I can’t thank you enough for everything you’re doing. You know if our roles were reversed…”
“Don’t mention it, amigo. You saved my life in the riots. This is nothing.”
“Maybe so, but I wasn’t risking anything at the time. I just came up behind them.”
“But still,” Emile said, thinking back to one of the ugliest events in American history.
***
Adams couldn’t believe he’d been fucked over again by McMannis. All he had to do was catch an old man and two kids. It should’ve been a piece of cake. With the old man being armed, it would have made for a great arrest. He would’ve been the top story on the news. He might’ve gotten his long overdue promotion.
There was really nowhere for them to run. They had to have been heading for the free zone, and it would’ve been easy to intercept them if he’d been allowed to do his job. But the captain had ordered a search of the neighborhoods only to the south of the freeway. When they failed to locate them, the captain declared the search over. Adams had been sent home and told to forget about it.
If they had been able to catch them, they would have exiled them. As it was, they had probably gone to the mountains and were as good as self-exiled. But Adams couldn’t let it go and he was still thinking of a way to catch the armed bastard that had eluded him.
Even if he was immediately allowed back on the job and if there was a chance to catch the fugitives, he would not be given approval to take a taskforce into the wilderness. The last time the police tried that, they lost too many officers. The drones were unable to provide air support and the free-zoners were scattered throughout the woods, and were extremely proficient with their weapons. It had been like going up against an invisible army.
His only hope would be to catch them before they got too far into the mountains. But how could he do that? He’d have to go in on his own, driving his own vehicle and hoping to find them just walking down the street, unescorted by the armed anti-government radicals.
Adams got an idea. He jumped up and ran to his car. He got inside, shut the door and said, “City Hall.” As the car drove him to work, he made several phone calls.
Fifty-one
Deron and Charlie had both fallen asleep. Michelle would have liked to also, but she lay next to Deron with her eyes wide open. She watched as the view outside one of the back windows changed from all blue sky to tree tops and leaves. Endless leaves. She’d never been so far away from the city before and she was entranced by the sight of so many trees. To her, it was like they were entering an enchanted wonderland.
After a while, the hum of the tires on the road and the unchanging scenery lulled her into a relaxed and sleepy state. As she started to drift off, she scratched at her wrist where the edge of the aluminum foil made it itch.
Charlie had changed into some of Emile’s clothes before they left. Deron could only take advantage of a shirt since Emile’s pants were too short in length and large in the waist. Michelle was still wearing the outfit she’d left her house in, with the dirt and grime from the sewers etched into her knees.
As far as Emile could tell, they were far enough out of the city that there were no more cameras, nor were there any light or power poles to attach them to. He considered that there could be cameras hidden in the trees, but he hadn’t spotted any yet, and he was constantly looking for them whenever he could take his eyes off the winding road that took them up into the San Bernardino National Forest.
Although the government formally denied the existence of free zones, they knew they were out there, but Emile assumed they must not care too much about them because they didn’t go all out to find them and eradicate them. Maybe they’d figured that anyone who wanted to live off the land so badly was better off not having to be monitored in the cities. He wondered what the authorities thought of him driving this far out of town, past the last monitoring camera.
The more he thought about it, the more nervous he became. He was anxious to offload his passengers, grab some plants, and head back. As an amateur horticulturist, he intended to explain his brief trip to the forest as a plant gathering excursion if he was stopped on the way back, or questioned about it later.
He finally pulled over, justifying his actions by telling himself he had no idea how far into the woods they needed to go to find a path to the free zone, so it would be better to drop them off too soon rather than too late. The rumor was, if you walked through the mountains, they’d find you – if they wanted to.
One story went that a group of five had hiked through the mountains and at some point were knocked out somehow. When they awoke, there were only three of them in their group. They traveled all the way to Big Bear Lake where they tried to s
urvive in the ruins of the old resort town until eventually they gave up and returned to the Orange County metropolis between the mountains and the Pacific ocean. It was assumed that the two missing members were somehow granted membership in the free zone community since they were never heard from again.
No one knew for sure if the story was true. It might have been made up and spread around just to see if anyone would try heading for the mountains; a government ruse to detect malcontents who hadn’t already been spotted by database records and behavior analysis.
Charlie woke when the vehicle slowed down and left the pavement. He shook Deron’s shoulder. “Wake up, son. I think this is our stop.”
Emile had pulled off the road and driven a few yards into the forest floor where a group of wildflowers swayed in the breeze. He went around to the rear of the vehicle and opened the back door. Charlie and Deron crawled out with the backpacks Emile had loaded up for them.
“Oh no,” Michelle cried.
Everyone turned to look at her and saw her pulling the aluminum foil back into place. “Do you think…?”
“Don’t worry,” Charlie said. “Nothing out here can scan you. Look around,” he said, smiling.
Rays of light beamed down between the branches and leaves. Michelle thought it looked magical. She was tired of sitting in the car, and tired overall, but she was smiling as she looked at the forest and stretched her back muscles. She took deep breaths through her nose, relishing the scent.
Emile reached into the back of the SUV and pulled out the small duffel bag he’d packed for Michelle. He had almost nothing to offer her in the way of clothes, so it was loaded with some toiletries, snacks, and some light camping supplies.
He wished he could’ve provided them with a handgun. They might’ve been able to use it for hunting as well as self-defense, but Emile had officially turned over all of his guns when they began enforcement of the firearms ban. He couldn’t risk getting pulled over with a gun in the vehicle.
“Anything special about this spot, like a hidden trail or anything?” Charlie asked him.
“No. As far as I know, you just stick to the road. I don’t know if they have cameras or humans watching, but apparently, they’ll see you, and if they like what they see, they’ll make themselves known – one way or another.” Emile didn’t mention that an encounter might include being knocked unconscious if it went well, and being killed if it didn’t. Maybe Charlie had heard the same story he had.
“Well, unless you decide to join us someday, I guess this is it.”
“I think I’ll be along after I finish a few projects. Sure would be nice if you could call though.”
“If there’s any chance at all, you know I will.”
“I’m sure there’s no chance. They’re not connected to the communications network, and a radio signal would be picked up.”
“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Charlie conceded. “Hey, thanks again, for everything, Emile.”
The two men shook hands then came together for a hug. Watching them, Deron and Michelle grasped each other’s hands.
“I gotta grab some plants and get outta here. You guys should get movin’. Driving past the last highway camera probably triggered some kind of alert. If someone shows up, we want them to think I was alone.”
“Thanks again, bud!” Charlie picked up the duffel bag from the ground near the back of the truck. “Let’s go, kids!”
***
Getting Jacey out of jail was easier than Adams thought it would be. All he had to do was enter into the computer that he had taken custody of her and after that, he had no trouble getting her past every sensor in the jail and right out into the parking lot. Apparently his suspended status didn’t block his access at all. They’d probably change that later, after they found out what he’d done.
The next phase of his plan went easily too. He took Jacey over to the Electronics Department and had one of the E.D. techs embed a GPS tracker in her underwear. Getting her to part with her underwear was a little difficult, but when presented with the option of staying out of her cell without even knowing why, or going back to it, she liked being out better.
The last part involved lying, and it was the only hard part of the plan. Jacey was completely unwilling to be the bait that would help Adams catch Deron’s grandfather. At first he tried reasoning with her. Charlie Young was a murderer. Did she really want a murderer running free?
She didn’t know if that was true though, and if she had to put her trust in something she didn’t know personally, she was not inclined to believe a cop. And if it was true? Well, that wasn’t her responsibility. Deron had done everything she’d asked to help her get free, so her loyalty was with him.
Failing that approach, that’s when Adams decided he needed to lie. While it was true that Jacey had been kicked out of the rehabilitation program and had been charged as an accessory to an assault on federal employees, he didn’t know what they had planned for her. But he told her she would be convicted and sent to Avalon where she probably wouldn’t last long since every violent person the Orange County Police Force had ever encountered was now at Avalon. Every violent offender that had once been in prison was there. There were very few guards, and the ones who were assigned rotation there really didn’t care what the prisoners did to each other. That part was true at least.
He didn’t tell her that women were housed separately from men. And when he told her the murder rate among prisoners, that’s when he knew he’d gotten her attention.
“You probably won’t be killed though. At least not on purpose.”
“Will I be in protective custody or something?”
“No. You’ll be a sex toy. Come to think of it, I guess you will have some protection. Whoever ends up owning you will protect you from those who want to own you. But they’ll probably rent you out as well.” He let that sink in for a few minutes and then she spoke up.
“What is it exactly you need me to do?”
“I just need you to find Deron. If you find him, then you’ll find his grandfather. I’ll give you a chip scanner and all you have to do is walk down the road. If you pick up a signal, you alert me by pressing on the tracker in your waistband.”
“That’s it? If you find Deron’s grandfather, will you let Deron go free?”
“Can’t do that. He’s a fugitive from the law.”
“But he’s just like me. He never did anything except for daring to be himself. Why is that such a crime?”
“It’s not about that. I don’t care what the feds do in their mind control labs. I want Deron because he’s an accessory to kidnapping.”
“I don’t believe you.”
“If you find him, you’ll see for yourself. I’m sure they still have the girl with them.”
As Jacey thought about what Adams was saying and tried to figure out how she could help him catch Charlie while coming up with a way for Deron to get away, Adams brought the car to a stop.
“Why are we stopping?” she asked, a little bit alarmed.
“We need one more person on our team — if he’ll agree to help. I’ll be back shortly. Sit tight.”
Adams got out of the car and locked it to respond to his voice only. He walked up a residential driveway, following the sidewalk that led to the front door. He knew he’d have already been seen on the security cam and the house would’ve announced his arrival, but he announced himself anyway.
“Sergeant McKenzie Adams. Orange County Police Force. I need to speak to Jim right away.”
“Please wait while the occupant is summoned,” the autohost responded.
Ten seconds later Jim McMannis opened the door and asked, “What the hell do you want?”
“A fresh start and a Hail Mary. Can we talk?”
Twenty minutes later, Adams, McMannis, and Jacey were headed toward the San Bernardino mountains at sixty-five miles per hour which was the maximum speed electronically governed by highway sensors.
“You realize they might not even be i
n the mountains and this could be a huge waste of time.”
“I told you, the girl’s last known location was at the last sensor before the end of the county line heading up into the hills.”
“They could already be long gone for all we know.”
“Could be. Or we’ll catch ‘em and come back to town as heroes. Like cops in the old days, going out and arresting real live criminals who are actually dangerous.”
“Even better if we snatch them right out of the fuckin’ free zone. We’ll be legends. That’s the only reason I’m agreeing to this.”
The unlikely partners looked at each other, then Adams said, “I don’t want a run-in with those crazy fuckers, but if that’s the way the story goes in the news, I won’t bother correcting ‘em.”
“How do we know where to drop the bait?” McMannis asked.
“I did a lot of math based on the last scan of the Granger kid, the time the same vehicle was spotted heading back into the city, and the approximate speed three people would be walking. The impossible part is estimating how long they woulda walked before calling it a night. So it’s an extremely rough estimate.”
“That’s putting it mildly.”
“Worst case, we enjoy some nature and go back saying we worked out our differences and try to get our jobs back.”
“That’d be worth it,” McMannis said.
The two of fell silent and Jacey stared out the window, determined to find a way out of this new trap she found herself in.
A short while later, they pulled in to a scenic turnout and parked the car as far off the mountain highway as possible. Adams booted up his slate and launched the tracker software. A blue dot sat right on top of a small black square on the display. He had Jacey locate the tracker and press it. When she did, the blue dot turned red and radiated outward before turning back to a blue dot again. He repeated his earlier instructions and asked if she understood what she needed to do.
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