Famished

  “Oh, no, don’t get me wrong, they are definitely real. I’ve seen the real ones up close. But the ones around here, yeah, they are like cyborgs. Mark used to operate them from the control panel upstairs.”

  “He controls who they eat?”

  “Well, most of the time. The chip in their brain can be turned on and off from the control panel, but Mark is the only one who knows the code. He would never tell me what it was.”

  “The ones you were with?”

  “Yes.”

  The next question was stuck in my throat. I almost didn’t want to ask it at all, then, suddenly, I blurted out, “Did they kill Monica? Did Mr. Baker make them kill Monica?” I flinched, expecting him to say yes quickly.

  “No. They didn’t.”

  “But she is dead, right? And she was killed.”

  Owen nodded. “Yes to both. She is dead and she was killed, but not by the cannibals.”

  “Then by who?”

  “One of the decayed ones.”

  “No…” I cupped my hands over my mouth when I thought of Monica enduring hours of torture, her limbs being hacked away, before she was finally eaten alive. “That can’t be.” I almost wanted him to say that a cannibal consumed her. At least then I knew she would have been given a merciful death. “Are you sure?”

  “Positive.”

  “How can you be sure?”

  Owen looked away from me and didn’t meet my gaze. “You don’t want to know.”

  “I do, though.”

  “No you don’t.”

  Part of me wanted to know and part of me didn’t. What if it was too gruesome for me to handle? What would I say to her family? I already had to tell them that their daughter didn’t just disappear, I had to tell them that she had been murdered. “Just tell me, Owen.” Better that I found out sooner rather than later.

  Owen opened his mouth to answer me and a light started flickering behind us. I looked at him, puzzled. “What’s going on?” I asked.

  “I have to go.”

  “No,” I pleaded. “Please don’t go.”

  “I’m sorry.” He started the lift and it began going down.

  “Owen, please,” I begged. “You don’t have to go with him. You can stay here with me.”

  “No,” he said. “I can’t.”

  The lift came to a halt, looming right above the floor in the mess hall. “Can you at least tell me what happened to Monica? How do you know that she was killed by a decayed one?” Owen set me down on the floor and the lift started going back in to the ceiling. “Owen, tell me!” I shouted, not caring if I woke up the entire colony.

  Just before the lift went up and cut off Owen’s head from my view he said, “I know that Monica was killed by a decayed one. And I know it for sure because I found her head.”

  Chapter 21: All Good Things Eventually Come to an End

  And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.

  ~ Revelation 21:1

  Hours after Owen dropped me off, I lied awake, disturbing images passing in and out of my subconscious mind. First, images of Monica, her brown hair spread out along the loose ashes of the earth’s surface, her face contorted in agony as she begged and pleaded for her life. Then Mr. Baker came into focus as he pounded away the keys on the control panel keyboard, typing things like “Attack!” or “Eat Them!”

  Finally, I saw myself, strapped down to a hospital gurney. A surgeon with a scalpel hovered above me, lowering it slowly, inch by inch. I tried to scream but I had no voice and the closer the scalpel came to the top of my head, the more real the thought felt. It was like I was seconds away from receiving a lobotomy without an anesthetic.

  Someone was tugging on my arm and I started to panic. I thrashed violently, feeling my palm connect with a person’s cheek. “Ouch,” Frankie whimpered, and then she started wailing. “Mommy! Mommy!”

  I bolted upright in my bed and realized I was having a nightmare. Frankie recoiled, sulking over to her bed, and she curled up into a little ball. She sobbed softly and I exhaled slowly.

  “Frankie, come here,” I said convincingly.

  She whipped her head and snapped, “No!” before tucking it back into her lap.

  “Frankie, I’m sorry,” I apologized. “I was having a bad dream.”

  “You slapped me!” she cried as she rocked back and forth.

  “I promise I didn’t mean to.” I twitched my head to the side. “Now, come over here and lie down with me.” I scooted closer to the dirt wall and patted the empty side of my cot.

  Frankie hesitated, unfolding herself from her ball as my mother rushed through the door. “What’s going on?” she gasped, winded.

  “I was having a nightmare and I accidentally slapped Frankie across the face,” I admitted.

  She looked at Frankie solemnly and rushed to her bed side. “Oh, baby, are you okay?” she asked, whispering in a comforting tone.

  Frankie dug her balled up fist in her eye and dried her tears. “Yeah,” she murmured.

  “I’m sure Georgie didn’t mean to slap you.” My mother glared at me. “Right, Georgie?”

  I rolled my eyes. “I already apologized, Mom.”

  Her eyes shifted to the end of the bed and zoomed in on something. “What’s that?” she asked as I followed her gaze.

  At the end of my bed was a white envelope and my name had been scrawled across the front of it. “I honestly don’t know.” I crawled toward the edge of my bed and picked up the envelope.

  “Oh, a love letter,” she teased. “I bet it’s from Colin Martin.”

  Just my mother mentioning his name made me want to hurl. Colin Martin was a coward and not only that, he was involved in a conspiracy to commit murder, my murder. I bet my mother wouldn’t think so I highly of him when I told her that. “It’s not from Colin Martin,” I corrected. “It’s from someone else.” I knew very well that it was a letter from Owen.

  Considering how rushed he was last night, when he dropped me off, it tickled my heart that he took the time to write me a letter and drop it off. I wondered where he was at that moment, just how far he had traveled or if he wound up stopping somewhere that wasn’t too far away. I knew he couldn’t have ended up anywhere in the west because California, Washington, Oregon, Nevada and Arizona were gone.

  “Well, who’s it from then?” my mother inquired.

  I hugged the letter to my chest to keep her from seeing it. “Nobody important.”

  Frankie giggled. “I think Georgie has a boyfriend.”

  “I do too,” my mother said to Frankie. “But let’s let Georgie worry about her own boy problems, okay.”

  Frankie hopped to her feet. “Okay.”

  My mother rose from the bed. “Get ready for breakfast girls.” She walked out of the room and Frankie followed her.

  I waited until I couldn’t hear their footsteps anymore and then I tore into the letter, pulling the paper free from the envelope.

  Then I scanned each word, like I was permanently embedding them in my mind.

  Georgina,

  I’m sorry our conversation got out of control at some point yesterday. Believe me, that was the last thing I wanted. Mark has given me clear instructions on where I’m supposed to go. Somewhere East. According to him, there is an area close to where Canada used to be that has been untouched by The Great Famine.

  I guess he and his family will begin their journey there tomorrow—which is today for you by the time you actually get to read this letter.

  I’ve truly enjoyed the little time I spent with you and I will think of you always .And if the place where I’m headed really hasn’t been touched by the asteroid or The Great Famine, I will come back for you, I promise.

  Yours,

  Owen

  Folding up the letter, I shoved it under my bed before any one of my family members had the chance to come in and catch me with it. Then I remained in bed soaking every word in.

  A
place untouched by The Great Famine. That had to be a distorted story or illusion Mr. Baker had dreamt up. The Great Famine had destroyed the entire world. Even though, I knew Owen was strong, him making the journey alone worried me. Real cannibals. The decayed ones. Both of those creatures would be out there past our little colony.

  Thinking back to my time on the new earth, I remembered when I was out there alone, without Colin, and someone or something was toying with me. After my mother educated me on the decayed ones I realized that I’d had my first encounter with one. How did I know? Cannibals didn’t toy with their food. They killed you quickly, eager to ease the hunger pains in their stomach.

  What I encountered in the middle of the desert/earth that day enjoyed making me afraid. They enjoyed watching me squirm every time they came too close. Definitely not a cannibal. Most definitely a decayed one.

  Frankie busted through the door, interrupting my thoughts. “Georgie, come quick!” she squealed.

  “What is it Frankie? Did something happen? Where’s Mom?”

  “No, nothing happened,” she sighed. “The Bakers are leaving. I thought you’d want to see. All the colonists are gathered in the hall.”

  Still in my pajamas, I hopped off my bed and stood in my doorway. Colonists lined the hall as the Baker family walked up the center, carrying all of their belongings .The remaining members of the council stood in front of the rope ladder and Mr. Baker scowled at me as he walked by. “You’re going to pay for this,” he growled. “This is all your fault.”

  I smirked. “Why, because I wouldn’t roll over and play dead?”

  He glowered at me and turned his attention to my father as my father helped Elise up onto the ladder. Mr. Vickers was waiting at the top, with the slab of boulder already removed for their departure. One-by-one, each member of the Baker family ascended until Mr. Baker was the only one left. “You will all regret this.”

  I glanced down the hall. Several colonists shook their heads in disappointment. A few of them even flipped him the bird. I turned back toward the ladder as Mr. Baker began his climb. At the top, he took one last look at what he was leaving behind and never looked back.

  Then Mr. Vickers climbed back inside, closed off the exit, and that’s when the entire colony erupted in a chorus of cheers.

  * * *

  Later on, after the harmonious celebration of the Baker family’s departure, I sought out May, her husband Ed, Grace, my mother, father, and Frankie. The secrets I was holding in were weighing heavily on me for the last few days. And now, I knew that I needed to tell them all exactly what I’d learned about a man named Mark Baker.

  Huddled together in the tiny infirmary, I stood in front of them, all of their eyes on me as I cleared my throat.

  “What is this about, honey?” my mother asked. Her eyes zoomed in on my fingers as I played with them. I was always fidgety when I was nervous and my mother could always tell. She’d say it was her “motherly intuition.” I’d say it was because she always kept me under tight wraps.

  “There are some things that I need to tell you guys,” I began, “That’s why I called all of you in here.” I faced the Vickers family and let out a strenuous sigh. “Monica is dead.” I knew everyone assumed she might have been, but they were never certain.

  When a person disappears, even though its most likely that they’re dead, people, especially family hope that they aren’t. Grace glared at me. “Is this some kind of joke?”

  I didn’t know how to take Grace’s tone. She was my best friend. Why the snarky tone? Wasn’t she supposed to trust me?

  “It’s not a joke,” I scoffed. “I would never joke about something like that.”

  May’s eyes were watering up. “How do you know, Georgie?” she asked. At that point Ed grabbed her hand and squeezed it tightly.

  “I overheard a conversation between Mr. Baker and Mr. Martin. Mr. Baker is an evil, evil man and he had this plan that started with Monica.” I continued on with my story, trying as hard as I could not to look at their faces. Every now and then, I’d catch a glimpse of Grace who was sobbing or May who was hysterical, burying her head into Ed’s shirt. Ed was doing his best to stay strong, but even he was having a hard time.

  Then I went into the next portion of the story. “Supposedly, every kid in the colony has a censor that has been imbedded in their brain.” Grace and Frankie glanced at each other with funny looks on their faces. My mother’s mouth dropped open and my father was so angry, I could hear him grinding his teeth.

  May stood up. All the color had drained from her face but she had stopped crying, for now. I knew that once the Vickers family was in the safety of their quarters, they wouldn’t have to try and hold it back. They could cry out every tear in their bodies for Monica. “Well,” said May. “There is only one way for us to find out about these censors.” She patted the metal table next to her. “Grace, honey…”

  Grace cut her off. “You don’t have to tell me twice. If there is some censor in my head, I want it out!”

  We all watched intensely as Grace laid down on the table. May moved toward her, a long needle in her hand. Then she inserted the needle into the top of Grace’s head. Grace winced as the needle went in and let out a woozy sigh when it came out. May placed her hand on Grace’s arm. “You okay, sweetie?”

  Grace smiled. “I’m fine. You think that having a mother as my doctor would make me used to this kind of stuff by now.” Soft laughter echoed throughout the room as May palmed a scalpel.

  Moving closer, May pressed the scalpel against the top of Grace’s forehead just behind her hairline and slid it across her flesh. I trusted Owen. He told me that all of the children in the colony had censors in their heads. So if it turned out that Grace didn’t have one, he’d have a lot of explaining to do. And that was going to be pretty hard information for me to get when I didn’t know if I would ever see him again.

  May grunted, fishing around in Grace’s skin for a moment, then she pulled out a tiny, rectangular, translucent object with a serial number and a barcode on it. She lifted it high in the air, everyone’s eyes transfixed on it. “Oh my God,” May gasped.

  Then, all of their eyes were on me. I shrugged. “I told you.”

  Chapter 22: Know Thy Enemy

  He went forth conquering, and to conquer.

  ~ Revelation 6:2

  In the days that passed, life in the colony resumed as normal. Except for the fact that May was in the infirmary, now busier than ever. Shortly after she removed Grace’s and Frankie’s censors, the other parents in the colony wanted all of their children checked for them too. And every single kid had them, just like Owen said.

  When he first told me about them, I couldn’t figure out how I’d given Mr. Baker the opportunity to implant that censor into my head but after talking with Grace and a few others, I came to the conclusion that there were moments where I’d gone to the infirmary and couldn’t remember what happened.

  May had told us when they were first setting the infirmary up, there were times where Mr. Baker would help her out, and she would often leave him alone with the patients. Nobody could blame her. May was only one person, and sometimes when she was backed up, she needed the extra help. And at the time, none of the colonists would have figured Mr. Baker for what he really was…

  A monster.

  Mr. Martin and Mr. Edwards were kicked out of the council. Even though they were in cahoots with Mr. Baker, my father didn’t see the point in casting them out of the colony completely. They were not the ringleaders, they were the followers, and he said it was punishment enough that they would not be included in any group decisions the council members made regarding the colony.

  Then, there was Colin. Our relationship would never be the same. There were times where he tried to talk to me. I assumed he was trying to make amends for he’d done, but I could never get past the fact, that left me out in the middle of a barren earth, with cannibals, to die. All because he wanted to please his father, Mr. Edwards, and Mr. Baker.<
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  Sometimes, I’d stare at him the way I used to. I expected to get that same feeling—like my insides were on fire, but it never came back. And I’d catch him looking at me too with a tortured longing look in his eyes. A look that told me he regretted the day he left me to die.

  I couldn’t trust him anymore and I didn’t think that the trust I used to have for him would ever return. Once a person breaks that bond, it’s broken forever—like a man or woman who cheats on a spouse. When people betrayed one another, how could they come back from that? How could they look each other in the eye and find what they once had? It would be difficult and maybe even impossible.

  A candle light vigil was held for Monica. The entire colony gathered around, sang songs, and talked about what a great person she was. It was extremely difficult for the Vickers family, because it was just like a funeral, and no one has an easy time with burying their kid. But, at the end of it, Grace and I talked and she said, “ I tried to keep the way I felt about her disappearance inside. I tried to put my best foot forward, but all I really needed was closure. I never knew what happened so I couldn’t move on.” She went on. “We were always waiting for the day when she would come home. And we never knew when that would be so it’s like waiting and waiting and waiting for something that’s never going to come. At least now we can say, yes she died, we loved her so much and will think of her always, but now, we can move forward, because we’re not constantly wondering what if?”

  It wasn’t until it was late at night, when I was alone with my own thoughts that I thought of Owen. Owen, and his violet eyes. Not to mention his smile that I loved somuch. I wondered where he was on his journey. Also, if the Baker family had caught up with him. Lastly, I wished that there was a way for me to communicate with him. I wanted to know more about the place that was untouched by The Great Famine, if he’d made it there, or if it really existed for that much.