Toby nodded. “Right on both counts. I can’t explain too much, for my family’s sake, but I wanted to see if I could be of help in some way.”
Mr. Malachi sighed. “I wish you could. But word of supplies brought in would reach the Palace in an instant. Simper might pay a child or an older to be a spy for him. So far, he’s left us alone, out of some distant respect, I guess. But I don’t know if it would hold.”
“You have a wonderful place here, Sir,” Toby said.
“We welcome everyone, but we are limited by people who limit themselves.” Mr. Malachi looked back at his papers, full of scrawled notes.
Toby’s fingers itched to push back the hood of his cloak. Mr. Malachi serves Father, but what if he finds out who I really am? Toby had encountered mixed reactions on his many journeys. Some laughed, some trembled in fear. Some accepted him without question. What would Mr. Malachi think? A sharp pang of doubt made his head ache. I’ll worry about it later.
“Is there another way I could be of use to you? Maybe we could bring a doctor in every couple of months. Or some new books.” Toby’s eyes flickered over the contents of the room. Though clean and well-kept, the furniture and other items were either half a century old or handmade from recycled or raw materials. Just a few tools from the caverns could make life so much easier for these people.
Mr. Malachi’s eyes lit up. “It’s hard to refuse new books.” He shook his head. “But it’s too dangerous.”
“Then maybe I could take someone back with me?”
Mr. Malachi stared down at the sheets of yellowed paper covering his lap. “No. I don’t think anyone here will leave family members who are in the Palace. These papers contain my prayer requests, and the names of everyone in town. I read through them every day to remind myself of what has been answered and what I still need to pray about. I do have a task you could probably manage, but I hesitate to ask a child for something so dangerous.”
Toby straightened his shoulders. “Sir, I haven’t been a child for a long time.”
“Of course. I keep forgetting.”
“How can I be of service?” Toby pressed. “Does someone need to be rescued?”
“All who enter the Palace need salvation.” Mr. Malachi picked up a glass jar. “Water is our most precious resource. A river still courses through an old drainage network under the city. We collect the water in tanks and pass it through a filtration system so no one has to venture into the forest.”
“That’s good.” Toby was impressed.
“Yes. But even through this rainy season, the water supply has been halved, then halved again. We believe something has blocked the flow. A system is in place to collect rain, but it’s not enough. We’ve checked every accessible route, but right before the Palace of Dreams a giant metal fence blocks the way. We don’t have the tools to pry it open. Someone has to go through the Palace and see if there’s a way down into the tunnels.”
“What makes you think I can get inside?” Toby asked.
“Simper will not be able to resist two things. You are a new customer.” Malachi pulled a small golden cross from around his neck and held it out to Toby. “And you will offer him my last memory.”
Toby hesitated. “Surely we could give something else.”
“No, this is fine.” Mr. Malachi dropped the necklace into Toby’s hands and closed the Trilby’s fingers over it. “My mamma wore it every day. Right before she died, she gave it to me. She said, ‘Son, you have to know when to hold on, and you have to know when to surrender something to the Lord.’ I thought she was talking about her own soul, but now I can see she meant... well, everything in this world.”
“Why does Simper care so much about memories anyway?”
Mr. Malachi leaned back in his chair. “Back in my younger days, Simper was on the town council. Our city was doing fairly well; survivors of the disaster came in from other places to join us. But a terrible sickness struck the area, and many people died, including Simper’s family. All of their personal belongings, including their home, had to be burned.”
“How terrible,” Toby said. “So he collects other people’s things?”
Mr. Malachi nodded. “Because he doesn’t have any more memories of his own. His sanity and reason were lost in the fire.”
Toby held the cross until it warmed in his hand, then put it in his pocket. “I think I’m going to need some help. I have a friend waiting for me outside of the wall who is, well, taller. I’d feel safer going in with someone else.”
“I will send my prayers along with you.” Mr. Malachi said. “I’m grateful you would risk your safety to help out our city.”
“I hope we can find out what’s wrong. We’ll do our very best.”
###
Heavy raindrops splashed on Emory’s cheeks as he approached the Palace. The mourners had disappeared. Only one person leaned against the wall under an awning. Her head lolled a little to the side and her sleeves covered her hands like knobby mittens.
“Sonda...” his heart skipped a beat. “Oh, Sonda, you’re out!”
“Hey, Emory.” A slow smile pulled at the corners of his sister’s white, rubbery lips. Hair hung in limp strands over her shoulders.
When was the last time she had cared for herself? Vibrance users lost all sense of day and night. They only left the Palace when the mem-keeper deemed their memory spent and sent them out the door to find another.
“Hey, got any mems?” Sonda leaned closer. Her eyes darted in and out of focus.
“You’ve taken everything, Sonda.”
Her claw-like hand reached out and grabbed his wrist. Blue liquid trickled from the corner of his sister’s mouth and a sickly-sweet scent hit his nose.
“Come on, Emory, I need something! You never gave me a birthday present!”
Her fifteenth birthday had been last week, but even if Emory could have scrounged up some tiny gift, he’d never give her a way to buy Vibrance.
“Hurry up, I want to go back inside.” She laughed with her mouth wide open, then muffled it with her hand. “Oh, the dance was such fun tonight!”
Emory’s head reeled, and a queasy feeling crept into his stomach, but he took his sister’s hand.
“Sonda, listen. I might have a way out of here. If you’ll just follow me, I’ll show you...”
“A way out? You found mems?” Sonda squeezed his fingers. “Emory, how wonderful!” She glanced at his pockets, then his pack. “Where did you put them?”
“No, not mems...” Emory looked back over his shoulder. The street was deserted. “Look, come with me.” He pulled her down the street, past a few buildings, where two battered dumpsters sagged together.
“Emory, what on earth... why’d you bring me back here?”
“It’s a secret. No one else can know, Sonda. You gotta promise.”
Sonda slouched against a post. “Okay, whatever. But you’d better have some mems.”
“No, Sonda, not mems.” Emory’s voice rose in his excitement. “I fixed up a flying machine. We might be able to get away from here!”
Feet crunched glass on the street behind him, and he was yanked around to face a tall, thin person.
“What’ya buggin’ Sonda about today, Brat?”
###
The light of dawn dusted the early morning raindrops away and coaxed the squirrels out into the forest. They chattered amongst themselves and scampered off when Toby passed.
A cold hand of fear tightened around Toby’s throat. What if the roamer was gone? A journey on foot back to the Grambles’ cavern would take at least a week, if no incident slowed him down. Which never happens. And he couldn’t leave Jurn.
The roamer shimmered into view a few hundred yards away. The panel slid open, and Jurn popped out. “Hi! I decided to move over a little ways just in case.”
Toby sank against a tree in relief. “I thought the ship was gone!” He stumbled into the cube and glanced around. “Where’s Marabella?”
Jurn’s face darkened. “She tr
ied to get me to steal the ship, Toby. Should’ve known I would never leave you here.”
“Did she fight you?”
“No.” Jurn wiped a speck of dust off the pilot’s seat. “Marabella said sooner or later Leader would find you, and she’d rather be on the winning side. I thought I’d talked her out of leaving by the time she went to sleep. I really tried to keep my eyes open, Toby. But well, when I woke up, she’d gone.”
Toby’s heart sank. “Do you think she’ll tell him where we are?”
“Nope. She wouldn’t get me and Tinga into trouble.” Jurn grinned. “Gosh, good thing Gramble Lenora can’t see your face. You’re filthy!”
Toby sat down hard in his seat. Should he pursue Marabella, try to reason with her? How far away was Leader? Leader had already found out about Toby. Worst of all, he knew Toby possessed technology far surpassing the vehicles the man’s band had managed to patch together.
Toby rubbed his eyes and yawned. “I found the church. The pastor asked us to help them.” He explained to Jurn about the palace and the water problem.
“He really thinks we can find out what’s wrong?” Jurn asked. “Seems like he’s putting a lot of faith in two strange kids.”
Toby nodded. “Yes, but he’s desperate. We’d have to go today. Mr. Malachi is worried the water flow could stop at any time. The whole city is hanging by a thread and if the supply is gone they won’t survive.”
“But what about Marabella?” Jurn protested.
“If you’re convinced she won’t tell on us, we might still have time. Leader’s vehicles move on rubber tires filled with air. One puncture and the whole caravan is crippled. And we might be worried about nothing. No one’s found the Grambles, not for forty-five years.” Toby put his hands over his face. “Except Marabella. Ugh.”
Jurn stared at him. “You’re still worried, aren’t you?”
Toby looked down. “Our safety rests in Father’s hands. Would he bring us this far, just to let us go now?”
“I hope not.”
“Me too.” Toby pulled his hood over his ears. “Let’s go and see if we can help Mr. Malachi.”
###
The grip on Emory’s shoulder tightened as the man pulled him through the city streets. Emory tried to wrench away and received a slap on the side of his head that almost knocked him down.
“Don’t hurt him, Stance!” Sonda ran beside them, wringing her hands. A glimmer of fear shone through the haze of Vibrance in her eyes. “Stance, come on, he’s my brother!”
“Uh-huh. I bet he knows how ta get more mems!”
Sonda tripped over a pile of loose bricks, recovered, and fell back into step. “Emory, is that true? Did you find mems?”
Stance shoved Emory against a wall. Sharp stones dug into Emory’s back.
“Look, boy,” Stance hissed. “You’d better take us to this... machine, and quick. I’m outta trinkets and I need more. Used to, we could find ‘em. Closets, grates, warehouses. The rat-filled, nasty places no one would check. But Simper has almost everything now, underground, I’m betting. Can’t even get an old photo anymore.”
Emory’s lips parted, and the secret he shared with only a few of the olders almost slipped out. Rooms under the floors of God’s Shelter Church held shelves and shelves of books, papers and magazines. Over two thousand volumes were kept there, and if the mem-keeper found out, he would send the Vibrance users to the church to take them. A book could buy you a week at the Palace, especially if it had pictures.
The boy pressed his mouth closed. The library was worth more than his safety, or even rescuing his sister. Once the olders died, the books would be the only record of the world before the disaster. “To learn from our mistakes,” he whispered.
“What was that?” Stance leaned closer.
Emory pulled in a breath of air and let out a gusty sigh. He almost expected to see his hopes fall to the ground like a pile of feathers. “I can show you the machine, but it’s not ready to fly. I still have to work on a few things.”
“Emory, don’t you see?” Sonda wheedled. “We don’t have time for that. We need mems right now, today.”
Stance yanked Emory back out into the street and pushed him forward. “I’m guessing your machine’s in a building outside of town. The last of the cars and trucks were pulled apart years ago, when I was a little boy.”
“Yes.” Emory gasped. “I found a place no one opened, I don’t know why. I guess the razor wire kept people out. I got through and you can too.”
Away he led them, from the safety of Mr. Malachi, but also from the temptation of the precious books. It would have been so much easier to show Stance the library. Perhaps in the chaos that followed, he and Sonda could have slipped away...
Never. Maybe the helicopter would fly today. Stance would just have to go with them. And perhaps the people in the new city would know how to help Stance too.
5
ROOFTOP REWARDS
Miss Jasmine led Toby and Jurn through the center of the church building. Rosy hues of dawn blended with patterned light from stained glass windows.
Toby drank in the multi-colored images. Peter and the Apostles. Jesus at the Last Supper. Miraculously preserved while desperation and anger shifted through the world outside. Respect is still reserved for churches, though few people follow Father. Peace blanketed the building.
This feeling followed Toby, while the group went up two flights of stairs and out on the roof.
Mr. Malachi stood by a large metal tank and directed children while they carried buckets of water to various patches of earth. Plants sprawled over fences in areas, while a few plots were covered with old boards or metal scraps.
“I wanted you to see why our water is so precious.” Mr. Malachi turned to Toby. “We have sustained these rooftop gardens and farms for decades.” He pointed to a cluster of cages on an adjoining roof. “Many plants came from original seeds, and most animals are descendants of livestock before the disaster. Some were scavenged from the forest. If our water runs dry, all could be lost.”
The animal pens housed goats, chickens and even forest animals. Squirrels scurried in cages, and deer stood at fences to search passing hands for food. Like the underground farms in the caverns. “People have such an amazing will to survive, no matter what,” Toby murmured.
Mr. Malachi’s eyes rested on Jurn. “How old are you, boy?”
“He’s twelve.” Toby glanced up at his friend. “But he looks older. I trust him with my life.”
Jurn stood a little straighter. “I’ll do what I can to help, sir.”
Mr. Malachi chuckled. “I believe it. Sadly, they allow twelve year olds to dance in the Palace. Especially if you offer an object with a memory like the one I gave to Toby.”
“They let kids my age use that Vibrance stuff?” Jurn shook his head.
A small hand tugged on Mr. Malachi’s shirt. “I need you.”
Mr. Malachi bent down to the little girl’s level. “What is it, Seraphina?”
“Emory, Sir. After he woke up, he went back out to find his sister. Ed n’ Edith saw him being pushed down the alley by Stance. Toward the warehouses.”
Mr. Malachi sighed. “I should never have given him that repair manual!”
“What’s going on?” asked Toby.
“One of the boys here, Emory, has a sister in the Palace,” said Mr. Malachi. “He found an old flying machine, and he’s been trying to get it to work again. I figured no harm could be done, sometimes a spark of hope can keep people alive longer than a storehouse of medicine. But if Stance finds it... he’s a bad one.”
Mr. Malachi knelt down and touched Serephina’s quivering chin. “Don’t worry, I’ll go after the boy. Spread the news, no one leaves the building until I return.” He glanced over at Toby. “You and Jurn go with Miss Jasmine. She’ll explain everything you need to know about the Palace.”
Miss Jasmine smiled and beckoned for them to follow her again. When she turned to leave, her hair puffed out around h
er shoulders, just like Gramble Colleen.
Toby choked back a sudden sob. I have to keep it together. I can’t help these people if I’m focused on my own sadness.
He tucked his grief in an imaginary box at the back of his mind and followed Miss Jasmine down the stairs.
###
Emory’s hands shook while he pried apart the fence. Lack of sleep made it hard to concentrate on his task.
Sonda leaned against a tree with her eyes closed, and Stance made no move to help either. “Hurry up, unless you want another slap.”
“I’m trying!” Emory propped the section back and scooted under it. “Come on.”
Sonda squeezed through, then Stance, who cursed every rock and stick.
Emory picked his way through the brush.
Stance caught up with Emory and smacked the back of his head. “Hurry up.”
Emory calculated hours in his mind while stumbling forward. The effects of Vibrance didn’t last long. When it wears off, things are gonna get worse. He worked his way over to the side panel and pushed it open.
Stance scratched a fresh insect bite. “This better be worth it, you little nit.”
“Oh, Emory,” Sonda breathed when she saw the helicopter. Her eyes shone.
Maybe she understands now! Emory’s heart filled with joy. “Let me show you!” He swung up into the cabin, threw switches and pushed up the lever.
Nothing happened.
His sister’s face still held its bright smile. “Well?”
He ran through the list again in his mind while yanking at switches and pulling levers he had never even touched. Am I doing it wrong? Something had to be loose, or maybe a mouse got to the wires.
“Uh, I need to fix some things, very small. Might take me a few hours.”
“A few hours?” Stance pushed his way up to the pilot area. His stinking breath poured into Emory’s face. “I don’t have time for that! I need mems now!” His head snapped from side to side like a snake as he surveyed the interior of the helicopter. “Hey, Sonda, you should come in here. I bet the mem-keeper might like some of these shiny buttons. And look at this fancy seat!”
The Toby the Trilby Trilogy Boxed Set Page 15