by Susan Kim
Levi chuckled. “You mean my employees?”
Despite his mocking voice, he seemed to be considering her question. Esther realized with a shock that her hunch was right: in some crazy way, Levi wanted to have someone to talk to. She took advantage of the moment to take an unobtrusive step toward the exit.
“You’ve seen them,” Levi said. “They’re hardly the stuff of companionship, wouldn’t you say?”
“But you must have other friends,” she continued.
His expression darkened and he lowered his eyes. This allowed her to sidle closer toward the door.
“Friendship,” Levi mused. “That’s just business mixed with sentiment. Two people at the same level… if they’re of service to each other, they call each other ‘friend.’ But if they aren’t equals, the whole idea is impossible. It can’t exist.”
Esther decided to take a chance. “You were friends with my sister,” she said.
Levi seemed to be listening, nodding his head. “It’s true. Sarah provided a valuable service when she taught me how to read. But even back then, I was aware of her limits. I didn’t think she was going to amount to anything. And I was right. Your sister was going to stay where she was. I wasn’t.”
Esther bristled, but forced herself to bite her tongue. She was almost at the door.
“But there must be someone,” she said.
“Like my… companion?”
His eyes flashed with understanding. With one move, he was on her like a cat, twisting her free arm behind her back and holding the knife against her jaw. She held still, feeling its point digging into her flesh.
“What do you know about Caleb?” he breathed into her ear. “You aren’t by any chance a friend of his, are you?”
Esther would only have had a chance of escaping if she dropped Kai; and she was not about to do that. Instead, she stood silent, as Levi wrenched her arm harder and pressed the knife even deeper into her skin.
But then he stopped. He had noticed the red strip tied around her wrist.
“I see,” he said. Then he smiled.
So his younger brother had not been destroyed. If Caleb sent this girl as his emissary, he was still in Prin and bent on revenge. For a moment, Levi almost felt pride in his sibling’s persistence.
But he had the advantage.
The life of Caleb’s partner had to be worth a great deal. He was quite certain it could be used to barter for something valuable.
And if that turned out not to be the case, at least ending it would bring him the very real pleasure of creating more agony for his enemy.
Downstairs in his windowless basement office, a guard scanned the flickering monitors arranged in front of him with renewed vigor.
The guard was relieved he happened to be paying attention earlier, when the girl broke into the baby’s room. He shuddered to imagine what Levi would have done to him if he had been napping or looking elsewhere or daydreaming like he usually did and the baby was kidnapped during his supposed watch. He and the others still carried the painful marks of Levi’s earlier displeasure.
Now Levi had asked him to be especially alert for the return of the stranger, the boy they had left for dead. Doing so was the only way to avoid more pain.
Then he did a double take.
Someone was looking up at one of the cameras and waving. It was the guard stationed outside the front door. He and another one of Levi’s men were propping someone up between them, a boy who seemed barely alive. One of them lifted him up by his hair so the camera could better see who it was.
It was Caleb.
Excited, the guard jumped to his feet, knocking over his chair. He was halfway down the hall, heading for the stairs, and pulling out his walkie-talkie so he could communicate with the others.
“Meet at the front gate. We got him.”
Outside the Source, the two guards in their black hooded uniforms waited outside the giant metal door. Their mirrored sunglasses reflected not only the broiling sun, but the prisoner they held up between them.
“Do you think they’re coming?” one of them whispered. It was Eli, disguised.
“If they were watching,” replied Caleb. He kept his head down, and half-stood, half-leaned against Eli and the other guard, Bekkah.
Pressed against the building on either side of the metal gate, well out of the sight of the cameras, crouched Slayd, Skar, and more than thirty variants, all with their weapons drawn. Farther off in the underbrush, Till had just finished gagging the two actual guards, who had been stripped of their hoods and robes and bound. Then he joined the others as they all watched in silence.
They did not have long to wait. After no more than a minute, there was a grinding sound.
The giant metal door was opening.
Esther thought she must have been imagining things. But then she heard it again, faint but unmistakable.
It was the sound of Skar’s whistle.
Levi heard it, too. He cocked his head and pushed the knife in deeper.
“What’s that?” he asked. When she didn’t answer, he jabbed her with its point.
“It means you’re surrounded,” she replied.
Levi chuckled, then yanked Esther by her arm. “We’ll see about that,” he said. “Take the boy.”
He wrapped his arm around her throat, the knife held to her side, and pushed her out into the hallway. He seemed rattled when he saw that there were no guards on duty. Then he shook it off. With Esther held tightly in front of him, he advanced down the hallway and up the dim staircase.
The main floor of the Source was as dark as ever, and eerily silent. The only sound was the click of Levi’s boots on the concrete floor as he advanced into the open.
“Caleb?” he shouted.
His voice echoed in the cavernous space. There was silence. And then someone stepped out from the deep shadows. It was his brother, followed at a distance by three others with their hoods down, two boys and a girl.
Caleb looked drawn and exhausted; and his companions were so thin and scrawny, they looked as if they would not outweigh one of his boys even if put together. Furthermore, the four were clearly unarmed, their hands empty.
Levi burst out laughing.
“Are these the warriors who have me surrounded?” he asked Esther. “Am I supposed to be frightened?”
Then something caught his eye. By the side of the open door, he saw that all of his men were tied up, wrists to ankles. There was a sound from above; and Levi, puzzled, glanced up.
Perched on the highest shelves, standing on crates and cartons, were dozens of variants. Some held loaded slings; others carried spears; at least one had a bow and arrow. All were aimed at Levi, whose smile died.
Skar, for one, had her arm cocked back, a throwing stick loaded with a spear balanced on her shoulder. Across the room, she glanced at Esther, and the two locked eyes. Then the variant girl flashed her a quick smile and a wink, before resuming her stern expression and warrior stance.
“Caleb!” shouted one. It was Slayd, who stood with his sister. “Should we kill him? Give the word and it is done.”
But Caleb held up his hand, stopping them.
“No,” he said. “Leave him to me.”
On Slayd’s instructions, the variants dropped to the ground and fanned out across the Source, searching for any remaining guards.
As one kept a watchful eye on Levi, Caleb ran to Esther and his child and embraced them. Esther shifted the baby into his arms, and he buried his face in Kai’s soft neck. Then he glanced up. Amid all the activity, one person was standing still.
Eli was staring at Esther with a look filled with longing, sorrow, and loss. It was impossible to miss. As for Esther, it was equally apparent that she was avoiding his gaze. Caleb now understood what had fueled the boy’s lingering hostility. But instead of becoming angry, he had a sense of understanding, as well as sympathy.
Caleb handed the baby back to Esther. Then he approached Eli.
“You know where the others ar
e being held?” he asked him in a low voice. “The place where you escaped from?”
It took a moment for Eli to turn his attention to Caleb.
“What about it?” he asked.
“Will you take the others there?” Caleb asked. “I need you to be in charge.”
When the words sank in, Eli’s face flushed with pride. Caleb reached out and the two boys shook hands.
Then Caleb went into his pack and withdrew something.
“Here,” he said. “You might need this.”
It was his weapon. He demonstrated how to load and fire it and Eli took it, gratefully.
“Thanks,” he said. Then Eli waved at the variants and the others. “All right,” he called. “Let’s go.”
Slayd glanced at Caleb, to confirm the hierarchy. He was, after all, not accustomed to following the orders of strangers. Caleb’s nod was enough for him. With a slight shrug, Slayd lifted his hand and directed his people to follow Eli.
Esther, still holding Kai, ran to Skar, and for several seconds, the two girls hugged without a word. Then Esther pulled back to look her friend in the face.
“Thank you,” was all she could say. But Skar smiled, shaking her head.
“When you came to us, we should have given you refuge,” she said. “This was the least we could do to make up for it.”
And with that, Skar turned her attention to the baby. She took Kai into her arms, cooing and nuzzling. “Here,” she said. She pulled a length of cloth from her pack and showed Esther how to make a sling, bundling the child close to her body. Then she hugged her friend once more and wished her luck. As Skar returned to her brother and the other variants, Esther approached Caleb.
“I’ll take Kai somewhere safe,” she said. “I have a friend who lives high in a building on the edge of town. It’s secure there.”
Caleb nodded. Then he kissed Esther and his son. Soon she was gone, slipping out even before the others had left. He watched the rest exit the Source, taking the light with them.
Then Caleb turned. There was still the question of Levi.
EIGHTEEN
ELI BICYCLED ALONGSIDE SLAYD ON THE ROUTE LEADING BACK TO THE mansion where the townspeople were being held. Behind them, Skar, Bekkah, Till, and the rest of the variants spread out in a loose V formation.
As they rode, the variant leader questioned the norm about the place they were going to try to liberate. What were the best approaches to the building? Were they open or hidden? How many guards were there, and where were they posted? Were there townspeople strong enough to assist? Were there any breaks in the barbed wire?
Eli answered as best as he could. He was both relieved and proud that he could provide enough details to satisfy Slayd. As for the variant, he was impressed that the boy was able to mount a successful escape with his two companions. Despite their initial and mutual distrust, the two leaders now discussed a possible attack plan, one that capitalized on the fighting prowess of the variants as well as the norms’ knowledge of the layout and the people involved.
At the mansion, Levi’s guards had no idea what was bearing down on them. They stood at attention at newly assigned posts, just beyond the strands of razor wire that coiled around the house exterior. On the first day, the boys were left to their own devices. As a result, they spent the day clustered in a group, making bets on flipped coins, wrestling, and gossiping. But after three of the prisoners escaped, word came from Levi that all guards were to be stationed around the perimeter.
Despite their grumbling, the boys were too intimidated not to comply. As a result, they were openly indifferent to the sounds of rioting from within: screaming, the smashing of glass, and the splintering of wood. Whether the townspeople lived or died was of no consequence to them. The guards only thought about their own welfare.
But staying at attention was too hard for most. One guard rested at his station by the front of the house. A hulking boy with shaggy hair that stuck out around the edges of his hood, he used a stick to scratch a game of solitary tic-tac-toe in the dust by his feet. He no longer even heard the ragged voices on the other side of the barbed wire, pleading for water or news. But after a while, he did hear something else, and he glanced up.
There was a scrabbling coming from the roof above his head.
Pebbles rolled across shingles and rained down on him, as if dislodged by someone above. He smiled as he got into position to catch the escaping prisoner who was so obviously climbing down. It was almost too easy. He was one of the few who had been assigned a Taser, which he now took from his belt and tapped against his palm with anticipation.
But the threat did not come from above; with the guard facing the house, his back to the yard, it instead came from behind. An object winged through the air, followed by a loud crack. The boy’s knees buckled as he sank to the ground, blood from his temple staining the damp grass.
The prisoners watching from inside fell silent as Bekkah and a variant boy emerged from their hiding places. As the variant bent down to grab the weapon from the guard’s still-twitching fingers, Bekkah was pulling something out from her jeans pocket. It was a cutting device taken from the Source for just this purpose, with sharp edges and rubber handles.
She got to work on the razor wire. There were at least four coiling strands blocking the front door and the metal they were made of was sturdy. By squeezing as hard as she could, Bekkah was able to snip through one piece. The wire, however, sprang back abruptly and one of the razor edges slashed her across the bare arm. Wincing, she kept working.
Eli was watching from a car abandoned in the overgrown driveway, a silver Lexus. “It’s taking too long,” muttered Eli to Slayd, who knelt next to him.
“That is why we must attack now,” Slayd replied under his breath. “Before it is too late.” Out of courtesy, he made a point of glancing at the norm for confirmation. Eli hesitated before nodding, and Slayd put his fingers in his mouth, giving a piercing whistle.
Eli took out Caleb’s weapon.
And seconds later, the attack began.
A barrage of rocks was unleashed from all angles: from behind trees, abandoned cars, the roof of a gardening shed. Taken by surprise, Levi’s men had no time to defend themselves. Two of them managed to duck the flying projectiles, batting them aside. One even succeeded in breaking loose. He took off down the circular driveway at a sprint. But he was no match for two variants, one on his bicycle and the other perched on his rear wheel pegs and taking aim as he whirled his loaded sling overhead. Within seconds, there was a final loud crack. All of the guards had been felled, and the grass was littered with their bodies. Slayd and the others started searching them and removing their weapons.
At first, the townspeople shrank back from the windows, in fear of the flying missiles. Now they crushed together at the front door, where Bekkah was still struggling to cut the last few strands of razor wire.
Blinking in the light of the sun, the exhausted residents emerged, some barely able to stand. One by one, they glanced down at the unconscious guards, anonymous in their bloody hoods and cracked sunglasses. Just moments before, they had seemed omnipotent. Now, a small boy kicked one as he passed, and another spat on the unmoving forms.
“Animals,” he hissed.
Eli pushed his way past the released residents, back to the place where he too had so recently been imprisoned. Once inside, he did a quick search of the home, going from room to room to make sure no one was left behind. As he did, he winced not only at the filth and stench, but the senseless damage. Everything he saw spoke of impotent fury: the floors were littered with glass, the furniture was smashed, and the walls kicked in.
He saw that the mansion was almost empty; only the final stragglers were left. But in one corner of the house, a motionless form swathed in a white robe despite the unbearable heat huddled against the wall.
Eli bent and, with surprising ease, picked her up; she seemed weightless. Then, walking through the now vacated prison, he carried Sarah to safety.
It was hard work running with a small child tied to one’s back.
It was not so much Kai’s weight; he was just a baby, and Esther had carried far heavier burdens before. But no matter how carefully she ran, the jostling made him wail and struggle in his harness. He even managed to kick a leg free and Esther, terrified that he might fall out, was forced to slow to a walk. So it took her twice as long as she expected to reach the Gideon Putnam Hotel.
When she did, she was alarmed by what she saw.
The apartment complex, Joseph’s beloved but decaying home, was guarded by Levi’s men. Two of them, armed with bows and arrows, flanked the shattered glass entrance.
Esther realized this would be no safe haven for her and the child. Yet she also knew she had to get inside somehow and see what had happened to her old friend. Esther debated for a moment whether or not to hide the child someplace nearby. Then she made up her mind. Lacing her fingers behind her back to give the sleeping boy extra support, she slipped her way with him through the undergrowth brush to the back of the complex.
It was as she hoped: no one had been stationed to protect the gaping hole that had once been the picture window overlooking the courtyard and playing grounds. The familiar lobby was deserted. She was about to slip across to the far side when she heard footsteps descending the staircase.
Esther had barely enough time to duck behind a cracked pillar when two guards entered the lobby. She listened until she could no longer hear them.
Esther sensed Kai stirring in his sling. Now was the moment to get moving. She ran to the staircase, glancing around in case there was anyone else. Then she began to climb.
Even if she had not seen the guards, Esther would have known that strangers had been here. Several sections of the staircase, already fragile, had collapsed and she had to navigate the metal railing instead, praying it held up under her weight.
Joseph saw her anxious face moments later in his doorway.
“You’re safe,” she said, relieved.
His eyes lit up with surprise when he noticed what she was carrying on her back.
“Is that a baby?” he said, as he drew close. Joseph had only seen infants a few times in his life, and that was many years ago. This one was awake, staring at him with a comically quizzical expression.