Shymers

by Jen Naumann

  My eyes are so busy taking everything in that a moment passes before I realize a man sits only a few feet directly in front of me. An electronic tablet balances on his lap, his fingers skimming over its buttons. His face is abnormally long and narrow. His dark eyes nearly disappear under his thick eyebrows. Long, dark hair falling down to his shoulders is neatly brushed over to the side of his pale face. Do people down here have such white skin because they never see the sun?

  The man glances up at me. His thin lips form into a crooked smile and he claps his hands together. “Another visitor! How fortunate!” By the dark tone underlying his words, he is obviously angry.

  “I fell through an opening in the forest,” I blurt. “It was an accident.”

  He is still sneering at me. “We seem to have a problem with these hidden entrances. You’re not the first one to recently discover them.”

  I feel a surge of excitement at the possibilities, despite the fact that this man is terrifying me to new levels. Maybe Bree isn’t alone. Maybe Harrison and Tayrn are with her. “You mean there are more? Do you know their names?”

  He stands at once from the chair to walk toward me. He stops close, studying me. A long, bony finger reaches out to hold my chin. I flinch with his cold touch, but it’s not the temperature of his skin that is so unbearable. It’s the unnatural vibe beaming from him, projected on to me. It is similar to the buzz I got from Kendall and the strange girl, but much darker. It’s as if he is looking into my soul. I shiver.

  His finger drops from my chin. At first he looks just as shaken at I am, but then his lips pull into another twisted grin. “What a special treat for you to join us, Olive!”

  Just like the strange girl, he knew my name after merely touching me. Who are these people? I fight the urge to wipe the spot where his finger was.

  “How do you know my name?”

  The man holds his lips tight. “You really don’t know, do you?”

  Frowning, I ask, “Know what?”

  He laughs and claps his hands together. “We are going to have so much fun with you!” The words chill me even more than his frightening appearance. What does he want from me?

  My nerves feel exposed. It’s hard not to shiver. “I am only passing through.”

  The man’s eyes narrow. His unrelenting stare makes me intensely uncomfortable. “What makes you think you can just enter my city and then leave again, when you weren’t even invited in the first place?”

  My city.Is this man in charge of everyone down here? From everything he has said, convincing him to let me leave again may prove to be difficult. My brother’s warning of these people wanting to be left alone keeps repeating over and over in my head. This underground city may have a whole world of secrets of their own.

  “It was an accident,” I repeat. “Please, sir, are the others still here?”

  He laughs. “Sir? Please call me Thaddeous.” When I don’t say anything in response, the man dips his head once in affirmation. “They’re still here. But the question I have in all of this iswhat should we do with all of you?”

  From his malicious, dark stare, I wonder for a fleeting moment if he is some kind of inhuman creature from the fairy tales my parents used to tell. Vampires, wolves, demons—could they possibly be real?

  No matter what happens or what he says, I must stay calm. If Bree and the others are truly down here, being friendly with this man may be the only way I can get to them. He may be our only way out of here.

  I twist my lips into an innocent smile. “We were only trying to get away from Society. You don’t have to worry, we won’t tell anyone about your hidden city. If I can just find my friends, we will leave and never speak of this place again.”

  Thaddeous leans close, examining my face. His breath is warm and metallic. It’s a rancid, terrible smell that reminds me of dead animals. “Why do you keep sayingwe? Is there someone else here with you?”

  For a second, I hesitate. I can’t let him know my brother is looking for another way in. “I was alone,” I say finally. “I’m speaking for my friends that may already be down here.”

  His eyes don’t leave mine. “How do I know I can trust you? How do I know Society didn’t send you?”

  I pull my hair aside to show him the mark. “I’m a Shymer. I wouldnever do anything for Society considering the way they choose to treat us.”

  Thaddeous crosses his arms. The edges of his mouth pull into a smirk. “Just because you have the mark, you really think you’re a Shymer?”

  Obviously I still don’t know what I am, but I had hoped he wouldn’t see me as a threat if he thought I was a Shymer. I drop my hair and peer around the room. “You seem fascinated by the old world. Wouldn’t you like to live without fear of the government anymore? Maybe we could live the way they used to. My friends and I are trying to change things, to make them right. We’re on your side.”

  This is a bit of a lie. Bree and the others wouldn’t know of the Rebels’ plans to attack. But I have to do whatever I can think of to convince this man we aren’t going to be any kind of threat to him and his people.

  His eyes grow hard, angry. “You really think a bunch of kids are going to stop Society? You think if there was really a way to stop them that we would be living down here like a bunch of animals?”

  Something about this man feels terribly off and I know I shouldn’t trust him. I decide not to tell him about the Rebels. From what little I know, it’s possible the Rebels are aware of this underground city like my mother was. Maybe the Rebels haven’t joined forces with them for good reason.

  Thaddeous looks past me to the hairless man. “Joshua, take her out to join the others.”

  I pull away before Joshua can touch me. “You don’t have to push me around. I am not going to run,” I say. The rough way he handled me earlier only brought more pain to my already sore chest. Joshua grunts and points to the exit of the cavern.

  Whirling around to Thaddeous, I decide to beg as a last resort. “Please. We are just like the rest of you. My friends and I only want to live in peace. Someone from your city could take us to the other islands to see that we aren’t going to cause you any problems.”

  Thaddeous makes a low snickering noise. “Other islands? Little girl, do you really think there is another island out there you can justrun off to?”

  I think back to my conversation with Harrison and swallow. “Of course.”

  Thaddeous throws his head back and laughs loudly in a chilling, broken sound. If I never hear his laugh again, it will be too soon. “You’ll never make it off this island.”

  “Not unless you’re a really good swimmer,” Joshua adds with a chuckle.

  My stomach tightens.

  Thaddeous stops laughing, but not smiling. “Did you really think it would be that easy? The closest island is hundreds of miles away. Why do you think the government banned boats and airplanes? So there would be no way to leave.All of us are stuck on this island, forever.”

  My stomach and my spirit fall. Kendall made it sound like such a thing was possible—he was even ready to send me and Kiki over. But what if Thaddeous is right? It would explain why we never heard of people making it beyond the walls of the Free Lands. It would explain why my mother was so confused when I asked her what else was out there.

  “Goodbye, Olive,” Thaddeous says, dismissing us.

  I follow Joshua back through the underground city where the music is still playing. Not wanting to see the confused and angry faces of people watching the newest intruder to their city pass by, I keep my head low.

  If I find Bree and the others now, I won’t know what to say to them. I have led them into a hopeless situation. There is nowhere else for us to go. In agreeing to run away with me, they have only sealed their own fates. I have put them in danger. And what about my brother? Is he still trying to find a way down here to rescue me? My insides turn to mush at the thought of Kiki being down here with Thaddeous.

  “This way,” Joshua grunts. He waits for me i
n front of another entrance where an even bigger man stands watch. The man’s eyes are cold and hard, much like Thaddeous’s. I pass him by quickly.

  Joshua picks up a burning torch lodged in a niche in the rock. A low hum of voices travels toward us from the other end of the tunnel. I follow Joshua until the space grows smaller, forcing him to crouch low. We reach another opening just when I wonder if he will have to begin crawling.

  He points at the hole. “You’d do best to stay in here until someone tells you it’s time to come out.”

  His words are threatening enough that a surge of fear runs through me. I do as I’m told, passing him to enter the dark hole. HIs muffled footsteps fall softly against the stone ground as he walks away.

  A small lamp burns in the corner of the room, giving the space a faint glow. At first it is just enough for me to see the whites of other eyes looking back at me until I adjust to the darkness, and the features of the faces attached to them come into focus.

  “Bree!” I yell, running forward to embrace my friend. I am met with a flash of her white teeth before her arms wrap around me, holding me tight. When she crushes my ribs I whimper, but I’m also crying. The sound comes off as more of a choked sob.

  “I can’t believe you’re really here! We thought you were captured!” she cries. “How did you find us?”

  I pull away from her and squint into the darkness. “Us?” As much as I study the other two faces staring at me from behind her, neither of them are familiar. “Who else is in here with you?”

  “Olive?” a deep voice asks from behind me. “Is it really you?”

  I whirl around, my eyes searching madly through the dim space until I find him.

  23 – Love Makes Us Do Funny Things

  Stepping closer, I can make out the very top of his blond head and a sliver of his facial features. The rest of his body is lost in the darkness. Why doesn’t he stand up to greet me? Did he change his mind about wanting to be with me? I brush away the nagging sensation that something is wrong.

  He’s alive.

  He’s not in suspension and he’s not dead.

  It’s all that matters.

  I stumble over to him and fall to my knees. “Harrison!”

  In an instant, his arms pull me into his chest and his face nestles into my hair. We cling to each other with urgency and longing, each of us making noises that are a mixture of laughter and cries. He smells rancid, yet I am still able to find the comforting scent of him underneath. My heart swells when I inhale deeply.

  I press my face against his warm neck, holding onto him with every ounce of energy I can muster. We could die in this cavern together and I would be happy, as long as we were in each other’s arms. Then suddenly, his hold on me becomes so tight that the pain in my ribs is unbearable. When I cry out, he draws away.

  Even in the dim light, I can see the worry in his eyes. “What’s wrong?” he whispers. “Did they hurt you?”

  “No. I fell.”

  His face is filled with the gentlest of expressions as he brushes my wild hair from my face. My body feels as if it will explode from his soft touch. “How bad is it?”

  “I think I may have cracked a rib, but I’ll survive.” I search the cavern again. “What are you doing down here on the ground? Where’s your cousin? Are you and Bree okay? How long have you been down here?”

  “We’re okay. I hurt my leg a little, that’s all.” The bright smile I once longed to see on his face flashes momentarily before falling again. “Olive, I had given up hope that I would ever see you again. Tayrn thought she saw you being taken away to suspension. I thought I’d lost you forever.”

  “It’s a long story,” I say, placing my hand on his chest. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

  “Yeah, I’m okay. But…Tayrn didn’t make it.”

  I gasp. “What do you mean? What happened?”

  He rubs my cheek with his thumb and my eyes grow heavy with the thrill of his touch. “Soldiers discovered her in the forest. They took her away to suspension.”

  My happiness is deflated with the grave news. His kind, sweet cousin had risked everything to help me. She wouldn’t know her DOD yet as a Future. What if she had another thirty years left to live? The thought of her spending the rest of her life in suspension is nothing short of tragic. Arlandria will be crushed.

  But then I see a spark of hope. If the Rebels succeed with their plan, both Tayrn and my mother may be freed from suspension.

  “It’s my fault,” Bree says quietly behind us. “If Harrison hadn’t been with me…”

  “It wasn’t anyone’s fault,” Harrison interrupts. “There was nothing we could have done. If we tried to help her, we only would have put ourselves in danger. Society values its Futures. They may decide to give her a second chance. She was actuallysmilingwhen they took her away. I think it was her way of telling me she was going to be okay.”

  “I’m sorry,” I whisper. I don’t know what else to say to him. I find one of his hands in the dark and bring it to my lips for a soft kiss.

  “I was so worried about you, Olive,” he says weakly, resting his hand against my jaw. So much warmth and adoration radiates from his eyes that I feel dizzy.

  When I rest my hand over his, our fingers lock together. “I’m okay. I made some…friends. Harrison, the Rebels are planning to free everyone in suspension and take over the government.”

  “What?” Bree asks. Simultaneously, to my surprise, Harrison replies, “I know.”

  I turn to look up at Bree. “They’re planning to do it soon. I’ll explain everything to you later, I promise.” Spinning back around to face Harrison, I ask, “How did you know?”

  “The Rebels who helped me cross over told me everything.” His other hand finds my face and holds fast. His gaze turns intense. “I’m thinking of joining them, Olive. What they’re planning is good. They could make things right.”

  With his words, I am renewed with a new sense of hope. “I want to come with you,” I say excitedly. “I want to help in whatever way I can.”

  He leans in to press his forehead to mine. “No, you can’t. I won’t let you. There will be guns and other weapons. People will die, Olive. It’s way too dangerous. I can’t stand the thought of losing you again.”

  I close my eyes. I know he only wants to protect me, but with his protests comes an overwhelming bout of passion that nearly knocks me over. From deep within my heart, I know where it’s all coming from. He loves me as much as I do him.

  Maybe this is why my mother didn’t tell me she was the Rebel leader. Knowing someone you love plans to willingly step in the way of danger is painful and unimaginable. This must be why she kept so many secrets from me.

  Love makes you do funny things.

  Harrison draws back to look beyond me, to where Bree stands. “Can you please give us a minute?”

  I turn to see the other two in the cavern—a boy and a girl who are both much taller than Bree—cross to the other side and disappear in the shadows. Bree pauses, watching me for moment. When I nod, she smiles and follows the others.

  “I don’t want you to do this,” Harrison whispers. “I don’t want you to go.”

  I take his face in my hands and smile. Even in a dark cavern with dirt covering his striking features, he is still amazing to look at. “I was so afraid I lost you,” I whisper. “I almost gave up hope, Harrison. I didn’t know how to go on without you.”

  His lips twist into a smile. He doesn’t know this kind of feeling and neither do I. My insides burn, the fire consuming every part of me. I’ve never known the love of anyone other than my parents and Taylor’s family. This different kind of love feels vital, urgent.

  Recognition flickers across his face. “I love you, Olive.”

  Warmth spreads from my heart down to my toes. I never imagined being in love with a boy like this would feel so amazing. I never thought I would find someone who I couldn’t live without. I never guessed I would meet someone who I was willing to do anything for.<
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  “I love you, too,” I whisper.

  We both smile brightly and stare into each other’s eyes. A mutual feeling of passion passes between us, stealing my breath away. All at once, he leans his face closer until his warm, moist lips press against mine. Shutting my eyes, I move my mouth against his, marveling at the way he tastes and smells.

  Realizing I am experiencing my first kiss, I want to cry out happily. As a little girl, I would steal glances at my parents when they kissed. I used to think it was something unhealthy until my mother told me it was the most intimate way for a man and woman to show their love for each other. After that, I began dreaming that I was one of the princesses in my father’s fairy tales, waiting for my own prince to come and seal our happy ending with a kiss.

  Kissing Harrison now is everything I hoped it would be. His hands, soft and tender, run from my neck down to my back and up again.

  Suddenly, it feels as if the other half of me I lost when I was torn from my mother and the Free Lands has been found. Harrison and I belong together, even if our love is doomed.

  Long before I am ready for the magical moment to be over, he pulls away. I shamefully remember we’re not alone and hope the others are still turned away. It may have been an awkward time to experience our first kiss—among other people in an underground cavern—but it was amazing, nonetheless.

  Still trying to catch our breaths, we are only able to grin at each other.

  * * *

  Nestled in Harrison’s arms, I tell my two friends everything that happened after they disappeared. I leave out the part about Kendall being my brother, instead giving them the same story as Kendall had originally told me—that he knew my mother from the market. While I don’t want to lie to them, I also don’t want to place them in any more danger than they already may be in. My parents kept Kendall a secret all these years for a reason. I just wish I knew why.

  “How do you know you can trust this Kendall guy?” Harrison asks.

  I shrug. Even though I had questioned it once myself, I have come to peace with the fact that he really is my brother, and has no reason to lie to me. “Why should I doubt his intentions?”