Stealing Liberty

by Jennifer Froelich

  Chapter 41

  Riley

  * * *

  “Again.”

  The music starts. Adam takes my hand, touches my back. I don’t wince for the first time this week, but Adam still doesn’t seem happy as we dance across the gym floor. He hasn’t been happy since I got out of the Med Center, but I don’t know why. All I know is it’s more than worry and more than anger at Oliver or Kino.

  When the song ends, Middlebrooks adds to his unhappiness.

  “We’re learning a new dance today.” She claps her hands. “So let’s get back to our original lines, partners facing.”

  The new steps are easy to follow, though Sam struggles to get his arms and legs coordinated. It doesn’t matter. Paisley will practice with him in the evenings. He’s also Middlebrooks’ favorite for some reason, so her impatience with him never escalates beyond pressing her lips together. After putting us through the steps half a dozen times, Middlebrooks stops the music.

  “Now for the fun part! This dance is meant to be progressive, meaning we don’t just dance with our own partner, but with every other partner in the room, working our way down the line. The transition goes like this.”

  Middlebrooks demonstrates with Oliver, easily the best dancer among the boys. After a few practice runs, we all give it a try. I dance with Adam then with Sam, who steps on my toes and pulls my elbow.

  “I’m sorry!” he whispers loudly.

  Next in line is Mark, who knows the steps fine, so long as he counts them out loud. I try not to laugh.

  I’m enjoying the dance. Surprisingly, my back isn’t bothering me at all. Middlebrooks has been attentive, making sure I visit the Med Center every day to have my wounds dressed. I wouldn’t be on my feet at all if not for her.

  Then again, if she hadn’t interrupted Kino’s beating, would I even be alive?

  Thinking about Kino gets my blood boiling. I pirouette and bow to my new partner, Reed. We move in step. Though he touches my waist carefully, I can feel the heat of his hand through my uniform, tingling. He doesn’t count like Mark, or yank my elbow like Sam. He keeps his eyes focused on mine. Just before we separate, he squeezes my hand.

  “We’ll make her pay,” he whispers.

  As I face my new partner, I catch Adam’s eye. He’s watching me.

  By the time our dance lesson is over, I’m beginning to ache again. I say goodbye to Paisley and Xoey and head toward the Med Center. Adam catches up with me.

  “You okay?”

  I bite my lip to keep from sighing. “I’m fine.”

  He pushes his eyebrows together. “We’re on for later, right?”

  “Sure.” I nod and turn away.

  Last night we met in the Hidden Library to discuss Adam’s diversion plan.

  “Just you, Adam, Oliver, and Reed?” Paisley raised one eyebrow as I headed out of the dorm. “That sounds awkward.”

  It was. Adam scowled at Oliver and Reed all evening, all while treating me like a shattered vase.

  “Can we get on with this before we get caught?”

  I stood near the door, worrying Xu or Brock would burst through any minute, even though Xoey was standing guard in the laundry room.

  “Um, okay.” Adam kept his eyes focused on me. “Reed needs a diversion while he and Oliver steal the Bell. Something to get everyone in the train yard running the other way. I have an idea.” He paused and glared at Reed. “One that won’t get anyone blown up.”

  Reed crossed his arms. “I’m listening.”

  Adam pointed to the chalkboard diagram of the train yard. “You guys will be up here, unloading the Bell at Warehouse Four.” He pointed to the tracks. “So we need to draw attention as far away as possible. Preferably outside the train yard gate.”

  “It needs to be big and loud,” said Reed, “which is why I suggested landmines.”

  “Which will only be safe if they stay outside the fence. Zak figured out how to detonate them remotely, right?”

  Reed frowned. “Yes, but I don’t know how.”

  “I bet Sam can figure it out.”

  “I’ll talk to him. But he’ll have to work fast. The train will be here in four days.”

  “I know,” said Adam. “That’s why I thought of a second plan, but it may not have as big of an impact.”

  “What is it?”

  “The Red Cross truck is leaking fluids, right? Leaving a trail every time they leave through the gate. It evaporates pretty quickly, but if we made the leak bigger—”

  Oliver interrupted. “Is it flammable?”

  “Yes. All we need is a generous trail and a little spark.”

  Reed was still frowning. “How long would it burn?”

  “Not long. That’s the problem.”

  “Unless we provided more fuel.” Reed walked to the chalkboard. “The truck passes through the west gate, here. And right here—” He drew a line with his finger, “—is where Jay and I have been piling up old pallets. We’re supposed to burn them when we run out of stuff to unload, but the stack is growing pretty high.”

  “That’s just…what? Three meters from the gate?” I estimated.

  “Sounds about right,” Adam said. “Separated only by a chain link fence. Wouldn’t be hard to get them burning.”

  In the laundry room, Xoey kicked the dryer twice, warning us someone was coming down the stairs. We waited until she kicked it again, then wrapped up our conversation.

  “I’ll talk to Sam about the mines,” Reed said. “You and Riley work out the fuel leak. We’ll go with whatever you decide.”

  Tonight, it’s just me and Adam in the Hidden Library. When I get there, music is playing in the background. He seems more relaxed than he’s been in days. Probably because we’re alone.

  “How are you feeling?”

  “Well enough you can stop asking.”

  He frowns. I bite my lip.

  “Sorry. I just…”

  “No, I get it.”

  After an awkward silence, I clear my throat. “So what’s the plan?”

  We talk it through for the next hour, how much fuel we’ll need, where we’ll connect it to the pallets, and when we’ll set the spark. Later, I track down Paisley in the shower and ask her to help us mess with the cameras in the maintenance garage.

  “Sure. But Sam figured out how to remotely detonate the mines today. Which diversion do you think you’ll use?”

  “If it’s up to me, we’ll do both.” My lips curl as I imagine how bad Kino will look when a fire and an explosion happen during the president’s visit. I wonder if she’ll be punished.

  Paisley nods and starts to shut off the water. I stop her.

  “One more favor,” I say. “When you get the time, can you help me find something on the dark net?”

  “Sure. What is it?”

  “It’s a place. Maybe a service ranch? I don’t know where. I think it’s called The Rose.”

  Chapter 42

  Xoey

  * * *

  Sunset is veiled by thin clouds, washing the entire courtyard in pink light after dinner. The rosy glow makes my classmates seem giddy, as if it has seeped into their pores. In truth they are just happy to have full stomachs and a week without school and second shifts. Happy to have a party on the horizon. A few girls dance around the flagpole, dangerously close to trampling the flowers I planted for Zak.

  How soon they forget.

  I talk to Reed for a few minutes near the kitchen exhaust fans, then return to the dorm. Ten minutes later, I walk out to the tackle field, where the president’s helicopter will land in a few days. I take a lap, then dodge into the shadows behind the library. I stay there for a few minutes, going through lyrics I’m supposed to be memorizing. I don’t sing out loud, though. Not yet. I’m not ready, no matter what Middlebrooks says. A few minutes later, I circle back to the courtyard and stop at the fountain where I chat with some girls from my math class. They talk about their ball gowns and the cosmetics Middlebrooks promised us. I join in, trying to
share their enthusiasm, even if just for the moment. Xu passes me, whistling.

  I pretend not to see him, and not to know he has been following me.

  It was Reed’s idea, using Xu and Brock’s suspicions against them.

  “They’ll be watching us,” he said. “We might as well take advantage of it.”

  So a few of us take diversion duty every night. We can do anything we like, just so long as we draw them away from the Hidden Library, though Reed has drawn them back to the laundry room a couple of times, just for fun. Twice, they have burst in to find us sitting on the dryers, reading our tablets, playing games, or arguing over tackle leagues.

  “What a bunch of losers,” Brock said when he found us there Tuesday night. Paisley and Sam were having an animated discussion about Morse code while the rest of us played a sim game. Reed waited until Brock stomped back up the stairs before cracking up.

  “It’s so easy,” he said.

  I frowned. “But they are getting frustrated, both with us and Middlebrooks for nixing their fun.”

  “Fun? You mean bullying,” said Paisley.

  I nodded. “But what if it backfires? Makes them worse?”

  “It can’t get worse,” Reed said. “Besides, they can’t touch Sam anymore. And as long as we keep them away from our heist plans, we’ll be safe.”

  Tonight Riley and Adam are working on their plan in the Hidden Library while Paisley stands guard, leaving Sam, Oliver, and me on diversion duty. Oliver is still staying away from me, even though I’m pretty sure Kino won’t try anything until after the president’s visit.

  “But she has a good memory,” he murmured when I stopped him in the laundry room on Wednesday night.

  He’s right, I guess. But I have a hard time thinking about what will happen after the president’s visit. After the heist.

  Maybe I just don’t want to.

  Xu is getting restless. I say goodbye to the girls then cross to the cafeteria. I tug on the door even though I know it will be locked, then duck behind a bush and straighten again. Xu scowls as I dart away, leaving him to wonder if he should follow me or search the bushes. I circle the Med Center stairs then make a loop around the dorms and walk toward the fields. When I reach the garden shed, I duck under the awning and hide behind the tractor, holding my breath when Xu strides past a few seconds later, his eyes searching left and right. I stay still until he disappears in the dusk.

  “You’d make a good spy.”

  My heart jumps and I spin around. Oliver is sitting on an oil drum in the shadows.

  “You scared me!”

  “Sorry, I didn’t want to blow your cover.” He jumps down and nods in Xu’s direction. “How far do you think he’ll go?”

  “As far as it takes to find Brock, I guess. Where did you last see him?”

  “Hiding near the train yard gate. I think he’s waiting for Reed to get off work.”

  “He will never give up.”

  “No, he won’t.” Oliver shakes his head. “Some people let the darkness consume them. It’s how they cope with this ugly world.”

  I nod but don’t know what else to say. It’s dark in here and I know there are no microphones, no working cameras. Still, it feels like Oliver will bolt any moment.

  It looks as if I am right when he edges toward the open sky. Then he hesitates, staying in the shadows. “How’s Riley?”

  “Much better.” I shift closer so I can see him better. “Middlebrooks’ health credits, the stitchbots, the meds…it made a big difference.”

  His eyes cloud. “If she hadn’t interrupted Kino—”

  I reach out and squeeze his hand. “But she did.”

  Oliver studies our hands. After a moment he sighs. “I wish this was all over.”

  I don’t ask if he means the president’s visit or the heist. He’s tired of everything. Even the secrets.

  “Have you talked to Mr. Patrick lately?”

  He shuffles his feet.

  “I know. Never mind.”

  “I should go.” He lets go of my hand and turns away.

  “Oliver?”

  He stares at the ground. “Yes?”

  “I know there are things you can’t tell me...”

  “I won’t lie to you.” He touches my arm and my heart turns over. “But when you know everything, you might not…” He lifts his eyes, focusing on something over my head, his jaw tightening. I can feel his heart pounding. I can feel his pain.

  “I will understand.”

  His eyes return to my face. His expression is so tender, I feel as if I could drown in it.

  “You can’t make that promise.” His voice is soft. Just a whisper. “But I love you for trying.”

  A flame catches in my heart, stealing the oxygen from my lungs. Oliver’s eyes widen. He didn’t mean to say it, but I think he meant it just the same. He pulls me close.

  “I shouldn’t feel this way about you. I wish it wasn’t so complicated. I wish…”

  His voice trails away and his arms tighten around me. I try to keep my feet on the ground, to believe anything else matters. For the next several minutes I fail. Eventually though, I pull back and study his face.

  “I could live on wishes if I let myself. But I won’t.”

  Oliver groans, but his mouth twists into something like a smile. “You’re too young to be so levelheaded. What about trusting your heart?”

  “My heart?” It’s thudding, actually, but I try to sound lighthearted. “My mom taught me to guard it. Besides, I’m no younger than you.”

  “Hmm. Smart mom, smart daughter.” But his brow tightens. He’s unhappy again and I don’t know why.

  “The thing is, Oliver, you know so much about me, but you never tell me anything about yourself.”

  “These secrets…they’re not all mine. I can’t—”

  “But you can tell me something. Anything true. Please.”

  For a minute he just stares at me, his eyes clouded with emotions I don’t understand. Then he sighs. “I can tell you I don’t belong here.”

  I wrinkle my nose. “None of us belong here.”

  “Of course not. That’s not what I mean. It’s just you, well, the rest of you, you’re here because your parents were part of something noble, something bigger than themselves. My dad wasn’t.”

  “Tell me about him.”

  He shrugs. “He started out as a machinist, building parts for construction equipment. He got pretty far up in the guild.”

  “I didn’t know there were guilds in Chicago.”

  He nods. “They don’t report to the UDR, but to the Organization.”

  “What…the mob?”

  “Yeah. Dad had bigger plans, though. So he ran cons, laundering money, racketeering, burglary. Any scheme you could imagine. As long as the Organization got their cut, they didn’t mind.”

  “What about your mom?”

  His jaw tightens. “She did whatever he asked of her…as long as she was sober, which was only about half the time.”

  I nod, thinking about my father’s problems with the bottle.

  “But Dad’s greed…it was never satisfied. A couple years ago, he started a side project. Something he hid from the Organization.”

  “What was it?”

  “False nanochip uploads.” He taps his arm. “New identities for people who wanted to escape from the government. Anyone who wanted to disappear and had enough to barter or pay.”

  “I thought our chips were impossible to corrupt.”

  He shakes his head. “Nothing’s impossible.”

  “And the mob caught him?”

  “More or less. They tipped off the UDR in exchange for certain black market trade routes. Dad was arrested for selling nanochip code to a Resistance leader.”

  “Which is why he was designated an enemy of state? And why you were sent here?”

  He focuses on his shoes. “There’s more to it, but…”

  “I know. You’ll tell me some day.”

  Oliver lifts h
is head. “But do you see what I mean? There was nothing noble about what he did. He might have helped a few good people escape before he was caught, but he did it for money. Nothing more.”

  “You’re not your dad.”

  “No. But the rest of you have this connection. Parents you can be proud of. Parents who would be proud of what you’re doing here. I don’t.”

  I start to argue, but a noise on the other side of the shed stops me. Oliver hears it too and he’s already pulling me down to crouch behind the tractor.

  “It’s Brock,” he whispers.

  I recognize his voice too, but then I hear two other sounds blending together in a terrified harmony, twisting my stomach: the mewling of a kitten and Sam, crying. I spring from our hiding place and take the corner at a run, Oliver hot on my heels. We find Brock and Sam by the shed door. Brock is gripping one of the kittens in his fist and sneering at Sam, who is just a step away, holding out his hands, pleading.

  “Please,” Sam says, sobbing. “Don’t hurt her!”

  Brock’s sneer curves into victory. There is no time to react, no time to stop him. He twists the kitten’s neck until her bones crack, cutting off her pathetic cry of pain, then he drops her to the ground. Sam stares at her lifeless form for less than a second before a primal sound erupts from his throat. He launches at Brock and the two land in a heap on the sidewalk. Sam swings his arms, hitting Brock in the face over and over.

  I blink back my tears. “I’ll get Middlebrooks.”

  “Hurry!”

  Oliver heads toward Sam while I retrace my steps, circling the shed and turning toward the courtyard. A group of students pass me on the way, drawn to the fight by Sam’s unearthly wailing and Brock’s cries of protest. I see Kino near the admin building, beginning to march in our direction. I duck into the shadows and run.

  Chapter 43

  Reed

  * * *

  Brock hid near the train yard gate, but I pretended I didn’t see him and headed straight for the showers. Jay and I spent all evening burning pallets, and I was covered in soot and grime. Nothing felt more important than a shower and clean clothes.