Liberating Barriers

by Roman Shepp

  “What boxes? What women?”

  “The boxes are what we use for punishment. Trust me, you do not want to be put in one of those boxes. Anyone who gets put in one of those has done something pretty damn serious. Some people were talking about moving them into the middle of the community to remind people why we have to be careful when we let newcomers in. You seem nice and all, but just be patient and you’ll get your chance to live like the rest of us.”

  Jane had many more questions, but the man left before she could ask them. The tent she was in was more of a marquee. There was plenty of room to move around, and a soft breeze fluttered in through the openings. It wasn’t that secure, and she easily could escape if she wanted to do so. The only problem she had was that people would be looking for her. That, and she didn’t know where she was going to go.

  Hearing about the boxes and the man and women inside made Jane wonder. A man and two women. Could it be Saeed and the others? But what about Tara? No, it probably was too far-fetched. The chances of them all reuniting again here was beyond preposterous. She never would see any of them again, especially not Phil and Rosa, who she had run away from. No, she was alone, and she had to face that fact. Somehow, she would have to find a way out of here using her own resources and her own talents. It would take time, especially with Frank putting himself in a position of power, but she would find a way to help these people. It was time for her to stop moping and to honor Tony’s memory by being the best person she could be. The person Tony would have wanted her to be.

  And at some point, she would confront Natasha and apologize for her actions as well. It was the least she could do for that woman after all the strife and agony she had been through.

  After waiting in her tent for a couple of hours, Jane was distracted by some noises outside. She moved to one side of the tent and peered through an open flap and a soft breeze fluttered through the openings. People were gathering in the middle of the field. Then she saw that a box was being carried by four strapping men. The box looked small from where Jane was sitting, and she didn’t envy the person who was inside. Jane’s heart sank as she realized that she very well could be in there if Frank whispered the idea in Hugo’s ear, and being in that box was a far worse punishment than being in that cage.

  Jane began to panic. Sweat beaded on her temples and her breath became more frantic. The thought of being placed in that box was too much to handle, and she started to back away. She needed to be free. She needed to escape this place before it was too late. All the forces were against her, and she remembered what it was to be alone, just like that first night. That first night, when she had been running away from Frank, one bare foot, the city burning around her. It wouldn’t happen again. It couldn’t happen again. She had to be free.

  Then the crowd parted, and the box was set down. Jane was losing her mind, but the sight of the box opening helped her focus. She stared as the three men leaned down and opened the box. The procedure had a ritualistic quality to it, almost a reverence. Everyone was quiet. After a couple of moments Jane realized she was holding her breath. The four men lifted the lid and reached in, pulling out the man inside. An arm appeared, then another, then a lolling head.

  “This is what happens when you break away from our unity! This is what happens when you are alone!” Matthias cried from another direction. Jane looked at the majestic man as his voice boomed around the community.

  “If you are selfish and don’t think about the good of the community, this is what happens. I pity this man because he was not able to see the good of this place. I hope he changes his ways. See him now in his pain and be reminded of why we live the way we do. His suffering is a reminder to us all of the compassion we share for each other, and the bonds that shall remain unbroken.”

  Jane turned her gaze back to the box and then gasped, her hand rising to her mouth. It just wasn’t possible. But it had to be. It was Saeed.

  At first Jane was stunned. Then she was filled with a new resolve. There was someone else she knew in the community, and if she could rescue Saeed, it might make up for the fact that she had left Phil behind. Jane’s heart went out to the poor man. He staggered out of the box and immediately fell to the ground. Nobody was there to help him up. They all just stared. How could they just stare at him, as if he was a leper? Saeed groaned and pushed himself up. The men fed him a morsel of food and gave him a cup of water. Saeed gulped it down greedily, his hands following them as they took the cup away. It just wasn’t enough.

  Jane’s stomach burned with hatred for all of these people. They were supposed to be enlightened. Yet they were willing to let someone be treated like this? It was inhumane. It was unnatural. Jane almost smiled as she thought about what Tony would have done if he had been there. But no, it was up to her now. She had to be the hero. She had to be the one to take Tony’s memory and use it for the greater good. Saeed had suffered through so much, it wasn’t fair that he was being kept in one of those boxes. Jane had to do something. She would do something.

  Because not only was Saeed in danger, but it meant that Tara was close by as well. Jane knew Saeed wouldn’t have let any harm come to the little girl, so she had to be somewhere nearby. Jane tore her eyes away from Saeed to peer into the crowd, looking intently at every face. Some of them recoiled in horror at what they were seeing, but those were too few and far between. Most people were staring in awe, looking at Saeed as though he were a criminal. That settled it for Jane. If there had been any doubt in her mind that this place was rotten to the core, it just had been eradicated. These people had to be stopped. This was wrong, and if they couldn’t see that, then there was no hope for them. It was almost as bad as what was going on in the rest of the world. At least out there everyone was up front about their horror and their violent fetishes. In here it was hiding under a veil of civility.

  Tara. Tara. Where was Tara? Jane continued searching the crowd, hoping against hope that nothing had happened to her. That young girl represented the future of humanity, and she represented Jane’s last hope to be a good person as well. Jane long ago had resigned herself to the fact she never was going to become a mother, but at least with Tara she could be a good role model, and it only filled her with more shame that she had acted in such a dishonorable way. How was she possibly going to tell Tara that she had left Phil locked up in a cage somewhere? Jane didn’t deserve Tara’s respect, but she was damned well sure she was going to do all she could to earn it back again.

  Jane’s face lit up when she saw Tara. She called out, but after Matthias had spoken there was a commotion, and everyone was talking. Jane called out Tara’s name again and again, gesticulating wildly to try getting Tara’s attention. Eventually, the little girl turned to see her, and she smiled widely. Jane couldn’t imagine how hard it was for her to watch Saeed being tortured like this. Jane felt alone, but Tara was alone as well, and the world was a far scarier place for a little girl than it was for a grown woman.

  Tara glanced toward Saeed before she ran up to the tent. Jane leaned out as far as she could.

  “Jane!” Tara said.

  “Hey, Tara! Do you know what’s going on here?”

  Tara scrunched up her face. “Saeed wanted to help Martha and Belinda, but they found him, and they punished him. Charlotte thinks he deserves it, but I don’t. Saeed said I shouldn’t help him and shouldn’t tell anyone about why we’re here. We’re spies.”

  “Yes, spies, that’s brilliant. Look, Tara, I’m being held in this tent as well. I don’t think the people in charge of this place like me that much. I’m not allowed to leave this tent. Would you be able to help me?”

  “What do you need me to do? Will it help Saeed?”

  “Yes. I want to get out of here so I can help him. Whatever anyone tells you, it isn’t right what they’re doing to him. Can you come back later with some rope? I have a plan to get out of here, but I’ll need some rope to do it.”

  Tara nodd
ed.

  “Thank you so much, Tara. You’re a good girl, and so brave.”

  “You’re my friends. Of course I want to help you,” she said.

  Her logic was so simple, so innocent. It was somewhat like Tony’s really, Jane thought to herself. That man had lost his parents when he was younger, just as Tara had. Perhaps that gave them a clearer outlook on what was right and wrong. Perhaps it just meant that they trusted other people because they wanted to build a new family. Either way, it meant they were better people than Jane.

  But Jane was going to change that. She was going to free Saeed and then find a way to get them all out of here. Martha and Belinda still had to be around somewhere as well, and there were likely others who wanted to escape, but were too afraid to do so.

  A shadow loomed over Tara.

  “What are you doing over here? You shouldn’t run away,” a young woman said in a shrill voice. She was pretty, but Jane took an instant dislike to her.

  “Hello, Charlotte. I was just exploring,” Tara said, choosing not to reveal that she knew Jane. Tara was a smart girl. She was going to be a force to be reckoned with when she grew up. Jane resisted the urge to add if she grew up.

  “You shouldn’t mix with the undesirables,” Charlotte sneered.

  “Now come back to school and we’ll continue our education,” she said, dragging Tara away. Jane knew her message had gotten through, and despite the teacher’s wishes Tara already had received a good education. Jane was confident that Tara wouldn’t let her down.

  The day passed. Soon after Tara left Saeed was placed back in the box. Jane had called out to him. For a moment she thought their eyes had met, although she wasn’t sure if he was aware enough to know it was her. She hoped he could hold out for just a little longer. With all that man had been through she wondered if there was anything that could break him, but soon he would be free. Somehow, she’d find a way, even though Tony wasn’t with her.

  Later in the evening, after Jane had been given food and most of the community was sleeping, she waited patiently for Tara, hoping the girl had managed to find some rope. Thankfully, this community seemed quite open, and even if some of them were suspicious, she doubted any of them would be paranoid about a little girl going about her business. So it was that she heard a noise outside, and as it drew closer she knew it was Tara distracting the guard. Jane smiled.

  “Good girl,” she muttered under her breath.

  The guard was crouching so he could talk to Tara at her eye level. He was talking to her so intently that he wasn’t aware of Jane moving behind him. It was only when Tara’s eyes flicked toward Jane that the guard turned around, and then it was too late. Jane already had drawn back her fist and jabbed him in the face. The man’s head tilted back, then Jane grabbed his neck and threw him in the tent. Once again, she was glad she had taken self-defense classes, even though this wasn’t what she thought she was going to use them for.

  Tara ran up to her.

  “Did I do good?” she asked.

  “You did very good,” Jane said, taking the rope from her.

  Working quickly, Jane thought back to her childhood on the lake when her father would take her out and teach her all about different subjects, one being seaman’s knots. Jane tightened the rope around the man’s wrists, binding them behind his back, and then stuffed a cloth in his mouth before he could wake up.

  “I got the rope pretty easily. I said I wanted it for skipping. Nobody seemed to guess. I think I make a good spy.”

  “You make the best spy,” Jane said.

  “Are we going to rescue Saeed now?” Tara asked.

  “We sure are,” Jane said, smoothing down her clothes.

  She whispered an apology to the guard, hoping she hadn’t hurt him too much. He only was doing what he had been told, after all. Then again, that was part of the problem with the world. Too many people only did what they were told to do without thinking what it really meant.

  That was going to change, though.

  Jane was going to open their eyes.

  Chapter Eleven

  Saeed’s limbs were on fire. Pinpricks of light broke through the gaps in the box. His body cramped, twisted up like a pretzel. Everything inside him screamed. All he wanted to do was burst out of the box and leave jagged bits of wood scattered around him on the ground. Every time he flexed his muscles he swore he almost could feel the wooden sides give, but they were resolute and would not be broken. Saeed twisted his head, trying to suck in the fresh air, even though it only made his throat dry. His breath was raspy and every time he swallowed he coughed, which only made his body rumble against the side of the box. When he first had been put in the box he had hoped that by putting all his body weight against it he could topple it over and the lid would come off. That hadn’t happened. It only had caused bruises to appear over his skin. He was all out of tears too. It was a miserable experience.

  Part of him wished they hadn’t bothered to release him from the box. For a brief moment his muscles had felt the sweet relief of freedom, only for him to be put back in the cramped, confined space, and he honestly wasn’t sure how much more he could take. The emotional agony of losing his family was one thing. The torture he had endured had been another. This was something else entirely. He wanted to scream, even though his screams did no good. He wanted to break out and tear these people apart, but he was helpless. All he could do was endure. Nobody could help him. He was alone, and because of that Tara was alone as well.

  How he wished things had turned out differently. Saeed did not regret his actions, for he knew he would be able to handle this suffering more than Martha or Belinda could. But he hoped Tara was being taken care of, and that she would remember what was important in this life. The last thing he needed was that teacher brainwashing her.

  Having staggered around in a daze, Saeed had looked for Tara. His vision had blurred, though. The sunlight had been so bright against his eyes, which now were used to darkness. The few sips of water he had been allowed and the morsel of food that had passed across his lips were the only things sustaining him. His stomach griped. His lips were dry and cracked. Time seemed to pass endlessly. He was aware it was dark outside, but other than that he had no idea what time it actually was. Another day would dawn, another day he had to spend in the box. At least the temperature had dropped. The daytime was the worst. The box was stifling. There had been a few times when Saeed had passed out due to the heat. Sweat poured out of his body and now had dried, leaving a layer of crust over his skin, making him feel dirty.

  Despite all this he was not going to give up. Never would he surrender to these people. He had to be strong, for Tara, and for everyone else who saw a way out.

  However, Saeed was disappointed in the people of this community. He had thought, had hoped, that at least one of them would have come to his aid. Instead, they stood there and stared at him as though he was some kind of freak show. He heard all the things they said as well. How he was like an enemy of the state, committing a crime that threatened to tear apart the fabric of their society. How foolish they were. They had isolated themselves from the world for so long that they were convinced they were righteous, and that this was the only way. It wasn’t the only way. It wasn’t even the right way.

  Saeed wondered how many people had died from being in one of these boxes. Would he be another victim? No. He had to survive. He was Tara’s last hope. He was perhaps the city’s last hope as well. If he gave up now, there would be nobody to stop Hugo and his evil plans. Unless Jane and the others still were out there, plotting. That’s if they even had survived. There was a strong chance that the masked man had killed them all and turned the bunker into a tomb. Saeed tried not to think about that. If he was the last surviving member of their group, it would be incredibly ironic, considering that for a long time he was the only one of them ready to die.

  Outside he heard footsteps approaching. A sliv
er of hope sprung in his heart at the thought that it may be someone having mercy on him. Not that that was likely. Everyone saw how he had been punished for freeing someone from the box. It was unlikely that anyone would help him now. Then he heard Hugo’s reedy voice.

  “Such a beautiful night,” Hugo said, inhaling the cool night air deeply. “It’s such a nice night to stretch your legs and go for a walk. You should see it out here. It’s really something.”

  Saeed only could grunt in reply, and he didn’t even do that. He didn’t want to give Hugo the satisfaction. It didn’t seem to faze Hugo, though, who continued speaking. “I hope you’ve begun to learn your lesson now. You can’t come into someone’s home and act any way you want. You have to respect the rules and live by them. That’s part of the contract of hospitality. I showed you hospitality. I let you into this community in the hope that you would see what we are trying to accomplish and join us. Instead you have turned around and thrown my goodwill back in my face. That cannot be tolerated. Stronger men than you have tried to endure this box. None of them have succeeded. Do you really think you’ll be the first?

  “No, more likely is that your body will be ruined, and you won’t be good for anything anymore. Do you really think it’s worth making this pointless stand? It’s not as though you’re actually going to make a difference here. Nobody here cares about you or what you think you stand for. They all see how things must be. They all follow me, and that isn’t going to change with this petty act of defiance.

  “But that’s not to say I’m not without mercy. I’m not some kind of maniac who takes joy in this sort of thing. It’s just a necessary evil, I’m afraid, and since I’m the leader of this community, it falls on me to enforce discipline. I want to give you a chance, Saeed. I still think you could be a good addition to this community. You’re strong and fierce, and if you turned your determination to a greater cause, there would be nothing stopping you from being the person you want to be.