by Ruth Silver
"Goodnight, Olive." His breath tickled my ear as he leaned in to kiss my cheek.
"Night, Josh." I yawned, letting my eyes close knowing I would fall asleep before long.
CHAPTER 15
Morning came far too quickly and my stomach lurched with each passing moment, knowing they'd come for us. Soon, our training would start. I didn't want to think about what happened if we didn't pass the tests. Would we really die or was he trying to merely scare us? I rolled around, restless.
"You awake?" I heard Joshua's soft voice as I stared up at the ceiling.
"Unfortunately," I admitted, shifting against the mattress to face him. "Too nervous to fall back asleep." The sun had already come up, and the windows had no blinds to block the morning light.
I felt his warm hands wrap around my waist as he hugged me beneath the covers. "Me, too," he whispered.
"Any idea what the tests might entail?" My mind kept going over the four categories. I didn't see how they'd determine if we were fit to be a part of their community. Apparently they didn't want any weaklings in their town.
"Don't stress." He kissed my temple. "I just hope we both survive," he laughed under his breath. "I'd hate to consider we'd both have to escape again and steal another car." His voice sounded teasing, but I knew deep down he was nervous. We both were. I knew if the tests were indeed passable, we would do just fine. I hated to consider the alternative. In fact if they weren't passable, we would have to find a way to cheat to ensure our safety.
I shifted to sit up in bed but felt Joshua tugging on my arm. "Lay back down," he protested. "I like lying here with you."
I smiled, staring down at him. "I do, too, but I think I could use a real shower." I made a face, leaned down and pretended to sniff him. "So could you." I laughed, climbing out of bed and slipping out of his embrace. As much as I wanted to stay in bed all morning, I knew they would be judging and testing us, and giving a bad impression wouldn’t do either of us any favors.
Joshua smiled up at me with a mischievous grin. "Can I join you?"
"You're supposed to keep off your foot," I gestured. "Somehow I think you and me in the shower would just add more trouble to an already dangerous situation."
He laughed. "Fine. Fine!" He held up his hands smiling. "Don't say I never tried to take you anywhere."
"Really?" I shook my head with a growing smile. He was certainly a handful. I headed for the bathroom as Joshua pushed the blankets off and exposed his bandaged foot. "Too bad we don't have any clean clothes," I remarked, closing the door behind me. The frosted window lit the tiny bathroom as I found the knobs for the shower. Thankfully, they were very basic. I couldn't have felt more grateful for simplicity. Turning on the spray, I was relieved to feel the warmth of water rushing against my skin. Although we'd bathed yesterday in the stream, I hadn't felt clean, not like this heated water rinsing through my hair and down my body. It was refreshing. I found a small bottle of liquid and read the label 'shampoo/soap' and cleaned my hair and body. It smelled oddly of cupcakes, possibly a sign I was hungrier than I realized. I hoped they would provide us breakfast somewhere in town.
The water started running cool, and I knew what that meant. I shut the shower off, dried myself with a towel and slipped back into my grimy clothes. Opening the door, Joshua sat on the bed, looking more awake and alert. "The bathroom's all yours," I gestured, "but you might want to wait a few minutes until there's warm water in the shower."
"You didn't save me any hot water?" he teased. "See, we should have showered together."
"Nice try." I smiled, rolling my eyes as he stood up. "Be careful on that foot of yours," I pointed at the bandage, as if he needed a reminder.
The moment his foot grazed solid ground, he grimaced. "Yes ma'am," Joshua hobbled into the bathroom, closing the door behind him.
I sat quietly on the bed, unsure what to do. Leaving the cabin seemed unlikely, given the guard standing outside the previous night. I doubted the door was unlocked. I knew they'd come for us sometime this morning and if we weren’t here, I didn’t want to imagine how that would go over. Neither Joshua nor I knew the consequence of running off and exploring the town, but I suspected it wouldn’t end well. I had the unsettling feeling I'd probably be shot with that rifle if it were up to Chancellor Collins. He seemed to hate me. I shrugged off the notion. I didn't care what one guy thought about me. He had no idea who I was or what I'd been through.
A brief knock startled me, and I saw the same nurse from last night coming into the cabin and into our bedroom.
"Adam's in the bathroom getting cleaned up." I gestured towards the closed door, hearing the shower.
"I can wait." She nodded standing with her arms folded across her chest. She made no attempt to sit down and didn't offer to come back later.
"Is there something I can help you with?" I doubted it, but thought polite to ask. For some reason, she unnerved me. Maybe it was the fact she'd come into the cabin without waiting for an answer.
"I want to check his bandages. Unless you'd like to handle that?" she snapped coldly.
I rolled my eyes and stood up from the mattress. I stomped over to the bathroom door, giving a forceful knock. "Your nurse girlfriend is here." I mocked, hinting for him to hurry.
A moment later the shower turned off, and I imagined he was toweling off. Joshua opened the bathroom door, the steam followed him out. "What's that, dear?" he teased, wearing only his boxers.
"She's back to check on your foot."
"Oh." Joshua nodded. "Thanks." He hobbled back towards the bed, sitting down and propping his foot up. "Need to check the bandage?" He guessed. It was soaking wet from the shower. She had impeccable timing.
"On the contrary, I'd like you to come with us. I can't patch it up here."
"Isn't that what you did last night?" I didn't understand where they wanted to take Joshua. The last thing I wanted was for him to disappear, worried I'd never see him again. I did not trust these people.
"I did what I could with the necessary tools I had," she didn't so much as look at me as she spoke, staring at Joshua. "I suggest you come with me. Or I can tell the Chancellor that you're being difficult if you prefer?"
Joshua glanced at me. "No, I'll go with you. I'd like Jacqueline to come along." He smiled with a boyish grin, hoping to get on her good side.
"Sure, fine." She rolled her eyes. "You can tag along." She headed for the front door, waiting for us to follow. He picked up his dirty clothes from the floor and put them back on before hobbling out of the bedroom.
Joshua smiled politely. "I never caught your name." He offered his hand introducing himself, "I'm Adam." He waited for her to properly introduce herself. He had a way of making friends with everyone.
"Sydney," she remarked. "Not that it will matter for long."
"I'm Jacqueline," I offered my hand.
She turned to stare coldly at me. "I don't care who you are. You're a nuisance, if you ask me."
"Well, I didn't," I muttered beneath my breath. What had I done to her? What had I done to anyone in this town? I felt like they all hated me, based more on suspicions than anything else. They didn't trust us. I couldn't blame them. It wasn't as though I trusted them either.
I followed quietly behind Joshua as the nurse led us outside and into our car. I didn't feel comfortable knowing they had the keys and had taken it over since our arrival.
Joshua glanced at me, giving me a knowing look as he climbed into the front of the car and I climbed into the back. Sydney started the car, already familiar and comfortable behind the wheel. I wondered how many other vehicles the town had. I had so many questions and felt as though no one would give us any answers.
We didn’t drive long before Sydney pulled the car in front of what appeared to be a medical clinic. "Wait in the car. We won't be but ten minutes," Sydney told me. "If you get out, I'll give those guards permission to shoot you." She pointed toward the two armed men standing not twenty feet from the vehicle.
"Got it. Stay here," I remarked. I glanced around the car, noticing they’d cleared out everything we'd brought with us. What little food we had, matches and water were all gone. I couldn't say this surprised me, but it saddened me these people had stolen from us. We had very little in our possession, yet they felt it necessary to take what was ours. It angered me.
"Be back in no time." Joshua gave me a reassuring smile. "See you in a bit, Jacqueline." he waved before getting out and hobbling with Sydney into the medical center.
Sitting in the car, I surveyed the town. There wasn't much, at least nothing visible from the car. The town looked old, abandoned. Maybe that was intentional. If someone flew over town, the town could possibly go unnoticed. A drone would consider the town uninhabited if it didn't register people. I wondered what was so secretive and special about where we were.
I sat quietly, unsure how much time had passed since Joshua had gone into the clinic. It hadn't seemed long, but it had been several minutes. Chancellor Collins walked toward me, walking with a slight limp I hadn't noticed before. His presence always chilled me to the bone. "Well, hello again," he remarked, coming up to the car.
I didn't feel like being friendly, but I forced a smile. "Just waiting for Adam," I replied. "Doing as I'm told, not getting out of the car."
"Oh, that must have been Sydney's instruction." Chancellor Collins’ eyes lit up, seemingly pleased with himself. I couldn't tell why. "Of course. Of course," he nodded eagerly, appearing to be in a brighter mood this morning. "She does like to be in charge." I wondered who in this town didn't insist on being in control. He certainly had acted in the same manner the previous night. I didn't argue. "At nine you and Adam will join our recruits," he informed me, giving me a once over. "You'll be given a proper change of clothes. I'm glad to see you found the shower useful." I wanted so badly to wipe the smirk off his face. I would do anything in my power to pass the tests, if only to prove to him that I was more than capable.
"Well, enjoy your morning," he called as he headed into the clinic. I wondered if they had the ability to fix whatever caused him to limp. As he headed in, Joshua and Sydney made their way out.
"Good as new!" Joshua exclaimed as he headed for the car. No wonder they wanted to keep this city a secret. If they could heal a knife wound instantly I wondered what else they were capable of.
"Glad you're better," I smiled, watching as he climbed into the front seat.
"Sydney was just explaining how she was going to take us into the dining hall where we'll meet the other recruits," Joshua explained.
"Recruits?" I asked, having heard the word a few moments earlier and leaving me with far more questions than answers.
Sydney finally spoke up, as she got behind the wheel again, "Yes. Those who turn eighteen are given the chance, if they desire, to join the rankings of our militia or our science advisory board."
"Interesting," I replied, wondering if she would elaborate, and hoping she would leak more information.
"I'm sure the recruits will tell you all about it," she assured, starting the car and driving us three blocks north. I'd barely have known it was part of the town, except for the large single-story brick building standing alone. "This is your stop," she informed us. "Adam, if your foot starts acting up, I suggest you have it looked at. It should be healed though. We rarely have mishaps."
"Mishaps?" What did she mean? I hoped his foot wouldn’t fall off! Paling, I pulled myself from the car and followed Joshua to the main entrance. At least his gait seemed fine on his bad foot. I turned around and watched as Sydney sped off in our vehicle, leaving us to enter the building without her.
CHAPTER 16
We headed into the brick building. I hesitated momentarily before following Joshua inside. To the left, I could hear a loud commotion of voices, and Joshua grabbed my hand and led me into the chaos. Others close to our age gathered around a cafeteria table – all wearing the same dull blue and gray uniform – eating breakfast. The moment I saw the assortment of food across the room, my mouth watered. "Do you think we can help ourselves?" I didn't wait for Joshua's answer as I dropped my hand from his and quickly headed toward the empty line. I grabbed a tray and piled on fruit and eggs as my stomach grumbled.
From behind, I could feel Joshua brush against me. "They're staring at us," he murmured into my ear.
"So, let them." I didn't care what they thought. I grabbed an empty glass and poured some juice from a pitcher, before taking my tray heaped with more food than I could ever eat to the table. I knew Joshua would join me as soon as he finished in line. "Hi." I smiled politely towards a dark-skinned boy who couldn't have been any older than Joshua or myself. He was definitely a full head taller than me. "Is this seat taken?" I didn't wait for a response as I put down my tray and scooted onto the bench.
"You're new," he mused, looking me over and clearly sizing me up. He smirked, seeming pleased at my appearance. I couldn’t tell what amused him or caught his interest – my lack of height and build, perhaps, or maybe the fact I still wore my filthy clothes.
"Yeah, we got in last night." I sighed, giving the most believable smile I could while keeping an eye on Joshua as he carefully carried his tray towards our table. "We're from Haven," I offered. It was better to befriend the stranger than cause any more trouble. I'd done enough of that in Haven, whether I meant to or not. Joshua scooted beside me and nodded once at the other boy to my left.
"Never heard of it." The boy gave Joshua a skeptic look as he finished his last bite of breakfast and stood. "There are five openings and already seven of us competing. Don't expect a warm welcome," I appreciated his direct response and honesty. He walked to the trash and disposed of his tray before he sat back down at the table.
"So, it's a competition?" I asked, trying my best to understand what we'd stumbled upon.
The boy rolled his eyes. "If you want to put it so bluntly, sure." His leer made my stomach flop as I took a bite of my breakfast. After a moment and a sense of hesitation, he offered up his name, "Jaxon," he introduced himself. "And that's Margo," pointing at the curly brunette across from him. She was well-built and more than a little buff. No doubt she could take on any of the boys. I knew not to get on her bad side.
"I'm Jacqueline and this is Adam," I offered my hand with a pleasant look.
Jaxon stared at my hand, but refused to take it. His eyes narrowed sharply, "That's real nice, but don't think we're friends because I'm talking to you."
I shifted in my seat, looking at Joshua for reassurance before replying, "Lucky for me I'm not here to make friends." I countered. "I'm just looking for answers."
Jaxon seemed to relax at my response. Had he expected a fight? "Answers," he paused and gave a slight nod. "Well that I can give you." The corners of his lips curled up slightly, though he didn't look particularly happy. "They hand-pick all the recruits from each town looking for the best – one boy and one girl. Those who don't succeed…” Jaxon paused, “Well, let's just say they go home in a body bag." Jaxon laughed, and I wondered if he said this simply to make me nervous. "Don't look so sick, Jacqueline. Five of us will come out on top." He looked confident he’d be one of the five.
Joshua slowly sipped his juice, listening to the conversation. After a moment he put the glass down and confronted Jaxon. "If we don't pass the tests, what then?"
I caught Jaxon sneaking a look at Margo before staring down Joshua. "You'll die." His eyes glinted. "It's not the Chancellor who will likely kill you. It’s the tests themselves." He let the words hang in the air, and I wondered if he meant to intimidate us. It was working. "Every year two recruits always leave home, and they don’t return." He glanced at Margo as she chewed a thin stick of wood.
I couldn't understand why anyone would choose to leave their life with no chance of returning. I had done it but only out of the sheer need to survive. "Why?" I asked perplexed. "Why would anyone choose this?" I couldn't fathom how someone might volunteer to be here.
Margo leaned forward with a lau
gh, "Why not? This is a dream for most of us."
Jaxon stared at me, seeing the confusion still etched across my face. "It's an honor to be here. You should know that," he clarified. "Oh, we forgot to tell them about the training," he eyed Margo with an eager sneer. I felt as though they’d left out something, and whatever it was could be significant. I glanced at Joshua reaching for his hand as he sat beside me at the table.
Joshua squeezed my hand. His brow furrowed as he focused on the pieces of information we'd been given. "Training?"
Jaxon smiled. "Yes, they’ll test us on four abilities the rebel alliance feels most important for the success of our future. Pass the training, and hopefully you'll be ready for the tests. Do you know what those are?"
I spoke up confident in my answer, "Bravery, integrity, honesty and self-worth." I had remembered that from the previous day.
Jaxon raised an eyebrow, impressed I knew in part what we were here for. "That's right. Taken from the texts of the old system, bravery and integrity were the principles of very powerful men and women. Many were leaders who helped shape our world." He shot a quick glance at Margo, and with her brief nod of approval he elaborated, "With time, the old system had crumbled. Wars erupted. A horrifying disease plagued our world and made women infertile. Our goal – the reason each one of us is here – is to fight the oppressive government and to help grow our nation reach its fullest potential. We are here to reclaim what was once ours."
I didn't object, unsure what to say. Was one government system better than another? Back home things were a mess, but I hadn't seen how it was any better here. Truth was I hadn't seen any part of their government. I was here to train, perhaps as a soldier, but had no understanding of their real mission. I was blindly trusting a town unwilling to grant me the freedom to leave.
"Jacqueline, Adam." A voice came over the intercom. I looked around, wondering where it had come from. "Please head to the sleeping quarters for your room assignments."