Lethal Injection

by K M Lovold

  “What should I do then, sir?” The keeper waited earnestly for direction.

  “Check out the area behind the building, the staircase and the surveillance room. See what went wrong there that a prisoner could roam where he shouldn’t be able to. As to his punishment…” Thirty seconds of silence, then Klaus stepped inches away from the keeper’s face and spoke so softly Ian couldn’t make out any of his words except “radiation room.”

  ****

  Malaki approached Waitforit, eyeing the American flag he and Ian had painted on the side of her so long ago. A symbol of their future mission, which had finally arrived. He stepped up into the beautiful craft. It’d been years since he’d seen the inside of her, and the last time was with Ian…

  “She’s ready to go,” Ian had said, his face beaming. “When the time comes, send her up, and I’ll know just what to do. She’s supplied with all she needs, and only you and I know where those secrets are.”

  “You got it, my friend.” Malaki smiled. “What a relief to have her all set and ready, so now we just wait for the day. And that day will get here eventually. One day, far off in the future, but it’ll get here.”

  “It will.” Ian took a long, slow scan around the spacecraft. “Can’t wait ’til I see her again.” With that, he sucked in his breath and bolted out the door and away from the craft, without looking back…

  “She looks good enough anyway,” Lawrence interrupted Malaki’s memory. “I forgot how up-to-date she actually is.”

  Malaki closed his eyes briefly. “She’s very much ready for a flight. She’s finally gonna get it.” He approached the pilot’s seat and slid his fingers over the buttons and knobs on the dash. “She’s gonna do a stupendous job.”

  “What is it about this ship?” Benjamin asked. “You seem positively in awe of her and the fact that she’s going up to Reathran. Why?”

  Malaki cleared his throat. “I guess it reminds me of Ian and the way things used to be. We talked about this a lot.”

  “Yeah, but what’s the big deal about it?” Benjamin pressed.

  “To be honest, it has to do with Ian’s grandfather, Ernest Mitchell.” A pliable excuse. “You know Ian took his grandfather’s place in The Circle when he died don’t you?”

  “Of course.” Benjamin moved closer to Malaki. “Everyone in The Circle knows that. We voted Ian in, remember? After Ernest died.”

  “Yeah, that’s true, that’s true. I forget sometimes.” Malaki fidgeted with the pilot’s seat, pulling it back and turning it, making sure it twisted and turned correctly and was in good working condition. “There’s an anniversary coming up. An anniversary of Mr. Mitchell – um, Ernest. Apparently, this next week marks exactly sixty years he piloted ole Waitforit to Reathran. His first trip ever.”

  “You don’t say?” Lawrence opened a panel near the door of the ship and shined a small flashlight into it. “Just checking to make sure the scanner here has no issues.”

  “Ian’s sentimental about his grandfather’s anniversary?” Ben twisted the co-pilot seat towards him and sat in it.

  Malaki pointed at Benjamin. “That’s exactly right. It’s on Ian’s mind, and he’s been remembering it and talking about it.” He observed Lawrence press buttons on the retina scanner. “When I last spoke with Ian, I got the feeling it might mean the world to him if we sent Waitforit up in honor of his grandfather.”

  The retina scanner beeped, and Lawrence closed the panel door. “Looks good.” Then he turned toward Malaki. “Do you think it’ll actually help Ian if we send your Waitforit up?”

  “Yeah, I think it will.” They had no idea how much. Malaki turned away from the two, a grin tugging at his face. “I brought it up to him, asked him about it. You wouldn’t believe how his face lit up. I haven’t seen him look so happy in some time. So, I made a promise to him. I promised I’d make sure she goes up this week, exactly sixty years after Ernest took his first flight. In honor of him.” He faced them again.

  “Who am I to stand in the way of helping Ian in any small way we can?” Lawrence chuckled. “I admit, I don’t quite understand why it’ll help him so much, but I’m not in his head. If this gives him hope or joy or whatever, I’m for it.”

  “Me as well.” Benjamin ran his fingers through his hair, leaving it sticking up every which way. “Wish I could speak with Ian though. Why can’t you tell us where he is? I mean, it’s not like we’re strangers. We were all a part of The Circle together. It’s been years, Malaki.”

  “I know, and that’s a good question.” Malaki breathed a sigh of relief for the change of subject. “Let me think on that, and maybe even bring it up to Ian next time we speak. I think it would be good for some of you—some of you who really knew him—to be able to speak to him, visit him.” He hoped this would satisfy the two pilots for a while, until Ian reappeared with Waitforit, astounding them all.

  ****

  “Head toward the train.” The keeper pushed Ian’s back after they were outside again. “Just head in that direction for now.”

  Ian marched forward, taking the familiar path to the train. What was going to happen now? He didn’t think they were going to kill him; Klaus claimed he needed him. But what was the radiation room? Ian couldn’t remember anything about it. There were things going on here that those in The Circle knew nothing about. Which wasn’t that surprising. Here on Reathran, all sorts of deplorable things could go on and those in The Circle would never know. How could they?

  His hands clenched into tight fists, but then he quickly loosed them. He could not be seen taking control.

  “Instead of going into the cave, move to the left of it and keep going straight. You’ll see a small building up ahead and past the cave. Head there.”

  “Yes, sir.” Ian sucked in a deep breath and clenched his jaw. The keeper was behind him so he at least couldn’t observe Ian’s face.

  He’d for sure be taking advantage of Klaus’s need of him. But why had the train been breaking down midway to the disposal site? What was Jack, or whomever was working the train in the past, doing wrong that would cause that to happen? Ian found it easy to make the train run smoothly. Were they deliberately causing the train to break down? And if so, why? Or maybe they just really weren’t good at it.

  Without turning his head towards it, Ian glimpsed the waterfall as he passed by. A longing came over him whenever he caught sight of that water falling so beautifully…

  He missed his lake, his home. Anthony. Shannon. His throat grew tight, and he swallowed. He had to succeed. He had to get off this planet. He had to get home.

  After a couple minutes, the train’s cave came into view. Ian did as he was told and strode around to the left of it. A stronger-than-normal gust blew in, and he could’ve sworn he heard the flag flapping off in the distance. A gush of hope swelled inside him. He had to be strong, no matter what came his way. Klaus didn’t want him dead, but he probably wanted him to suffer, so Ian had to brace himself.

  He sucked in a deep breath. Up ahead was a very small building, just like the keeper said. There was no door, just an opening, and Ian stepped inside. He had no memory of this place from the maps.

  “Stop.” The keeper pulled him to a stop, then went on ahead of Ian to a staircase. Down they went about four flights, deep underground. Memories of underground chambers in their two prisons flooded him. Both of their prisons had underground chambers where they brought the undead bodies for measurement before moving them onto a spacecraft.

  After the flight of steps, Ian followed the keeper down a short hallway and then a thick, metal and heavily locked door stood before them. Something Ian never saw on Reathran. There were no locked doors here. Wasn’t a need for that type of security.

  The keeper pressed several small buttons on the door, and it snapped open. More memories washed over Ian of these types of doors on Earth, in their prisons, in their underground holes.

  “In here.” The keeper held the door open. “Hurry up.”

  Ian stepped int
o the small room that reminded him of a modern room in their headquarters in Washington. It wasn’t like the computer room in the cave. This room had walls of white-painted brick; one had a countertop with a computer and two chairs. Another had a giant window.

  The keeper touched his wristband, and Ian could be himself again.

  “What is this place?” Ian approached the window. It was a thick, protective glass with smudges. On the other side was another room, small, about four feet by four feet, with nothing but metal walls and a chair fastened to the floor in the middle. On the ceiling were a few circular vents. He immediately thought of gas chambers, as in, from the Holocaust, a part of history Ian had studied thoroughly. He spun around. “Do you gas prisoners here?”

  The keeper thrust his chest out and squared his shoulders. “And how would you know about gassings?”

  Ian gulped. Another mistake! He couldn’t give away specific memories like that, but it was easy to react like a normal human being with memories of a life before. But he couldn’t. Not here. Not now.

  The keeper ignored it and pressed a few buttons on the door to the other room. It popped ajar, and he held it open. “Get in.”

  Ian took slow steps into the metal room, his eyes shifting to the vents above. “What are you going to do?” His leg muscles tightened, an urge to bolt overcoming him. What if this keeper decided to kill him anyway, despite what Klaus said?

  “Sit.” The keeper pushed Ian into the lone chair.

  Ian gripped the sides of it, gaping around. “What’s going on?” His heartbeat raced, and he feared this keeper would do whatever he wanted to Ian, no matter what Klaus had told him.

  “Just sit tight. You’re gonna be punished for wandering around where you shouldn’t have.” The keeper left the small room and slammed the door shut behind him.

  The lights went out, and Ian sat in the dark.

  He’d gotten so close. He’d remembered everything, and by sheer luck, he’d managed to work at the train. He had the vials tucked away in his boot. So close. And now this. He’d be gassed and never get to finish his part of the job. He dropped his chin to his chest, tears burning behind his eyelids, the first time he’d felt that since arriving on Reathran, and he waited… waited for what was to come next.

  ****

  Malaki laughed on his drive back to headquarters, turning his face towards his open window, the warm breeze smelled sweet despite the fact he was getting close to the city. He’d told Lawrence and Benjamin he’d be back to see Waitforit go up. He wouldn’t miss it for the world.

  “She’s gonna be on her way, Ian. On her way.” He wrapped his fingers lightly on the steering wheel. “I can hardly believe it. But then I can.” He barked out a laugh. “Waitforit will go up day after tomorrow, reaching Reathran within two weeks after that.”

  Now, Malaki had to do his best to prepare the rest of The Circle for what was to come without revealing any of it. He and Ian had worked out this part of the plan. Malaki would slowly begin to work his way away from The Circle. Not actually leaving it, but speaking up, specifically to Price, about his true thoughts on memroth and Reathran. That alone would make Price come at him. In a subtle way. He would keep it up until Price began contemplating giving him the boot. But he could never do that completely since he was the main chemist. Without Ian, The Circle depended on Malaki more than ever and more than anybody else in The Circle. Sure, there was Jonathan who was a great chemist and partner, but he fell short of the team Malaki and Ian had been.

  Up ahead, Washington D.C. came into view, the Washington monument standing tall in the distance. The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool sparkled in the lowering sunlight. Malaki had been at the spacecraft landing most of the day. He hadn’t wanted to leave, actually, when the time came.

  Hanging out with Benjamin and Lawrence where he and Ian used to hang out when they first joined The Circle brought back refreshing memories. For so long now, it was as if a dark cloud had situated itself over Malaki and headquarters. Nobody would know it except for him, but it was painful waiting for word from Ian. Their task was practically impossible, and he longed for nothing more than to be rid of memroth and the repulsive Reathran prison once and for all.

  Through the years, the popularity of their creation had reached new heights only they knew about—it was as if Price was blind and deaf to anything Ian and Malaki had to say otherwise. His sights were set on what they could do with this new development—the power they would have, the money they could make, practically being able to control the world if they replaced electricity with this new form of energy.

  Malaki grabbed his microphone for his mobile radio. “E0NQT, mobile and listening.”

  Nobody replied.

  Sometimes, Malaki had to chuckle that he and Ian had to turn old school by becoming ham radio operators and learning Morse code in order to make their plan work. At first, Malaki balked at it. It was so old fashioned! But the more he trudged his way through the learning process, the more he learned to enjoy it.

  It became a hobby for him and a great distraction when the worries of his job and this world overwhelmed him. No matter what came his way, now or in the future, he could depend on communication the old way if needed. And on the other end of his radio were a group of folks like himself who appreciated and loved the hobby just like he and Ian did. And the classic technology would never die out. That outmoded communication would last forever.

  He turned onto the ramp at headquarters and parked his vehicle. He rested his head back on his seat. “I’ll just go in there, make up some excuse to Jonathan as to why I was gone most of the day. Look at what he accomplished, then be on my way. Tomorrow, I’ll make up for what I missed.”

  He rushed down the hallway, passing by Leah’s closed and locked office door. Geez, he’d been gone so long Leah had already left. He darted past the retina scanners and finally entered the lab, turning on his heel.

  “Where have you been?” Charles Price stood in the lab, Jonathan behind him, staring at him as if apologizing for Price's presence. “Jonathan here says you were coming to see me this morning, but that was many hours ago, and I never saw hide nor hair of you.”

  “I had something to do.” Malaki held his hands up, his palms facing Mr. Price. “Back off, Price.”

  Mr. Price took a few steps toward Malaki. “I’ve been waiting to hear from you all blasted day long, Pederson! Where the devil have you been?”

  CHAPTER fourteen

  Nikolina looked everywhere for Ian at mealtime, but he was not there. Where was he? He’d said he wanted to talk to her. What could have gone wrong?

  David sat at their usual spot, and she couldn’t show her fear. She couldn’t act out of the ordinary, so she grabbed her tray and got the food and situated herself across from him.

  “Who you lookin’ for?” David asked with raised eyebrows.

  Nikolina shrugged. “Wanted to talk some more to Ian tonight. Felt like I was getting closer to him and that maybe he’d start talking about Jack and possibly what Jack knew and told him. He was getting close to saying something last time.” She tipped her head to one side. “Those guys were together a lot you know—at the train and in their cell. Who knows how much Jack told him.” She took a gulp of the stale, yellowish water.

  “Well, yeah, but one can’t say too much around here without being overheard, so I can’t imagine Jack was too free with his tongue.” David shook his head.

  “But aren’t there places here on Reathran where prisoners can’t be listened to?” Nikolina held a forkful of chicken in midair. “You can’t tell me there’s no places around here where we can’t be heard.” She already knew the train site and the very room they sat in were safe rooms.

  “Why would you ask me that?” David lowered his chin to look down on her, his tone serious. “You’ve never asked me anything like that before. It’s an absurd question. Of course, there’s nowhere on the face of this planet, this prison, where you can’t be listened to.”

  Seriously
? Didn’t he know that most of the prisoners knew about the cave at the train? Was he really not aware that any prisoner who’d been here for more than ten years knew that? Nikolina leaned back away from him. “Sorry. It was just a thought that came into my mind. And it’s not the first time. I’ve wondered it before but never said anything about it. Probably because I knew I was always being listened to.”

  “Did that Ian already say something to you about not being able to hear prisoners at all times here?” David’s eyes looked cold, his jaw line hard and distinctive.

  “No.” She shook her head. “I said he never did. It’s something I thought of. All by myself. On my own. Can you imagine I’m smart enough to think of something like that on my own?”

  David seemed to come back to himself, his eyes softening, fixing his gaze on her. “Sorry. I just don’t like you asking questions like that. Don’t forget, you’re still a prisoner.”

  Nikolina wanted to remind David that he, too, was a prisoner. Sure, he was a keeper, but he was a prisoner like the rest of them. Instead, she swallowed the knot in her throat and stared down at her tray of unappetizing food. She put the forkful of chicken into her mouth with scoops of the potatoes and vegetables, too, as fast as she could. Her stomach rolled a few times and then tightened. She never ate this fast, and doing that, along with Ian not being here made her nauseated. Where was he? She didn’t want to look around for him anymore, or else David would want to talk more about him, and that was the last thing she wanted to talk about. She didn’t want to accidentally give anything away. She’d already said too much.

  “Sorry I was so harsh just now. But if you start asking weird questions the way Jack did, then you’ll never be made keeper.” David gently kicked her foot under the table, which made her look at him.

  “I’m not like Jack. It was an honest question. Just something I’ve been wondering,” she snapped at him. “I want to be made keeper. But I really don’t think I ever will be.”