Dad and Elliott pull her out of the building. “Keep going!”
I turn around, grab for his hand, and try to yank him up. But he won’t budge.
“I’m stuck!” he says. “Get out of here!”
I fumble with my flashlight to find his wings pinned between two bars in the wall. His attempt to fly through wedges him further. “Stop flapping!”
Grabbing his wings, I thread them through the bars.
“Hurry, Rose!”
There’s a lurch as he scoops me up and I float off the ground. Zach holds me in his arms.
“We’re almost there, hang on,” he says.
I see it. Outside. It’s so close. But how much time do we have left? The blue walls sparkle from our flashlights. If this has to be the last thing I see, I could choose worse.
We burst out of the building, trying to put as much distance between it and ourselves as possible.
It’s quiet. The alarm has stopped.
“RUN!”
We dash together into the forest. As we reach the tree line, an enormous explosion behind us blows through my eardrums and catapults my body out of the air. I land on the dirt with a hard thump. Dad hits a root and topples to the ground. He lies there for a moment.
“Dad, are you ok?”
I hear him laughing, as he grabs some dirt and lifts it up in the air. “You know how long it’s been since I’ve gotten dirty?”
“Everyone ok?” asks Elliott.
I hear groans of approval. Zach picks himself off the ground, his wings looking bent, probably from trying to force them through the bars. Then I hear Aaron screaming in pain. A huge tree branch landed on his leg. We pull it off him as he moans.
“We need to get him to a hospital,” Dad says. “It might be broken.”
Zach and Elliott lift him up and stagger towards the car.
A horrible thought occurs to me. “We don’t have keys to the car.”
“Oh, we don’t, do we?” Elliott says, jingling some keys as he pulls them out of his pocket. Must have swiped them from Jex when he was knocked out. “I’ll drive.”
“Good idea,” Dad says. “I haven’t driven in twelve years. Probably get us killed in minutes.”
I scan the area, remembering the horrific creatures we encountered on the way to Sapphire Ward.
“We’d better go now,” I say as we enter the car. “There’s a pack of something or other heading this way.”
“How do you know?” my dad asks, buckling his seatbelt.
“I’m a Scanner,” I say.
His face lights up. “Wow, that’s great.”
Elliott cranks the engine and the car charges into the forest. I turn back to look at Aaron, who’s still wincing in pain. He’s looking out at the rubble of what is left of Sapphire Ward.
“I thought I knew him,” Aaron says.
Dad reaches over and takes Aaron’s hand. “I thought I did too.”
***
It’s a rough ride, but we make it back the perimeter wall. We start to jump out of the car and walk over towards the tall fence.
“Now what?” Aaron says, still sitting in the car.
Zach unfurls his wings, grunting in pain.
“No, Zach, you’re hurt,” Shelly says.
“I’m just a bit tired.”
He lifts himself off the ground, and floats upwards. After a minute or two, he lands.
“I’m not 100 percent, but I should be alright,” Zach says. “Aaron, how about you first?”
“Why me?”
“If I can get you over the wall, I should be able to get anyone.”
Aaron smirks. “I think he’s insulting me.”
Zach leans down in front of the car and Elliott and Dad lift him onto his back. Zach grumbles and moans but takes off and soon they float over the wall.
“Thank you,” Shelly says.
“For what?” I say.
Shelly’s mouth quivers. “For saving his life.”
I don’t know how to respond. So I nod.
“Oh, good,” she says, as he comes back over the fence.
We take turns sailing over. Dad goes first, followed by Elliott, then me. I savor the moment of flying with Zach. With his strong arms around me, I feel completely at peace. The flight is over far too soon. And I have to endure Shelly's disgustingly dreamy expression as he picks her up and they fly down together.
“Now what?” Aaron asks, entertaining himself on his phone.
“Now we get you to an ER,” Dad says.
“Sure thing,” Aaron says, distracted by his phone.
“Still working on that awful blog?” I ask.
“It’s gotten a ton of hits,” Aaron says.
“Don’t come crying to me when the Elevateds come after you,” I say.
“Shouldn't we be going?" Elliott says, gesturing towards the car.
We file into Elliott’s car. Zach and Elliott pick up Aaron and sit him in the back. Elliott, Dad and me cram in the front, packed so tight I can't move my arms.
“Should have brought a bigger car," Elliott says as we drive out of the forest. "Where to?"
Dad clears his throat. “First thing is to get Shelly to a place where she can split off and go home.”
“B-b-back home?” Shelly says.
“Yes,” Dad says. “You need to act like nothing has changed.”
“How can I do that?” Shelly says, eyes tearing up. “My dad just tried to m—”
“Your dad is dangerous, but only if he knows you were involved. He has no reason to suspect that. If you were to suddenly disappear, on the other hand—”
“So I just walk in like nothing’s happened?”
“That’s exactly what you need to do.”
“You’re leaving for college in a few months,” Zach says. “It won’t be long.”
Shelly nods.
“There’s a turnoff up ahead near Maddock’s house,” I say.
“You’ve been to Maddock’s house?” Dad asks.
“I’ve been busy,” I say.
"What about us?" Aaron asks.
"You guys need to see a doctor," I say.
“I want to help,” Aaron says.
"Me too," Zach says.
"You're going to the ER," Dad says. "No options."
"I'm fine," Elliott says.
"You need to help, Aaron," Dad says. "Rose and I can't go inside. We can't even be seen. I'm an escaped Unsound."
"What about us? We helped," Elliott says.
"Maddock doesn’t know you, Zach, or Aaron, right? He saw you for a few seconds. Doesn’t know your names or anything. And as far as he’s concerned, everyone in Sapphire Ward was killed.”
"Yeah," Aaron says, "that's true."
“So the best thing is for you to split off.”
“What will happen to you two?” asks Elliott.
“You’ve done enough,” I say. “All of you have. I can’t ever repay you.”
“I don't want to leave you," Elliott says.
“Me neither,” Aaron says.
“You guys can stay,” Shelly says. “I’ve had enough fun for a while.”
After a few turns in the forest, Elliott stops the car.
“Good luck, Rose, Mr. Williams," she says as she opens the door.
"Before you go, can you do that shrinking thing, one more time?" Aaron asks.
"What?" Shelly says
I try to turn around, but I'm stuck.
"Do you think it's wise?" Dad asks.
"For all I know,” Aaron says, “they are going to arrest me when I reach the ER. Just one more time, please? Besides, you're going to have to stop doing it if you don't want to get caught."
"I'd like to see it too," Zach says.
"Well, ok."
I look at the side mirror and catch her morphing out of the car. Aaron giggles.
"What was that about?" I ask.
"Sorry, I just think it's kinda hot," Aaron says. "No offense Zach."
"None taken. I agree."
Boys.
Shelly knocks on the window and I roll it down. She holds her hand out. “A secret for a secret right?”
I nod.
She reaches in and hugs me. “You get out ok, alright?”
Elliott revs the engine again and we drive off. As I watch Shelly disappear behind us, I can see her wipe a tear from her eye. I wonder what kind of life she has in her future. Her powers will have to remain a secret. She won’t be able to slip up for a moment living under the roof of the head of GEMO Control.
We reach the ER and it takes a few more minutes to convince Elliott to leave us behind.
“As soon as you get your mom, you’ll need a place to stay,” he says. “I want you to come to my grandma’s house.”
“Elliott, you know we can’t do that.”
“Where else are you going to live? You need to hideout somewhere.”
Dad leans over. “I appreciate it, but we can’t endanger you anymore.”
"You'll let me know if anything happens, right?" he asks.
"Yes, yes, now help Aaron," I say. "And come up with a good reason for his broken leg.”
"I'll tell them that Zach and him were trying to create a video for his stupid blog," Elliott says.
I laugh.
As Aaron is pulled out of the back seat, he leans over and hands me his phone. "Take it. You might need to call someone."
"I have a phone, Aaron."
"But you might need one not in your name."
He places it in my hand and closes it. I'd like to think he's being melodramatic, but the idea of having a phone that doesn't trace back to me actually sounds quite clever.
I put in my pocket. "Thanks."
The three of them head into the hospital, and I'm happy to have some breathing room.
Dad takes the front seat. "Not sure how to work these new cars."
"Put in the address of where you want to go on this screen."
Dad reaches over and punches in an address.
"Dad, we're going home?
"Yes."
"But they'll be waiting for you there."
"They think I'm dead, remember?"
We pass by Fowler's Grove. The glowdaises look like stars on the field. For a moment, I think I'm out there, lying among them.
"Do you think, I don't know, are you and Mom—"
"Can we get back together? I don't know, Rose."
"Do you still love her?"
"Yes." He takes a breath. "And that's why we have to go back."
***
BZZZT!
Aaron’s phone vibrates in my pocket. I take it out to see a text from Elliott.
“Everything is fine here. Aaron and Zach will be ok.”
Smiling, I close the text and the screen goes back to the last thing that Aaron had up. It’s a video of Shelly shrinking down to leave the car. He isn’t considering posting this, is he? I move my finger to delete, but stop myself. This isn’t my phone after all. I don’t have a right to delete his file.
We pull up to our house and I notice the driveway is empty.
“Mr. Roberts must be out, I don’t see his car,” I say.
Dad starts to undo his seatbelt, but I stop him. “Wait, Mr. Roberts doesn’t know you’re alive. I can go in and talk to Mom.”
“Rose, it’s too dangerous.”
“Mr. Roberts isn’t home. I’ll be fine.”
“She’s going to be upset. You’ve been out all night.”
“You’ll have to ground me later.” I give him a wink and head towards the front door.
I fumble for my keys and unlock the door. Inside, Mom sits on the couch. She looks up at me, and her bloodshot eyes open wide. “Rose? No, no!”
“Mom, it’s ok.”
I walk to her and she jumps out of her seat. “It can’t be, it’s not—”
“It’s me, Mom,” I say grabbing her hands.
She drops them as turns away. “No, Rose.”
I grab her shoulder and turn her around. “Mom, it’s me!”
She tries to pull away, but I hold her tight. She studies my face and slowly accepts that I’m standing in front of her.
“Mr. Roberts told me you were dead. Said he found your body. You had been ripped up by some mutant animal while looking for your dad.”
She pulls me close, crying.
“He’s lied about everything,” I say. “He’s been covering up that—”
“I know.”
My stomach drops. “You know?
She starts crying again. “He told me if I said anything that both of you would be killed. What was I supposed to do?”
I hug her close. “I’m sorry, Mom.”
She jerks away. “We’ve got to get out of here. Mr. Roberts is—”
“Mr. Roberts is what?” Mr. Roberts says, entering the room.
“I didn’t know you were here, your car—”
“Getting fixed,” he says, slithering over towards us.
I pull my mom back and stand between her and Mr. Roberts. “Stay away from us.”
“I don’t think you understand me, Rose.”
“What did my dad ever do to you?”
“Your father was a menace,” he says as he steps closer, forcing us to walk backwards. I hit the end table and nearly knock my orchid over. With no space between it and the wall, we’ve run out of room.
Mr. Roberts’s hands start glowing and sparking. “This is for your own good.”
Lurching back, I grab the orchid pot and fling it at his head. It connects, sending him down to the ground with large thump. Grabbing onto Mom’s hand, I lead her out of the house. Not turning back, we dash down the driveway and into the car. Dad starts the car and tears out of the driveway.
“Wha-who’s driving?” Mom asks.
Dad turns towards her.
“Adam!”
He smiles as the car lurches around a corner. As he catches her up on the whole story, I think about Mr. Roberts pulling himself off the floor. I’ve never been so grateful for those stupid dodgeball lessons in all my life.
“You knew about Mr. Roberts?” asks Dad.
Mom nods.
“Why didn’t you run? Take Rose with you?”
“He said he could track us, they would find us. Where could we go?” Her voice gets squeaky. “Besides, I couldn’t—I just couldn’t be responsible for—”
“It’s ok, I’m here now.”
“Forgive me, Rose.”
I’m so shell-shocked I don’t know how to react. She knew this whole time. And didn’t tell me? Then I think about how miserable she must have been, keeping that secret, knowing how much Mr. Roberts drove me crazy.
I put my arm around her shoulder. “I wish I would have known, Mom, so I could have been there for you.”
“You always were,” she says.
I peer out the window to see a view of the city. “Where are we going?”
“Elliott’s house.”
I perk up.
“Only for tonight,” he says. “I need to come up with a new plan.”
My cell phone goes off. It’s an unknown number. I let it ring, and after a moment, I see they left a voicemail. When I check it, the voice on the other end is cold and deep.
“This is Maddock. Tom thanks you for the bump he has on his head, but if you think you are getting away with anything, Rose, you’re wrong. Let’s be honest. If you survived the blast, your dad survived the blast. So, I have a deal for you, but you only get one shot. Turn your dad in within the next four hours, and you and your mom can walk. Keep your mouths shut and you’ll be set for life. If you don’t, within the next day I’ll have all of you on every device in the country with a reward so high that even your own grandmother would hunt you down. If you think you will escape again, then ask yourself, when was the last time an Unsound went rogue and got away with it? Four hours, Rose.”
The phone goes silent.
Maddock is right. Renegade Unsounds can’t escape the system. Once registered, your name and picture
can be plastered everywhere. The last time an Unsound got loose, they were captured within a few hours.
I don’t know what to do. If I tell Dad, I know what will happen. He’ll sacrifice himself in a heartbeat. But I can’t live the rest of my life in fear. Being owned by Maddock. On the other hand, what kind of life can we create for ourselves now? Once Maddock spreads the word of that reward, we won’t have days or hours left, but minutes.
I glance back at my phone. Mr. Roberts must have given Maddock the number. Aaron was right. I definitely need a phone that doesn’t trace back to my name. Then it occurs to me.
The truth is power.
Clutching Aaron’s phone in my hand, I make my plan. Now I have to wait until we get home.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
We enter Elliott’s house and Dad places the car keys on the coffee table. I casually pick them up, and when he walks to the bathroom, I race out of the house.
Feet moving as fast as possible, I jump into the car and crank the engine. It will only take a few moments before they notice I’m out of the house, but I don’t know how to drive a car. My hand pulls the gearshift and nothing happens. I try it again.
Still locked.
Great.
My plan has failed and it hasn’t even started yet. Thinking back at watching others drive, I try pushing my foot on the brake and then moving the gearshift. It works. My hands steer the car out of the driveway, knocking over a trashcan in the process.
Mom runs out of the house, screaming, “Rose, what are you doing!”
I turn on the touchscreen and scroll through the previous addresses to find the one for Maddock’s house. The car picks up speed and begins driving itself. Mom waves behind me in a panic. If all goes well, she’ll be happy I did this. And even if it doesn’t, it’s better than the alternative. I’m not going to spend my life hiding in fear any longer.
***
The car turns down off Gardenview and into the forest. Bouncing along the rustic path, I begin to recognize the scenery and know I’m only a few turns away. I’ll need to find a quiet place to park. I switch the car to manual mode.
Here we go again.
I turn the wheel a bit too far and the car starts careening towards a tree. My foot slams on the brake, stopping the car inches away. Catching my breath, I slowly reverse before turning back onto the road. Then I pull forward slowly and park on the side. Based on the parking job, I shouldn’t attempt a driving test anytime soon.
Elevated (Book 1): Elevated Page 19