The Divide: Origins

by Grace, Mitchel

  “Why?”

  “Because you risked your life for me. It was stupid, and I don’t want you trying to be my hero anymore, but it’s nice to know you’ll play the role when you have to. I think you would do anything for me. I knew we were close, but now I know how close. You became my favorite person today. In a way, this is the worst day of my life. Judging by your face, it’s probably your worst one, too. It’s a great one at the same time, though. I just realized that the boy I love is the man I need, too.”

  “I love you, and I don’t feel any differently than before. Nothing could change how I look at you. If you don’t want to wait, we don’t have to. I’ve got to warn you, though, my ribs are shot, I have a terrible headache, and I can’t feel my lips. I don’t know how much I’m actually going to be able to put into tonight.”

  “That’s fine. We’ll just talk.”

  “What I really want to do is sleep. It’s been a rough day.”

  “I know what you mean. I can’t let you sleep just yet, though. I’m scared you’re not going to wake up.”

  “I’m not going anywhere while I have you,” he said before lightning hit a nearby tree.

  Liam jumped. He had never liked storms. It wasn’t very manly, but Zoe thought it was cute.

  “You can fight someone to the death for me, but you’re scared of a little storm. What is wrong with you?” she asked and smiled.

  “I think we know what my limits to our love are now.”

  “And what are those?”

  “If your survival depended on me going out in this, I think you might die,” he joked.

  “Oh, really? Your stock was pretty high a second ago. It’s taking a nosedive now, though.”

  “It’s a good thing I’m just joking then. I would do anything for you,” he said as thunder made him jump again.

  “How about this? You can protect me from people like Timothy, and in return, I’ll make sure you never have to sleep through a storm alone. Deal?”

  “That’s the best deal I’ve ever made,” Liam said and kissed her.

  Meanwhile, in the bedroom upstairs, Max and Rebecca were having a very different conversation. They had to figure out what to do about Liam.

  “I think we should leave,” Rebecca said.

  “What? Why would we do that?”

  “Because he has a job. If he shows his face outside, Troy’s going to know he had something to do with Timothy’s disappearance, but if he doesn’t, everyone will find that just as suspicious. We can’t win in this situation. Sooner or later, they’re going to find out he killed him, and then what’s going to happen?”

  “We’ll explain everything to the people, and . . .”

  “Max, you know it won’t be that simple. They’ll string him up. Do you remember what happened to that guy who was caught stealing? They executed him. If they’ll do that for theft, then what will they do to someone who kills?”

  “Maybe you’re right. It’s just that we have a life here. Can we really give that up without a fight? Where would we even go?”

  “I don’t know. I’m just afraid that they’ll try to kill Liam. If they do that, I know you’ll get in the middle of it, and you’ll probably die, too. It’s not like Zoe and I are going to keep our heads during it either. We might all end up dead because of this. If you have a plan, I’m open to it, but I don’t see what we can do other than leave.”

  “Just let me think about it for a while. I’ll figure something out. I have to.”

  “I wish you could, but we both know there aren’t any options. What we need to be planning is an exit strategy.”

  “You’re right, but I hate leaving a secure town for the unknown.”

  “What if it’s not unknown?”

  “I don’t know what you mean.”

  “You helped build this community as much as Troy did. You know how to bring people together. With a little work, we could do this somewhere else. You know that.”

  “Maybe you’re right. Building an indoor city would be a pipedream without Troy, though.”

  “I think it was a pipedream all along, so nothing will change in that area.”

  “It can be done. Troy and I have talked about it on countless occasions, and he’s not delusional. I know a little about how it would work, but without blueprints . . . that’s it!”

  “What’s it?”

  “The blueprints. I can steal them. We’ll go north and find a safe area. From there, we’ll start creating a community. After a while, we might just have enough people to build a city of our own.”

  “Do you really think we can do that?”

  “I do. We just need to find a town with a few people who will listen to us. We won’t control people by force. It’ll all be about choice. We can do things differently than the men in this place. We can even hold elections. What do you think?”

  “I hate starting over, but I know I’ll love a community designed by you more than this.”

  “It won’t be designed by just me. We’ll all make it what it should be. I’ve just got to find a way to get those blueprints.”

  “I know the perfect way. Troy is always out during the day, and his wife works with the kids at the nursery. That will leave the house fairly open after nine tomorrow. He keeps one guard in front of his house all the time, but we both know one person isn’t going to be a problem for you. We’ll be waiting here, and when you’re done, we’ll take a vehicle and make a break for it.”

  “I can’t believe you’re willing to do this with me.”

  “It’s not just for you. I’m doing this for Liam, too. He’ll die if we don’t leave.”

  “I know, but it shows how much you care about us that you would be willing to give up a nearly perfect place and completely start over.”

  “Maybe I’m delusional here, but I think of you three as family. You’re as close to a husband as I’ve ever had, and Zoe and Liam are like my children now. I care about all of you more than any place. You’re family.”

  “That’s exactly how I feel. I love all of you. If Zoe and Liam are like our children, then we might have some problems, though.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “I think our son is having sex with our daughter . . . I mean, can we really allow that?”

  “Shut up. That’s not even funny,” she said and smiled.

  “It is a little. We’re not the best family on paper, but I’ve grown to love all of you. I wouldn’t trade you guys for anyone else.”

  Rebecca gave him a kiss goodnight, and they drifted off to sleep. A lot had to be done the next day, but for once, Max slept like a baby. They were leaving, but that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing because they were going toward something that would be so much bigger than they ever could have dreamed of.

  * * * * *

  The following morning, Max got up and walked casually to the gun locker across the street. He checked his weapon out and then went to the supply house.

  “I’m going to need everything on this list, Rick,” Max said to the guy behind the counter.

  “That’s two week’s worth of food. We don’t normally give out that much at one time.”

  “I realize that, but I just don’t want to make the trip every week. I recruited you to this town. You know I’m here for the long haul, so why don’t you just give me the supplies now, so we don’t have to do this dance again next week?”

  “All right. I trust you, Max. Wait one second.”

  After a while, Rick returned with the supplies, and Max took them home to everyone. He told them to load the car with their belongings and all the food he had gotten. Max still had one more place to go. He had to get the blueprints from Troy’s house.

  He walked over and saw a familiar guard standing at the door. The heat was unbearable, and the man stood there for most of the day. He would take five-minute breaks every hour and go inside, but it still seemed ridiculous. Max didn’t have any idea how the man stood the heat as long as he did. Everyone else had jobs to do, but they
never involved being outside for more than a couple of hours in a given day. The guard was looking noticeably tired. Max knew he could use that to his advantage.

  “Zack, are you all right?” Max asked as he stepped onto the porch.

  “No one’s supposed to step foot here when Mr. Leland’s not around. You need to . . .” he said before a dizzy feeling overtook him.

  “You need a rest, man. You know you can trust me. Let’s go inside so you can get some water. I think you’re going to keel over if you don’t.”

  He nodded, and Max led him inside. While he was getting some water, Max stepped behind him and hit him with the butt of his gun. Zack hit the floor. He was out like a light, but he wouldn’t be that way for long. Max had to act fast. He walked into the back room where Troy kept his plans. He took the blueprints and some personal notes of Troy’s. He stopped for a brief moment by the fridge to put a few rations into his pockets. Then he walked out the door.

  What Max found outside wasn’t good, however. Troy was walking toward the house, and two men were accompanying him. They were carrying a body, and Max could guess whose it was. They had found Timothy.

  “You’ve got some explaining to do,” Troy said while glaring at Max.

  “What are you talking about?”

  “For starters, my nephew is dead. I can’t help but suspect the man who killed my brother. We all saw you and Rebecca go into the woods yesterday. We found him in the same direction you were walking. What did you do?”

  “Nothing. I explained why your brother had to die. This is different. You have to trust me.”

  “How can I when you’re carrying my personal notes? I need the truth, Max. If I don’t get it, I’m going to start hurting the ones you care about most.”

  “Are you sure you want the truth?”

  “Why wouldn’t I?”

  “Because craziness seems to run in your family. Timothy tried to rape Zoe. He choked her and told her if she said anything he would kill her. Liam found out about what happened before any of us. He took Timothy out into the woods to have a little chat. I think he wanted to defend her honor. When I found out, I was worried. Rebecca and I went into the woods. We split up about a half-mile in to try to cover more ground. Shortly after that, I found them. Timothy had Liam pinned to the ground, and he was beating his face in. I couldn’t let him kill someone I’ve come to think of like a son. I didn’t have a weapon, so I picked up a well-shaped stick and walked up behind him. From there, I shoved it into his neck and grabbed Liam. I never wanted it to come to this, but I had no choice.”

  “It’s the same excuse every time, isn’t it? Do you really expect me to believe that when you killed my brother and nephew in two separate incidents it was only to protect a little girl?”

  “What can I say? You need to teach future generations of Lelands to respect women a little more.”

  “We’ll let the people judge you. Guards, take him,” Troy said, and they drug him into the streets where a crowd gathered.

  It wasn’t long until most of the town, including his family, was there. Troy announced his charges, and Max told his story. The people seemed sympathetic at first. Then Troy explained how this wasn’t Max’s first time killing.

  “The man you’re feeling sorry for is nothing more than trash. I should’ve never let him in here. He was a prisoner before he came to me for help. He was incarcerated for killing his own wife. Then he killed my brother. He fed me some story about self-defense, and I believed him. No more! Max took Timothy’s life, and he has to pay for it. I’m asking you as the man who gave all of you purpose again to bring justice to this great city. Don’t let Raines slip into the trap of allowing snakes to poison our beautiful city,” Troy said.

  “Can I have a word before you sentence him to death?” Rebecca asked.

  “By all means, go ahead. For the record, I won’t be doing the sentencing today. Our citizens will.”

  “Max recruited most of you. It’s true that he’s a killer, but you need to know why. He killed his wife because he walked in to find her holding their dead baby girl. She had stabbed her. His wife was mentally ill, and maybe he should’ve been able to understand, but he couldn’t. Max snapped and stabbed her to death. How many of you would’ve done the same thing if you had found your spouse holding your dead baby?

  The second person he killed was Troy’s brother, but he was a child molester who was trying to hurt Zoe. He had already hurt another girl. Max ignored that. He once told me that he doesn’t regret killing Jerome in any way. The only thing he regrets is that he didn’t do it sooner. Zoe’s best friend died because of that man. I wish I had been the one to kill him.

  Finally, there’s Timothy. He tried to rape Zoe, and . . .”

  “No one is buying this. Timothy was a good kid. We all know that.”

  “I can’t stand by and say nothing any longer. Mrs. Leland, you saw how shaken up I was when I left your house. There was a reason for that. If you hadn’t come home when you did, he would’ve raped and killed me. He almost strangled me to death before you got there. You know I’m telling the truth. You could see that something was wrong, couldn’t you?” Zoe asked.

  “I don’t know. Maybe I could . . .”

  “Shut up, Helen! They’re trying to confuse us. The facts are simple. He killed one of our own, and the price for that is death,” Troy said.

  “I recruited most of you. I fed you lies about how this place was a democracy when the truth was far from that. Troy Leland sets the curfew, gives you jobs, and even decides how much you can have to eat every week. Is that what you want? I can do better. Come with me now. We’ll leave Raines behind and create an equal society of our own. I’m not saying it’ll be easy to start over, but you know I can find members. I did it here. We’ll have elections and everything once we get enough people, and just so you’re sure I’ll never become a power hungry man like Leland, I’ll guarantee that my name won’t be on a single ballot. How many of you will join me?” Max asked.

  “We’re still holding a trial. How many of you want to see him strung up today?” Troy asked.

  Very few seemed to be in favor of it. Max had been the one to bring most of them to Raines, and they felt a certain amount of loyalty to him. Not many of them were willing to start over, but at the end of it, just over seventy people were standing beside him.

  “Fine. We’ll give you cars and a limited amount of supplies to get started. Anyone who doesn’t want to be here is welcome to go. Just get the hell out of here before I change my mind,” Troy said and walked away.

  Max met with the people who decided to go with him and told them to meet him at the north gate. They would ride north until they found a suitable town. He had to hope that they found one before nightfall. Otherwise, he might just be leading these people to their deaths. As he walked back to his house with his newfound family, Liam gave him a thankful nod. It would have been easy for Max to turn him in, but he had taken all the blame to keep him safe. He always would, too. Their things were already loaded, and although Max wasn’t able to keep the blueprints, he had a good feeling about this trip. They were going to build something special, no matter what. Before they could get to their car, Troy stopped him, however.

  “I want to give you fair warning. I wasn’t willing to start a fight in the streets, but one is coming your way. You better find a place far away from us. Otherwise, you’re going to die a slow and painful death when my people find you,” he said.

  “Not if I find you first. I don’t take threats lightly, and you need to watch yourself, Troy. I’m a murderer, remember? I could kill a piece of shit like you and never think twice about it,” Max said and walked to the car.

  As they got in, a man stepped beside the vehicle. His name was Jacob, and he was an architect they had found a few weeks before. He and Troy spent countless hours discussing the city they would build.

  “If you’re going to start a new society, you might need an architect. I remember all of Mr. Leland’s plans f
or an indoor city. Take me with you, and I can make it a reality for your group, too,” Jacob said.

  “You’ve got it. Thank you for this,” Max said.

  “You’re the one who rescued me from an unlivable situation a few weeks ago. This will make us even. Besides, this wasn’t really the place for me anyway.”

  Everything was falling into place. As Max drove them to the north entrance, he knew the only thing left to do was find them a permanent place to live. It might be easier said than done, but these people were his responsibility now. Max was going to do whatever it took to make sure that the people who backed him up in those streets found an even better home than before.

  Chapter 22

  Norak

  They drove for hours without finding a place to stay. They had to stop to clear debris from the road on many occasions, and they were making terrible time. It was already starting to get dark. They had to find a place soon. Otherwise, not everyone would survive the night. Just in time, they pulled into an old town that looked like it had been abandoned. Max stopped and had everyone get out of their cars. They were sure to find shelter there. Hundreds of houses were located within a relatively short distance. At least a few dozen of them had to be using an alternative heat source. While he told everyone to pan out and find the best shelters, he noticed a shade being pulled back in one of the windows of a house across the street. Just as quickly as the person peered out at him, they let go of the blind and moved away from the window. Max couldn’t ignore what he saw. That person could be a threat to their new society. Then again, this wasn’t their home originally. They were guests. If this person would be welcoming to them, then he would certainly consider making them a part of their new life.