We, The Lucky Few

by P. S. Lurie

  Plenty of space, and they’re willing to Rehouse only a handful of us.

  I re-enter the Ethers’ house, alarmed to find myself back here so soon after Jason’s death. The stench of blood hits me. I have it in my head to strip the uniform from Jason as quickly as possible. I tell myself that he would want me to do this rather than be embarrassed at what I was exposing underneath. Only, I’m in the kitchen and something is very bad. I look down at the pool of blood.

  Jason is not there.

  Henry

  Although hardly surprising, I’ve never seen Theia alarmed and on edge and I hate to imagine how the weaker in our neighbourhoods are faring; when I first heard the announcement I couldn’t believe anyone would act on it but now I fear murder will come easily.

  Selene and I wait in the back room for Theia to reappear. Until she comes through with the uniform I won’t tell my parents what’s happening and, since they haven’t come to investigate, I’m in no rush to update them. Selene looks deep in thought, perhaps about where she’s going next.

  ‘How are you feeling?’

  ‘Great.’

  ‘I know you too well for that.’

  ‘There’s nothing to talk about. You wouldn’t stay if you were at my house.’

  It’s a valid point. I don’t want to consider what happens if Selene leaves here but I equally don’t like the thought of her staying. ‘I’ll be worried about you.’

  ‘Good but let’s face facts Henry, you don’t have as much to worry about as the rest of us.’ She pauses. ‘I’m sorry. That was unfair.’

  Selene’s right. If my parents have their way I’m in no danger, not compared to her or Theia, but it doesn’t mean it’s any easier for me. I change the subject. ‘Do you think I was insensitive to her?’

  ‘You’re an idiot,’ Selene says, with a smile. ‘But a caring idiot.’

  ‘Promise me you’ll be safe.’

  ‘I can’t promise that.’

  ‘I mean, promise me you won’t take any risks.’

  ‘Like what? Pretending to be a policeman and walking the streets? I promise I won’t do anything like that.’

  ‘Selene, don’t look for fights.’

  ‘I’ve never looked for a fight Henry. Fights have always looked for me.’

  ‘Promise me that much.’

  Selene leans in hunched over, and kisses me on the lips. It’s unexpected and a bit strange and only lasts a few seconds and, as I am too shocked to react, she is the one to end the embrace.

  ‘What was that?’ I ask.

  ‘I just wanted to try it. And I promise to try and stay safe. Thanks for caring about me. And Henry?’

  ‘Yeah?’

  ‘Don’t tell Theia about that.’

  ‘The kiss?’

  ‘Or maybe do. I don’t know.’

  ‘What are you talking about?’

  ‘She loves you Henry. She may not know it yet and you definitely don’t have it figured but she really does.’ She smirks. ‘Just remember that I was your first kiss.’

  I don’t follow her reasoning or what she’s getting at but it hits me hard that I might never see her after tonight. This is all too sad and hideous and the thirst for revenge rears its ugly head in me once more. The Upperlanders aren’t just letting people die but they’re tearing families apart. Not only families but friends and couples and those who haven’t had a chance to say goodbye to one another.

  I turn and rub my eyes before tears form, and shrug it off as a yawn. Selene tuts at my display of emotion.

  ‘What do you think,’ Selene says. ‘Should I go in or leave her in peace?’

  ‘Your house? Of course you have to go in. Your mother needs to know you’re ok.’

  ‘And then what? She’s never been legally allowed to kill me before. ‘

  ‘Talk and work it out.’

  Selene laughs. ‘Sure.’

  ‘Where else is there to go?’

  She’s annoyed by my reasoning and mutters. ‘I was thinking of the coast. I don’t know, I thought it might be pleasant down there tonight. Peaceful even. For once the sea is no longer our main concern.’

  I listen to my best friend and consider that not only is the sea no longer our worst enemy but how incredibly brave she is. She’s leaving the one place she feels safe and heading into the unknown. Once she leaves here, Selene has no one protecting her. I’m not ready to let Selene go and don’t feel the slightest concerned that Theia has taken longer than ten minutes even though I’m aware that I’m only delaying the inevitable.

  But there’s nothing else to say so we wait in silence.

  Theia

  Where is Jason?

  I want to rush out of the kitchen and back to my house to hide in my room at the thought that I have failed Selene but a burst of courage prevents me. Or pride. Either way, it allows me the time to compose myself and work out what’s happened to his body. I don’t want to have to tell Selene and Henry that I let them down.

  I take in the scene. Jason’s helmet still rests on the counter, undamaged. A trail of blood leads off from the stained outline of his body on the tiles farther out into the hallway. My first guess is that the policeman came back, maybe with some others, to remove the body, and it would have been obvious that someone else had been here in the meantime because the fridge door is open and Jason’s glasses and gun have been removed. If this is the case, and they identify him, Ruskin and his parents are in certain danger, if not dead already.

  However, on second glance, only one set of staggered, bloody footprints leads away from the kitchen. I follow the trail and find Jason’s body, lying halfway between the hall and the dining room. He didn’t get far but how he moved at all sends a shiver through me. I check his pulse and then hold the glasses up to his nostrils; a trick my mother taught me but they don’t fog up from breath so once again I call it but this time he actually is dead.

  I want to scream. I’m beside myself with anger for leaving him the first time when he still had a fighting chance to survive instead of bringing my mother to his aid. She might have refused but I had a gun and, even more persuasive than that, I know her secret.

  I think back to an hour earlier when Jason seemed dead in the kitchen. I wasn’t poised enough in the aftermath of his shooting to deal with the situation. I feel useless. Even worse, it dawns on me that he died alone. He was still struggling on and I left him to die with no one by his side. Each time I think this night reaches its lowest point I’m mistaken. I stop and let the twisted truth sink in: it’s only going to get worse.

  The only upside to Jason moving from the kitchen is that he managed to rub most of the blood off the uniform along the tiles and carpet, to the point it looks relatively clean. A bullet hole pierces the material but in the dark of night it will hardly be noticeable.

  I prepare myself for undressing Jason but it feels wrong. I can’t strip him and leave him in that state. I was foolish to think I could act so crudely and there’s no way I could live with myself if Ruskin and his parents found out that I’d left him in this state after he saved my life. I have to act fast; Henry and Selene must be growing inpatient by now.

  The uniform is zipped in the back and turns out to be an all-in-one suit. Even the shoes are attached. Jason is muscular and heavy and lifting him is an ordeal so I give up attempting to strip him with any modicum of decency. Eventually I manage to pull the final part of the suit away, leaving Jason naked. I can’t help admire his toned body. I’ve never seen a naked man up close but I am horrified that it is happening in this circumstance. I fetch a bottle of semi-filtered water and a cloth from the kitchen and dab his body where the bullet entered. The blood has clot against his skin and I have to scrub some of the tougher spots before they fleck off.

  There’s no way I can leave Jason naked. At this point it will be obvious someone has disturbed the body so dressing him will make little difference to their suspicions but, whatever the risk, I owe it to him. If I want clothes this means getting past the dead co
uple on the stairs. I have to push against the handrail just to keep my balance on pointed toes so that I don’t disturb them.

  I feel sympathy for the elderly couple but I am already behind on my agreed time and have neither the will nor the energy to move them into a more respectable position. I check my watch. It’s half past the hour. Already twenty minutes have passed.

  Ronan used to hide in Mr Ethers’ wardrobe so I know exactly where to look. I find the cleanest shirt and trousers, although the concept of clean nowadays is a stretch. Most of the clothes have been worn over decades and their colours are drab and faded. Some are moth-eaten and ratty but it’s been a long time since anyone cared about fashion. I opt for a white shirt and brown trousers as they seem the easiest to slide onto Jason. They’re not a perfect fit as he’s a little taller than Mr Ethers but I stand back and admire how smart and attractive he now looks.

  I am exhausted by the time I button up the shirt. I don’t have the strength to lift him onto the couch so I move his legs close together and align his arms by his sides. I sweep his hair to the side and am satisfied with what I’ve achieved for him. I’ll have to elaborate the truth at a later stage if it comes to it.

  I scoop up the uniform and am about to head to the kitchen when I turn and make a detour to the stairwell. I pick up Mr Ethers’ gun. I decide to give it to Selene and keep Jason’s for myself.

  Selene

  Henry’s mother finally investigates and, even through gritted teeth, can’t hide her delight at the turn of events. They know Henry would never allow me to leave without some reassurance that I was going to be fine. I try to hide my disappointment but Henry can’t hold back and tells her to leave us alone. As penance, I remember my violent thoughts towards them. I won’t give them the satisfaction that we have all let each other down but it reminds me that at our most basic is the need for individual survival, or at least kinship within the family.

  It’s been far longer than Theia stated and I deplore that I’m only concerned she’s ok because of the consequences for me. Henry’s parents grow tired of waiting for her and return to the back room to enquire about the hold up.

  ‘I’m sorry for what happened. For how I treated you before,’ Henry’s father says to me.

  His wife agrees. ‘Please send your mother our regards.’

  ‘Of course.’ I’m disinclined to say much more. I’m not even sure I’ll see her.

  Henry is quiet and I try to view my departure from his point of view. Once I’m gone there’s nothing else to keep his parents from making sure he’s the one to be Rehoused. It hadn’t occurred to me that he could soon be completely alone. I decide to talk to him privately about this before I go.

  The feeble part of me is secretly pleased Theia has still not returned but I know this doesn’t solve anything. ‘I’m sure Theia will be here any minute now,’ I say, proverbially tapping my feet in anticipation.

  ‘How are things in her house?’ Henry’s mother asks him, aware that there is more than one child in the family.

  ‘I’m not sure,’ says Henry. ‘Theia didn’t say much.’

  I don’t want to wait with Henry’s parents any longer. ‘If it’s alright I’d like to go to Henry’s room one final time.’ I don’t say that it’s because I want to be alone but it’s hardly cryptic and the Argents figure this out. They know the room means more than just a refuge to me. I fight back the tears at the thought that I’ll never return here, whatever my fate.

  Theia

  I throw the uniform over the fence. It’s sturdy but obviously not durable enough to stop bullets. I climb over with the helmet. I wonder if anyone in the neighbouring houses would betray me by informing a policeman but I decide they would have nothing to gain from their disclosure. The light is off in the girl with the messages’ window so I don’t know whether she is there or not. I lug the equipment across my garden and repeat the process into Henry’s side. He must have seen me because he helps me over. It’s the first time tonight I’ve been alone with Henry.

  ‘Thanks.’ I pant.

  ‘This is it?’ Henry inspects the uniform. ‘It’s different up close.’ He holds it up but the legs and shoes drag on the floor.

  ‘It’s too long for us,’ I say. ‘But it should fit Selene.’

  Henry takes a long hard look at me. ‘Would you have tried to escape if it fit you?’

  It honestly hadn’t occurred to me. ‘I only considered it when I saw Selene was at your house. I can’t leave my family behind. Not again.’

  Henry knows what I’m referring to and breaks his gaze but it’s a conversation we agreed to never have. He holds the uniform away from him with disgust. ‘Where did you get it?’

  I debate whether to tell him the truth and decide he is the most likely to pass the message to Ruskin if I can’t. ‘It was Jason’s. Jason Peters.’

  Henry looks aghast.

  ‘It sounds unbelievable but he saved my life. He’s dead Henry.’

  ‘What was he doing in a uniform? Was he running away?’

  I keep the story short. ‘If you see Ruskin you have to tell him that Jason died a hero.’ My breath is visible in the cold air. ‘It’s almost midnight and won’t get any darker than this. Let’s get Selene on her way. Where is she?’

  ‘My room.’

  I could have guessed. Selene is her boldest in there. Somehow the room gives her the courage to feel brash.

  ‘I’ll tell her you’re here. My parents want to say hello.’

  I’m not in the mood to see Henry’s parents. I can’t face more awkward goodbyes but I owe it to them after they have treated my siblings and me so well. I feel grimy and desperately crave a wash to rid the stench of death away. I know that’s asking too much so instead I follow Henry indoors.

  Henry

  Each step to my room bears down on me, a heavy continuous reminder that it is time for Selene to leave. She sits on the end of the bed clutching at one of my shirts and not even trying to hide her tears.

  ‘You want to take that?’

  She puts it down. ‘No. Is Theia downstairs?’

  I nod.

  ‘She came through.’

  ‘I wish you’d been friends.’

  ‘Me too. I hope you understand.’

  I’ve been thinking about the kiss and what Selene said and I think I do, but this evening is already more uncomfortable than it should be than to open up that minefield so I put it on hold. It’s a problem that doesn’t warrant effort because there is a likely solution that none of it will matter in a couple of hours. I can’t think about the repercussions of that. ‘Selene, I...’

  ‘Henry, do what’s best for you and your parents. It will be difficult but remember how much they love you.’

  I nod but don’t want to think about that just yet either; there’s a lot I’m trying to delay. Selene looks at me with mild disapproval, knowing I haven’t absorbed her words. ‘Let’s get this girl on the road.’

  Theia

  Selene takes one look at the uniform. ‘Neat’. She stares at me with her mouth pursed and then she hugs me. I settle into her embrace. She’s all skin and bones and I hope the uniform traps heat. ‘I can’t believe you did it. Thank you.’

  ‘The next part is down to you. Don’t mess it up because it’s been too much effort to have you die.’ This makes her smile.

  Henry pats us both on the back. ‘So it’s taken this to bring my two best friends together.’

  ‘Don’t get too cocksure Henry. If Theia and I were locked in a house together I’m not sure we’d be hugging the night out.’ She winks at me.

  ‘Yeah, what she said.’

  Selene slips off her clothes in front of us, leaving just her non-matching underwear on. I help her don the suit. It takes some manoeuvring to fit her feet into the tight shoes but that’s the hardest part because there is enough slack in the rest of the uniform. She is similar in stature to Jason and fits pretty well, and definitely better than if it were Henry or me.

  ‘Do I wa
nt to know whose this was?’ Selene asks.

  ‘How about I’ll tell you tomorrow?’ We’re being brave and the camaraderie helps to keep all of our nerves at bay. I zip the back of the suit and Selene looks incredible. Tough, unflappable, invincible. Henry picks up the helmet and passes it to her. She slides it over her head. It hides her hair but her figure gives her feminine silhouette away and, for all we know, all the recruits are men. I remove the glasses from my back pocket and hand them to her. ‘The pièce de résistance. Try these on.’

  Selene’s mouth hangs open as she places them in front of her eyes. ‘Whoah.’

  ‘What?’ Henry asks.

  ‘Heat sensitive,’ I say. ‘She’ll be able to detect people coming. It’s how the policeman knew when she was trying to leave your house earlier.’

  Henry digests the information. ‘And how he found Charlie.’

  ‘No wonder they did this at night,’ Selene says. She takes off the helmet. ‘You’re resourceful.’

  ‘If you think that was enough,’ I say. I pass her one of the guns that is tucked into my belt. ‘Use it wisely.’

  Henry panics. ‘Or not at all.’

  Selene grips it and slides it into a buckle as if it was an extension of her that she innately knows how to operate. ‘Thanks, both of you.’

  ‘One more thing,’ I say. ‘At five o’clock something is going to happen. I don’t know what but it’s going to be at the Fence. If you’re not in your house...’

  Henry interrupts. ‘Which is where you will be.’

  I ignore him. ‘If you’re not in your house I’d head there.’

  Selene thanks me again then hugs Henry. ‘I appreciate all of this but I still don’t know how to leave safely. The policeman will see me.’

  ‘All part of my master plan.’ Actually this last part I only worked out whilst undressing Jason. ‘It’s coming up to midnight. We’re almost halfway through this night. Wait for my signal. Let’s agree to try this when the clock strikes the hour as I should be ready by then.’ I turn away, knowing it could be the last time I speak to Selene. I should apologise for all the petty squabbles we’ve endured but we’re past that.