Famine

by R A Doty

  For a split second, he thought the people standing outside of the door were the strangers he saw by the gate. He wondered how the hell they got in so fast. And then he came to his senses and realized it was Dan and Colton. “Who the hell are they?” he asked, not waiting for an answer as he eyed a woman and young man standing beside Janette while racing to the gate.

  Janette had no choice but to see where Luke was headed in such a hurry, and when she saw the people standing outside of the gate, she too, took off running. “Luke, no!” Dan and Colton quickly followed.

  Luke didn’t believe in wasting time when popping-off intruders. He’d done it so many times he didn’t have to think about it anymore. He used to, though, when his conscious was still strong, but that kind of thinking gets you killed. Now it was just another body on the pile outside of the gate. Or, in this case, four more bodies. Every three months or so, he and Dan would take the John Deere front end loader and scoop them all up and pile them away from the “smell zone” as Dan called it: the vicinity near the house where the corpses could be detected. They would rot away eventually, to make room for some more. The only intruders that might have a chance of surviving were young children. Thankfully, he hadn’t come across any yet, so he never had to decide what to do with them. The small red-haired girl standing on the other side of the gate was the youngest he’d seen so far. He raised the gun, deciding to shoot the large male with a patch over his eye first.

  “No!” Janette yelled, smashing into Luke at a full-on run. The gun dropped from his hands and slid under the fence. Cain bent down and slowly picked it up.

  “What the hell are you doing?” Luke said. When he noticed the man holding the gun, he stood to his feet with his hands in the air. “Just calm down big guy.”

  Janette walked to the fence and stood facing Cain.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  CHIEF officer Mitchell entered William Weston’s office, a meeting he was not looking forward to. He waited quietly as Weston scanned a number of papers on his desk. He cleared his throat to gain Weston’s attention, thinking that maybe he didn’t hear him enter, although he knew that was very unlikely.

  Weston looked up, as if disturbed, and then continued scanning the papers. “Do you know what I’m looking at, Mitchell?” he said, his eyes still on the papers. “Chief Officer Mitchell,” he continued. He now looked at Mitchell.

  “I’m afraid I don’t, sir.”

  “I’m looking at the expected growth rate of the nutrimen we now house in the kennels. According to my calculations, if we don’t come up with a more viable solution to increase the nutrimen’s rate of growth, each and every citizen of Ancada will starve to death.” Weston clasped his hands together. “And do you know what that viable solution is?”

  “If my memory is correct from our last meeting, it would be the younger of the two females that escaped.”

  “BINGO.” Weston leaned back in his chair, his arms now crossed over his chest. “Do you like that title, Mitchell? Chief Officer?”

  “Yes sir.”

  “Do you think you’re worthy of it?”

  “Yes sir, I would like to think I am.”

  “Then why haven’t the two females that escaped been apprehended?”

  “I’m not sure, sir. The men that I assigned to the task still haven’t located them.”

  Weston stood. “Why the hell is this taking so long? Aren’t the tracking devices working? Just hone-in on them and pick them up. Simple. Right?”

  “I’m not sure if the devices are working, sir.”

  “What do you mean you’re not sure if they’re working? Either they are or they’re not. There is no other option.”

  “I’m not sure, because the men I assigned haven’t reported back to me, recently.”

  “When was the last time they made a report? And what did they say?”

  “Well, that’s just it, sir. We haven’t received any reports since they left.”

  Weston’s eyes narrowed. He walked over to Mitchell. “Are you telling me that you haven’t heard from your men from the moment they left Ancada three weeks ago?”

  Mitchell hesitated. He knew what he was about to say would most likely cost him the title of Chief Officer but it had to be said. He took a deep breath. “Yes, sir.”

  Weston continued to stare, his face now deeply focused on Mitchell’s. He couldn’t believe what he heard. It was unfathomable. The girls could be anywhere by now. Hell, they’re probably dead. “That’ll be all.”

  “Yes sir.” Officer Mitchell headed to the door, amazed he still had his title.

  “Could you tell officer Brodie to report to me immediately?”

  JANETTE raised her hand to the fence, staring at Cain. He did the same, his fingers touching hers through the links. As much as she had wanted to leave the church and never see him again, she couldn’t hold back the tears now forming in the corner of her eye. “I’m so sorry.”

  Cain nodded.

  Janette knew he thought she meant she was sorry for leaving and never returning, but what she was really sorry for was leaving him for dead after Colton put an arrow in his eye. But he never saw her that day. He didn’t even know she was there. By the time she saw him he was lying on the ground with the arrow still protruding from his eye. She should have done something. But who would be able to survive that? A goddamn arrow in the eye. She would have sworn he was dead. But she didn’t even try to help him after all he had done for her from the first day she joined the church. She would have been dead by now if not for him.

  Dan rushed up to the fence. “That’s the guy from the city that tried to kill me when we were getting Monica’s medicine.” He turned to Janette. “You know him?”

  Colton slowly moved his arm to retrieve an arrow from the quiver on his back.

  Cain glanced his way and shook his head, the gun firmly in his hand.

  “He’s a friend,” Janette said. “He won’t hurt us.”

  “I remember you,” Thomas Steinberg said, walking up to the fence with his wife. “You’re from the church. David’s henchman. You go on; get out of here. There’s nothing here for you. For any of you.”

  “But we don’t mean you any harm,” Betty said. “We’re just looking for shelter. We’ll work for it. Whatever you want us to do.” She looked at Calla and April. “The girls need someplace safe. Please. I beg you.”

  “There’s no room for you here,” Thomas said. “You people are dangerous.”

  “That’s what you said about me,” Janette said.

  “He tried to kill me, Janette,” Dan repeated.

  “I know, Dan, but he was just doing his job. You were a stranger on their turf. You would have done the same thing. In fact, judging by the number of bodies outside of the fence, you have done the same thing. Many times over.” She looked at Cain. “I’ve known him most of my life, and I can promise you he won’t hurt any of us.”

  Colton stepped forward. “If you’re wrong, someone may die. I’m all for giving a guy a second chance, but he did try to kill Dan. And it’d be hard for any of us to stop him if he became violent. Hell, it’d be hard for all of us to stop him.”

  “I don’t think we should chance it,” Luke said. “You can keep the gun, but it’s best you be on your way.”

  Cain gave Janette one last look. He smiled and turned away.

  “Please,” Betty said. “You’re making a mistake, we’re good people.”

  “Luke shook his head. “I’m sorry.”

  Janette turned to Dan. “Please, Dan. You have to trust me.”

  “I can’t Janette. It’s too dangerous.”

  Betty rushed to the fence. “Will you at least take the girls? They’re not used to the mainland. It’d be hard for them to survive.”

  “No,” Luke said.

  “It’s okay,” Calla said to Betty, leading her away from the fence. “We’ll be okay.”

  “Wait,” Colton said. “What did you mean, the girls aren’t used to the mainland?”


  “They’re not from here,” Betty responded. “They’re from Ancada, the island in the ocean. They’ve escaped.”

  Colton stepped up to the fence and looked at the girls. The small red haired one reminded him of his daughter. Especially her eyes; they were very similar. He wondered if she would have looked like this child if she had survived. “Why did you leave Ancada? And more importantly; how did you leave?”

  “We left because they were going to kill, April,” Calla said. She put her hand on April’s shoulder. “This is April, and I’m Calla. We’re sisters.”

  “Why were they going to kill her?” Colton asked. He had a pretty good idea, but he needed to know if they continued with their plans after he left.

  “Because she was a nutrimen.”

  So that’s what they decided to call them, Colton thought. “We should reconsider letting them stay,” he said.

  “Absolutely not,” Thomas said. “I forbid it.”

  “Can I have a word with you and Monica?” Colton said to Thomas. They walked back toward the house, out of hearing distance. Colton didn’t want Elana to hear what he had to say. At least not yet. He faced Thomas and Monica. “What I said about not finding Josh wasn’t quite true.”

  Monica’s eyes widened, hope reappearing in her gaze at Colton.

  “I didn’t actually find him, but I know where he is.”

  “Where?” Monica asked.

  “Ancada. They were collecting children from the mainland, and when they took Elana’s little girl, Josh volunteered to go to keep an eye on her.”

  “But, isn’t that place evil?” Monica asked. “That’s what you told us.”

  “I know that’s what I said. And yes, it is evil. That’s why we should reconsider letting these people stay. They may be able to help us get Josh and Elana’s daughter, Jessie, back.”

  Monica turned and rushed toward the gate. “Let them in!”

  “No,” Luke said.”

  “LET THEM IN!” Monica yelled.

  Luke turned to Colton. “What’s going on, Colton?”

  “Let ‘em in, Luke. It’s okay.”

  “Are you sure, Cole?” Dan asked.

  “I am. We need them. They may be able to help us get Josh and Jessie back.”

  “We’re gonna try to get Jessie back?” Elana asked Colton, her eyes beaming with hope.

  He nodded. “We are.”

  Elana covered her eyes with her hand and began to cry.

  “It’s okay, Ma,” Stevie said, his arm around his mother pulling her close.

  Monica pointed at the gate, glaring at Luke. “Open it!”

  Luke looked at the big guy holding the rifle, his rifle. “Not until he gives the gun back.”

  “Give me the gun, Cain,” Janette said.

  Cain knelt down and slid it under the fence. Luke rushed over and grabbed it.

  “Now open it,” Monica said.

  “Alright, alright. Calm down.”

  “Here,” Luke said, handing Dan the gun. “You guard them.”

  Dan didn’t know what to expect as Luke opened the gate. He held the gun by his side, pointing it at the man that once had his hands around his throat. He swallowed, remembering the moment. He was ready to pull the trigger at the first sign of trouble.

  April watched the man open the gate. Each number he pushed on the keypad made a different tone that was easily memorized. When the gate opened, she and Calla were led inside by Betty. Cain was the last to enter. And the most watched.

  “Thank you,” Betty said to Monica. She glanced at the others. “Thank all of you.” She gave Janette a quick hug. “It’s so good to see you again. I’m glad you’re okay.”

  Janette held her hand briefly and smiled. “It’s good to have you here. We can always use someone with your medical background. I can’t believe David let you leave.”

  “Well, that’s a conversation for another day. Let me introduce ourselves to your friends. My name’s Betty,” she said, trying to make eye contact with each of them. She pointed to Calla and said her name, and then did the same to Cain. And then she rested her hands on April’s shoulders, who was standing directly in front of her. “And this is April.”

  “It’s a pleasure to meet all of you,” Monica said, “and you’re welcome to stay as long as you’d like.” She walked up to Calla. “You girls came from the island, Ancada?”

  Calla nodded.

  “Did either of you ever meet a little boy named Josh? He’s nine-years old, blonde hair, and he has a scar under his left eye.”

  Calla shook her head, trying to remember meeting a boy fitting that description. “No ma’am. I never met anyone like that. But we lived in the city. Maybe he was on the outskirts of town.”

  “I remember seeing a boy like that,” April said. “I don’t know what his name was, but he was with a girl he called Jessie.”

  Monica turned to April, her face flushed with excitement. “That’s him! Where did you see him? Is he, all right? Did they hurt him?”

  “He and some other smaller children were in a cell, similar to the cells in the kennels. He was comforting the small girl he called Jessie. They didn’t look to be hurt, but they seemed very frightened. Especially the girl. She was crying.”

  April’s comment about Jessie stabbed Elana’s heart. The thought of her little girl being frightened and crying was just too much to accept. She fainted and Steven caught her before she hit the ground. Janette helped him carry her to the house. “Let’s take her to one of the bedrooms,” Janette said, leading the way. Finding out about your sister was obviously too much for her to handle.”

  Monica turned to Colton. “How can we get to Ancada?” She turned to her husband, Thomas. “Can’t you contact them and tell them to bring him back?”

  Thomas considered the idea. “I suppose I could try to contact them.”

  “Yeah...” Dan said. “That’s not gonna happen.”

  “Why not?” Monica asked, a little confused.

  “Because Luke and I smashed the radio when you guys left the first time.”

  “Why would you do that?”

  “We didn’t want you telling them where we’re located. How do you know they wouldn’t have come and killed us all?”

  “That’s ridiculous,” Thomas said.

  “Is it? What about the church, Tom. Didn’t you bring them back to try and kill us?”

  “Yeah, of course. But that was different.”

  “How so?” Luke intervened. “Because you failed? We smashed the radio because we didn’t want to take any chances. You’re not exactly the most trustworthy guy, Tom.”

  “I think smashing it was for the best,” Colton said. “You probably don’t want them knowing where we are.”

  “Told you so,” Dan gloated.

  “Then how can we get Josh back?” Monica asked Colton.

  “I don’t know right off hand, but I think we should all go inside so we can come up with a suitable plan. And after that there’s something that needs to be done.” Colton turned to Calla and April. “Come here girls.” April and Calla walked over to him. He first took April’s hand and examined her wrist. “Okay,” he said, releasing her hand with a smile.

  April returned the gesture. His face was kind and trustworthy and she felt an immediate connection to him. He was unlike most of the people she had met so far outside of the kennel. Most people seemed to have a secret hidden inside that made her leery to trust them, but he was more genuine.

  Colton took Calla’s hand and examined it as well. “It’s as I thought,” he said, after carefully inspecting the inside of her wrist. He released her hand. “You each have a chip surgically embedded in your wrist. I’m not sure why they’re different shapes, one a triangle and the other a square, but they have to be removed or they’ll lead Ancada straight to us. To be honest, I’m not sure why they haven’t come looking for you already.”

  “What are they, like homing devices?” Dan asked.

  “That’s exactly what they are,”
Colton responded. “Among other things. Those chips are a virtual file containing every pertinent piece of information on the subject matter. In this case the subjects being April and Calla. They tell their blood type, birth date, genealogy, medical history, immunization records, and much more than we have time to get into. If I had a scanning device it would all appear on the screen.”

  “What’s a scanning device?” Dan said.

  “It’s a handheld piece of electronic genius that has the ability to scan the chips through the skin to reveal their content. When synchronized with a computer, a plethora or information appears on the monitor.”

  Cain caressed the inside of his wrist, feeling the chip that was implanted in him during his brief stay at Ancada, and then reached into his bag and pulled out the device he stole when he escaped many years ago. He wondered if it was possible that it still worked. He reached out his arm, handing it to Colton.

  “And how did you get that?” Colton asked, taking the device. He studied it from all sides. It was very similar to what he remembered; maybe a little more advanced. “I assume you’ve been to Ancada?”

  “He doesn’t speak,” Betty said.

  Colton was too excited about the device to pursue the question of why Cain doesn’t speak. “Let me see your wrist again, April,” he said, reaching out his hand. When April gave him her hand, Colton hovered the device over her wrist and squeezed the trigger. The small monitor on the back of the device remained black, not even a whisper of static or a faint glimpse of light to prove it was still working. “The battery must be dead. Maybe I can find a way to charge it through the estate’s solar panel. In the meantime, we really should try to remove those chips from you girls before they lock onto your signals.”