Famine

by R A Doty

  “Don’t worry,” Janette said. “You’re not going back. We’ll find a way out of this.”

  Calla turned her head and stared at Janette, as if not comprehending what she had just said. She shook her head. “There is no way out. It’s over.” She lowered herself to the floor and sat with her back against the wall and her arms wrapped around her knees. “There’s absolutely nothing else we can do.”

  Everyone else still had hope. They were just waiting for Colton to come up with another plan. To pull another magic trick from his sleeve. Having never been to Ancada, they didn’t exactly grasp the seriousness of the situation they were in. But Calla knew, and so did Colton. There were no more cards on the table. The game was over. When Colton slid to the floor as Calla had done, they each followed, in turn, except for Cain who sat on the bed. They all continued to think of a way out of the situation, but eventually succumbed to defeat.

  Chapter Forty-Three

  MANOLIN was very careful not to accidentally touch the door while Weston and the other men were there. He had waited for just the right moment to make his move, but that moment wasn’t now. It was best to be sure the men wouldn’t return suddenly. Instead, he would listen to the others talking until he felt comfortable enough to put his plan into motion. It was pleasant to hear human voices. He slipped down to the floor and rested his head against the door. He decided to close his eyes for a few minutes, but those minutes turned into two hours. The moon was descending behind the ocean, and soon after the sun would break the horizon. When Manolin awoke he wondered how long he had slept and listened carefully to make sure the others were still there.

  Calla looked around the pen. How could April have possibly stayed here, confined in this very room, for so many years? The thought was extremely depressing. She looked at the walls, noticing certain imperfections in the textures. She also noticed some on the floor and ceiling. Had April memorized every mark and scratch?

  “What’s the matter?” Janette said, noticing Calla staring at the walls and ceiling.

  “This was April’s pen. I was just wondering how she could have survived in here for so long without going mad.”

  “You mean this is where she stayed her entire life?”

  “Pretty much. The nutrimen were only allowed to leave for medical reasons and when it was time to be...” Calla couldn’t bring herself to say the word harvested. It was such an ugly world, but up until she met April, she never once thought about it.

  Janette looked around the room. “That is so insane. And cruel. How could they have kept her here for all those years?”

  Manolin felt a sense of relief, knowing they were still there, and hearing the conversation between the two girls made him wonder how he was able to survive in such a confined area for all those years as well. It was something he had never considered until it was brought to his attention. He felt a strong feeling of confinement. Like the walls were closing in on him. His breathing came hard and his heart began to race. Whether he liked it or not, the time had come to make his move.

  There was no doorknob on the inside of any of the kennel’s doors, but he didn’t need one. He stood, and with a slight push the door slowly opened. He removed the wad of mattress fabric still embedded into the striker plate, which prevented the latch from engaging the lock. It would be best if they never found out how he managed to escape from his pen just in case he would have to do it again someday, although he hoped that day would never come. He carefully stepped forward into the yard, paying close attention to the kennel’s entrance door. When he was certain it was safe to move forward, he slowly and quietly opened the door to April’s pen. Nobody noticed at first, their heads all facing the floor, and then Cain turned in his direction. Moonlight reflected off the surface of the door as it opened, casting a quick flash of light on the walls. Everyone raised their heads.

  Calla was the first to stand. “Manolin!” she said, running over to him. She gave him a long hug. He reminded her of a simpler time before so many things had gone wrong. If she were to let go of him, those fond memories would surely vanish. But she had to release him eventually... in a while, which she finally did. “How did you escape from your pen?” she asked rhetorically, knowing he never learned how to speak. Or so she thought.

  “I jammed the lock with fabric,” he responded.

  Calla’s lower jaw sagged, totally shocked to hear his voice. She remembered the male nutrimen who was afraid to squirt the water hose. “How did you learn to speak, Mano?’

  “April taught me before she left.”

  “Is he okay?” Janette said, staring at the young man that appeared out of nowhere. “I mean, should we trust him?”

  Calla hugged him again. “Yes, he’s okay. He’s a friend.” She stared Mano in the face. “A very dear friend.”

  “Can any of the others speak?” Calla asked.

  Mano shook his head. “No. Just me.”

  “I hate to break up this reunion,” Dan interrupted, “but we better get our asses moving if we’re gonna pull this off.”

  Janette smacked his shoulder. “Why you gotta swear?”

  He smiled.

  “Dan’s right,” Colton said. “We have to try to find April.”

  “I know where she is,” Mano said. “It’s not far. Follow me.”

  He led them from April’s pen and stopped at the kennel door.

  “Now what do we do?” Calla said. “I tried the code but it didn’t work.”

  Manolin stepped up to the door. “They changed it shortly after you left with April.” He punched in the numbers he remembered Weston using. The door opened. Everyone smiled, except for Cain, who just followed the others out into the hallway.

  MANOLIN led the way in the direction where he last saw April.

  “Wait!” Calla said, her arms blocking everyone from moving forward. “The night staff should be around somewhere. There’s usually one or two women at the main desk. They sometimes patrol the halls. We have to be careful.” She cautiously stepped forward; the others right behind her. As she approached the main desk her pace slowed. Just before reaching the corner where the hallway opened into a lobby she stopped. With her back flat against the wall, she twisted her neck and slowly peeked around the corner at the desk. Both women were sitting side by side, staring at computer monitors. Calla pulled back, shaking her head at the others. “I don’t know what to do,” she whispered. “They’re both at the desk.”

  Cain tapped Manolin on the shoulder and then pointed in the direction of the two women. He waved his finger in that direction again and again.

  Mano stood confused, staring at the large man who was obviously trying to tell him something. He shrugged his shoulders and shook his head, trying his best to tell the man he didn’t understand.

  Cain tapped his shoulder again, pushing him slightly toward the women. Everyone tried to figure out what was going on. What was Cain trying to say?

  Janette walked up to Manolin. “Just go,” she whispered. “It’s okay.”

  Cain nodded.

  Manolin hesitantly walked toward the women. He glanced back at Cain, who was waving his finger again with a nod. He continued walking toward another hallway across the lobby.

  Both women looked up simultaneously. They immediately recognized him as a nutrimen, but didn’t exactly know what to do. Should they call out to him, knowing it was against the rules to speak in the presence of a nutrimen? Where did he come from? A nutrimen never escaped, it just doesn’t happen. They both stood and began walking after him.

  Cain quickly caught up to the women. With one swift motion, he wrapped his arms around each of their necks and pulled them against his chest. He showed no mercy as he squeezed tight; a python restricting its prey. The women shook momentarily, but eventually went limp and fell to the floor when he loosened his grip.

  The others walked over, Calla with her hand to her mouth. Manolin backed up, suddenly afraid of the man standing much too close. What else would he do if provoked?

&nb
sp; Colton knelt down beside the two women and pressed two fingers to each of their necks, one at a time. They still had a pulse. He looked up at Cain, who gave him a nod. From that moment on, he realized who Cain was. He could have easily snapped their necks, but he didn’t.

  “Are they dead?” Calla asked.

  “They’re just unconscious,” Colton said. “They’ll be fine in about twenty minutes or so, I’m guessing. Which means we have to get moving.”

  “April’s down this hall and to the left,” Manolin said, leading the way.

  They turned left at the end of the hall and continued to follow Manolin down another hall. There were only a few doors, unlike any of the other hallways Calla had ever encountered while working in the kennels. It was obviously a restricted area. Manolin stopped at the end of the hall. Two doors, approximately ten feet apart, stood before him. He turned the doorknob to the one on the left.

  April pulled her hands to her face to cover her eyes. The light was blinding. Even the slightest glimpse made her eyes water. “April!” she heard someone say. Calla? She doubted her senses until she felt the arms around her body. It was Calla. She remembered her touch, her scent, her enthusiasm. She would have hugged Calla back, but Calla was squeezing her so tight that her arms were locked against her body.

  “We’re taking you home,” Calla said, finally releasing her.

  “You shouldn’t have come, Calla. It’s not safe.” April looked at the others.

  “That’s for me to decide,” Calla said, taking April by the hands and helping her to stand. “The truth is, I had little to do with it.” She looked at Colton. “If it wasn’t for Colton, we wouldn’t be here. And Manolin. He helped us find you. Why didn’t you tell me you taught him how to speak?”

  April shrugged. “I thought you would be angry with me.”

  April held out her hand and Manolin took it. “Thank you, Mano.” She looked at the others. “Thank all of you. But you shouldn’t have risked your lives for me.”

  “We couldn’t just leave you here, now could we?” Janette said with a smile.

  “Now comes the hard part,” Colton said. “Finding Josh.”

  “I remember where he and the small girl were,” April said.

  “Do you think you’d be able to find your way there again?”

  “I believe I could.”

  AFTER navigating a maze of complex corridors she had previously memorized, April easily led the others to where she had seen Josh and the small girl. When they approached the cell, it was empty. She thought briefly. “This is where they were, but then they and some others similar to their age were led down the hall in that direction.” She pointed down the hallway.

  “Maybe they were taken to a separate kennel just for them,” Calla said.

  Colton started walking in the direction April had pointed. “Let’s see what we can find.”

  Dan studied the hallway as he and the others walked forward. It was eerily quiet and a little too sterilized. Like an asylum or something. “This place creeps me out,” he said. “Why’s everything so bright and white?”

  Janette didn’t notice it as much until Dan pointed it out. She stared at the walls and ceiling. It was creepy in an over-sanitized kind of way. What a horrible place to spend your entire life. Doors started to appear in the hallway, which would normally have been encouraging with the thought that Josh might be behind one of them, but there were so many it would be difficult to locate the right one.

  For a split second, Colton had considered abandoning the idea of trying to locate him, but then he wondered how he would have felt if he never tried to find April. He couldn’t do that to Monica and Thomas, who were waiting for their son to return. “Maybe we should split up and start checking each door,” he said to the others. “Just make sure when you enter, the door doesn’t close on you while you’re searching. They probably lock from the inside and you won’t get out without knowing the code. We should pair up so one can hold the door while the other searches the pens. Janette, why don’t you and Calla pair up. You can join Manolin, Dan; and I’ll take April.” Colton faced Cain. “You can stand watch in the hallway.”

  Cain agreed with a single nod.

  Colton continued. “We’ll convene at the end of the hallway after all the doors are searched.”

  Everyone nodded and proceeded with the plan. Calla was the first to open one of the doors. Considering Janette had never met Josh and wouldn’t recognize him if she saw him, she held the door while Calla searched the pens inside. All of the doors were pulled open, and every pen was empty. That was easy, Calla thought, heading back to Janette. They skipped the next two doors because April and Manolin were holding them open, and they proceeded to the next closed door.

  Dan had a similar experience when noticing the empty pens, so he and Manolin headed to the next closed door as well.

  April stood by the door while Colton searched the pens. It felt very odd for her to be looking at the kennel from the doorway when she was so used to being locked in a pen similar to the ones Colton was searching. She glanced up and down the hallway. So many years went by when she wondered what was on the other side of the door. And now she knew. Sometimes she imagined it would be pure black, like the outer space images she saw on Calla’s tablet. Other times she pictured a large room filled with nutrimen such as herself. She wondered if they would all be released to the room when they reached a certain age. But now she knew the truth and realized how lucky she really was to have had Calla help her. She undoubtedly owed her life to Calla. “No one here,” Colton said, walking past her. “Let’s check the next door.”

  Calla and Janette were coming out of another door, and right next to them, Dan and Manolin appeared exiting a door.

  Colton went into the next door in line, and judging by the child-like whimpers he heard he immediately knew the room was occupied. April held the door, also hearing the cries of a child. All of the doors were closed, and the very first pen Colton went up to was occupied by a young boy that looked to be about Josh’s age. The boy was lying on the bunk, sound asleep with his back to the door. Colton tapped him on the shoulder and the boy slowly turned, his eyes groggy with sleep. It was Josh.

  “Your parents sent me to find you, Josh. Take your time to wake up, son.”

  “My parents?” Josh rubbed his eyes with his hands. They were red and somewhat swollen. Not from rubbing them, but from crying himself to sleep. He was broken and had given up hope of ever getting out of this place he once so badly wanted to be a part of. Another child continued to cry in one of the other pens.

  “That’s right,” Colton said. “They’re waiting for you back on the mainland. Myself and a few others are here to bring you home.” Colton stared at Josh. He was gaunt and had no doubt lost a large percentage of his body weight. It angered Colton to think of what Ancada wanted these children for. “Can you help me wake the others? How many are there, do you know?”

  Josh nodded. “There were six of us, but then Jessie left and right after that they came for one of the bigger kids and never brought him back. Now there’s only four of us left. They brought a lot more of us here on the helicopter, but I’m not sure what they did with the others. I never saw them again once they put us in here.”

  Colton thought of the remainder of doors they hadn’t checked. The other children were probably there. But there would be no way of taking all of them. It broke his heart to leave any child behind, but he had no choice. It would be a suicide mission to try to get them all off the island safely. The way it stood now, he would be lucky to save the other four children but at least it was something. Maybe at some point in the future he could reason with Bill Weston again to release them. It was worth trying. But for now, they had to keep moving. “Let’s start waking the others,” he told Josh.

  Within a matter of minutes, Colton, April, Josh, and three other children, two boys about Josh’s age and a girl of about four, exited the room and entered the hallway. Josh’s face brightened when he saw Dan st
anding a few feet away. He ran over and wrapped his arms around him, his eyes welling with tears.

  Dan patted his head. “It’s okay, buddy. We’re gonna bring you home.”

  Janette watched as the small boy gripped Dan’s waist, her eyes beginning to gloss as well. She noticed the little girl crying next to Colton and rushed over to pick her up. “Don’t cry, honey. Everything’s gonna be okay.”

  The girl nuzzled into the crook of Janette’s neck, her crying replaced with quick little gasps of air.

  Josh looked up at Dan. “Is Ma...?”

  “Your mother’s fine. Don’t worry. And so’s your father. They’re both waiting for you to come home.” Dan held out his hand. “Come on. Let’s go.”

  Colton studied April as she stood beside Calla. His two daughters. No wonder she looked so similar to Kelly. Now all he had to do was get them out of this place. And that, he understood, probably wasn’t going to be easy. He no sooner had the thought when a siren went off. It was ear piercing. The hallway walls glowed red with lights flashing from the ceiling. The two women Cain rendered unconscious must have awoke sooner than he had anticipated. “We have to go,” he said. But which way? None of them had ever been in this part of the kennel before. When they entered the next hallway, Colton looked to the right and then the left. He went left, which took them in the opposite direction in which they came. He could have been going deeper toward a dead end, but after a few minutes he saw an exit sign over a door. Behind him and the others, in the direction they just came from, he heard loud voices. They were already searching for them. “I hope this door leads outside the kennel,” he said, pushing it open. It did.

  Although the moon was bright, it was still hard to pinpoint where, exactly, they were. And considering the city had been progressing the entire time Colton had left, everything looked foreign to him. Like he’d never been there at all. “Does anything look familiar to you?” he asked Calla.