The Rainbow Maker's Tale
Page 36
* * *
Cassie bounced through her apartment door a moment after I activated the panel.
“Hello stranger!” I laughed, as she virtually fell on me. “You certainly seem happier to see me than you did first thing this morning.”
“I was expecting you this time, rather than being scared out of my wits. Maybe if you had told me you would be hiding under my bed, I wouldn’t have hurt you!”
“Maybe next time I won’t be hiding under your bed,” I teased back.
“Yeah, well – I might have told you that was the first time I’ve had a boy anywhere near my bed…if I didn’t mind sounding like a loser.” Cassie’s cheeks flamed, as her attempt at a joke stumbled into the truth.
“That just makes me like you even more,” I said, leaning in close and letting my lips brush her neck.
“Let’s get going,” she said. Cassie took hold of my arm and steered me away from the apartment, trying not to sound flustered.
“Are you OK?”
She nodded, dismissing my question. Glancing at the apartment door, I guessed we were still too close to her parents for her to say anything more. I let her lead me away.
“So…?” I asked, once we reached the end of the avenue and turned onto the main Green Zone road that led towards the station’s central hub areas.
“So…My parents think the change is close, very close. They’re completely focused on it now.”
“Focused?” I frowned, that didn’t sound good. “Focused how?”
“It’s hard to tell. There were a lot of thoughts jumbling around and I didn’t get the impression they were actually talking about it between them, it was more a mixture of individual ideas than a conversation. There was definitely excitement though, underpinning everything they thought about. And there was the indication that they would let others know, but that the system would have already tracked the change…I remember that clearly. Other than that, it’s hard to pull anything coherent together.”
I grunted unhappily. Normally, I loved being right, but confirmation that the change in our marks would be tracked immediately was not what I wanted to hear. It would make it even more difficult to get out, as I imagined they would be monitoring us more closely than ever now.
Cassie seemed to have no idea that her mark had actually changed, so I thought it would be best to keep her distracted. I kept up a stream of conversation as we walked, and again as we ate breakfast together near The Clinic.
Several times we joked about skipping placement altogether – imagined ourselves escaping to some park or another using our bands so we couldn’t be tracked. But, it was too soon, and would raise suspicions. The only comfort I got from this, was that Cassie was desperate for a way out, just as I was. I felt sure that she would agree to come with me today. I had already decided that I would leave immediately after placement. It was the longest period of time we ever had alone, and would give us a head start.
We arrived late, dawdling too long over breakfast. Several times I thought of running now, but it wasn’t the right time: we would be noticed faster if neither of us came to The Clinic today. We needed all the time we could get.
I timed our entry to the building with a group of Medics, hoping that Cassie wouldn’t notice the double-beeps our marks elicited from the scanners. It seemed to work.
Splitting up we headed for our respective changing rooms. I dressed quickly, trying not to notice the crimson patch glowing dangerously on my arm. Joel was already there, just fastening his clinic whites, and we ended up leaving together.
Joel remained silent as we waited in the reception area. If I hadn’t been so preoccupied with my own thoughts, I might have noticed the difference in him.
“No sign of Karl and Rachel yet?” I observed, trying to make small talk.
Joel shook his head. “Medic Karlina said they eloped last night.”
“Rachel and Karl?” I was shocked.
“I know – I always thought Karl had a thing for Olivia – guess my judgement isn’t great when it comes to romance.”
I couldn’t help but feel that there was some message, hidden in Joel’s words, but I didn’t have time to really consider what it might be. Cassie appeared by my shoulder, followed by Olivia a moment later.
Medic Karlina gave us no opportunity to talk between ourselves as she briskly briefed us on our assignments for the day: the four of us would be working alone, and not in pairs today. I immediately sensed Cassie’s apprehension at this unexpected change to the routine.
We were dismissed from the orientation reception and made our way out to the main hall. I took the lead, wondering how I was going to tell Cassie what I had planned – we would be apart all day.
Each of us had a Medic dedicated to us today – another change – and they walked ahead of us in a small group, leading the way to our individual work locations. Cassie sneaked up to me as we walked.
“You were right about what the change they’ve been talking about is,” she whispered. “I heard it in Medic Karlina’s thoughts just now.”
“You mean the mark?” I slowed my steps to keep pace with Cassie, but didn’t turn my head. Out of the corner of my eye, I scanned her face and saw how scared she was. She had not looked like that before she went into the changing room, and I guessed that while she was in there, she had seen that her mark had changed. “Yours too?”
Her silence told me what I already knew.
“What now?” she asked, eventually.
“I don’t know. But, you’ll be pleased to hear that Rachel and Karl eloped last night.”
“What?!”
I just nodded.
Cassie’s voice was a whisper. “I don’t believe it…” She stumbled forward, nudging into my back.
With one hand I reached out to steady her – fearful that the four Medics around us would notice something was wrong. I turned around, to check that she was OK. She wasn’t. Cassie’s mouth hung open, in a small ‘O’ of shock. My suit had pulled up my arm as I reached for her, and Cassie was staring at the red mark on my wrist.
Our small procession halted then, so there was no opportunity to say anything more. The leading Medic opened a door to the right of us and directed me inside. I let go of Cassie – with great effort – and walked inside ROOM 7.07 BIOCHEMISTRY. Entering the room, the scanner beeped twice as it registered my mark. I looked back at Cassie and saw that she had connected all the pieces now. My own fear was reflected in her eyes, as she stared at me.
We had no more time for questions. Today I would make my plans, and tonight we would get out. We would get out, any way possible.