“It’s still pretty enlightened of him to forgive them.”
“It’s not forgiveness; he thinks he’s in control. But he loved my mum and wants to honour her wishes.”
“Love, then. I suppose love is about sacrifice and compromise.”
He clearly wanted her to change her mind and say she’d remain in the Blind Spot, but Marcie needed to move to Scala City whether he went with her or not. They didn’t need to be having that conversation right now. She unzipped her handbag and placed it in the middle of the obsoletes before backing away.
Those who still had the strength to stand got to their feet and closed in on the bag. They moved like the walking dead, wincing with every painful step. Some of them threw glances of mistrust at Marcie.
“You know,” Sal said, “I’ve heard that some people come down here, pretend to give the obsoletes food, and then take it away, just to punish them. The people from the city can be so cruel.”
Marcie released a long breath while the obsoletes emptied her bag of the food she’d brought. “That’s sad.”
“They beat some of them to death. I can’t imagine living amongst people like that.”
Marcie sighed, a sea of obsoletes in front of her. “This is the hardest choice. It seems so cruel. By picking one—”
“You reject hundreds.”
“Right.”
Marcie headed back in the direction of the Blind Spot with the obsolete she’d chosen. No good way to do it, she chose one who looked malnourished like they’d been an obsolete for a time, but not so malnourished they’d fall down dead the second she brought them home.
“Why do you want to live in such a cruel city?” Sal said. “Look at what they do to people.”
“I’ve seen what we do to people too, remember. If there was a third choice, I’d consider it.”
“Crime city?”
“Yeah, right. I’ve heard the place is wild. And getting through the agricultural lands …” Did he know about the lungs on the other side?
Marcie passed several Scala citizens, one of them, an older woman who used a cane to help her walk, said, “I don’t know why you’re helping her.”
“Did I ask for your opinion?” A few other citizens who looked like they also had something to say dropped their heads at Marcie’s response.
The number of citizens in the streets decreased as they closed in on the Blind Spot. She’d have no problem bringing the woman in. The obsoletes were a reasonably priced labour force that were paid and fed at Wrench’s insistence. In the Blind Spot, they were guaranteed survival and comfort. The arrangement suited both parties.
The entrance to the Blind Spot just around the corner, Marcie turned to the obsolete. “Can you stay here for a moment, please?”
The obsolete nodded once, her green eyes blank like a machine awaiting another order.
Marcie ducked down the alleyway and ran to the wheelie bin she’d stashed her gear beneath. “I’ll come and see you soon, okay?”
“You’d better,” Sal said.
“Everything’s been so busy now Dad’s pulled me into the fold.”
“Just don’t forget me, yeah?”
The words had sharp edges and Marcie winced. “I won’t. Ever.”
Marcie swapped her glasses for an anonymity mask before returning to her obsolete. She might have just left thousands behind, but at least she’d saved one. As far as helping calm tensions between the Blind Spot and the city, her trip had been far from productive, but at least it hadn’t been a total waste of time.
Unrecognisable as she entered the Blind Spot in her power suit and mask, Marcie squeezed the obsolete’s hand, her voice distorted. “We’ll clean you up and get some food in your belly.” No matter how small, she’d made a difference. She’d done the best she could.
Chapter 17
There was a reason diet started with those three letters. Nick sat opposite Karla in their favourite restaurant and tried to focus on her rather than the bread basket between them. They’d ordered their food ten minutes ago. Why did restaurants take so bloody long? It didn’t help that he’d half starved himself for the past week. Even though he knew better, he still existed in the destructive cycle of starvation and gorging. But he’d break his diet this evening. Indulging once a week wouldn’t do any harm. Although, the last time he’d indulged, Karla had counted his calories as he went. When he’d finally finished, she told him he’d gone a good way towards his weekly allowance in one sitting.
Despite the gnawing distraction in his gut, Nick did what he could to stay in the moment. The weight of his phone in his pocket, he could check it for lifts. But he and Karla needed this after the week they’d had. Getting his phone out wouldn’t help anyone. When they disconnected from one another, it sometimes took him days to get her back. Weeks even.
The restaurant had been designed for the upper classes in the city, which Karla certainly qualified for even if he didn’t. A fingerprint and retina scanner on the way in, it had tables set up for two and no more. Definitely no kids in this place. Smooth jazz played in the background, and people spoke in hushed tones. As they sat waiting for their drinks, a glass of Prosecco for Karla, diet cola for him, they pulled tight-lipped smiles at one another as if they were strangers sharing a waiting room.
The question had been on Nick’s mind since that afternoon, and it didn’t seem like there would be a good time to ask it. “So, what were you and Bruce planning for me?”
A slight twist ran across Karla’s face, turning her ugly for the briefest moment. Anger, resentment, loathing … hard to tell. Then it passed. Her lips smiled; her blue eyes didn’t. “You’ll know when it’s time for me to tell you.”
When he comes home to find them fucking one another? She couldn’t blame him for being paranoid. How could he not be when in a relationship with someone like her? Someone who had their pick of men. He tugged on the front of his shirt. There had been a time when it fitted. Nick reached for the bread basket, fished out a warm crusty roll, and pulled it open, releasing a waft of steam.
The butter melted on the bread, and Nick’s mouth watered. Should he eat it? The freshly baked smell bypassed his willpower and he took a large bite. “How kind was Stuart to let me leave early today?”
Karla watched him for a few seconds, her top lip raised in a sneer. She looked at the sign on the wall. It read Wellbeing can wait for now. Why don’t you tell the person you’re with how wonderful they are? She checked her phone.
The waiter arrived with their drinks. “What a beautiful couple. I’m honoured to be serving you tonight.” The slightest pinch at the sides of his eyes showed his fear of rejection. Waiting staff weren’t any more respected than street cleaners. For the most part, the higher classes treated them like shit.
A wide smile, Nick said, “Thank you.” If he couldn’t make Karla happy, at least he could help the waiter relax.
A busy restaurant on a Friday night, the level of chatter around them rose. Wincing at the expected rejection, Nick reached across the table and held Karla’s hands. She didn’t pull away. “Are you okay? Has work been hard this week?”
After a few more seconds, her steel left her and she slumped in her seat. “Work’s hard every week. But it’s not that. I spoke to my dad on Tuesday.”
Relief washed over Nick, but he tried to hide it. Never good that she’d spoken to her dad, but at least it explained her frosty demeanour.
Karla twisted her napkin. “I find it so hard to cut him out of my life. He was kind and thoughtful. He even transferred some credits into my bank account—inheritance before the government has a chance to tax it.”
Her hands were cold and lifeless like those of a corpse. Nick squeezed them. “Try to stay centred. I agree, it’s great that he’s making the effort, and the money’s always nice, eh? But remember he might hit the bottle again at some point. You and I both know he’ll be a different man when that happens.” He shook his head. “Unfortunately, your dad has poison in his veins.”
Was that a threat?
“But he’s all I have, you know?”
“You have me.”
Sympathy replaced steel and she looked away from him. “Thank you.” She withdrew her hands and patted his forearm before getting to her feet. “I need to use the bathroom.”
As she walked off, she took his appetite with her. Nick straightened his back and pushed the rest of the bread roll away. But her mood made sense now; it always threw her out of whack to talk to her dad. At least it had nothing to do with him. He’d be there when she was ready. For now, he needed to remain patient while she processed her feelings.
Chapter 18
More restraint than he’d shown in the past, Nick had eaten a hearty meal of mostly protein and veg. Other than the few bites of the bread roll, he’d gone carb-free. They’d decided to walk to the cinema rather than getting a cab. Work the meal off before they sat down for a couple of hours. Even if it did mean dealing with the obsoletes en route. They came out at night, preying on those who’d had a few drinks. They were easier to beg credits from. Although, if they picked the wrong citizen, they’d end up on the receiving end of a hiding. A risk worth taking when the reward could be survival. They passed three bald women, Os on their foreheads—at least, they looked like women. “You’d think the city would do something about them on the streets.”
“What can they do?” Karla said. “Besides, they serve as a reminder to toe the line. You mess with the city’s rules, you end up like them.”
“It certainly works,” Nick said.
Shops and restaurants lined the sides of the next street, the cinema at the end. Obsoletes weren’t allowed here, and the drones weaving through the hover cars in the skylanes reminded them of the fact. Privately funded surveillance, the businesses paid for the mobile CCTV to keep their establishments desirable to punters. Obsoletes always put a downer on a night out. A large and old-fashioned building, the cinema had been constructed recently but had been designed to invoke sentimental feelings of a time when every district had a cinema. When they were the centre of every community. The effect had missed the mark; the place was tacky rather than nostalgic.
Three screens, each one showed a different movie, as advertised in bright red LCD. “So which one do you fancy?” Nick asked. Potluck whether it would be any good or not, he might as well let her choose.
Karla stopped about thirty metres from the building and looked from one name to the next.
“Have you heard of any of them?” Nick said.
“No. But I want to get the right feel for one. There’s a lot in a title.”
A few seconds passed and Nick shrugged. “Come on, love, we need to make a decision.”
But she wouldn’t be rushed.
Nick let go of her hand and turned away. He’d make good use of the time while he waited for her. “We’ve had a wonderful night thanks to Stuart. Those extra few hours off this afternoon have really helped me be fully fresh for this evening. And now we’re going to watch a great film. Adam’s so funny. The funniest man I know. Jane—” The explosion ripped through his words. A hot rush of air like in Wellbeing Square, Nick screamed, but this time his feet remained on the ground.
The bottom of the cinema turned to dust from where the bomb went off. The front of the old-style complex crumbled and fell forwards, dropping as if in slow motion. He grabbed Karla’s arm and dragged her back. His heart pounding, he fought for breath. “Are you okay?”
Dust swirled around them and Karla nodded. “I think so, yeah.”
“Come on,” Nick said, leading her away. “Let’s get out of here.”
Chapter 19
As Marcie tore through the sky on her way to the Apollo Tower, the white lights of Scala City stood out like stars in the darkness. She landed on the roof of another skyscraper. She was four leaps away at the most.
“What was that?” Sal’s voice tickled Marcie’s ear, tightening the skin at the base of her neck. It often took her a second to adjust to him speaking when he’d been quiet for a while.
The crack of the explosion whipped through the city. Distant sirens responded. Marcie changed direction, took a three-step run-up, and leaped from the office block. She spread her wings, her eyes directing the small movements needed to keep her on course. The frigid winter wind dragged her hair back and she spoke through gritted teeth. “I don’t know, but I’m going to find out.”
A blue wagon built for a small family, although currently being driven by a woman on her own, crossed Marcie’s path, and she hit it with a deep thud as she propelled herself forwards. Horns blared and people called after her, furiously impotent because none of them could deviate from their route. Without the traffic mainframe, she would have been chased down long ago.
Marcie’s eyes fed her microprocessor, urging her to pull up ever so slightly. She stumbled when she landed on the roof of the next building, both legs shuddering, working overtime to keep her stable. Closer to the explosion, red circles flashed in her vision. “CCTV drones.”
“Be careful,” Sal said. More beeps from the skylanes as she moved through them, he laughed. “Although, I reckon your downfall will be an angry driver rather than being spotted on CCTV.”
“They’ve got more to look at than me.” Gravel covered the next rooftop, and Marcie’s feet twisted as she ran across it. Her legs pushed her as fast as she could travel without slipping. Through the sprawl of white lights, the effect trebled from the sheer number of mirrored surfaces in the city; a dark patch signalled the location of the explosion.
“Do you think it’s another attack?” Sal said.
Marcie leaped from the roof. Her eyes read her flight path, her microprocessor delivering instructions to her limbs. She thrust her arms and legs out like a starfish again. The flaps on her suit caught the wind, the slightest adjustments guiding her towards the next building.
A red arrow flashed in Marcie’s vision on her right. A foghorn blared at her. She turned left just in time to avoid an airbus coming her way.
As he always did, Sal continued to talk. “I don’t know how you don’t—” click whir “—shit yourself when you do this. I’ve come close quite a few times, and I can’t get hurt.”
A green circle highlighted Marcie’s landing spot. A clear route, she pulled her arms into her sides, speeding up as she flew. A second before landing, she snapped her arms wide, catching the wind as her lower body swung around so she landed feet first, thousands of adjustments running through her legs to cushion her landing. “You get used to it.”
“I’ll have to take your word for that.”
A pile of rubble where the old cinema had been, smoke rose from the ruins, and people tore through the streets, running away from the destruction. Marcie leaned over the edge of the building to give Sal a better view.
“Marc—”
“I know what you’re thinking.”
“Oh, what am I—” click, whir “—thinking?”
“That tonight was just a run-out. That I shouldn’t get too close. That our dads will kill us.”
“Why do I feel like you’ve changed your mind?”
A fat man and his blonde partner led the retreat down the main road. He clearly hadn’t run in a long time, the rest of the crowd catching up to them. Even in high heels, the blonde woman had the beating of him. The CCTV drones followed the crowd.
“I’m going down there,” Marcie said.
“Are you mad?”
“Yes! Besides, with the shit that’s going on, who really cares about a sixteen-year-old girl out past curfew?”
“Maybe not a sixteen-year-old girl, but they might care about you. Especially in that get-up.”
“I’m going to take it off.”
“What?”
“They don’t know who I am. Unlike the others at the table, no one knows me here.”
They’d established a few rules about Marcie run
ning through the city some time ago. Sal got to ride along, but he couldn’t argue with her, and he couldn’t tell his dad about it. Not convinced about the second part, she had more control over the first. If he argued, she’d turn the glasses off.
The main street packed with people, Marcie jogged to another side of the building. A dark alleyway below, it looked empty. A fire escape gave her easy access to the ground. But she had easier access.
Twenty storeys, maybe more, Sal screamed as Marcie jumped. Her legs absorbed the shock of her landing as a collection of red rings flashed through her vision. The darkness came to life and Sal screamed again. The sunken eyes of what must have been at least eight obsoletes popped from the shadows. They stared at her and she stared back, her breaths heavy. The slightest drying at the back of her throat, she gulped. If it kicked off, she’d handle it. Hopefully it wouldn’t kick off. Why would it kick off? Obsoletes weren’t violent. Other than … well, obsoletes weren’t violent.
A deep hiss, Marcie hunched down and scowled at them. They retreated into the darkness.
“You think they wanted to hurt you?”
“No, but I didn’t want to risk it.”
Marcie rounded the next corner. No rings in her vision, she slipped from her suit. Jeans and a sweatshirt. Generic enough. She kept her glasses on.
Most of the people ran from the cinema as Marcie jogged towards it. The CCTV drones continued to follow the crowd. Her eyes picked out a path that avoided collisions. Although it did nothing to deflect the stares. Who wore glasses at this time of night, and was she old enough to be out past curfew? Anyone under eighteen in Scala City had to be home by eight in the evening. But they had far more important things to deal with, like running for their lives.
Clear of the crowd and close to the cinema, the police sirens in the background, Sal said, “Who do you think did it?”
The Blind Spot Page 9