Lipton turned his head and peered at the blonde-haired boy, whose stubble was struggling to find daylight along his chin.
God knew Lipton’s facial hair wasn’t the thickest, but at least he could portray a manlier look than this youngster.
“So what’s the deal with you and Summer?” Lipton asked the kid, choosing a lesser vocabulary with the hope of connecting with the twenty-something-year-old.
“I’m sorry, what?”
“It’s not like it’s a mystery.”
“What the hell are you talking about, Doc?”
“This budding romance you have so curiously initiated. Why her? Why Summer? The one girl who’s so far removed from reality that her own soul refuses to have anything to do with her. Is it because she’s a virgin? Is that what you’re drawn to? The scent of something ripe and unspoiled?”
“You’re reaching, dude. Just let it go.”
“The reason for my query is because she’s changed. You’ve noticed that fact, haven’t you?”
Simms put up his hand, palm out. “I’m not talking to you, so quit wasting your breath.”
“Well, it’s my breath to waste, as they say.”
“Whatever.”
“Why do you think she agreed to follow these Blackstone people back to their camp? After all, it’s an egregious breach of protocol and certainly a monumental risk.”
Simms threw up his arms. “I don’t know, maybe because she just found her long-lost sister?”
“And we got nothing to go back to,” Watson added. “Not after what Fletcher did. What else are we going to do?”
“That’s my point exactly.”
Simms shook his head. “Now you’re just talking in circles, Doc. You need to just shut the hell up already. I’m not listening to you.”
Lipton wasn’t about to stop, sensing that his diatribe was making inroads into the kid’s psyche. Plus, he was bored, and it was more than entertaining to joust with Simms. If nothing else, to find out what made the kid tick. “Add to that, the fact that Krista went along with the idea without so much as a whimper in protest. What does that signal to you?”
Simms turned to Lipton and held up a fist only an inch from Lipton’s face. “What does this signal to you?”
Lipton put his hands up in surrender. “Easy there, buckaroo. Just looking for a modicum of discourse here.”
Simms raised his middle finger and jerked it in Lipton’s direction. “Yeah, discourse this.”
“You just never stop, do you?” Watson asked. “It’s like an obsession with you.”
“Coming from a bean-flipper like you, that’s really saying something,” Lipton shot back, adding a crooked smile to his lips. “Crack any eggs lately?”
“Wow,” Watson said in a trailing breath as he turned his head and looked at something outside the window.
“Don’t you gentlemen wonder why Summer agreed to follow her sister to the new stomping grounds so easily?”
Neither man answered, so he decided to answer himself. “It’s because she’s changed. She’s decided, whether consciously or not, to replace her lifelong preoccupation with her own selfishness with some primal urge to assume control. In reality, what’s actually occurring is she’s simply grasping at the proverbial carrot that’s being dangled in front of her. That’s what this is, boys. Desperation masquerading as leadership.”
“Well, at least she’s doing something,” Simms said, bringing his eyes back to Lipton. “Not just sitting around, taking digs at everyone. Man, you really don’t like anyone, do you?”
“No, he doesn’t,” Watson added. “And nobody likes him.”
Simms continued. “I hate to burst your bubble, but Summer’s a good and decent person. But you simply won’t cut her a break, will you?”
“That’s not my job, kid. I’m here to question everything. That’s how theories are born. So, too, are the solutions they bear.”
“Okay, then, what do you think we should do?” Watson asked.
“Well, for one, we should have jettisoned the Scab women and the immensely troublesome one they call Helena. They simply add to the risk quotient and offer little in return.”
“Okay, you got a point there,” Watson said.
“Oh man, don’t encourage him,” Simms quipped, rolling his eyes.
“And two, we should have spent more time vetting the situation, even if Destiny is Hope, or whatever her real name happens to be.”
“The only hope is more like it,” Watson said, nodding.
“Okay, I get that, sort of, but where would we go now that the silo is not an option?” Simms asked. “According to Nomad, it was a massacre.”
“That’s point number three, my dense friends. How do we trust anything that brute has to say? Brother or not, it’s still a valid question.”
“Well, I was there. I saw it all,” Watson said. “The man is telling the truth. Fletcher stormed the place like Napoleon, leaving nothing behind.”
Lipton fired up his retort, pausing to seed its effectiveness. “Well, assuming it did happen—”
“Trust me, it did.”
“—Krista should have split up our troops, for security purposes.”
“What do you mean?” Simms asked.
“I’m certain neither of you have noticed the fact that all of their people are in the lead vehicles and all of ours are in the chase position. You see how that’s inviting disaster, don’t you?”
Watson answered instead of Simms. “No, not following.”
“She should have put at least one of us in the lead vehicle, to keep an eye on things and ensure they’re not plotting some type of ambush.”
Watson aimed an index finger at Lipton. “I’m guessing you think that person should have been you?”
“Correct, Mr. Watson,” Lipton said in his best Sherlock Holmes accent. “It certainly would have lessened the learning curve as to what they actually need me to do once we arrive. Destiny did raise the sense of urgency more than once when we all sat around and discussed our respective situations as a group.”
“Okay, I get it. Preparation time,” Simms said, nodding.
Watson shook his head. “Why didn’t you mention this back then, during our group discussion?”
“Wasn’t the proper time, my friend. When one decides to challenge the collective will of a newly-formed group, he or she must choose the proper time.”
Simms looked at Watson and shrugged.
Lipton focused his attention on Watson. “All we really know at this juncture is that Blackstone is facing something grave. What if their problem becomes an inherent risk to us as well? Someone from our side should have ridden with them to discover the true nature of their predicament.”
“In case we needed to rethink Summer’s decision to follow.”
Lipton gave Watson a firm nod. “Plus, we could have insisted one of theirs rode with us.”
“As insurance,” Simms said with confidence, bringing Lipton’s attention back to him.
“Precisely. I think you two understand why I’m bringing this up.”
Simms nodded.
Watson did as well. “Yeah, makes sense.”
“But of course, now that Summer has assumed Edison’s role and nobody has challenged her ascension to the throne, questioning her authority will be next to impossible. Even more so now that Krista has bought into the new paradigm.”
“I assume you have a plan?” Watson asked, leaning forward in his seat.
Actually, Lipton didn’t.
He never expected them to listen, let alone agree to his line of thinking.
In truth, he was only having a little fun at their expense. Spit-balling, if you will. “Well, gentlemen, if we’re going to make a move, the timing will have to be absolutely perfect. We don’t want to show our hand too soon. There are too many variables at play, all of which need to be assessed and quantified to ensure success.”
“Okay, then. Just tell us what you need us to do, Doc,” Watson said.
Lipton looke
d at Simms, then at Watson, wondering what that move might be.
Either way, he was now committed to come up with a plan, even though this all started as simply a method to pass the time.
He shouldn’t have been surprised, though. This wasn’t the first time his own unending genius had surfaced on its own and illuminated a systemic risk.
Regardless of how it originated or why, he did need to address it.
Somehow.
The question was, when?
CHAPTER 47
“Right this way,” Destiny told her sister as she and the group of visitors made their way down a dirt path that snaked between a line of towering trees and an endless thicket of underbrush.
“I can’t believe all the green,” Summer said, with her neck craned and eyes aimed at the canopy above her.
“It’s almost as if The Event never happened,” Watson said, moving the leash from his right hand to his left. The golden-haired shepherd followed the change in the lead, switching to the other side of Watson’s feet.
“You got that right, dude,” Simms said. “I’ll bet you there’s some good hunting in this area.”
A massive smile took over Summer’s face. “It’s so beautiful.”
“Well, I, for one, hate it. It’s giving me a headache,” Krista said, grimacing.
“That’s because you’re used to nothing but whites and grays,” Summer replied. “It’s absolutely stunning.”
Krista shook her head. “Still doesn’t change the fact that this place feels like an entirely different planet.”
“Asher—” Destiny said, moving her eyes to the man they called Lipton, “—is our version of you.”
“Oh, somehow I doubt that,” Lipton said. “There’s only one version of me. And he’s walking right next to you.”
“As I was saying, Asher thinks our caldera is the reason. He’s been monitoring its heat load, figuring that’s the reason the thaw happened much sooner here than down there in Arizona. Or anywhere else, for that matter.”
“You do know that the term ‘heat load’ is incorrect,” Lipton said with a sharp tongue.
Destiny shrugged, wishing she’d never mentioned it. “Okay then, whatever you call it, he’s been monitoring it.” At least Summer was still smiling. That was one thing Destiny was sure about.
“I’m curious, is Old Faithful still active?” Lipton asked.
“Yes and no.”
Lipton snorted a short breath, looking annoyed. “You know that’s not possible, right? That’s simply a misnomer. It’s either active or it’s not. Next thing you know, you’ll be trying to claim one of your old slutty high school friends was a little bit pregnant right before the world ended. You either are or you’re not. It can’t be both. Unless, of course, we’re talking about the state of subatomic particles.”
“What about that cat in a box thing you told me about?” Summer asked in a light tone, though Destiny thought it did sound a bit confrontational.
“You mean Schrödinger's cat?”
“Yeah, that one. He was both alive and dead at the same time.”
“Again, that was in reference to Erwin Schrödinger’s interpretation of quantum mechanics. An analogy, if you will. Not a statement of observable fact. He was trying to make a point, like I am now. Try to keep up, please.”
Summer leaned over and whispered into Destiny’s ear. “You see what I mean? It never ends with him.”
“How did you not shoot him in the face?”
“It wasn’t easy, that’s for sure. Though I do have to keep Krista from doing that very thing almost every day.”
Destiny laughed, then gave her sister a nod, appreciating Summer’s ability to deal with all these personalities.
A few steps later, Destiny glanced at the back of the pack where the Scab women and the girl were following along, then at Lipton, making sure he was paying attention before she spoke to him. “Look, it’s probably best if I let Asher explain it all to you. He’s the expert, not me.”
“Clearly,” Lipton said before looking over at Krista with an eyebrow raised.
Krista shook her head and smirked, the two of them looking as though they were in agreement for the first time since Destiny had met this group.
Summer smiled and grabbed Destiny’s hand as they walked, swinging it like she didn’t have a care in the world. The gesture fired up a memory from deep inside Destiny’s mind.
It was a scene from long ago, back when their family was still intact. Mom and Dad were there. So was Blaze as they walked together as a family on a beach in San Diego, looking for seashells. Specifically, orange seashells for a collage that Destiny wanted to make for Home Ec.
Summer was barely old enough to understand what the word ‘collage’ meant, but it didn’t stop the child from joining the hunt.
In fact, even at that tender age, Summer was hands down the best at finding them. Almost as if she had been born to go out and find things nobody else could.
Destiny turned her head and peered back at Nomad, wondering if somehow her brother could sense her thoughts about that beach vacation. She knew it was more than a long shot, but she had to check just in case.
He made eye contact with her, then the smallest of smiles found his lips.
Until that very instant, she didn’t think he could smile given the layers of scars across his skin. It may have even brought him pain, but he wasn’t showing any sign. In fact, he looked content, even after all he’d been through.
Destiny gave him a grin and a head nod, wishing Summer would welcome him in.
She could sense that Blaze was hurting as much on the inside as on the outside after Summer had gone off on him for keeping her in the dark.
All he needed was a hug from his baby sister and Destiny was sure he’d begin to feel like a whole person.
Instead, he looked like a lost puppy.
A giant, towering, disfigured puppy who, from what Summer had just told her, could wield swords as if he were the greatest pirate from yesteryear.
Destiny knew that nothing was perfect, but she was thrilled to have her family back. Mostly, anyway, despite the situation between Summer and Blaze.
When they made it to the main building that used to be called The Grand Visitor’s Center back when this facility was a major tourist attraction, she walked up three concrete steps and stopped, standing to the side of the double doors guarding the entrance. “Just head on in, everybody. Grab whatever seat you’d like in the old theatre room. I’ll go round up the rest of my people and be back in a flash.”
CHAPTER 48
Simms followed the procession into an adjoining room, where at least forty wooden chairs had been arranged in a circle around a central desk.
The wall ahead had what looked like a hanging screen—the kind that used to show movies to eager patrons. More chairs were stacked to the right, but several of them had been broken and stowed in an unorganized pile. He figured a scuffle had once taken place, or perhaps someone had lost their temper, smashing and destroying to vent their anger.
He chose the open seat between Krista and Summer, figuring nobody else wanted that spot. Not with the history of the two of them sparring over virtually every decision.
Though, he had to say, they’d been better recently, apparently deciding to put on a more unified front around the rest of the troops.
Simms decided he needed to say something to break the silence. “I don’t know about the rest of you, but this place is a big step up from ours. Even the chairs are more comfortable.”
“Not to mention the complete lack of a dangerous bacterium running wild,” Watson said, taking a seat in the row behind Simms after giving Sergeant Barkley’s leash to Summer. The dog curled up around Summer’s feet, panting with his tongue hanging out. “Though I gotta say, a pad on these seats would have been a nice touch.”
“Bacteria,” Lipton said as he walked past and chose a seat by himself in a nearby stand of chairs.
“I’m sorry, what?” Watson
said, turning an ear in Lipton’s direction.
“You said dangerous bacterium running free. It’s bacteria.”
“Oh, sorry.”
“Just once, it would be nice if you people would actually use the correct term. It’s mind-numbingly exhausting having to correct everything that comes out of your collective mouths.”
Summer leaned forward and looked past Simms to Krista. “It is me, or does Lipton seem more on edge than usual?”
“How can you tell?” Simms snarked. “He’s always on edge.”
“He does seem a bit jacked up,” Krista said, her eyes now burning in his direction. “I know you don’t agree, Summer, but I still think he’s in on all this.”
“If he is, I can see why he wanted to get here,” Simms said.
“So, you too, huh?” Krista said, holding her gaze on Simms. “Drinking the Kool-Aid, are we?”
“Don’t worry about her, Nick,” Summer said. “She’s just pissed off that I was correct for a change.”
Krista shook her head. “You know that’s not it, right?”
“Not what?”
So much for dialing back the drama, Simms thought to himself.
Krista sat back, crossing her arms over her chest. “Never mind. I’ll just sit here and keep an eye on everything.”
“Well, that is your job.”
“And yet nobody ever seems to listen.”
“Well, we do listen, but not every situation is the end of the world.”
“Maybe it’s the beginning of a new one,” Simms said, deciding to interject to stop the escalation. “Either way, I, for one, am glad to be here.”
Summer gave him a quick hug. “Me too. Thanks for the support.”
“You wouldn’t be saying that if your little family reunion wasn’t part of it,” Krista said.
“Maybe,” Summer said. “But would you do me one favor?”
“What?”
“Let’s see how this plays out first, before we start thinking about burning the place down. Okay?”
“Wasn’t saying that at all, but okay. Sure, whatever you want, boss.”
“Look, I know this isn’t easy, but we’ll get through it. At least we’re warm and among friends.”
Silo Page 25
