Marigold

by Heather Mitchell Manheim

  Quinn entered and surveyed the area. Not large, maybe one-hundred square feet at most. A small wooden plank was secured to the wall by chains and placed upon it was a mat. Fitted on that was a brown sheet, and on top, an extraordinarily clean brown blanket and small pillow. You could smell the antiseptic in the air. In the corner was a thin brown curtain that hid the toilet, and right outside that, a sink with government-approved anti-bacterial soap and lotion. Next to that, a small brown shelf held clean brown towels. You could also place any possessions you might have. However, most people didn’t own many things if they owned anything at all. Since you technically might not be in the same place tomorrow, you carried anything you might have with you in your brown knapsack.

  In the Shower Rooms/Laundry Dispensary, you got your clean tunic, pants, socks, and undergarments—turn in the old ones, pick up the new ones. Little changing/shower rooms accommodated your modesty. You simply disrobed in the coffin-sized cubicle behind the brown shower curtain. Then, you put your dirty clothes in an empty nook that was behind another little brown curtain, turned on the lukewarm shower (timed for exactly eight and three-quarters of a minute), and by the time you finished, POOF! New, clean clothes in your size were waiting for you in the nook and warm, high-powered air-jets dried you. The showers came equipped with dispensers filled with your standard government soap, shampoo, and conditioner. Everything smelled of eucalyptus and tea tree, both of which everyone had learned contained antibacterial and antifungal properties. It was a pleasant scent; although the odor was antiseptic, they had managed it so that it wasn’t in a sickly way. The aroma was fresh and clean, almost outdoorsy and green-smelling. But, if someone forgot for a moment where they were, their eye caught sight of the ever-lasting blue light that shone overhead, even in the showers.

  After her shower, Quinn got back to her room; she lay down on the bed and tried to focus on the day tomorrow; she needed to try and get to sleep; there were so many things to consider and get right. But all she could think of was when she used to be on the third or fourth floors of the Pods, the family Pod rooms, with her mom, dad, and sister. Quinn didn’t even know where her family was or what may have happened to them. The last time she saw them was after listening to President Everett’s fourth inauguration speech. Then, she left them to go to the Courting Dance, the night Namaguchi took her. People went missing all the time, so it’s not like you could file a missing person report. Even if you got a Security Guard to listen to you, they’d likely say she took off, and she was an adult, so they couldn’t do anything. The Security Patrol simply did not have enough guards to go chasing every rabbit trail. She lay there in the haze of the blue light, listening to the slight buzz that was ever-present. She took a deep breath and let out a heavy sigh. Her eyes felt tired and heavy, and she rubbed them at the corners, trying to invigorate them. She had bees on the brain, as her mom used to say, so regardless of how tired she was, she knew sleep would not happen any time soon, and even when it did, it would be in fits, as her sleep usually was.

  Quinn was also thinking of the lines you found down the middle of the roads. Roadways still existed; even though nobody had personal vehicles, there were transport busses. Quinn wasn’t quite sure why she thought of those, but she sometimes did. There was something about them that made her feel the way she felt about herself. She didn’t know who she was regarding certain things and tended not to pick either side. She saw herself as a down-the-middle-of-the-road nothing kind of girl. There was only one thing she was sure about, and that was Ana, who was now back in her thoughts. Even though Quinn was positive about her, there was nothing she would ever do about it. And Quinn found herself in the middle of the road once again.

  That didn’t stop Quinn from thinking about Ana, though. Quinn started reflecting about the one time after Ana had her first baby. Ana had no idea what to do with Russell, her new baby, and now, he was sick. Throwing up like crazy, expelling milk as if his little mouth was a milk waterfall. Russell’s brow was hot and sweaty, and he had clammy hands, crying like he was in so much pain. After trying many things—cold compresses, lying down next to him and soothing him throughout the night, and Ana trying to breastfeed in short bursts throughout the duration, the little guy finally settled down and fell asleep. They kept a watch together, for hours, to make sure his breathing was even, and he kept his temperature and milk down. Once he was safe and sleeping well, Ana, tired and sweaty brow herself, looked at Quinn and started cracking up like she heard the funniest joke she had ever heard. “That,” she said, “was ridiculous. I have never seen so much vomit!”

  Quinn started laughing too and went over to Ana to give her a sleepy hug and reassuring pat on the back. “You did good, mama.”

  “We both did well, thank you. And I suppose if we can laugh over this abysmal night, we truly are best friends. Thank you again.”

  The thought made Quinn smile. One thing she liked most was her ability to laugh and have fun with Ana. Yes, she was damn sexy too, but it was also her laugh, her conversation, and their friendship; she valued that all deeply. And despite feeling a certain way, Quinn would never risk that friendship. Just like that, she realized that she’d decided against it after all.

  Quinn got up for a stretch and to try to clear her mind a bit. There was a small window on the far wall; she pushed back the little brown curtain and looked out. There were so many stars out there. She had never really understood astronomy; she had tried to learn a bit of it in the library, but it didn’t make a lot of sense to her. She didn’t understand how things could rotate and move all the time up there in space, but somehow, the constellations always kept their shape. For thousands of years, they had maintained the formation of Orion and Scorpius. Oh well, she thought, you don’t need to understand a situation to think it is beautiful. And at that, she found herself thinking of Ana yet again. She forced those thoughts from her mind and went back to the bed with a laugh, thinking that tomorrow things would also start with a big bang.

  Quinn finally fell into a troubled sleep and had such an odd dream. She felt as if she was falling, falling, and as she did, hands reached out to grab her, pulling her one way and another. She kept trying to yell out to make them stop, but although her mouth was opening, no sound would come out. She finally fell onto a gigantic piece of chocolate, and it caved in and trapped her inside the sticky center. Nothing could get her out to the top. She felt as if she couldn’t breathe, and she would die soon if something didn’t happen. Suddenly, a hand reached down through the top of the chocolate, and she grabbed for it. Quinn quickly saw that her rescue was made possible by Ana. Standing there, somehow, now the chocolate was more stable. They were able to stand there easily without it caving or sinking in. She hugged Ana and got chocolate all over Ana. She tried to apologize, but still, no sound would come out. Ana reached out her finger, taking a swipe of chocolate off Quinn’s cheek, and then licked it off her finger seductively. Ana then made a mad, quick leap for Quinn as if she must be with her instantly. Quickly, they were rolling around together, pulling at each other’s clothing, but as everything was chocolate covered, their hands simply slipped all over the place. The last thing Quinn remembered before waking was that they were about to fall off the top of the enormous chocolate piece. When she did wake, it was with a start and a pounding heart in her chest.

  Quinn looked at the clock that was on the wall. It was only a little after 4:00 a.m. She wished the library was open, but it didn’t open until 5:00 a.m. You couldn’t get your breakfast biscuit until then, either. She decided to go over the plan in her head. One step at a time. #1: Find Davis. #2: Secure Davis—and that is as far as she got. She must have drifted off until the speaker woke her by announcing it was now 5:00 a.m. and the Pod Services were open for business.

  August 19, 2056 – Taken

  Now, she had to hurry. Quinn had to find Davis; and hoped she would be in the Commissary. Not that Quinn had time to eat, but she also wouldn’t mind grabb
ing a nutrition biscuit if she were able. She quickly grabbed her knapsack and beat feet down to the Commissary. Quinn ran in through the blue light above and scanned the area. She did not see Davis, and she only had about twenty minutes or so. She was just about to turn around and check the library when Davis went right by her to go into the Commissary. Without thinking or even really remembering her scripted lines, she grabbed Davis’s hand. Davis jumped back. “Hey, what are you doing? Who are you?” Davis said in an angry tone, laced with shock and concern.

  Quinn coughed. “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you. I thought you were someone else,” she was barely able to get out.

  Davis’s face and tone softened. “That’s okay. Can I help you find someone?”

  Quinn had to think quickly and had to come up with a reason to get Davis out of that area and to the front of the Pod. “Maybe you can help me. Your name is Davis, right? I think you work at the Everett Center? I mean, you must, because of the uh, jodhpurs, right?”

  “Um, yes, but I don’t know how I can help you?”

  “I just wanted to see if you could come outside and see this person. They’re going mad. I think they may need to go to the center. For education. For reeducation.”

  “I think that is a bit out of my realm. If a citizen needs help, a Security Patrol or Drone Scanner should pick them up.”

  “I know, yes, that is true, but they were screaming your name.”

  “Well, I certainly won’t go then; it could be dangerous.”

  “No! They were blaming you. They said you put them up to it. They said you were against Everett. You have to stop them!”

  Call it frustration with Quinn or self-preservation (or a little bit of both), but that was enough, and Davis ran to the door with Quinn. As they stepped out of the door, a deafening explosion rocked into the side of Pod CA-03-1. The last thing Davis remembered hearing was a repeating announcement over the loudspeaker: “All Security Patrol to the south side of the Pod. All Security Patrol to the south side of the Pod. All Security Patrol to the south…” then somebody put a hood over Davis’s head before they shoved her into a vehicle.

  August 20, 2056 – Captivity

  Davis awoke with a start; she was cold, clammy and her head pounded with a pain worse than anything she had ever known before. Davis tried to reach up to her head to wipe some of the sweat away. However, she was unable, quickly seeing her hands tied down to the bed. She moved her legs a little bit and found her legs were tied down as well. Davis tried to strain her eyes; in the middle of the ceiling, a dull bulb emitted a pale yellowish light, but it wasn’t enough to see much. Confusion swirled around her—where was she? What was this? It took a few seconds for her to remember, and then she gasped as she remembered and simultaneously realized there was no blue light. Nothing to kill the germs, nothing to protect her from whatever was in this room she found herself in.

  Quinn walked into the room. “Are you okay? How are you feeling?”

  Davis scoffed. “Am I okay! How am I feeling?” she yelled, even though it made her head pound even worse. “Are you kidding me? You’re crazy! You kidnapped me! And now, I am in extreme danger. Just let me go, let me go now, and I won’t turn you in for anything. You should, however, consider turning yourself in for your betterment.”

  Quinn gave Davis a minute to get out what she needed to get out; she knew how this felt, the confusion and being so scared. “I promise you; you’re all right. You are not in danger at all. I brought you some water. I can help you drink—”

  Davis stepped over Quinn’s words. “You are insane. I will not have anything to do with anything you give me,” Davis said with angry indignancy.

  Quinn patiently waited. “I know this is scary. I again promise you, you’re okay. I’ll come to check on you in a little bit, but you should think about having some water.”

  Davis snorted and glared; if she could only throw daggers with her eyes, she would kill that hateful girl.

  Davis eventually drifted into sleep, of sorts. She kept waking up and would try her arms and legs for movement, hoping that what was happening was a nightmare and not reality. She did notice that her throat was dry and scratchy, but it wasn’t just her throat. It felt as if a vile fire was smoldering at the bottom of her lungs, the smoke rising up her throat, irritating it, drying it out, and leaving an acrid taste. Poisoned or not, that water was sounding better and better. She imagined it being ice cold, refreshing, and soothing. She thought she might start crying, something she never did. She had never been in so much pain or had been so confused. Her pleasantly laid out life was, in her opinion, well-appointed. And she never had any concerns before now. However, thinking and deducing hadn’t exactly been a part of her daily life. Sure, she had to occasionally figure things out, for example, at work, decide what room to put people in, but her computer would always show her what spaces were vacant, so even that wasn’t a deep thought. She decided to stop thinking; that was much easier. But thoughts kept creeping in, and one was that the girl didn’t return as she had promised. It gave her enough time to figure out that the water was probably safe; if that insufferable girl were going to kill her, it wouldn’t likely be by poisoning her water.

  Finally, after what seemed like hours to Davis, Quinn came back in the room and quietly spoke. “Hello, Davis. I’m just checking on you and wanted to see if you felt like any water now.”

  Anger had dwindled in Davis as her thirst had increased. She simply had no energy to growl and fight. She let out a big sigh, and even that made the fire in her throat flame up with scratch and burn. “Yes, I would like some water,” she got out in a dry voice. She purposely left off the please, and that gave her a bit of self-satisfaction.

  Quinn walked over to the bed and tipped the cup to Davis’s lips. Davis noticed that her lips felt dehydrated and parched. She rolled her eyes at the thought of being given this water by this horrible girl, being taken care of like a child, and the water was room temperature.

  It was as if Quinn read her mind. “My name is Quinn, by the way. I know this must seem scary and weird to you, and for that, I’m sorry. I promise it will all make sense soon.”

  Davis just simply had nothing else in her to fight this, to argue anything. She did manage to ask if it was possible to get colder water, though.

  Quinn replied, “Honestly, room temperature is better right now. The cold will upset your stomach. And, I hate to say it, but you are about to get sick. Very, very sick. You will not die; remember that. But you will feel like you are dying. Every comfort we can give you, you will need it. I’m going to bring you some food in a minute. We do not have nutrition biscuits here, so we’ll start with simple foods that will be easier on your system.”

  Quinn left the room but came back after a few minutes. She sat next to the bed and very patiently fed Davis some dry crackers that were not that far different from nutrition biscuits and a few spoons of rice and applesauce and, in between, sips of room temperature water. At first, Davis hesitated to eat anything, but hunger took over, and she relented after a small protest because she was feeling famished. Davis figured it would be unlikely to be killed through poisoned food and water. And, she wasn’t sure what time of day it was, or when she has last eaten.

  Quinn spoke again, “I know it wasn’t much food, but it’s best not to overdo it right now. I’m going to leave a large pitcher of water with a straw. I’ll release one of your hands from the restraint so you can grab it. Do you prefer your left or your right?”

  Davis was surprised at this question. Most people assumed she was right-handed, but she was indeed left-handed. There were two tables next to the bed, one on each side. After Davis told Quinn her preference, Quinn placed the pitcher on the table to the left and undid the restraint on her left wrist. Quinn then sat with Davis until she started to yawn and drift off. Quinn knew that she would sleep often and become weakened to such an extent that over the
next few days, escape wouldn’t be a concern.

  August 22, 2056 – Detoxification Explained

  Quinn came into the room and saw Davis at the start of the process. She felt terrible about what she knew was going to happen to Davis, but she knew it was all part of the plan and that in the end, it would all be for the better. “How are you feeling, Davis?”

  “I’m okay, I think. I have no strength, though, and am very tired, but I feel as if I’ve slept for days. I’m also confused; I know other people have been in here to feed me and refill my water. How many people are here?”

  “We have several people here, but there’s nothing to worry about. Everyone is friendly, and you’ll get to know them in time. Don’t worry about anyone who comes in here; nobody will harm you. You have been asleep for two days off and on but have been mostly sleeping, and I hesitate to tell you, as a reminder, you are about to get very sick.”

  “How can you possibly know that?”

  “You are going to be detoxing from not having your vaccination.”

  Davis had forgotten entirely about the vaccination. She forgot she was due for it. And now, she tried to calculate in her head if she was already overdue or if today, she was due. “You’re past due, if you’re wondering. It’s why we took you when we did. In the first steps of the detox, you will be exhausted and weak. You have noticed that already. I will be honest with you, and I’m sorry about this part of it. You are going to feel very, very ill. Your head will hurt—”