Then it’s Val’s turn. She embraces Brodie, holding him tight, but still he doesn’t hug back. “Thank you, thank you for everything.” Val says, kissing him on the cheek. “Tell Abby goodbye, okay. She loves you, she really does.”
Val lets go and climbs up the ladder. Then I step forward. I look at Brodie, knowing I’ll probably never see him again. We don’t shake hands or anything; we just seem to know that this is how we should end it. I hop up and join Val.
CHAPTER 50
The people in the flatbed scoot over to make room for us. We sit down as the truck pulls away from the prison camp. I can’t believe it; we’re actually going to make it.
I keep looking at the people around me, it’s like I’m looking at my future and I don’t like it. I know what age can do to people who don’t have the L-Chip, I’m well aware of the affects. But every time I do see people who are old, it always catches me off guard. I’m just amazed to see how frail someone can become. I’m going to look like this one day. I sigh, and try to tell myself it’s not going to happen for a long long time.
The transceiver near the driver crackles. “Hey Billy,” a voice says, coming through the speaker. “You gotta bring her back.”
“What? Why?” the driver mumbles.
“Just fuckin’ do it, okay.”
“Alright, whatever.”
The truck turns around and heads back.
“Oh God,” Val whispers. “I knew it was too good to be true.”
We are now driving right back to the prison camp; we’re looking straight into the large floodlights. They’re blinding, but even with the bright lights in our eyes, I’m able to make out silhouettes of soldiers, hurrying down to the edge of the Salt Flats. A Wasp drives up and skids to a stop. The door flips open and out steps a man. I can tell by his wild hair that it’s Krog. Why is he here? Shouldn’t he be at the pre-race dinner?
Brodie, who’s been watching us drive away, looks over at Krog. “What are you doing here,” he screams as he rushes up to him.
“Something’s come up,” Krog responds.
“What came up?” Brodie demands.
Krog pushes Brodie aside as the flatbed rolls to a stop. The Colonel seems determined. As he comes closer to us, I can see he has on a black tuxedo and shinny shoes. But even in his formal attire, that doesn’t stop him from trudging through the mud. He hops up onto the flatbed and stands upright. He puts his hands on his hips and looks down on us. He looks at each and every passenger, being very careful not to touch any of them. He stops when he sees Val. He snatches the beret from off her head and her blond hair comes spilling down around her shoulders.
“Well, well, well, if it isn’t Miss Valerie Star,” Krog says arrogantly. “It’s been awhile now, hasn’t it?”
The people in the flatbed are surprised. They begin to murmur and talk amongst themselves. “Valerie Star?” someone mutters. “Isn’t she in Youth Nation?”
“How’d you find me?” Val whispers dejectedly.
“Well, it wasn’t easy,” Krog answers happily. “Willenger usually shows up to pre-race dinner with three girls, now two. When I inquired where the third one was, his Asian beauty, Taryn Storm, was all too quick to point out that ‘Valerie Star’ had run off with Evan Sparks. I started to think, isn’t Evan Sparks an Arab? And didn’t I just see an Arab recently?” He then rips the bloody sweater from off my head and starts to laugh. “You didn’t tell me Valerie Star and Adnan Asif were in your cargo,” Krog tells Brodie. “You tricked me, my friend, you tricked me big time.”
“No I didn’t, you saw who I had, and you let them go!”
“I can’t have The Boy Who Changed Everything, and the Diva of Death just walk out of here without making an appearance. I have an obligation to my guests.”
“We had a deal, Colonel.” Brodie states. “And a deals a deal!”
“Yes, but you made the deal under false pretenses. You’re lucky I don’t throw you in my prison.”
“C’mon Krog, let ‘em go. You have Abby, isn’t that enough?”
“There’s never enough.”
“What are you going to do with them?” Brodie shouts.
“That’s a good question, my friend. Perhaps I’ll put them in the races. I imagine I’ll have plenty of takers that’ll want to chase them down.”
“You can’t do that, Krog!” Brodie protests.
“Watch me.” He waves his hand for his soldiers to come. They leap up and grab me first, but Val jumps out of the truck and makes a run for it. They chase her down and easily subdue her. They throw her to the ground.
“Oh God!” Val cries out, struggling to get away. “Please God, please help me! Please save me, God! Please!”
The passengers are stunned. Some even begin to weep.
The soldiers cuff us and take us over to a military transport that’s standing by.
Krog jumps down from off the flatbed and looks over at the Wasp he drove up in. The door’s still open, and I can see that someone’s inside it. Who could it be?
“You’re services have rendered those two their freedom,” Krog says, pointing to Candy and Charlie. “You’re free to go, Miss Jones.” Abby steps out dressed in a beautiful evening gown with a silvery wrap draped around her shoulders. She glares down at the Colonel with an icy stare.
“Goddamn you, Krog,” she fumes.
He laughs as he pounds the back of the flatbed with his hand; the truck drives off.
“Don’t be mad,” Krog jests. “At least you got half your cargo through.”
“Valerie!” Charlie cries out from the truck. “We’ll let everyone know what happened here!”
“Yes, please do!” Krog cuts in. “Let them all know what happened here! Let them all come and watch Valerie Star and Adnan Asif die in the races tomorrow! Come and watch them suffer a horrible death!” He then turns to his soldiers. “Take Miss Star and Mr. Sparks to the cages. I have a huge announcement to make.” He looks to Abby. “Will you be coming?”
“Fuck you Krog!”
He laughs it off. “Well good luck, Miss Jones and good luck to you Brodie. That girl of yours is something. I hope for your sake you can tame her.” Krog slides back into his Wasp, closes the door, and speeds off toward the hover hotel.
Abby is left there, standing next to Brodie. “I’m sorry,” she tells him. “I didn’t know.” She reaches out to touch him, but he pulls away.
Val and I are thrown inside the transport. The door is slammed shut and we drive away. They take us over to the cylinders that are hovering over the pathway to the hotel. They pull an empty one down from out of the sky. They grab me and force me into it. The laser barrier is turned on, trapping me inside like a caged animal. Suddenly, I go shooting straight up into the air. I end up floating next to the other participants hovering above the camp. Val is dragged out of the transport and shoved into another cylinder. They prod her and push her in making sure she stays put. Once the laser barrier is turned on, she too goes flying up into the air. She screams and yells and cries. It’s horrible.
I curl up my legs and lean up against the lasers cage. It’s actually quite warm; it’ll help against the cold night. The light inside the clear tube turns on, making it easy for all the guests of the hotel to see me, but there’s something weird with the light; it flickers erratically, making me drowsy.
CHAPTER 51
I wake up rather abruptly; it’s morning... I think. The sun barely breaks through the gray clouds. I struggle to get to my feet. I feel more aches and pains in my legs and back, just like I had yesterday morning when I woke up in the cave. But this time, it’s much worse. The light in the tube is turned off; it must have had some sort of hypnotic effect on me. There’s no way I could have slept through the night, especially in the position I was in. I look down and see the guests of the hotel parading past us, heading over to the grandstands near the Salt Flats.
“Oh my God, it is true,” a sophisticated woman says to her male companion as she looks up at us. “It’s Eva
n Sparks, imagine that. I so want to go after him. Wouldn’t it be fun to chase after a Muslim? I haven’t killed an Arab in years.”
“Well it’s been so long since they’ve had one,” her companion replies. “If you hurry, you can still put in your bid.”
“I don’t know if I have enough points on my I-Card for that,” she chuckles. “Are you going to make a bid on him?”
“Oh no, I’m thinking of having a go at Valerie Star,” the man says profoundly.
“Oh really. Is it because she’s hot?” the woman pokes fun.
“No, it’s because I never did care much for her singing,” he laughs.
“Oh Frank, you slay me, but I’m afraid you’ll never get a chance though, the bids on her are through the roof.”
This conversation is pretty much repeated by different couples and groups all morning long. I piss in the bucket that they left for me; I don’t care who sees me.
A soldier finally comes along and tethers all the floating cages together. He hooks them up to his mini hovercraft. He must be taking us to the Salt Flats.
“Stop!” someone yells. The soldier turns around and sees Willenger, hurrying down the pathway. “Stop the train, Stop it!”
The soldier, knowing who’s making the request, turns off his hovercraft. “Is there a problem, sir?”
“Yes there is a problem. Bring them down closer, so I can see them.”
The soldier does what he’s asked to do.
“Where is she?” Willenger calls out desperately looking at each cage, fumbling from one to the other. “Where is she?”
Then, Colonel Krog and a mixture of U.S. soldiers and Youth Patrollers come walking down the path. “What are you doing, Senator?” Krog asks.
“She can’t be in the race,” Willenger answers.
“This is not your jurisdiction, Vinnie. She’s in my custody and she’s going to be in the race.”
Willenger disregards the Colonel’s order and continues his search. He comes across Val in one of the cylinders and a sense of relief falls over his face. “You’re here, you’re still here, thank God.” He turns around to face Krog. “Release her at once!”
“Not a chance,” Krog responds with a laugh. “She’s going to race.”
“She can’t, I won’t allow it.”
“Well, I’m allowing it.”
“We can’t have the American people find out that Valerie wanted to join the Resistance, they’ll riot, there’ll be an uprising, and you’ll be responsible for it, Colonel.”
“No I won’t. No one’s going to care.”
“Oh yes they will.”
“Look Vinnie, I’m not giving her to you. Have you seen the bidding war for her? I’m going to make a shitload of money.”
“What ever the highest bid is, I’ll double it.”
“What about the integrity of my race.”
“I’ll triple it.”
Krog grimaces. “As much as I like money, I can’t. Everyone knows she’s here. I can’t disappoint my guests.”
“Listen,” Willenger says. “If you do this for me, I’ll double our efforts to provide more prisoners for you. You’ll have more races, more revenue, you’ll be rich.”
“I already got plenty of prisoners, Senator. I don’t need any more.”
“Not Muslims, not Arabs.”
Krog roles his eyes and turns to the driver. “Take her away.”
“No, wait!” Willenger demands, grabbing Krog by his forearm. “If you know what’s good for you, you’ll let her go. Remember, I have control over the L-Chips.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It can mean whatever you want it to mean.”
Krog looks at him suspiciously. “The Army is on L-Chip lockdown; you can’t do a thing.”
“I can override any government order. Did you forget, Colonel? I invented the L-Chip. I can do whatever I want.”
“You wouldn’t dare.”
“I could render all your soldiers useless. I could send a high pitch signal, causing them to writhe in pain.”
“You would put national security at risk?”
“I’ll do what I need to do.”
Krog pulls his arm away. “You’re one messed up motherfucker, you know that, Vinnie?” the Colonel turns to the soldier. “Release her.”
Val’s cylinder is powered down; the laser barrier disappears. Two Youth Patrollers run over and grab her. “I’m not going back with you!” Val screams, trying to free herself. “I’d rather die in the Salt Flats than spend one more second with you!”
“Put her in my aircraft,” Willenger orders. “I’ll deal with her after the races.”
“I fuckin’ hate you, Willenger! I hate you!” Val screams as the two Youth Patrollers take her away. “I hope you fuckin’ die, you sick fuck! You sick motherfucker. Go to hell!”
“You sure she’s worth it, Vinnie?” Krog jokes.
But Willenger says nothing. He’s focused on something else right now, and I know what it is, he’s looking for me. Since my cage was right next to Val’s, it doesn’t take him too long to find me. He looks at me through the laser barrier. “We should have killed you a long time ago,” he utters diabolically. “Good luck in the races Adnan. May you suffer a long and painful death.”
CHAPTER 52
We’re flown over to the edge of the Salt Flats. The soldier begins to untether the cylinders from his mini-hovercraft, but as he goes about the task at hand, something catches his eye. He stops and looks up. “What is that?” he mumbles to himself.
I look in the direction he’s looking at. I squint, and way off in the distance, across the flats, there is something going on.
“Are you seeing that?” the soldier calls out to another soldier, standing guard.
“Huh?” the other guy answers while taking a hit on a joint. “What are you talking about?”
“That. Are you seeing that?”
The other guy adjusts his visor. “Oh yeah, I’ve seen that.”
“So, what is it?”
“It’s the Resistance from Utah. They’ve been showing up all morning long. It’s a whole military garrison.”
“Really?” the first soldier says. “They never come to watch the races, at least not with that much force. Shouldn’t we tell Krog or something?”
“Eh.” the other guy says, shrugging his shoulders. “You can call him if you want, he probably knows.”
“You think they’re there because of who’s in the race?”
“Who’s in the race?”
“You don’t know? It’s um… that guy, you know, who’s um, oh what’s his name. Why can’t I remember it?”
“Doesn’t matter anyway,” the other soldier coughs as he takes another hit. “It’s not like anyone’s gettin’ across.”
“So true, dude, so true.”
Our cages are released and we gently drift into place. We’re carefully lined up one by one, overlooking the Salt Flats. Over to my left, the enormous floating grandstands begin to fill up with the partygoers from last night. I can tell by their gestures that they’re noticing the military buildup too, but they’re really not all that concerned about it. They point and laugh, acting like it’s nothing, but one perfectly placed mortar from the Resistance and boom, they’re dead, wiped out. It would be a major victory for the rebels. A strong gust of wind blows the grandstands, making them move slightly. And then I see why the partygoers are so nonchalant about the Resistance. The grandstands have drifted just far enough for me to see hundreds of prisoners chained to its side. Oh my God. The prisoners are being used as human shields. “Just fire away,” I say to myself. But then I remember what Brodie told me about how Krog takes advantage of the Resistance’s humanity. He knows the rebels probably won’t fire on the innocent prisoners.
The wind continues to blow. It slams up against my face. Not even the laser barrier can hold back the gale. I lift my head up and close my eyes. I feel the sensation against my skin. I force myself to live in this mome
nt. I begin to weep. This is it; the last time I’ll feel wind on my face. I open my eyes and look out onto the Salt Flats. This ominous feeling of insignificance overwhelms me. I feel so small compared to the vast white field in front of me. I will die here; I know that. I’ll die here on these Salt Flats, alone. “Oh Val,” I cry out in my sorrow. “I’m so sorry. Be with her, God, save our baby, save her. Oh God, where are you. I don’t want to die.”
Then, a one-man hover-scooter goes flying across the sky driven by none other than Colonel Krog. He’s dressed in his formal military uniform. He has on his hat, his medals, his white gloves, even his sword. But being the crazy man that he is, he’s added a few personal touches to his attire. For one thing, he has on a cape, and not just any old cape, one with a fur collar. It blows in the wind, making him look a like superhero. But it’s not just his clothes that make this man so strange; it’s also his face. It’s covered in makeup. His face is painted with a silvery glitter; his eyes are traced with thick black eyeliner and his lips are smeared with a dark reflective metallic lipstick. If I had to guess, his makeup is used not to titillate, but to intimidate, and I have to say, it’s working. Holy shit is it working.
He whips past the patrons as the crowd cheers him on. He flicks his blond hair back and takes a bow. The hover-scooter comes to a stop and floats in front of the grandstands. “Can you believe it people?” he yells as the L-Chip microphone transmits his voice over the loud speakers. “The Salt Flat races have officially begun!” The crowd goes wild. “We have such a good show for you today that the rebel forces have all come to watch!” He turns his hover-scooter around and faces the Resistance. “Are you there, Governor Puck, are you? Have you come to watch–to root on your fellow religious fanatics? I don’t want to spoil it for you, Governor, but it always ends up the same way. One-Wayers always die!” the crowd whoops and hollers as the Colonel laughs. He then turns back around to the grandstands. “Enough about them, let’s get down to business. Do you want to meet your Hunters, ladies and genders?” the crowd leaps to their feet, cheering and howling. “Well do you?” they jump up and down, getting all excited. “Well let’s bring them out then. Without further ado, your Hunters of the Salt Flats!”
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