by S. L. Baum
The other, larger country wasn’t able to maintain the islands very well, having fallen quite far into debt after borrowing too much money from several other countries. This happened slowly, over time, but mostly because they allowed the people to have entirely too much say in the way the government was run, a million voices insisting that things be run their way, and there was no true but fair leadership. Spending of the borrowed money became a monster that the government had no control over, continuously spending more money than the country had true access to. They sent their armies across the seas to fight wars in other countries… wars that they weren’t necessarily invited to. Able-bodied Citizens were not required to contribute in some way, and too many people misused the help that was offered to those that were not able to work. But most of all, an unwillingness of the people to try to see any other point of view had driven the country to the brink of failure.
A large group of influential scientists and well-educated, wealthy families got together and offered to purchase some of the more isolated properties and land owned by the larger country, thus relieving part of the financial burden. Yet another country, far across the sea, backed the plan of the wealthy families because they wanted to freely trade goods with this newly formed group, and they would get some of the borrowed debt back. The land was sold off… and Concord came to be an independent government, run on that chain of isolated islands. After seeing how well Concord reared its Citizens, the country far across the sea wanted the same. The drugs that Concord’s scientists were able to create, the methods to gain such dedication and control over their Citizens, and the willingness of Concord to trade freely… all helped establish a new and prosperous relationship with the country across the sea.
Hundreds of years have gone by… Concord’s electronic barrier keeps all wandering vessels away from the waters around the islands. A single trade vessel is given clearance to pass through the barrier and dock in the outskirts of Concord once a month, unloading its cargo and then re-loading with supplies in trade. Those workers are kept in isolation, and their memories are wiped after each delivery. This has gone on for generations, with eventually only a select few members of The Council being aware of what is going on. The history was wiped clean, the memories erased, and the stories changed. Concord was all that the Citizens knew of, and the head of The Council wanted to keep it that way.
Chapter Twelve
Freedom for Some
“The people outside of Concord, the ones that live where I have been for much of the past twelve years, are free.” Hope said the words with such joy. Her face lit up as she looked at us to gauge our reaction.
My face scrunched up. “Free, as in, you don’t have to pay money for it? Are they selling people?”
Hope laughed softly. “No, Bluebell. Their lives are free from total government dominance. After losing several of its properties, the country decided that it needed to go back to its roots, back to what had made it strong. There was a total restructuring. Yes, there are heartaches, and struggle, and sickness…”
“But that sounds awful,” I shook my head.
“But no one is told to take a pill to forget the heartache, no one is punished for their struggles, and no one is killed because of their sickness. So when the heartache passes, there is joy. When the struggle ends, there is enlightenment. When the sickness is cured, there is hope. And sometimes, sickness is not cured, but the person has time to say goodbye to their loved ones and plan for the end,” she said the words, but my brain had trouble processing them.
Concord had told the Citizens long ago that their lives would be easier, better even, if they accepted their duty and did what they were told. But we were expected to blindly follow the rules, without asking too many questions, and accept the punishments, without asking any questions. Although most of the time we were not aware that a punishment had been prescribed, we simply knew that a tragedy had struck.
“It has escalated in the years you have been gone,” my father told Hope. “The deaths from accidents, the numbers of Infertile, the memory loss… they are all on the rise. It can’t continue.”
Hope reached out to touch my father’s face. She stroked her hands down his cheeks, her fingers brushed across his lips, and then her hands locked behind his neck as she pulled him toward her, to kiss him. She kissed each of his cheeks, his forehead, and then his lips. He smiled softly and looked into her eyes. There was love there, real and true love.
She pressed her forehead to his. “I’ve missed your face.”
Sadness filled his eyes. “I couldn’t remember yours.”
“But you know it now.”
“Wait,” I almost shouted. “If the electronic barrier is only lowered to let a trade vessel through, and I assume that is how you got in, how are you… how are we going to get back out?”
“We are going to have to figure that out, or else we are stuck here for another thirty days. The people who helped me to get back in here warned me that I might not be able to get back out again, very few people have successfully escaped Concord. But it was a risk worth taking, after the sacrifices we made to keep everyone alive. The captain’s boat is just a small one compared to the ship that brought me to the waters near here. They are both close, just outside the electronic barrier, and will wait for a few days. The ship will leave if I don’t send some kind of signal, but it will return again, after a month. If things are worse, as you say, then I imagine that there is some sort of resistance. If we are on our own, the captain’s boat, the one that can make it in and out undetected, is new. It is larger and faster than the one from twelve years ago. In thirty days, the three of us could all go together if we need to.”
I nodded my head. “There absolutely is a resistance! Many Citizens want The Council to end their ways.”
“The Council is on alert, and Concord leaders are being gathered,” my father picked up his tablet to check something on it. “I think Aspen’s father is about to make a monumental change. There is a dinner, tomorrow night. All Business Leaders and the entire Council will be in attendance. It is a broadcast dinner, which is unusual, because national broadcasts are usually restricted to news messages and important Galas. But a dinner…” He tapped his finger against the side of his face, as if willing an idea to come to life. “If I can get to Payson, he is in Media Distribution, and he can jam the signal, then tomorrow might be the perfect time for us to reveal the truth.”
Hope looked down at the gadget strapped to her wrist. “I should go.”
I reached out with my left hand and grabbed her. “No. You just got here.”
“I’m sorry, Bluebell. I wish I could stay, but…”
I straightened my spine and steeled my insides. “I know.”
“Such a strong girl,” my mother smiled. She turned my left hand so my palm faced up, and then did the same with her own. She placed her wrist next to mine. “Who would have thought we’d both end up with this? I love you, Bluebell. I’ve loved you since the moment I felt the first flutter of you, when you were growing inside me, and I cherish the moment you took your first breath. I burned with hate every time Aspen claimed you as her own. I’ve wished for this reunion so often. I had to leave that day; I hope you can accept that. Your father and I weighed our options and decided it was safer for all of us if we acted the way we did. But I should have come back sooner. I should have broken through the gates of Training Tech and extracted you, but I was too afraid they’d catch us and permanently erase us. I’m sorry you had to grow up in this place, in this way. We’ll all be out soon. I have faith in that.”
My mother hugged each of us again, kissed us both, and told us that she loved us. I love you. They seem like such simple words. But those three little words held such power.
“Go to Raleigh’s,” my father told her, when we were at the door. “She lives behind her shop. It is in the same place. She is a friend.”
Hope pulled a black hood up over her head, concealing her face. “I will.”
And then she was gone.
“I can’t face Aspen,” I told my father. “I hate to do this to you, but I’m going to hide up in my room for the rest of the evening.”
“It’s probably the best idea,” my father agreed. “Keep your distance. I’ll busy myself with some work. She usually tries not to interact with me very much anyway. I am here as a fixture for her, the obligatory husband figure. We haven’t acted as a husband and wife since you were born. Aspen doesn’t want intimacy from me. She wants a handsome and seemingly powerful arm to hold on to when she is out in public.”
“Emotionally sterile,” I frowned.
“That is exactly what Concord would have us all be. Emotions get in the way of practical thinking,” he shrugged. “The theory is a good one. But I don’t think people were made to be that way. It isn’t natural.”
“I’ll see you in the morning. I love you,” I whispered.
My father smiled at me. “I love you too.”
As I was about to close the door to my room I heard Aspen enter the house. She called out, “I’m back. Where is everybody?”
I kept the door cracked open so I could listen.
“I’m in the study and Bluebell is up in her room,” my father called out in return. “Did you have a nice dinner with your father?”
“It was short and to the point. He is making some announcement, tomorrow night. He wouldn’t say what it was, just that it affected us all. I think he might be naming you as his successor.”
“Umm hmm,” my father mumbled.
I heard her footsteps on the stairs. “It was bound to happen. We are all he has left. Us and Bluebell. We will carry the legacy of Concord when he is gone.”
I closed the door to my room as quietly as I could, and I wondered if Aspen had plans for her father.
It seemed wrong to type out a message to Thorn, to tell him about my mother; it was something that needed to be said face to face. I did use the secret mini to let him know that I had some very interesting news for him and that I couldn’t wait to see him the next day. He told me that his father was jumpy. Then we switched back to our registered tablets to gossip about people at the CEC, it was something that was expected of people our age and we didn’t want to seem out of the ordinary. With everything being monitored, it was safest to appear normal.
Jam the signal and expose the truth. That was our only plan. My father went to work the next day to gather as many image files as he could, to prove to the Citizens of Concord that what we said was the truth. My mother, my real mother, Hope, planned to make a surprise appearance once the Broadcast began. We hoped it would be enough to stir the Citizens up, to make them demand that Concord’s practices come to an end. But we really had no idea what would happen… we just knew we had to try something.
Thorn and his father were certain they could make sure the video would remain uninterrupted once I was in front of the camera. All wall screens, full sized tablets, and minis would be taken over with the required viewing of a Concord Broadcast, which meant that every Citizen would hear what I had to say and what my father had to say. It was our one chance to convince them all.
Raleigh informed Cimarron that she had the perfect dress for me to wear for the dinner, but she needed me to come to the shop for a last minute alteration. She claimed that she had the wife of one of the Business Leaders also coming to the shop, so she would not be able to come to our house. Raleigh also told her that she had Aspen’s dress ready to go and that Aspen could come to the shop with me, or Raleigh could have the dress brought to the house. When Cimarron informed Aspen of the dilemma, Aspen’s response was automatic. I would go to Raleigh’s shop alone, because Aspen would much rather get ready at home.
Hope and Thorn were waiting together at Raleigh’s residence, hidden in a separate area from the main shop. When I arrived, Raleigh pushed open a back door and we went down a narrow hallway. I could hear the sound of soft laughter echo off the walls as we approached the back room.
“Bluebell, your young man and I were just getting acquainted. He seems quite lovely,” Hope said with a wink as she got up from where she was sitting to wrap her arms around me. “Are you ready for this?”
I shrugged, lifting my shoulders up high. “As ready as I can be, I guess,” I said with a sigh.
She gave a quick nod of understanding. “That goes for the both of us.”
Thorn put his arms around me. “You’ll be great, Blue.”
I buried my face in his neck for a moment and took a long slow breath. “Does your father really think he can interrupt Concord’s signal?”
“Absolutely. He has imbedded all kinds of worms into the computer systems. They won’t be able to figure out where the signal is coming from in time to stop it.”
“What will happen if they send in the Peace Keepers to try out some new weapon? I’ve heard a lot about Armory being a big deal, lately. Do you think we are in danger?”
“We will be fine.”
I whipped my head around to look at her. “How can you say that?”
“There are no weapons,” she said. “Well none that can do us any physical harm, unless they get close enough to touch you. Your goal, and this goes for all of us, is to keep the Peace Keepers away. Do not let them within arm’s reach.”
“They won’t get close,” Thorn assured me. “I will be hiding on the premises, out of sight, but with my eye on you at all times.”
“All they have are stun guns,” Hope told me. “Concord has never felt they needed anything other than that. They keep all Citizens living in fear of being demoted, publically shunned, or at worst, Cast Out. Resistance has always been mild, so they never felt the need to resort to any weaponry other than a temporary stun. After a good stun, they can paralyze someone with drugs and then systematically erase their essence. To be honest, that was my biggest fear when you were a child. Running away with a small child slows you down, there was a much higher chance of a Peace Keeper getting near enough to stun. Once that happens, it is all over.”
“So what is the Armory Department for?” I asked.
“It is for show. That is why so few people are assigned to it. Lily was the only one in the last five Incorporations, and that was only because she was the daughter of the lead man. They thought they would keep the department loyal within the family. My father told me that Armory is mainly responsible for maintaining the electronic barriers in the waters outside of Concord,” Thorn explained.
“So why aren’t we just leaving Concord right now? Why doesn’t everyone who is unhappy just get in some sort of floating device and leave?”
My mother put her arm around my shoulder. “Because that electronic barrier is essentially a weapon. If a person is in the water, within a few hundred feet of it when it goes off, the jolt would stop their heart from beating, killing them. If a large vessel is near the barrier the jolt will permanently disable all electrical systems on it, stopping it dead in the water. Then the water around the vessel is kept electrified, a current is somehow maintained in the water. Any contact with the water after that, will also result in death. There are warnings broadcast on all shipping channels. All ships stay clear of Concord.”
Raleigh clapped her hands together. “Alright, everybody, time to make these girls look their best.” She pulled two dresses out of a cabinet. They were the exact same shade of blue, but cut in two very different ways. “Sorry about the hair and make-up team being just me. My limited skills will have to do.” Raleigh styled our hair in a similar fashion, used the same color palette when applying our make-up, and gave us identical shoes to put on our feet.
We stood next to each other afterward, staring at each other’s reflection in the mirror. “Your limited skills are quite good,” Hope smiled.
Thorn let out a low whistle. “You both look amazing.”
My mother turned to me. “I told you he seemed like a lovely young man.”
I smiled at Thorn. “He is.”
The dinner was held in the same hall where a
ll the important Galas were held, a familiar place to me. The stage was not set up for use and the main area had been lined with rectangular tables. The long white tablecloths brushed the floor and sparkling place settings were perfectly arranged along the length of each table. The Business Leaders had filed in through the main doors at the precise time the dinner was scheduled to start. They were used to punctuality and expected everyone to function in much the same way.
I had arrived with Raleigh – one of the few female Business Leaders in Concord – and took my place at my father’s side. He had arrived early, as had all members of The Council. Aspen arrived shortly after I did, looking none too pleased to be somewhere on time rather than making her usual fashionably late entrance. Once everyone was seated, and the first course had been served, my grandfather stood up from his place and walked to the center of the room, where a podium had been set up for him.
“As leaders in our community the recent and upsetting events in Concord Three have more than likely caused you to pause and wonder about the safety of your families, your livelihoods, and your homes. I can tell all of you, without any uncertainty, those outside threats are of no concern. They will not endanger the Concord way of life. But there is another threat, one that is coming from inside our borders, from within the community, one that will grow like a weed and destroy the foundation of our beliefs, if it is not eradicated immediately.
“That threat comes in the form of doubt, of rumors, of unfounded gossip, and of greed. There are Citizens that are beginning to think that they know what is best for Concord. There have been lies spread about the fates of some of our unfortunate Citizens, and there is unrest growing within the community. I’ve heard stories of Citizens speaking out against The Council, against the original twenty founding fathers, against Concord in general, and it is unacceptable.
