by Ruth Fox
“One at a time,” said Lex, squeezing through first and holding her hand out. “Don’t push.”
They did as they were told, and soon they were all gathered in the corridor. Zach pointed them towards the end of the hallway, where the door to the freezer was.
There was smoke coming from somewhere, and the vibrations from below hadn’t stopped. Zach thought they probably didn’t have much more time.
Breathe, he told himself. They would get out of here. All of them. Hadn’t he just killed the Grelgoroth and restored all the sleeping kids’ stolen Virya? He could do this. He could do anything.
Monster-boy pushed past him, putting his Cingulum into the keyhole of the freezer. The door hissed back on its hydraulic hinges, then slowly swung open.
The kids inside were clustered at the door. He couldn’t imagine how scared they must have been when the walls started to shake.
“Hah!” Ryder crowed, punching a fist in the air and turning to grin at Harrison. “Didn’t I tell you he’d do it?”
Harrison scowled, but he was the first to push through the door into the passageway. Maryanne followed close behind, still wearing Ryder’s jumper.
“How did you do it?” Ryder asked. “All the Sleepers suddenly woke up. Like nothing was wrong.”
Zach watched them—for most of the kids, their stained and smelly clothes were the only sign that anything had been wrong. There were two or three who looked thin and hollow-cheeked, but they were alive and moving, and being helped by the others—this was a far cry from the chaotic scene the previous day, when they’d been snatching food from each other’s mouths.
“I’ll tell you later . . .”
“Everyone line up!” Lex was yelling.
“Wow, they say pressure brings out the best in everyone,” muttered Ryder. “I don’t know that that’s a best I want to see a lot of.”
“Right now, it’s pretty handy,” Zach countered. “Come on.” He made his way in to the corridor next to Lex, and motioned towards the kitchen door. “We’ve got to get them in here.”
Lex looked at him quizzically, her glasses slipping to one side. “Shouldn’t we . . .”
“They won’t all fit in the elevator at once,” Zach explained. “This is a much better way out. Um, just . . . trust me?”
Lex nodded. “Quick march!” she ordered the mass of kids. March they did, in pairs, in a manner Mr. Rivers would have envied.
Chapter Thirty-Two
In the kitchen, Lex’s control over the group slipped.
The kids had been starved for days, even weeks. The sight of packets of food was too much. They grabbed everything in reach and shoved it into their mouths—and much of it came back out again when they realised it was mouldy or rotten.
“Take what you want but don’t stop moving!” Lex shouted. At that moment there was a huge boom that rattled the shelves, toppled piles of cans and sent boxes falling all over the floor. That scared the kids back into line. They dropped their scraps and crumbs and followed Lex and Zach quickly into the larder.
Zach shifted the box he’d put in place earlier. The grate sat where he’d left it, the vent still uncovered. He sighed in relief and welcomed the blast of frigid air.
“Through here,” said Zach.
Lex stared at him through her thick glasses. Her trust, though unshaken before, was wavering now at the idea of climbing into that small space. “Zach, how can you be sure it goes to the outside?”
“I don’t think it does go outside. But I know it leads into the tunnels, because the dog was using it. He was being fed by the monsters who worked here. If he can get into the tunnels, so can we.”
“All right,” said Lex. Then, loudly, she called: “All right! Everyone, we’re going to crawl through this vent. It’s a game, right?”
“I’ll be going first, so I can see the way. Just follow the light of my eyes,” Monster-boy said. He dropped down and vanished into the hole. But still the other kids hesitated.
“Look,” said Lex. “I’m going to write up this story when we get home. We’re all going to be famous. Whoever goes first is going to get a starring role, right?”
Maybe it was the lure of fame, or maybe it was the second, louder bang from somewhere down the passage that made Harrison step forwards. “I’ll go first,” he said, lowering himself to all fours and crawling inside after Monster-boy. “You guys are all wimps!”
That final taunt was all that was needed to get the kids to follow him. They disappeared into the vent one by one. Zach watched them file past. Zoe, Bella, Lucas Larkin, Maryanne, Mischka Midlands, Ryder’s neighbour Jennifer . . .
Zach and Lex waited until last. “What happens if we go the wrong way?” Lex whispered as the last girl vanished into the darkness. “Those vents probably go all over the building.”
Zach didn’t know. Suddenly, he was beset with doubts. They could end up lost in the dark forever. “It was the only idea I had.”
There was a crash from behind them, and a sudden shout. “Hey! What are you doing?”
Zach’s heart leapt into his throat as he took in the sight of one of the guards—Miles. He had his silver rifle. He was pointing it at them.
No, Zach thought. We were so close!
“What are you doing?” repeated Miles.
“Um, escaping,” said Lex. “Given that the whole building is about to fall in on itself and all. Don’t you, maybe, want to get out?”
“I came back for the kids,” he said. “They’re valuable.”
“Really?” said Lex. “You know, the Grelgoroth is dead. The kids aren’t as valuable as you think.”
Miles looked stunned, then skeptical. “The Grelgoroth can’t die. Where’s Donovan?”
“She’s probably done the sensible thing and got the hell out of here!” Lex shouted. “You should do the same!”
But Miles’s face was filling with rage. “You killed the Grelgoroth. You killed the Grelgoroth!”
He aimed his silver gun right at Lex. Then he pulled the trigger.
❖ ❖ ❖
“No!” Zach yelled. He jumped sideways, knocking Lex out of the way. She fell, and the bullet whipped over their heads, burying itself in the wall.
At that same moment, there was a loud yelp and something large and hairy crashed into Miles from behind. The gun skittered out of his hands and vanished under one of the shelves. “Argh!” he screamed, and curled into a ball, covering his face with his hands. But the dog bit him anyway, a good sharp nip just below the shoulder that tore a chunk out of his shirt. The dog then turned to the stunned Zach and Lex.
Woof, he barked. He sauntered past and crawled into the vent with practised ease. Zach dived in after him. Miles, he noted with satisfaction, would be too big to follow them in here. It was barely big enough for him to crawl on his hands and knees. Ryder, he imagined, was probably wriggling on his stomach.
Zach tried not to feel bad about leaving the monster guard behind in the collapsing building—the Troll had tried to kill them, after all. He only hoped that once Miles realised the dog was gone, he’d run for the elevator.
After they’d gone a half dozen metres, Zach realised he needn’t have worried about knowing the way. The dog knew all these vents by heart. Zach only had to follow him until he saw the dim shapes of the other kids ahead, silhouetted against the reflected light of Monster-boy’s eyes.
The dog gave a low whuff, and shuffled to the right. When Zach went to crawl past him, the dog gave a worried whine, and nudged his shoulder.
“Hey!” Zach called to the others. “I think you’ve gone too far. Back up. We need to go right.”
As the others turned around with many bumps and bangs, Zach found that he had once again become the leader. It was harder for him to see in the dark than Monster-boy, but at least under t
he dog’s guidance they knew now they were going the right way.
Ida’s voice echoed up the shaft from behind him. She was relating a plot of an entire story arc of Beyond the Wall that involved Derek Johansson’s recruitment by local police to spy on a nefarious and long-lost uncle, and the resultant troubles—mainly that he had to keep it all secret from his latest love interest, Angelica Tate, who turned out to be an agent working for the nefarious uncle, making them (and here Ida sighed with the wonderful romance of it all) star-crossed lovers. Angelica, however, was washed away down a fast-flowing river, sacrificing herself so that Derek could use the last life raft to reach the shore. Zach could hear Ryder’s derisive snort, but Ida, evidently, thought she would do exactly the same thing if she was in the position of saving either Derek or Chris Cambert’s life.
As inane as the subject matter was, her incessant chatter had a calming effect. Zach heard one of the older boys—he thought it might be Xavier—sniggering occasionally, but no one complained.
Suddenly, the dog gave a bark, and Zach felt the lip of the vent under his hands. He saw muted grey light up ahead.
“I think we’re out of the vents!” he called. “The tunnels are up ahead!”
The dog jumped down and ran ahead, doubling back every now and then, urging them to hurry up. They were all exhausted, but they were so glad to be out of the constricting vents that they found new energy.
They passed under the first shaft and Zach looked up to see the sky. Evening was falling. He was shocked. Had two nights and two whole days passed while they’d been in that place?
Zach felt the first flickerings of exhilaration. They were back in familiar territory now, back on the North Side of the Wall, heading home.
He ushered the others past him, trying to make sure no one was hurt. There were a few banged elbows and scraped knees, but nothing serious; even the kids who had been Sleepers, and were more tired and weak than the others, were moving with more enthusiasm.
“Thank you,” said Maryanne as she passed. She gave Zach a quick hug. “I knew you would do it.”
“Me?” Zach laughed. He was about to remind her that it was Lex who’d yelled at them like an army drill sergeant, and Ryder who’d looked after them in the freezer, and Monster-boy who’d unlocked the cages . . . but she had already dashed off after the others. Zach went after them, squinting to see ahead; they were so close now that he could almost taste the ginger-snap biscuits waiting in the Morgenstern’s larder. He didn’t see the movement at the corner of his vision until it was too late.
“You!”
A shape lunged out of the darkness, crashing into him. Before he knew what was happening, vicious hands were grabbing at his clothes, his hair; frantically, they ripped and pummelled him, dragged him across the floor, and punched him soundly in the mouth.
Zach raised his arms to protect himself. “Stop!” he yelped.
There was a pause in the assault, and the figure stumbled back, breathing heavily. “You don’t know what you’ve done!”
Zach caught his breath, realising who this hunched and wheezing figure was. “Donovan?”
The dull light from the grate above was barely enough to show her face, but even in the murky light he could see the changes. Her skin was wrinkled, and her eyes were bulging. Still, her attack had been fierce. There was no telling how long it would take for all the effects of the Grelgoroth’s gift of longevity to wear off.
“You’ve taken everything from me,” the woman hissed. “Everything I’ve worked for, everything I’ve done! The Grelgoroth chose me, and now it’s all gone—you stupid, foolish boy!”
She lunged at him again. Zach braced himself, raising his hands to protect his face, but at that very moment, the tunnel shuddered. The floor leapt beneath his feet. A bone-shaking crunch ripped through his ears—the concrete was being ripped apart under them!
Zach staggered to one side, hitting the wall. The tunnel floor had cracked behind him and was tilting upwards. He scrabbled for a handhold, managing to grab the ragged edge of the concrete as it lifted him like an unbalanced seesaw.
He heard Donovan scream, saw her tumble—it looked as if some giant hand had grabbed her and was pulling her backwards down the sloping tunnel floor. Bricks and broken pieces of concrete tumbled past, sliding down towards Donovan, hitting her and plummeting into the darkness beyond.
Donovan was clawing the concrete, trying to reach solid ground. Securing his grip with his right hand, Zach let go with his left and stretched out, trying to catch her hand.
Zach had his answer to the question of whether he could have killed her or not. The horrible things she had done didn’t matter now. Nothing mattered except that she was a person who was going to die. Zach knew he had to save her.
Another tremor shook the tunnels, and the ground under Zach dropped abruptly. The slab he’d been clinging to had broken again, in front of him this time. It fell back down, tipping Zach back into the tunnel ahead. He fell hard, rolling, and another thick cloud of dust billowed out.
For a moment Zach wasn’t sure if he was safe or not. He hit the tunnel wall with one searching hand and tried to stand, but had to double over, coughing; he could see nothing.
“Dono—” he tried to call, but his throat was raw with the dust. He scrambled up the sloping concrete, ready to climb over the broken lip towards the spot where Donovan had disappeared, but a massive crunch overhead stopped him. He barely had time to cover his head with his arms as another heavy sheet of cement crashed down from above.
He was pushed back by the blast of air this created. He staggered and raised one hand to shield his eyes as he squinted at the wall of rubble, not quite comprehending how close he had come to being crushed underneath it himself.
“Zach! Zach!”
Someone was tugging at his t-shirt. Ryder’s panicked face peered through the clouds of dust.
“Come on!” his friend called. “It’s not safe—we’ve go to go—”
Zach, numb, turned and followed his friend. Up ahead, the others were running. The choking dust filled the tunnels, stinging their eyes and making it hard to breathe, and the ominous rumblings from behind continued. The twin lights of Monster-boy’s eyes guided them, and they hurried on, knowing that every step brought them closer to home. There were bursts of almost-hysterical laughter, and a lot of chatter. Many of the kids seemed to have struck up friendships as they crawled through the vents—now that they weren’t fighting each other for food and warmth.
But some of the younger kids were getting tired. Ida and Fiona were both holding the hands of younger kids, and Ryder had a little girl clinging to his back. Most surprising of all, though, was that two little boys had climbed onto Monster-boy’s back and one on his shoulders. He carried them as if they weighed nothing, and they were clinging there happily, half-asleep, trusting the monster to carry them home.
❖ ❖ ❖
They kept walking, but the smaller and weaker children were starting to tire. Zach wasn’t sure if they’d even reached the North Side of the Wall yet, but he felt as though he wasn’t in his own body anymore. He was somewhere else entirely, possibly even someone else. Someone who had been walking through these tunnels for his entire life.
He thought about all those other people who had once been brought along this tunnel. The patients of the Donovan Institute. No wonder the Factory felt so lonely and sad; those who’d stayed there had been abandoned by their friends and families.
And they’d probably ended up as monster-food.
One of the kids had started to cry. Lex turned to Zach, looking concerned. “I don’t think we’re going to make it back with all these kids,” she whispered. “We might have to get someone to come back for them.”
“We can’t leave anyone behind,” Zach protested. “What if more of the tunnels collapse—”
&nbs
p; He was cut off by the dog, who started barking excitedly.
“Hey!”
Zach wasn’t sure who was shouting, but he could see lights up ahead. He squinted, trying to make them out. Had the monsters found them?
Lex grabbed his hand, squeezing tight. “It’s the police!”
“I’ve found something here!” This came from Constable Jenson, who was calling over his shoulder. There were more adults flanking him, paramedics and firemen and rescue workers in reflective yellow suits, carrying torches and backpacks, and Zach had never been more glad in all his life to have grown-ups to take charge of the situation.
“Come on,” Constable Jenson said. “There’s a hatch just above us. Let’s get them through. Quickly, now.”
The older kids managed the climb up the ladder on their own. Zach stayed at the bottom with the rescue workers, making sure each of the smaller children were clinging tightly to the backs of the rescue workers, who then piggy-backed them upwards. A few had to be strapped on with harnesses, and by the time they were all out, Zach almost felt ready to strap himself into one, too. He let Constable Jenson help him up instead.
Ambulances arrived with their sirens blaring, just as Zach, the last one out, reached the top of the ladder. The police were already there, followed closely by several members of the Lower East Primary School Mothers’ Club. There were lots of people asking questions and directing other people and shouting orders.
Many of the kids were driven away in ambulances. Others were picked up by frantic relatives who lived nearby; Ryder’s mum was one of these, and she was sobbing as she hugged her son. “Miranda—she woke up —and she’s fine! They’re all fine!”
Ryder grinned wildly as he followed his mum back to their car.
Some kids were interviewed by police, and others were questioned by Philip Nielson until Chief Andy turned up and told him that questions could be asked in the morning, when the kids had eaten, drunk, slept, and recovered.
