Lightning Child

by Hakok, R. A.

  ‘Lauren? Organizing a meeting? With people?’

  ‘I know, right? I guess she’s got a point, though. Peck’s not gone for good, and I doubt Gilbey’s forgotten about us either.’

  ‘So what are you going to say?’

  I shake my head.

  ‘I’m not sure. Hicks knows we’re here, and now Peck does too. We have to assume that at some point one of them’s going to be back for us.’

  She doesn’t say anything for a while, like she’s thinking. Then she reaches into the pocket of her overalls and fishes out the map we took from Peck. She unfolds it, holding it up to the fire truck’s flank. I take a step closer.

  ‘What are you looking for?’

  She points a finger at the sole location marked there – ours. Next to it a single twelve-digit code, the letters and numbers scrawled across highways and mountain ranges in Kane’s spiky script. She turns to me like I should get the significance, but I don’t.

  ‘It looks like our President didn’t trust his Secret Service agent with more than one code.’ She looks up at me. ‘And you’ve got his master list, the one with all the others written on it.’

  I nod. The list I retrieved from the command building, just before we left Eden, is back in our apartment, sitting in the inside pocket of my parka, next to the map Marv gave me. And for a second I allow myself to believe it. We might be safe here. But then I shake my head. Truth is we’ve never been that lucky.

  ‘He’s bound to have made a copy.’

  ‘Maybe.’ She says it like she’s not so sure.

  ‘If he has we’ve got to assume he’ll give it up, if he hasn’t already.’

  She folds the map and slides it back into her pocket.

  ‘So where do we go? Fearrington?’

  ‘It’s the only place we know anything about.’

  ‘But?’

  ‘I don’t know. I was all in favor of it before, when we thought it was only Kane we had to worry about. Now there’s Gilbey, too. With all the questions I asked she’ll have no problem figuring out that’s where we’ll go next. And if Kane gives her the codes we’ll be no safer there than here.’

  I stare at the dusty concrete. The Juvies are expecting an answer from me, and I’m no closer to giving it to them.

  She hesitates a moment, like she has something to say.

  ‘What is it Mags? If you have any suggestions I’d be sure happy to hear them.’

  *

  THE JUVIES GATHER BY THE LAKE, in the same spot where the night before they had knelt and watched Jake being interrogated. They arrive in ones and twos, taking their places by the water’s edge. There seems no order to it, and yet when they’re done somehow Mags has ended up off to one side with the kid, separated by a wide stretch of concrete that does not seem of her choosing. The Juvies chat quietly among themselves, but every now and then I catch one of them cutting a nervous glance in her direction.

  Jake’s the last to arrive; I spot him on the far side of the lake, making his way back from the farms. There’s a fresh bandage above his eye and the bruise that had begun on his cheek has sunken into the socket, lending him the appearance of a large, muscle-bound raccoon. He takes a seat next to Mags, close enough that it annoys me.

  I give him a chance to settle and then I get to my feet. The last of the conversations die and an expectant silence takes their place. I let my gaze roam the familiar faces. We sure don’t look like much, huddled beneath the massive granite expanse of the cavern’s dome. But this is it; all of us except Tyler and Eric, who are outside standing watch. I went out to the control tower earlier and set out for them the choices I now plan to lay out for the rest of the Juvies, so they’d have the same say as everyone else. When I was done Tyler was quiet for a while, like he was considering everything I’d just told him. I was expecting questions, but all he said was he was fine with whatever I reckoned was for the best. Eric plumped for that option too, although I think that was mostly because it was what Tyler had just said. That wasn’t how I meant it to go, but if nothing else it gave me a chance to rehearse what I plan to say now. I clear my throat and begin.

  ‘Well, there’s been no sign of Peck, so I guess it’s safe to assume he’s gone, at least for now.’

  Murmurs of relief greet that news. I wait for a moment for things to go quiet again.

  ‘I doubt it’s the last we’ll hear from him, though, so we need to work out what we do next. As I see it we have a couple of options. But before we get into that I think we need to agree on something. There’s only twenty-four of us left.’

  That earns me a bunch of confused looks. Reading might not be their strong suit, but there’s so few of us we all know what our number is, and since we quit Eden it’s been twenty-three. I hear someone whisper the little fury, but I don’t catch who says it. Mags shoots a look in Ryan’s direction, but if he notices he has the good sense not to return it. Everyone else turns to stare at the kid who promptly takes to studying the square of concrete between his feet.

  I raise my voice and continue on.

  ‘So whatever we choose, we have to agree that we all stick together.’

  That was Mags’ idea. She didn’t think it should be up to me or anyone else to tell the Juvies what to do next, however much they might appear to want it. It was high time they got used to making decisions for themselves, she said, although it probably made sense to start with an easy one, on account of how little practice they’d had in recent years. That was smart; I see it now. All around me heads are nodding in agreement, like they’re pleased with themselves. I pause to let that sink in before I go on.

  ‘Okay, well, our choices are pretty simple: we can stay right here and see what happens, or try and find another home.’

  ‘Shouldn’t we just go, before they comes back?’ Amy looks around plaintively, as though in spite what I said at the outset she expects Peck to reappear at any moment. Jake just shakes his head.

  ‘That’s what we’re here to discuss, Amy.’

  Lauren glances over in his direction and for a second I see her eyes narrow, like somehow what he’s said has vexed her. But when she turns back to me her features have softened again.

  ‘So where would we go, Gabe?’

  ‘Well, Marv’s map has the location of a half-dozen bunkers, but I think it comes down to just one: a place called Fearrington. It’s the only one we know anything about, and besides, the rest are all much farther away.’

  ‘So where is it?’

  ‘North Carolina.’

  A few vague glimmers of recognition greet that piece of information, but mostly all I get are blank stares. Kane never showed much interest in our education, and geography was certainly no exception to that; so long as we could find the farms and the chapel that was about as much as he cared for. Perhaps we should be grateful for small mercies. Who knows what he might have taught us otherwise? A man like that that, it’s quite possible he believes the world’s flat and dragons patrol Virginia’s southern borders.

  Ryan asks how far it is. I catch Amy glancing over at the entrance to the cavern, like depending on my answer she might be considering setting off right after we’re done here. The map is in my pocket, but I don’t need to take it out to give him an answer. I’ve already worked out the route we’d take. US15 would certainly be quickest - it’s pretty much a straight shot. But that would bring us uncomfortably close to The Greenbrier. I have no idea how things will play out between Peck and Hicks, but whichever of them prevail it won’t be long before they come looking for us, and we certainly can’t risk running into them on the road. So instead we’ll head out east to hook up with I-95, which we can follow south as far as Richmond. From Richmond I-85 will take us almost all the way there. It’s longer, and mostly interstate, so the pickings along the way will be slim, but it’ll be safer. I tell Ryan the best part of three hundred miles.

  I see the Juvies exchanging nervous glances. I guess that must sound like a distance. Probably because it is.

  �
�How long would it take?’

  I figure Mags and I could do it in ten days. Maybe less, if I could find a way to match the pace she’s been showing since she came through the scanner. The Juvies won’t travel anything like that fast, however, at least not judging by how long it took us to make it here from Eden.

  ‘Three weeks, give or take.’

  More uncertain looks. That’s twice as long as it took us to get here, and none of them recall that journey with any affection. They all remember fleeing Eden, though, the fear they had felt stepping out into icy wind, snow that had stung like needles. And later, when the storms had chased us off the road, cowering in an abandoned gas station or trash-strewn bank lobby while the lightning split the sky outside. Most haven’t set foot beyond the portal since we first arrived.

  ‘Winter’s over now, though. If we decide to leave it’s as good a time as any to go.’

  I say it with a reassuring smile, but it doesn’t seem to work. I see Lauren casting her eye over the assembled faces, gauging their reactions.

  ‘How long before Peck comes back, Gabe?’

  I shrug.

  ‘I can’t say. I’m not even sure it’ll be Peck who comes back.’

  She gets to her feet.

  ‘But somebody will come for us, right? If not Peck then those soldiers.’ She looks around at the faces now staring up at her. ‘The ones who infected Mags with the virus, who put her in a cage?’

  The Juvies all turn to Mags as she says it, but I keep my eye on Lauren. I see what she’s doing. The Juvies are scared of the outside; no amount of comforting words is likely to overcome that, and she knows it. She plans to give them something else instead, something to be even more afraid of. She looks at me, waiting for an answer to her question.

  ‘Yes, I believe so. Someone will be back.’

  ‘Then we should leave. Soon, before they get here.’

  Jake shoots her a disgruntled look.

  ‘Sit down, Lauren. We haven’t decided we’re going anywhere yet.’

  Even now, part of me expects her to retake her seat. The Lauren we all knew before would have done just that. But then that Lauren wouldn’t ever have gotten to her feet in the first place.

  She turns to face him, and for a second I almost feel sorry for Jake.

  ‘Haven’t you been paying attention, Jake? It’s not safe here.’

  ‘You think I don’t know that?’ He points to the spot by the water’s edge where the Guardians had held him down. ‘It was me there, last night, Lauren, not you.’

  ‘Then you should know better than anyone we can’t stay here. Peck could be back any time, or if not him then someone worse. Gabe’s already warned us once.’

  Jake glances over at me, his face darkening with anger. He looks at Mags, like he might have something to say, but then he checks himself.

  ‘We’ve just got the farms set up. If we leave now we’ll be throwing away a harvest.’

  Lauren throws her hands up in the air, like she can’t believe what she’s just heard. She lets out a bitter laugh.

  ‘And that’s what you care about? We don’t even need the stupid harvest.’

  Now Jake’s on his feet as well.

  ‘We thought we didn’t need the harvest when we were back in Eden. But the food ran out there.’

  Lauren just rolls her eyes and looks to me for support. The truth is she’s sort of right. We don’t need the harvest, at least not here; what’s in the stores will last the few of us who are left several lifetimes, even if we’re not careful with it. But that’s also missing the point. The real question isn’t whether we need the harvest here; it’s whether we’ll need it wherever we go next. Hicks said Fearrington was thirteen stories underground, which should be plenty big enough, but the truth is I have no idea how well provisioned it might be. Gilbey had planned to continue her work there, which I’m hoping means it was stocked for her arrival. But I have no idea for how many, or for how long.

  From somewhere near the back Leonard slowly raises a hand, like we’re back in Miss Kimble’s class.

  ‘What happens if we stay here and Peck comes back?’

  Jake takes it on himself to answer.

  ‘We’d have to defend this place.’

  It’s clear Lauren doesn’t think much of this plan. She shakes her head.

  ‘That didn’t work well yesterday, did it?’

  ‘We have guns now.’

  ‘But none of us know how to use them.’

  ‘Tyler and Eric do. So does Gabe.’

  ‘And what chance do you think they would have against Peck? He’s a Secret Service agent. He killed Benjamin, remember? And Marv. And they were soldiers.’

  Jake’s still on his feet.

  ‘I’d rather face Peck than whatever else might be waiting for us out there.’ He raises a finger and jabs it at me. ‘Gabe took Mags out there and he almost got her killed.’

  Some of the Juvies go back to staring at Mags, but most look at me. I feel my face redden. I don’t have anything to say, because the truth of it is, Jake’s right. Mags is looking out onto the lake, like she’s trying to work something out. After a few seconds she turns back around and when she speaks again it’s to me.

  ‘Why don’t you tell them what you know about Fearrington, Gabe? Maybe it’ll help us all decide.’

  ‘Yeah, what’s it like?’

  I clear my throat.

  ‘Well, I’ve never been, obviously.’

  That earns me a bunch of uncertain looks, and I realize it may not have been the best place to start. I press on quickly.

  ‘We did learn a few things about it from the soldiers, though. It’s an underground silo. It goes down a long way, but even so it’ll be nowhere near as big as here. There aren’t many of us, though, so it should be enough space.’

  ‘And we can definitely get in?’

  I nod.

  ‘Yes, we can get in.’

  Jake looks at me like he wouldn’t take my word for it if I were to suggest the water in the lake behind him might be wet.

  ‘You just said you’ve never been. You can’t know that.’

  I’m still stinging from his last comment, and now I feel myself growing angry. I take a deep breath, making an effort to keep it from showing in my voice.

  ‘The codes on the map Marv gave me have worked everywhere else I’ve been. There’s no reason they shouldn’t work there too.’

  Jake folds his arms across his chest, like he’s not happy with that answer.

  ‘But you don’t know.’

  Lauren shakes her head.

  ‘What would you do, Gabe?’

  The Juvies quiet down. I see the ones in the back leaning forward to listen.

  ‘Well, we like it here; there’s loads of space and more supplies than we need. I took Kane’s codes with me from Eden, and we have the one he gave to Peck too, so maybe next time he comes he won’t find it quite so easy to get in.’ I look over at Mags, but her expression’s hard to read. ‘I wouldn’t count on it, though. Kane might have made a copy, and even if he hasn’t there’s a chance Peck will remember the code.’

  Jake snorts at that.

  ‘That’s nonsense. Those codes are way too long for anyone to remember.’

  Afterwards I regret what I do next, but right then I can’t help myself; it feels like I haven’t been able to catch a break from him since we got back from The Greenbrier. I reach into the pocket of my overalls and take out the tattered roadmap with the Standard Oil logo on the cover.

  ‘What’s that?’

  ‘It’s Marv’s map, the one with the entry codes for all the facilities in the Federal Relocation Arc written on it.’ I hold it out to him.

  He looks at it suspiciously, like he knows what’s coming next. He doesn’t want to take it, but he has little choice; everyone’s eyes are on him now.

  ‘Open it up.’

  He unfolds it slowly.

  ‘Choose one.’

  He stares at me for a long moment and then t
urns his attention to the map. I watch as he studies each of the locations there, searching for the one to test me. At last he looks up and says The Notch.

  The Notch is the codename for a bunker at a place called Bare Mountain, just outside a town called Hadley, Massachusetts. It’s way north, certainly not anywhere I’d planned on us ever visiting. But that’s okay. I’ve studied that map often enough over the winter that all I have to do is close my eyes and I can see the twelve numbers and letters written next to each of the locations marked on it. I call out the code he’s asked for. When I’m done there’s silence. I ask him if I’ve got it right.

  He looks down at the map for a second, then starts to fold it up again.

  ‘That doesn’t prove anything.’

  But now everyone’s talking at once again.

  ‘Peck still has the code.’

  ‘He’s bound to come back.’

  ‘Or the soldiers.’

  ‘They could already be on their way.’

  ‘We need to leave, now.’

  I glance over at Mags, but this time she doesn’t meet my gaze. Lauren smiles triumphantly. I hold my hands up again for silence, only this time it’s longer coming. At last things quiet down again.

  ‘Has anybody got anything else to say?’

  The Juvies look at each other but nobody speaks.

  ‘Jake?’

  He glares at me for a moment and then just shakes his head.

  ‘I guess we should vote then. Everyone in favor of leaving raise your hand.’

  Amy’s arm’s in the air almost before I’ve got the words out. Lauren raises hers too. Jake just shoves his hands into the pockets of his overalls. A couple of the Juvies who worked with him in the farms vote to stay too, but everyone else is in favor of quitting Mount Weather.

  There’s no need for a tally, but I do it anyway. Jake doesn’t wait to hear the final result. He gets up while I’m still counting and marches off in the direction of the farms.

  *

  TWO DAYS LATER we gather by the lake again. This time there’s little chatter. The Juvies wait, fiddling nervously with flashlights or adjusting the straps on their goggles, while Mags heads over to the plant room to power everything down. After a few minutes the faint background hum of the generator dies, leaving an eerie silence in its wake, and then one by one the arc lights blink out. There’s a moment of darkness after the last of them shuts off and I hear a gasp that might be Amy, then the safeties kick in, bathing the cavern in their green glow.