by Lizzie Rose
‘What? What do you wonder?’
‘We’re here now. I’ll tell you on the way back, ok?’
*
We knew as soon as we entered the prison that something was wrong. The reception desk was unmanned and we were met with an eerie silence.
‘Shall we call for backup?’ Jamie murmured to me.
‘Who are we going to ask? They’ve all gone into town and even if there was someone available, by the time they get here we could have searched the place.’
‘I suppose so. Let’s stick together though, ok?’
‘I don’t have a problem with that.’
We walked down the corridor behind reception until we reached the lift.
‘What do we do now?’
‘I think we should go and check things out downstairs.’
‘I didn’t bring a weapon.’
I gave him a withering look.
‘Oh yeah, I guess I’m covered,’ he laughed, his eyes shining.
‘Ok, let’s go.’ I pushed the call button and immediately the doors sprang open. We stepped in and I pressed the button for the floor below. As we felt ourselves move downwards, we both tensed, keeping flat against the sides of the car. Seconds later we came to a stop and the door opened. There was not a soul in sight.
‘What’s going on here?’ I whispered, stepping out into the corridor. When we reached the first branch in the path, we came across a control panel with several screens showing images from the cells and corridors on that floor. A mug of tepid coffee stood on top of a pile of files, which held brief details of each of the inmates on that particular wing. Walking across to the entrance of the nearest cell block, I pushed at the door and was shocked when it swung wide open.
‘Something’s very wrong,’ I told Jamie who was following close behind.
‘Yeah, I’ll say. Stay alert.’
The doors to the cells were still locked. We walked down the centre of the corridor, looking in through the one-way glass at the inmates inside. They were mostly awake and many of them seemed agitated. Some were standing right up against the glass whilst others were pacing their cells. None of them seemed to be aware of our presence. Once we’d walked the length of the corridor we went back to the control panel and tried the next one.
After checking the entire floor, we went down a level in the lift and repeated the exercise. Every cell was occupied and not one of the prisoners appeared to be in the process of escaping. If it weren’t for the complete lack of guards, we’d have assumed it was a false alarm. But the quietness was unnatural and it unnerved me.
‘Over here!’
Jamie had stopped several cells behind me and was staring at the prisoner inside. Backtracking, I joined him and peered through the glass.
‘Oh!’
‘Hang on a second.’ He ran back to the control panel and a moment later the door in front of me slid open. I ran inside and knelt beside the little bed.
‘Hugo? Are you ok?’
Hearing my voice, he prised open his swollen eyes and peered at me. ‘Ava? Is that you?’
‘Yes. What happened?’
‘They hurt me.’ He coughed loudly, wincing as he clutched his ribs.
‘Why didn’t they take you to the hospital?’
‘I don’t know. I was told to get in the car and then they brought me here. I tried to escape but they beat me up. I don’t like it here, Ava. I want to go home.’
‘I know, honey. I’m going to get you home, don’t worry. Can you stand?’
He tried to sit up but fell back down, crying out in pain.
‘I can carry him up to the car,’ Jamie offered, kneeling beside me. ‘As soon as we’re done here we can take him straight to the commune. Andrea will know what to do.’
‘I need to check things out here,’ I told him. ‘It’s going to take a while. Do you think he can hold on?’
‘I can,’ Hugo answered my question. ‘I’m all right. I just don’t think I can walk. They hurt my leg too.’
‘Ok, I’ll take him to the car. You wait here and I’ll come back for you.’
‘No, I’ll carry on with the search.’ I raised my hand to stop his protest, ‘I’ll be fine. Just come and find me when you’ve got Hugo to safety.’
‘Ok,’ he sighed, ‘if you insist. Come on then.’ Crouching down, he lifted Hugo up gently and manoeuvred him out of the doorway. I continued to check the cells then made for the next corridor along. Halfway along, I found what I was looking for. Placing my hand against the glass, I willed it open and it gave way instantly, sliding across enough to let me into the cell.
Brock had been lying on his bed with his eyes shut. As I entered he jumped to his feet, staring at me in shock.
I expected him to be angry with me – to shout or throw something at me. But instead he crossed the cell in two strides and flung his arms around me, pulling me into a bear hug.
‘Thank God you’re ok. I thought . . .’ He pulled away slightly, gripping my arms lightly with his hands. ‘You must hate me.’
‘Actually, I thought you hated me.’
‘Of course not, you silly girl! How on earth could you think that?’
‘I heard you talking to Tommy. You said that you’d made a mistake with me – that you couldn’t handle me.’
‘Actually, you’re wrong there.’
I took a step back from him, confused. ‘No, I’m not. I heard you. You were sitting in the kitchen talking about me and I was coming down the stairs and I heard you say that you wished you’d let me keep running.’
‘Oh, Ava.’ He broke away from me and leaned against the wall, his face in his hands. ‘I’m so sorry. It was a moment of self-doubt. What with everything that happened I just had a momentary lapse in faith. If Kenzie had waited just another few minutes before arriving, you would have heard me reprimand myself for being so weak when you needed me the most. But you have to understand, Ava, we’re not like you. For all we Nexes have a single power, it’s the only thing that differentiates us from the Standards. You, on the other hand, are not only a far more powerful being but you actually appear to be taking on other people’s powers too.’
‘Excuse me?’
‘Let me ask you something. Before you came here had you ever made anything move or thrown a fireball or read someone’s thoughts?’
‘Not on purpose. I’ve never thrown a fireball before. And I can’t read people’s thoughts.’
‘Yes you can. You see, I wasn’t talking out loud to Tommy the day you overheard us. We were communicating through our thoughts. I only realised what had happened when I heard Oscar’s thoughts later on. You had an encounter with him in town and he was on his way back to the village with his friends. He was thinking about the fact that you’d apparently shouted at him over something he’d been thinking but hadn’t actually said.’
‘Really?’
‘Yes, but I couldn’t discuss it in any detail with him.’
‘Why not?’
‘Because shortly afterwards I was arrested and brought here.’
‘Simeon told me that you attacked him.’
‘No, that’s not true. Simeon and his henchmen arrived at the cottage demanding your belongings and telling me that your guardianship had already been transferred to him. Esther was very upset about it and refused to hand over your bag. One of the guards went for her. I tried to protect her and the next thing I knew I was put in this cell.’
‘You’ve been in here since then?’
‘That’s right. I believe that quite a few of our friends and neighbours now reside here too. It’s not exactly what you’d call pleasant.’
‘I know. They brought me here after I hurt Connor.’
He winced and exhaled deeply. ‘I was so angry with Oscar for walking away from you. I tried to find out where they’d taken you but they blocked me at every turn. By the time I found out that you’d been brought here it was too late. I knew that once you’d been taken to the commune we wouldn’t be able to get to you.’
/>
‘They were nice to me,’ I dropped my eyes to the floor.
‘I’m sure they were.’
‘Nicholas told me that the government was about to collapse and that they needed my help to regain control. I never meant to hurt anyone. It just made sense to separate the Nexes so that the Standards could be protected.’
‘And on paper it does make sense, but society doesn’t work like that I’m afraid. People need leadership for sure but if that leadership becomes a power trip for those in charge, then it becomes dangerous. Things weren’t perfect before but we were making huge strides in progress and were trying to develop ways of embracing the Nexes’ powers rather than hiding them away. The government were all for it. Whatever happened to change their mind must have been recent.’
Slumping to the floor, I rested my head against the glass door behind me.
‘Why did I have to get involved in all this? Why couldn’t they have let me stay here, shut away from everybody? I’ve done it before, I could do it again. At least that way I couldn’t hurt anyone.’
‘Because that’s not going to solve anything, is it? Whatever their reasons, the commune leaders saw the potential your powers hold and knew you’d be a valuable asset. It’s not surprising that you started to think the way they do. You’ve been there a long time with little outside influence.’
‘They listened to me – about my past and the things that happened. They believed me.’
‘And again, I can only apologise that we did not. We were looking for facts rather than trusting your word. But it was very hard when you blocked so many of your thoughts from us.’
‘Only because it’s hard for me to think about the past. I was worried that I’d get emotional and lose control of my powers.’
‘That’s understandable.’
‘I can show you now though.’
I thought back as far as I could to the day my father died, the constant moving from place to place, and the deterioration in Mother’s state of health. And then from Gareth’s arrival and my instant dislike for him to the day I saw him slip something in Mother’s drink and how quickly she became so frail. Then I moved to the times that Gareth had hit me and the day he locked me inside my bedroom.
The day I’d escaped, I’d heard Mother calling me from upstairs. She’d told me to use my powers on the bolted bedroom door. I’d finally managed it after a great deal of frustration. When I got to her room I’d been shocked at how weak she looked. Her once luscious hair was like cotton wool and her skin was thin and almost translucent. She told me how proud she was of me. She gave me the bag containing the map, and told me to make sure there was no evidence of our existence in the house. I had so many questions but before she could explain any more, Gareth returned and found us. He hit me and I passed out.
When I came round, Mother was dead. I made a run for it and only just escaped Gareth’s clutches. As the lightning bolt hit the upstairs window, I turned and ran, heading for the town of Betnor.
‘I’m so sorry,’ Brock whispered. ‘I wish you’d shown me that earlier. But I should have trusted you anyway.’
‘No, it’s my fault. I didn’t know how to trust people and it looks as though I still haven’t got the hang of it. I don’t know what to think any more.’
‘Well, I can’t tell you what to think, but I can tell you there’s only so much you can do to help people. There comes a point where they have to figure things out for themselves. Now I know that things have been hard for you and I take full responsibility for not helping you adapt more. But right now, people’s lives are in danger and us sitting here and talking isn’t going to change that. It’s your choice, Ava – you’re in charge now.’
‘Yes, I am, aren’t I?’ I whispered. ‘I’m in charge. Paradise is the future, right?’ I looked at him and he raised his eyebrows at me but didn’t respond. I felt quite peculiar. It was as though I’d been submerged in deep water but could feel myself moving towards the surface at speed. Then I broke through it and suddenly my head was clear. I gasped out loud.
‘I think it’s about time you started making your own choices, Ava. Forget the bigger picture and focus on the here and now.’
‘I don’t know how. I don’t know what to do.’ Panic rose inside me as self-doubt ate away at my insides. ‘It’s all such a mess.’
‘So fix it. Everyone makes mistakes. Now it’s time to face your mistakes and make the right choices. And you’re not alone. I’m here for you every step of the way. After all, we’re family now and no piece of paper will tell me otherwise.’
Tears streamed down my cheeks. I opened my mouth to speak but before the words left me an almighty boom came from somewhere below us.
‘What was that?’ I breathed.
‘Ava?’ Jamie’s voice came from somewhere nearby. ‘Are you here?’
‘I’m right here.’ I jumped to my feet and ran out to meet him. The entire building shook and the people in the cells around us ran forwards and banged their fists silently against the glass. Brock’s face appeared around his cell door. The floor trembled beneath our feet.
‘Ok, we need to get everyone out.’ I set off towards the top end of the corridor, Jamie and Brock following behind. ‘I’m going to free the prisoners. I need you to guide them outside, ok?
‘Affirmative.’
Reaching the control panel I pressed all the buttons. Glass doors slid open and, within seconds, the corridors were full of people helping each other out of their cells.
‘Don’t take the lift – take the stairs,’ Jamie yelled above the noise. ‘Follow me.’
‘What can I do?’ Brock shouted.
‘Free the prisoners on this floor and the ones above,’ I replied. ‘Guide them out as quickly as possible, ok? I’ll get the ones down below.’
‘Ok, be careful.’ He gave me a quick, one-armed hug then ran to the next control panel.
*
It wasn’t easy. About halfway across the floor below, I found myself battling against a flood of people. Something heavy collided with me, pushing me hard against the wall, and a hand wrapped tightly around my throat. Scrabbling at the hands I wriggled, trying to get some leverage from the wall behind me, but then he released his grip and lurched to the side, landing sprawled on the floor. Clutching my throat, I bent over, gasping for breath.
‘Are you ok?’
I nodded.
Noah placed his hands on my arms and straightened me up. ‘Ava, is this a trap?’
‘What do you mean?’
He eyed me warily. ‘I’m just making sure we’re not all heading outside to find your Parasites waiting for us.’
‘No, of course not.’ I tried to sound confident but an awful fear gripped me. They wouldn’t do that, would they? ‘I don’t think they’d take on so many Nexes at once, but it would be best to be on your guard.’
‘So you’re one of us again now?’ He squinted at me, his head tilted to one side.
‘Don’t believe her.’ The man who’d attacked me got to his feet, his fists clenched. ‘She’s the one who ordered the attacks on the town in the first place. She’s one of them.’
He took a step towards me, his fists raised, but Noah stepped between us.
‘Don’t do it, mate. If you touch her you’ll have me to answer to, and believe me, you really don’t want that to happen.’
The man hesitated, his gaze moving from me to Noah and back again.
‘Please, we don’t have time for this,’ I begged as the ground shook again. ‘We have to get everyone out.’
‘You’re freeing people?’ He narrowed his eyes at me.
‘Yes, but I’m struggling to get to the control panels. There are so many people and it’s taking too long to get them moving. I don’t want to panic them too much in case people get hurt in the crush.’
‘You’re really letting them all go?’ the man asked again, suspiciously. ‘Everyone?’
‘Yes!’ I replied, frustrated that he was wasting so much time.
&n
bsp; ‘Hang on a sec.’ He turned to the crowd behind us. ‘ALL RIGHT, EVERYONE, KEEP TO THE RIGHT,’ he bellowed. ‘MAKE AN ORDERLY QUEUE AND HEAD FOR THE STAIRWELLS AT EITHER SIDE OF THE LIFT. STAY CALM AND KEEP MOVING. YOU, OVER THERE . . . YES, YOU. HELP ME GET THEM ORGANISED. ALL RIGHT, MOVE OVER THERE . . .’
Seizing the chance, I rushed along to the next control panel with Noah at my heels. He crossed over to the next one along and together we worked as a team, releasing the prisoners and organising them so that they joined the line, which was now moving along steadily. When we finished the entire floor, we pushed our way through to the stairwell and raced downstairs to the next level.
*
For the most part, the prisoners seemed so thankful for being released that they were happy to follow the instructions given to them. Some helped organise the others, carrying the less mobile people up to safety and trying to keep the rest calm. We had reached the bottom of the stairwell and started on the final tier of cells when Jamie caught us up.
‘I’ve just had a message over the radio saying that the town’s under attack. It’s spreading out to the village too.’
Noah looked at me in alarm. ‘The kids are all at the farm. We have to go help them.’
A scream echoed beneath us, followed by another loud bang. ‘What the . . . ?’
‘That came from the basement,’ Noah yelled. ‘They have cells down there for the most powerful Nexes. They’re made of some sort of heavy metal and they don’t have any windows or anything. I didn’t think they kept anyone down there these days.’
Another tremor shook the building so hard that little clouds of dust filled the air around us and another scream followed it.
Noah grabbed my arm and gripped it so hard I cried out.
‘Ava, I haven’t seen Kenzie yet.’
‘You think she’s down there?’
‘I don’t know, but someone is.’
‘Ok, I’ll go take a look. You guys concentrate on getting the rest of the prisoners out. Then you need to find a way of getting everyone across to the village . . .’
