The man slowly climbed to his feet and, head drooping, started down the stairs. Even though he seemed defeated and cooperative, Myri still kept a close eye on him. They reached the top level of the church—more like an attic than an actual floor—and she grabbed his wrist and pulled him back when he reached for the doorknob of an off-sized door. “She’d better be in here. And she’d better not be hurt.”
The man swallowed and wrinkled up his face like a baby getting ready to wail. “She’s in there and she… she’s not hurt… too bad.”
Myri squeezed his wrist, bones crackling beneath her grip.
“Ow! Shit! That hurts!” He tried to pull away. Like a flea tugging on the mooring line of a large ship.
“Shut up.” Myri turned the handle on the door and pushed it open. She sucked in a sharp breath as her gaze landed on a little girl, curled up in a ball inside a medium-sized dog kennel.
Marcus pushed past them and ran to the cage. He landed hard on his knees and fumbled with the lock. “Annie! Are you okay?”
The man, still attempting to pull his wrist from Myri’s grip, whined, “I… I don’t know what I did with the key.”
Myri pulled him down to the floor. “Stay put. I don’t need a key.”
He rolled to his side, toward Marcus, as Myri knelt and grabbed a hold of the small lock. Without even looking at him, she reached her other hand down and seized his wrist, slamming his hand on the floor. He let out a howl of pain as she smashed her knee onto his knuckles, pinning his hand to the splintering hardwood. She ignored him as his knuckles snapped beneath the pressure.
With a twist of her wrist, the lock broke in two. She dropped the pieces and pulled the door of the cage open. The little girl, no older than eight, Myrikal guessed, pushed up to a crouched sitting position. One eye swollen shut, the other one widened as it took in Myri and her lightning-bolt unitard.
“It’s okay, Annie. I’m here to help. Marcus is with me.” Myri moved away from the opening, positioning herself between the girl and the man who now lay clutching his mangled hand to his chest.
Marcus dropped to his knees in front of the kennel, arms spread wide. The girl’s face twisted up and she let out a sob as she lunged for her brother. “Annie, are you okay? Can you get up?”
She nodded, her face pressed up against his chest.
“Okay, come on, then. Let’s get out of here.” He glanced up at Myri with raised eyebrows. “Can we go?”
Myri tilted her head to the side, ignoring the moaning kidnapper at her feet. “Do you have somewhere to go? Somewhere safe? Parents?”
“No parents, but we live in a compound. It’s safe.”
“Okay. But I still have to teach you how to use those weapons. Wanna’ tell me where I can find you?”
Marcus looked down at the kidnapper then back up at her.
“Ahh. Yeah,” Myrikal said. “Probably not a good idea to tell me in front of him. Let’s step out into the hallway.”
He described the same compound where she’d taken the kids and dog the day she’d left her father. “I know where that is. I’ll stop by in a couple of days and teach you some stuff.”
“Thank you, Myrikal.” He hesitated before hugging her around the waist quickly then turning to go down the stairs, holding Annie’s hand as he led her.
Turning to the kidnapper, Myri said, “Get up.”
“Why?” A bit of his earlier defiance crept back into his voice.
“Because I’m taking you back to the compound where I live.” She still couldn’t quite bring herself to call it “my compound,” even though she had a house high up in a tree and had been there for over a month. She questioned whether taking him there was the best option, but she was sure she didn’t want someone like him loose in the streets, a danger to more children. Handing him over to Cascus seemed to be the best—the only—option. There was no form of jail out in the city, only street justice, and that rarely turned out to be on the side of good.
“Why? What are you going to do with me?” He still clutched his hand to his chest, no attempt to get up off the floor.
The bruises on Annie’s face flashed in her memory and anger flashed in her chest. “No more questions. Get up.”
“And if I don’t?” He swallowed and looked away from Myri’s face, his bravado weakening.
Myrikal slammed her open hands down on the empty kennel. The metal bars crumpled like paper, the large cage flattened to the shuddering floor.
His lips disappeared as he clamped them together and scrambled to stand.
“And don’t even think about running.” Myri pushed him between the shoulder blades and he stumbled toward the open door.
Peeking over his shoulder at her for about the hundredth time of their two-and-a-half mile walk back to Central Park, the kidnapper and would-be battery thief cringed when Myrikal raised her hand to gesture toward the west gate.
“Go in,” she said.
He lowered his head and slumped his shoulders as he shuffled through the opening.
“Hey, Myrikal. Who’s…” The guard stepped closer to the kidnapper. “William, you aren’t allowed inside the compound.”
“You know him?” Myri asked.
“Yeah, he used to live here. He got banished for fighting.”
“Just fighting?” Myri raised an eyebrow. She’d seen fights break out in there before and no one had gotten banished for them.
“A lot of fighting,” the guard said.
“Well, now he’s done something worse.” Myrikal grabbed William by the arm. “I’m taking him to the Central Building for lock-up so he can stand trial.”
“Lock-up?” William dug his feet into the ground, forcing Myri to pull him along like an obstinate two-year-old.
Myrikal ignored his query. “You can either walk or I can drag you by the hair.”
He stumbled as he tried to keep up with her. “You… you can’t lock me up. There… there’s no law anymore. You can’t just…”
Digging her fingers into his arm, she kept walking in silence as he squirmed.
Branch met her at the steps to the Central Building, coming from the direction of his house. He looked from her to William and back again. “Myri, why do you have William? Where’s the boy?”
The gravel crunched under her feet as she twisted to face him more fully. She put her free hand on her hip. “Marcus and his sister are safe. I never said I was going to bring him back.” She jerked William forward. “This is who you want. He’s the one who kidnapped the little girl and forced her brother to attempt to steal the battery.”
Branch pursed his lips and snuck a peek at the large door. “I’ll go in with you.”
Her hair whipped as she pivoted to start up the steps. Part of her wanted to ask him how mad Cascus had been that she’d defied his wishes. But the bigger part of her didn’t care. She swallowed down the strange unease touching the door gave her and pushed her way inside, trailing William along behind her.
Cascus, hands tucked into the sleeves of his gown, stood in the same area he’d been when she’d left with the boy as if he hadn’t moved from the spot. “What do we have here?” He raised an eyebrow, his face blurring in Myri’s sight.
Shoving the kidnapping, child-abuser toward him, Myri released her grip. “This is William. He kidnapped a little girl then forced her brother to come and try to steal a battery with the threat of killing her if he didn’t.”
“I see. Take him up to a cell, please. Then I’d like to have a word with you. If you’ll allow.” Cascus’s fetid breath wafted through the air.
Myri held her breath and nodded. She ignored William’s whining as she prodded him up the stairs. It had been a long day and all she wanted to do was go to her house atop the tree and spend some quality alone time. She shoved William into the cell and slammed the lock into place.
Deciding to hurry and get the talk with Cascus over with, she took the stairs in one leap, landing on the main floor in a slight crouch. Branch and Cascus looked up from wher
e they sat. Myrikal joined them, sitting on the small couch next to her friend. She tried to arrange her face into a less defiant configuration than she felt at the moment. The same as she’d felt ever since Cascus had suggested they put a child in a cell and put him through a trial.
“Myrikal,” Cascus began. “First I want to give you my utmost gratitude for apprehending several criminals today. Thank you. You are every bit as amazing as Morgan said you were.” He paused, as if waiting for a response.
She attempted to smile, but worried that it came across more as a grimace. “Thanks.”
Nodding once, he continued, “I would, however, like to discuss the issue of the young boy.”
Myri stiffened. “There really isn’t much to discuss.”
His mouth blurred into a smile and he held a hand up toward her. “I would just like for you to hear my thoughts on why he should have been kept and tried.” He continued quickly before she could say anything. “It matters not what the reason behind breaking a law is. We must be consistent in treating all broken laws the same. Otherwise, people will come up with all kinds of excuses in order to get away with infractions. That’s how this world delved into chaos. Chaos is what we’re trying to prevent here.”
Myri leaned forward, ignoring the odor of Cascus. “A child’s life is more important than any law. In fact, preserving human life, no matter the age of the human, should always be the goal wherever possible. We came close to losing it all with the ‘quakes and the sickness. Every human life is precious.” She stood and looked down on him. “Especially those of children.”
“Myri…” Branch whispered.
Cascus interrupted. “Your position on the matter is duly noted. My intention was never to harm the boy.”
“No,” Myrikal said. “Maybe not. But by keeping him here, great harm—greater harm—would have come to his sister.”
“I only wish you would have given me a little more time to express my opinion on the matter before sweeping out of here.” Cascus got to his feet across the coffee table from her.
“A little more time could easily have resulted in the death of the little girl.” Myri took a breath, calming the tone of her voice. “Look, Cascus, we’re going to have to agree to disagree on this one. I was raised by a man for whom life held no value. I won’t—can’t—be that person.”
Cascus sighed. “Very well then. We will amicably disagree. Thank you again for your assistance today. I hope to see you at the trial tomorrow morning.”
She nodded.
A glimpse of the undulating green beneath his skin came into her view. He shrugged a shoulder in a quick motion and the blurry façade returned to cover it. “It’s been a full day. I believe I’m going to retire a bit early tonight. See you both in the morning.” He disappeared down the stairs.
A whoosh of air forced its way out of Branch’s lungs. “Myri, you’re going to give me a heart attack.”
She smiled down at her friend. “I won’t go against my instincts anymore, Branch. Not even for you. I am sorry I stressed you out, though.”
He stood and they walked to the door beside each other. “I don’t want you to go against your instincts, either, Myri. It’s just… I don’t know… Cascus is a good and kind person. I know he is. And I want you to see that in him, too.”
And I wish you could see what I see in him, Myrikal thought. “It might take me a while to believe that.” She bumped his shoulder with hers and smiled. “I have a few trust issues, you know.”
The seven prisoners plodded single-file down the stairs, led by Branch flanked by other members of DefCo. The leader of the group—the one who’d held a gun to Branch’s head—tensed up, his eyes darting around the room, as they neared the bottom of the stairs. His gaze landed on Myrikal, standing midway between the stairs and the exit of the building, arms crossed over her chest. His tense muscles instantly deflated, his shoulders slumped, and the hopeful gleam in his eyes faded to a hateful glare.
Under normal circumstances, Myri would have laughed at the dejected countenance of the would-be attempted escapee. But she found no humor in the situation. Cascus had been too vague about possible punishments for the crimes. No matter how bad she wanted to trust him for Branch’s sake, she couldn’t.
Like a parade of sad clowns, Branch led the group to a bench set up in front of a podium and motioned for them to sit. The leader hesitated, glancing back at Myri and twitching his shoulder, before joining his crew. Myri narrowed her eyes at the jailbirds’ backs.
Branch came and stood by her side. She leaned toward him and whispered, “Where’s William?”
“Separate trials. We’ll do his after these guys.”
She nodded. Her attention moved from dark thoughts of the kidnapper still upstairs, to the podium. Cascus appeared from around the corner, his gown flowing behind him as he glided to the wooden stand. “Welcome to this trial of lawbreakers.”
A hushed murmur traveled through the crowd of people who’d come to watch this novel occurrence. There weren’t many seats, so most of them stood, packed into the room.
The trial ended quickly. Cascus called the guards to testify, strangely leaving the DefCo team out of the proceedings. He asked only one question of the accused. “For what purpose were you attempting to force your way into our community?”
Six faces turned to look on their leader. He sneered and said, “I don’t have to tell you nothin’.”
Cascus smiled, his eyes sweeping over the accused. “It does not matter anyway.” He looked pointedly at Myrikal. “The law was broken, the excuse for which matters not.” His gaze returned to the leader. “I was merely curious.”
The leader spat on the floor.
Cascus sighed. “You have been found guilty. You are sentenced to death. The sentence will be carried out this evening in the central square.”
“I won’t do it, Cascus.” Myrikal spun around and reached for the door.
“Talk to her, Morgan,” Cascus said quietly.
Myri slammed the door behind her, not waiting for Branch. After Cascus had pronounced the sentence, the room had fallen eerily quiet for several seconds. Then all six of the condemned erupted with shouts of protest and the spectators talked in hushed voices.
Myrikal had watched in stunned silence as the DefCo team escorted the six back up the stairs to their cells. She hadn’t even had time to process Cascus’s declaration when the team returned leading William down the stairs. His “trial” proceeded much quicker than the last. Cascus pronounced him guilty of kidnapping and attempted theft and sentenced him to die that evening, too.
“Myri, wait!” Branch called to her.
The bitter wind thrashed her hair out behind her as she ran. She didn’t stop until she reached her tree. She climbed all the way up and sat atop her house, looking out over the compound to the city beyond the walls. She sat, still as stone, as she seethed at what Cascus had asked her to do.
She didn’t even twitch as Branch, huffing for breath, climbed up beside her ten minutes later. “Myri, listen…”
“I’m not going to do it, Branch. It’s wrong.”
“It isn’t wrong. They’re bad people. We can’t make this place better if we allow bad people to get away with crap.” He grabbed her arm. “Look at me, Myrikal.”
She jerked her arm from his hand and whipped her head around to glare at him. “I won’t kill people.”
His face reddened. “You were going to kill for your dad!”
“But I didn’t, Branch. I didn’t kill for him. And I’m not going to do it for Cascus, or you, or anyone else.”
Branch looked down at the shingles of the roof. He whispered, “You helped him kill my old clan.”
“No. I tried to stop him…”
“But you didn’t stop him, did you Myrikal?”
“I tried,” she whispered again.
“We need you. Cascus’s whole plan depends on your participation. We have to show everyone that breaking the law won’t be tolerated. It’s all for the
greater good. So we can have a better world.” His voice softened as he regurgitated the words of his perceived savior.
Myri swallowed, unable to respond.
Branch continued. “Just do it tonight. They say it’s easier to do the next time and the next, until it just becomes a job.”
A tear slipped down Myri’s cheek. “I won’t do it. Human life is too precious.”
A frustrated huff blew past Branch’s lips. “But they’re all bad people!”
Turning to face him more completely, Myri said, “That’s what my dad said, Branch. He was wrong. And you’re wrong. And Cascus is wrong.”
“He isn’t! He’s going to change the world. We’re going to go out into Manhattan and rid it of all the bad people there next.” He gripped her hands. “We need you, Myrikal.”
The warmth of his hands touching hers calmed her anger a few degrees. She met his gaze and blew out her held breath. “Branch, I should have told you this the first time I noticed it, but I wasn’t sure about what I was seeing.”
“What…”
Squeezing his hands, she interrupted, “Cascus isn’t human.”
Branch narrowed his eyes, eyebrows coming together in a confused unibrow. “What do you mean, he’s not human?”
Myri swallowed and looked past Branch, out over the walls of the compound. “I can see through his human form. Not all the time, but enough that I know it’s some kind of disguise. Not only that,” she hurried to finish before he interrupted, “he smells funny. It’s disgusting. I’ve never known what it feels like to be nauseated before coming here and smelling his odor. The stuff his building and the batteries are made out of gives me that same unsettled feeling.”
“What are you talking about?” The confusion turned to irritation, she could hear it in his voice. “Of course Cascus is human. What else would he be?”
Myrikal Page 16
