Dead Hunger VII_The Reign of Isis

by Eric A. Shelman

  Max pointed at them. “Must’ve had Hungerer roomies,” he said.

  “I want to leave them a radio,” said Charlie. “We need to find a way to stash one for them.”

  “We have no way to know which cell they’ll put them in,” said Max.

  “There are seven of them,” said Isis. “They’ll have to use more than one cell.

  “These are open,” Max said, motioning to the three cells to their left. “The four on the back wall are closed.” He walked quickly back and pulled on each door. They did not budge.

  “We put the radio in the center cell, close to the third cell,” said Charlie.

  “Why?” asked Max. “That first cell’s open. They might just stuff them all in there.”

  Charlie walked over and pulled the door closed. “Not anymore. If they don’t have the keys handy, they’ll just put them where it’s convenient.”

  “Hurry,” said Isis. “They’ll be here any moment.”

  Charlie looked around and found an old newspaper. She picked it up, wrapped the radio in a piece, and in another thought, reached into her pocket and removed the baggie holding the WAT-5 wafers. She quickly counted off sixteen of them and wrapped them up with the radio.

  “This will get them through the next ten hours,” she said. “I hope.”

  She placed it in the corner of the cell and lay another piece of torn paper over it. There were other pieces of trash within the cell, so it did not appear out of place.

  “Okay, let’s go,” said Max. “Isis is right. We get caught here, there’s no back way out.”

  Charlie stopped him. “What about leaving a gun?”

  “No,” said Isis. “If they do search the cell, maybe the radio won’t raise too much suspicion. As for the WAT-5, they won’t have any idea what that is. A gun would alert them too much, I’m afraid.”

  “They’re still going to be transported from here to the pen where the Mothers and Hungerers are kept tomorrow,” said Max. “Once they get into the cell and find the WAT-5, they’ll figure out that they don’t need to take it right away. They can take it in the morning, and we can fill them in on our plan with the radio.”

  They hurried back outside and Charlie turned her headlamp off as they exited the station and closed the door behind them.

  “Let’s head back over to the court,” said Isis. “We have to speak with Alyssa, Megan, and Beauty.”

  Once again, they ran around the west side of the station, took a course through the tall weeds and moved to their original rendezvous point with the Hybrids.

  This time, Beauty stared directly at them.

  “She sees us,” said Isis.

  Beauty disappeared into the group, which Charlie estimated to be anywhere from thirty-five to fifty.

  Charlie saw the girl emerge from the crowd. Behind her were two who appeared older than the rest.

  “Charlie,” said Isis. “Move back into the grass for a moment, okay?”

  “Sure,” she said, though she did not want to. She had been separated from her son once, and did not intend to put more than a few feet between them again.

  She watched as the women drew near and stopped, facing one another as though stepping aside to have a private conversation. It was clear they were pretending that they were not speaking to anyone else.

  “You are back,” said Alyssa.

  “I’ve brought you something,” said Isis.

  “It is not safe now,” said Megan. “They are our daughters, but they are not devoted only to us.”

  “I am,” said Beauty.

  Alyssa and Megan nodded.

  “I’ve brought Max’s mother,” said Isis. “Charlie, come out.”

  Charlie, smiling, emerged from the grass and crouched near the fence. “Hello,” she said.

  The Hybrids did not smile, but they did not appear worried.

  “Do you love your children?” asked Isis.

  “Love?” asked Alyssa.

  “Do you feel a need to protect them?” asked Charlie. “I do, with Max. If someone tried to hurt or kill him, I would die in his place without hesitation.”

  “We are merely the vessel of birth,” said Alyssa. “The children belong to Maestro.”

  “They’re your fucking kids,” said Charlie. She put her hand over her heart and added, “Sorry to be harsh, but they are your children and right here, deep in your heart, you should be willing to do anything to give them a better life.”

  “Better than what Maestro has done for you,” said Isis. “As I told you before, I’m exactly like your mothers. While I was in her womb, one of the Mothers sprayed my mom with her vapor. When I was born, she died. What happened to your mothers?”

  Alyssa looked at Megan, and they nodded. “Maria was my mother,” said Alyssa. “Sofia was Megan’s mother. Maestro killed them both as he took us in caged cars from our birthplace. He said our mothers were too dangerous.”

  “How did that make you feel?” asked Charlie.

  “Angry,” said Beauty interrupting. “Maria was the mother of my mother,” she added, looking at Alyssa. Alyssa returned her glance, and while the look that passed between them was somewhat tender, Charlie felt it lacked any real depth of emotion.

  “She was your grandmother,” said Max.

  “I had a special relationship with my own grandmother,” said Charlie. “She was everything to me, and she taught me about a lot of the things that were special to her as a girl. When she died, it was devastating for me. I was only eight years old.”

  Isis reached into her pocket and withdrew the paper she had showed Charlie earlier. “Can you read?”

  Alyssa and Megan nodded. “We can,” said Megan. “Our mothers taught us. Maestro has forbidden our daughters from learning. He said there is no need.”

  Isis passed the folded paper through the fence. “This document was written over 250 years ago,” she said. “The country in which we live is called the United States of America, and they were once ruled by King George III of Great Britain. He made their lives so miserable that they felt they must break free of his tyranny.”

  “What does this have to do with us?” asked Alyssa.

  “It’s called the Declaration of Independence,” said Isis. “Part of it says, ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.’ That is how this applies to you.”

  “Happiness?” asked Beauty. “Liberty?”

  Alyssa looked up from the page. “Are we … the governed?”

  “Does Maestro control every aspect of your lives?” asked Charlie. “Is there a time when you laugh and sing and play and enjoy your lives together, able to move freely around Hoisington?”

  The three were silent.

  “How many of you are there?” asked Charlie.

  “There are we three and Magas through forty-one,” said Beauty. “As you know, I was Maga 7 before you called me by this name.”

  “An entire independent country was created by the introduction of this document,” said Isis. “People fought and died for this freedom, and millions of people have been inspired by the very document you hold in your hand.”

  Charlie spoke up. “What Isis speaks of she read in a history book,” she said. “I lived that freedom. I lived in that world, and we have a little piece of it right now, not very far away.”

  Charlie took a deep breath. “Freedom is such a powerful thing, I can’t stress it enough. People died just trying to get to our shores. Right up to the time this horrible disease struck the world, people fought to come here to experience true liberty.”

  Isis said, “You are powerful, and you have the ability to gain your independence from Maestro with a strong will and a distinct purpose.”

  “What would you have us do?” asked Megan.

  “I’ve been thinking of something,” said Charlie. “Isis, if we can put all of the Magas to sleep except Alyssa,
Megan and Beauty, what would that do?”

  Isis touched her shoulder. “Charlie, that is an excellent idea. It will relinquish the control of the Mothers and Hungerers to us,” said Isis. “Freedom is a powerful emotion. Alyssa, please let Megan read this. Read it aloud to Beauty.”

  “I would like to read this sentence aloud, for it rings of familiarity,” said Alyssa. “He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.” She looked up at them with something akin to guilt in her eyes. “The people of Great Bend might have written something of this nature following our visit to their city,” said Megan. “It is what we did to them, at Maestro’s command.”

  “Okay,” said Charlie. “Do you have anywhere you can hide this?” She reached into her pocket and pulled out all of her remaining WAT-5. She took two from the baggie and put them back in her pocket.

  “What is it for?”

  “Can you crush these up and mix the powder into the other Magas food?” asked Charlie.

  “What will it do?”

  “It will put them to sleep indefinitely,” said Isis. “They will be okay.”

  “Sleep? We do not sleep.”

  “There’s a first time for everything, ladies,” said Max. “I only wish you’d get to experience it. I did, once or twice. It’s a trip.”

  “We are brought meat once each two days,” said Beauty. “Always just before dawn. Maestro realizes that we must maintain our strength in order to control the Mothers.”

  “When is your next feeding?” asked Isis.

  “This pre-dawn,” said Alyssa.

  “Then with Alyssa and Megan’s consent,” said Beauty, “I will help distribute the powder into the food.”

  Alyssa and Megan nodded.

  “It’s very important that you three not consume this,” said Isis. “You must be awake to work with us to control the Mothers and Hungerers, and you will need your strength. Will you be able to separate your food out before tainting the remainder?”

  “You used the word tainting,” said Megan. “Will they be harmed?” she asked. “Because we can do nothing to harm them.”

  “The harm you speak of is being inflicted upon you now,” said Isis. “No, your sisters and daughters will not be physically harmed in any way.”

  “There’s lots more to figure out, guys,” said Charlie.

  “I know,” said Max. “Still, we need to knock his army of Hybrids out before we stand a chance. This was a good idea, mom. Really good.”

  “It better be,” said Charlie. “When it comes to WAT-5, we’re really blowing our wad.” She looked at the three. “When this is over, will you come back home with us?”

  Doubt crossed the expressions of Alyssa and Megan, but Beauty said, “Yes, I will come. I must know this freedom.”

  “We will come, too,” said Megan. She turned and said, “Alyssa?”

  “Yes,” Alyssa said.

  “I promise you it will be the true beginning of your lives,” said Isis. “To experience actual freedom is the only way to understand the power of the document in your hands.”

  “We will declare our independence?” asked Alyssa.

  “You bet your asses you will,” said Charlie. “And ours.”

  *****

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  The walk from the Applebee’s to the jail was not far, and as Maestro’s men pushed them into two of the trash-scattered cells, Flex secretly feared they would not survive this critical error.

  Trina, Gem and Taylor were all put in the middle cell, and Punch, Nelson, Flex, Dave and Hemp were all installed into the first open cage.

  The four men who had led them there were nursing several lacerations and punctures from the exploding glass from the restaurant’s bar. There had been some delay in leaving the restaurant for need of patching them up with a first aid kit found in the kitchen.

  The guards left a kerosene lantern hanging on a hook across from their cells, providing a low, flickering illumination in the cellblock.

  After the men left the cellblock area, everyone gathered in the corner where the two cells connected. Flex said, “Can we assume that was Isis and Max back at the restaurant?”

  Hemp looked perplexed. “I’ve never seen any indication of telekinetic abilities in either Max or Isis,” he said. “But all that means for sure is that it was not Charlie.”

  “She could have been there,” said Gem, her face resting against the bars. “They still had their radios, so as long as they remembered each other’s numbers it wouldn’t have been too much of a feat finding one another.”

  “I hope so,” said Hemp. “I’m locked in here while my wife and son are out there battling who knows what.”

  “They may be the lucky ones,” said Dave. “No offense, but I’d rather be with them right now,” he said.

  Flex kicked at a piece of newspaper at his feet. His toe hit something hard, and it hit the wall and bounced back. A piece of plastic and a 9 volt battery slid across the floor.

  Nelson bent down to retrieve it. He put the poles on the battery to his tongue and jerked it away suddenly. “Holy moly, dudes! This battery is hot!”

  Flex swiped at the newspaper. Something was under it. He picked it up. “A fuckin’ radio,” he whispered.

  “Quick, Nel,” he said. “Give me the battery.”

  “This plastic piece is the battery cover,” said Nelson, giving both to Flex.

  Flex reassembled the radio and turned it on. The numbers lit up.

  Everyone smiled, and Flex put his finger to his lips. “We don’t know how many guards are stationed out there, and we don’t need them hearing a celebration.”

  “It’s that awkward moment when you’re trying to think of some clever way to say …” Dave Gammon’s voice trailed off and he simply held up a baggie.

  Punch said, “Is that WAT-5?”

  “Yep,” said Dave. “Looks like Charlie was here,” he added.

  Flex shook his head. His friends were the best and most dedicated he could ever have hoped to find. When he thought of Charlie holed up in that hospital linen room aiming that crossbow at him and Gem, it would not have entered his mind that almost fifteen years later they would still be together.

  Hemp could not stop smiling. “Okay, everyone,” he said. “Any idea what time it is?”

  “I tend to keep a running clock in my head,” said Nelson. “It’s around three in the morning.”

  “Okay, that means we’re looking at light within three hours, three and a half at the most,” said Hemp. “There’s no need for us to take the WAT-5 yet, but as we are all beyond our five hours, we’ll need to take it once we’ve secured our freedom and in a secure place.”

  “I could use mine now,” said Gem. “I’m wiped.”

  “It gets better,” said Punch, holding something behind his back. “Hemp, how much do you love me?”

  “I suppose that depends on whether you’re hiding a bouquet of freshly-picked Freesias behind your back or not,” said Hemp, smiling. I knew he was still floating on air with the knowledge that Charlie was okay.

  At least it seemed that way.

  Punch swung his hand around in front of him and opened his palm.

  “That’s Max’s lock pick kit!” he said excitedly, trying to keep his voice low.

  “Uncle Hemp, can you get us out of these cells with that?” asked Taylor.

  “Absolutely,” said Hemp. “We have to be prepared to take out any guards out front.”

  “Maybe we can radio Charlie, dude,” said Nelson. “She can recon the lobby for us. Wonder if she’s got her crossbow still.”

  “If she has to take them out, it would be the best method,” said Punch. “Quiet.”

  Flex said, “Okay, guys. Our prospects just got a hell of a lot better in the last five minutes. Let’s structure a plan and execute the shit like yesterday.”

  “Dude, that would require advanced technology and building a time machine,” said Nelson. “We’re just going
to have to work in the now.”

  Everyone in the two cells stared at Nelson.

  “Dudes, seriously? You don’t know a joke when you hear it?”

  “Nelson,” said Hemp.

  “Yeah, bro?” he said, still smiling.

  “That’s it, guys,” said Hemp. “Nelson!”

  Hemp was obviously trying to contain his excitement and keep his voice low.

  Nelson stared at him, his arms out. “Yeah, dude? I’m Nelson, so what? This should not come as a surprise to any of you who’ve known me over the last several years.”

  “Nelson’s Subdudo!” whispered Hemp, turning to Flex. “I’ve got a plan.”

  “We call Charlie, Max and Isis?” asked Trina.

  “No,” said Hemp. “We escape first and contact them when we’re prepared to meet them.”

  “No way,” said Gem. “Hemp, at least call them and let them know what we’re about to do,” she said. “If anything goes wrong, we might need backup.”

  Hemp nodded. “Good point, Gem.”

  Hemp went around to the cell door and unwrapped the lock pick kit, exposing its many tools. He removed what Flex believed were the largest devices in the kit and put his arm through the bars, working his way to the lock.

  As he worked on it, he looked at everyone, his tongue sticking out of the corner of his mouth as he concentrated. “It’s more difficult … without visuals,” he said. “The … sounds … are all you can … go by,” he said, as the door clicked open.

  Everyone’s arms went in the air in a silent cheer.

  “I haven’t see this many teeth since we were locked in that fuckin’ pen,” said Flex. “Okay, Hemp. What’s next, brother?”

  Hemp moved to the corner and said, “Everyone huddle around me. I’m calling the kids. I need your bodies around me to muffle the sound.”

  Hemp knelt down in the corner of the cell, and Gem, Taylor and Trina huddled around him in the other cell, and Punch, Flex, Nelson and Dave created a wall on his other side.

  He turned on the radio. Flex looked down and saw it was already turned to Channel 2.

  “Hemp, buddy,” said Flex.

  Hemp looked up, smiling, tears in his eyes.