My feet pound down the stairs. Tripp sits on a short, concrete bench at the bottom. I stand in front of him, glancing around.
“Hell is this?” I ask, resting my vision on Tripp.
He grins and reaches into his pocket. “This,” he says, holding up a small, plastic bag with a greenish-purple herb bundled inside. “Is a bag of happy. Not as good as a time machine, but better than a beer.”
Oscar nips at my ear. I grab some sunflower seeds from my pocket and hold up my palm. He swoops toward it and eats from my hand.
After I get him right, I focus on Tripp and his little bag. Leaning over, I spot what looks like glitter sprinkled all over the herb. I squint.
“Is this…”
“Orc weed,” Tripp says, pulling a smooth, green pipe from his other pocket. “Some of the last in the world, too.”
Straightening up, I whistle. I’m impressed. I’ve heard things about Orc drugs. Claims of it helping solve formerly elusive mysteries of the universe. Claims of it being used in cancer research facilities to give scientists cutting edge ideas. Never been able to get near the shit, because only Orcs grow it.
And if an Orc doesn’t want to sell you something, you don’t argue. You shut the hell up. When he starts to pack the bowl, I turn and place the rest of Oscar’s seeds on the bottom step. Then, I wave him off. Once he’s eating, I turn back to him.
His arms are extended, holding out the bowl in one, a lighter in the other. “My people call this the answer.”
I raise an eyebrow. “The answer to what?”
“Name it,” he says, waving the bowl and lighter at me. I hesitate, remember where I am, then reach for the bowl. Holding the pipe to my lips, I pause with my thumb on the lighter.
“Come on Pike, man up.” He grins.
I narrow my eyes at him. “It’s not that, just haven’t done this shit since college. And even them, I’d burn regular shit.”
He chuckles.
I suck in a deep breath, then light the pipe and press it to my lips. It doesn’t even burn on the way in. I inhale the smoke to the bottom of my lungs, then hold my breath.
All it takes is one hit and I...
Am something else. At first I think I’m high—higher than shit—but I’ve been high. I’ve never been this. This is some other shit.
Colors brighten, snapping everything into focus. Green leaves on towering trees wave to me. The wind that rustles them sings. Even the air, so stagnant before, goes in like it’s been filtered through a machine.
Yeah, this is some other shit.
Sure, the world is over, and I got someone killed, and I’m off the no killing wagon—whatever fuck I had left to give was gone as soon as I inhaled.
If I were gay, I’d throw Shoestring a good dicking. He’s a genius. And so am I.
I wonder if I can cure the berzerkers. Screw the C6 plan. I can think of a cure for the flesh eaters outside our gates.
No, I’m thinking small.
I can cure… All the things.
And I will. Right after this walk.
I stumble, and jerk my head right and left. When the hell did I start walking? Where am I even going? My gaze drops to my feet for proof of movement because I can’t feel anything.
They damn sure are moving. Right, then left, then right.
Nice.
“Something wrong?”
I lift my gaze toward Shoestring’s voice. He’s a few feet in front of me. I shake my head. Gray is sweeping on the left side of my vision. A feather light touch on my ear.
Oscar.
I love my frickin’ bird.
“Hit us up with some walking music,” I say, the words slurring from somewhere else. Looking around, I try to locate who said it and how they knew what I was just about to say.
Oscar starts to chirp the melody to some old school rap song. Can’t think of the name. Nothing matters but the beat though—
That’s what I should have done. Created a rap label. Should have passed up on my scholarship to University of Georgia.
I could have been Jay-Z, boats and fine women, instead of—
Something soft and mushy oozes in between my toes. I jerk to a stop and look down. My toes wiggle and a few of them pop. When did I take off my shoes?
Man, Orcs smoke some good shit.
That reminds me of an epiphany I had about Tripp earlier. I glance up to find him regarding me with amusement in his eyes. I point at him.
“You. Are an Orc. That’s why you’re mad strong.” I smile at how clever I am, then start walking again. Tripp chuckles. The sound echoes and swirls around me like a distant bell.
“Yeah, I told you that five minutes ago.”
“You don’t look like any I saw on TV.” I glance sidelong at him, eyebrow raised.
“I’m liminal. Not all monsters can shift, and looking human makes it easier for everyone.”
I reach my arm toward him, and two more float out beside them. Shit, I have three arms now?
Now that’s a keep kids off drugs commercial.
Ignoring my extra limbs, I clap his shoulder. “You may be a monster, but you’re all right with me.”
He reaches up and squeezes my hand. Tingles jump all over my skin.
“Thanks.”
I take another step. My foot slips and Tripp reaches out to steady me. I blink the kaleidoscope of a world into focus. The front of the house edges into my swimmy vision.
“I think I need to sit.”
His grip on my arm tightens, then I’m guided down to the bottom step. It feels like a cloud is under my ass.
“It’s almost dinner time.” Tripp’s voice, amused.
I roll my gaze up and nod at him.
Without looking at me, he says, “That was a good thing you did. For the prisoners in the Pit.”
Orc grass still has my give-a-shit out of order, but it’s not that absolute not give-a-fuck from—
However long ago.
Curiosity buzzes my brain. “Why was it good? Sonya is dead, and these Enforcer fucks aren’t going to treat them equally. Probably push them to break the rules. In the end, I accomplished jack shit.”
A smile stretches his boney face. “Not true. Every action accomplishes something. And it’s good to know that I’m fighting with a good man.”
Orcs are known for their Zen like calm. And I just smoked the reason that stereotype is true.
I snigger.
“I’m not good. Not a man. And this isn’t a fight.” I lean against the side railing. “And, if it is, it’s not one I want to fight. Not on the team that drafted my ass anyway.”
“Then why did you give in?” Tripp lowers himself next to me. “Just to save Sadie?”
I shrug.
“You must really love her.”
Darkness rattles in my head. The drugs must be wearing thin, because something like guilt twists my gut.
“I owe her.” I turn my head and study him. “What about you? Why are you here?”
He smiles. “I volunteered.”
My eyes widen. “You... Why?”
Looking out at the compound, Tripp shrugs. He doesn’t answer right away. My thoughts float upward, with cartwheels and jazz hands, for what feels like a few hours. Tripp clears his throat. I dart my eyes over at him. He’s still staring ahead.
As I follow his gaze, he says, “Out there, the panic was… That kind of shit happens in history and movies. Being in that kind of reality… without government telling everyone what to do. With that sickness spreading. Turning people into a new species….”
He cracks his knuckles.
“The compounds went up, and I and the rest of my tribe were sent to Compound Four. They guarded the walls, and I signed up for search and rescue squads. When they announced a confirmed cure, and that it was being sent to Compound Six for organization and execution, I signed right up.”
His face darkens and he casts his gaze down.
“After gathering so many of them up… The ones that just stopped doing an
ything but waste away. The ones that would just roam around for days, feet bleeding and covered with bruises. Even the berserkers, ripping through everything they could, including their own families… I had to help stop it. I have no desire to live in this world.”
After several seconds of quiet, he turns his head toward me. A weak smile settles on his face. “My tribe disowned me, so we better pull this off.”
I smile. “What is it anyway? The cure.”
He shakes his head. “No clue. All I know is we can’t get it without you.”
My mouth folds down into a frown. “Wonder why that is.” Several theories bounce around in my dome piece, but none stick around for long enough to make sense out of.
“My guess is power. You don’t go through the extremes they went through to force a guy to cooperate unless he has a skill set you need for a mission to work.”
The frown on my face deepens. “All I do is kill people. Lots of other descendants do it better.”
“You kill people in a specific way.”
I shake my head. “Yeah... but unless the cure is a lost soul, I’m not going to be too helpful.” I drum my fingers against my knees.
“Well, Juliet is supposed to brief us tomorrow.” Tripp stretches his arms overhead. Footsteps shuffle in our direction; I glance up as Kiwi stands on the other side of Tripp.
I lick my lips. Kiwi, bet she’s good enough to eat.
Ha. Like, the fruit. I scan her up and down while she ignores me.
“We’re supposed to eat in the main hall tonight. Show of unity or something. Wanna walk over together?”
The steps creak when he stands up.
“Sure,” he says, then nudges me with a toe. “Pike?”
I wave them off. “Nah, go ahead without me. I’ll holler at you when I get there.”
He nods, then holds up his skinny arm for Kiwi. She takes it and they stroll away. Muttered speech and laughter float back to me, until they roam out of hearing range. When they do, I glance at the fake sky and lean back.
I send Oscar off, and he takes to the air in a rush of muted silver. Alone, I enjoy feeling empty. It’s a good empty. No monsters to disturb the hollow space inside.
I can’t remember the last time I felt peace like this. Even though the serenity isn’t real, I sit with it as long as I can just in case this is my last chance at it.
When I make it to the cafeteria, it buzzes with activity and speech. Keeping close to the entrance doors, I peer through the movement of bodies and try to locate Sadie. When I don’t see her anywhere, I start down the middle walkway, scanning the crowd on both sides of the room as I go.
Something brushes my side, and small groups of people dart pass me. I sidestep to the edge of the walkway so I’m not a roadblock and continue my search.
Finally, I spot her three tables down, seated with a group of kids that look her age. I break into a huge grin. Nice to know there are still kids running around.
Sadie doesn’t seem as happy as I am with her company. She’s the posture of attitude, arms crossed, lips puckered. I start toward her, because clearly she needs a reminder of how the hell she was raised. She glances up almost as soon as I close in on her and stares.
The look gives me pause. Her eyes dart around the room, then jab into me. She does this several times, until I glance around to find out what she’s trying to tell me.
It’s subtle at first. The left side of the room. The right side. The left line to get your food. The right one. An invisible line is set up, humans on one side, and descendants on the other.
At the front of the room, two crudely painted signs announce the same thing.
Out of the Pit, but still not out of the compound.
This is some separate but equal shit.
My gaze rests back on Sadie. Then I avert my eyes and trudge over to my line. I feel her glare on my back the entire time. Shuffling ahead inches at a time, I start to wish for more Orc grass.
This is bullshit.
I mean, I’m used to being regarded with fear. I’m a six-foot tall black man, so yeah, been around soft racism back before this. You know, the kind of thing where white guys act surprised that I pay my bills and graduated Summa Cum Laude.
But this is some before the civil rights era mess. But it’s not my color these people fear. It’s the myth. The make believes.
I get my tray and turn around, intending to find Tripp, only to freeze in front of the room. The memory of Sonya’s head in my hands stab at the inside of my chest. I glance at the descendent side. Several pairs of eyes study me in curiosity.
I glance back at Sadie.
She shakes her head.
Yeah, I’m a shit role model. Not like this should be news to her. Ignoring the contempt-filled glare she’s shooting me, I sit down at the nearest descendent table. Everyone goes silent. I bend over my tray and start to eat.
Movement from the other side snaps my eyes up. Some kind of instinct, as well. Sadie is walking across the room. Across the line. To my side of the cafeteria. After one last hate glare, she sits next to another table of kids. The make believes her age.
My eyes dart around. I make out a few whispers, some surprised speech from the ones that notice. For several tense seconds I wait for her to be forced back across the line. Keeping my eyes trained on her, brightness lights up her face.
Nothing happens and the tension eases out of my muscles. Not that it stops me from keeping an eye on her. She’s leaned next to the little girl next to her, a powder white bald shorty with silver eyes. One of the graces. I can sense her energy right away. It’s a Muse thing. Graces, though, they’re the best of my kind.
In that moment, I’m so frickin’ proud of that kid. She has bigger balls than me. And an allergy to injustice that’s annoying, but impressive.
Fuck it.
I stand and trek to the table. My tray plops down before my butt hits the chair. Again, the table goes silent. Again, I ignore it and eat. I glance up at Sadie. Her bright grin is trained on me now.
I wink, then open my mouth to greet her when the lanky kid I sat next to leans against my arm. Slowly, I turn to look at him. He pushes his glasses up his nose.
“Wow, I’ve never seen a siren before.” He leans even closer until I think he might try to climb inside. I place a finger on his forehead and push him back.
“Geez, kid. Personal space.”
He pouts and slumps back into his chair. With a chuckle, I glance back over at Sadie, who’s twisted around in her chair whispering to a wiry little girl with pigtails. The girl grabs her, trying to pull her up. Sadie snatches her arm away. The girl stumbles back.
“Back off, Ash!”
My eyes dart around. More people are starting to notice us. I let out a low whistle… not the focused kind, just a regular one to get their attention.
“Scram, shorty.” I jerk my head toward the other side of the room.
The girl Sadie was talking to, Ashley I assume, eyes widen, and she backs slowly away, lip trembling. A shot of fear storms my system. Before I can react to it, the girl spins around and darts to the nearest Enforcer.
I sigh.
It’s about to go down.
“Ugh, I can’t stand that little bitch.” Sadie slams down her fist. The table vibrates.
My eyes don’t leave the little bitch as I mutter, “Watch. Your. Mouth.”
The little bitch points at me, directing a buzz cut my way.
Did I say I was happy to see kids running around?
“Sadie, get back to your side of the room,” I say under my breath. “Now.”
“I’m not afraid of these fascist fucks.”
I roll my eyes. So much stupid bravery. “Do what I say.”
Her chin thrusts up. “You’re not my dad.”
I’m about to hit her with my serious face, when a group of two Enforcers close in on her seat. Two more walk up behind me. My entire body tenses. I push my tray to the side.
“You need to return to your designated table
,” one says to her in a gruff voice.
Her face twists into a sarcastic smirk.
Just do what he says, Sadie. Just go.
“And, if I don’t?”
“Shut up,” I say in a terse voice.
“You are in violation of Compound Six rules of conduct. Return to your…”
“Why don’t you shove your rules of conduct—” Sadie begins, and I close my eyes. Goddammit. “ —right up your ass?” Her laughter booms around the silent room.
I close my eyes. There is the echo of static mutters and grunting. Slowly, I open my eyes and stand up.
“No need to call your buddies.” I nod to buzz cut’s wrist comm. “I’ll take her back to her side. It’s all gravy.”
As I back away, I lock eyes with Sadie. My stare says I’ll mess her up if she doesn’t zip it. I knock into the two Enforcers behind me. There is a thud. Something crashes to the floor. I twist around.
The little girl that pointed me out is sprawled on the linoleum. Her face screws up, and she starts to wail. Footsteps close in on me. I turn back around.
The Enforcer she mouthed off to jerks Sadie to her feet. An alarm blares. A curtain of deep blue drapes across my vision.
Armed guards enter the room at a running march. Descendants are jerked to the floor. Their faces press to their sides. Many of their hands cover the heads. On the other side, guards usher people out of the cafeteria.
Speakers set in the corners of the room announce that this is a lockdown.
An Enforcer snaps my arms behind my back. I make it easy for him, all the while my eyes are trained on Sadie. She jerks away from buzz cut. In response, he grabs her again, slams her to the table, and twists one arm behind her back.
A wide smile stretches across my face.
Buzz cut done fucked up.
Sadie whimpers. “Let go of me!”
I lean forward, bringing whoever’s got me from behind almost off his feet, then snap my head back. My head pounds into the guard. He lets out a pained shriek and thuds to the ground. I whirl around and slam my boot down into the side of his jaw. Darting out, I slide across a table and clamp my hands around the neck of the Enforcer holding Sadie down.
Silenced Page 7
