Out to sea, in the low evening sun, they could see the silhouette of the ship on the reddening water. Its prow faced the entrance to the bay. As the boys continued after Kent, they could see the distance between the ship and the peninsula narrowing.
“We got to stop him before it gets too close,” Hong-gi gasped as he ran. Pablo didn’t reply because he was gasping too.
Kent had stopped at the end of the peninsula, a little tip of rock at the end of a narrow spine a few meters wide at the end. They were almost there.
Now what?
Pablo glanced behind him and saw a flicker of movement among the rocks.
“Someone’s coming about half a kilometer behind,” he said. His voice sounded as bad as Hong-gi’s.
“Who?” Hong-gi’s question came out more as a choke than a word.
“Dunno.”
They kept running. The ridge was dotted here and there with bushes and two or three low trees. Sometimes large boulders hid their view of the sea and every time one did Pablo almost panicked, thinking the next time the ship came into view it would be a sinking, smoking wreck.
They got to the last area with cover before the ridge flattened out and opened up. Kent was only a couple hundred meters away. The boys paused and looked back. If the person coming up from behind was another guard, they didn’t have much time.
“Stay here,” Pablo told his friend. “If Kent sees you he’ll shoot you for sure.”
Pablo took a deep breath and stepped forward.
“Wait!” Hong-gi whispered.
Pablo didn’t listen to his friend. When he got about ten meters behind Kent, the guard turned.
Kent raised a hand with his palm towards Pablo, who stopped. The guard’s other hand held a black box with a couple of buttons and a little radio antenna.
Pablo glanced at the ship. How far could a little antenna like that transmit?
“Stay there, kid. It will all be over soon.”
“Stop it! Why are you doing this?”
Kent looked at the ship again, then down at a little dial on the transmitter.
“You can’t blow it up!”
Pablo took out the clasp knife Mitch had given him and opened it.
Kent turned back just as he did. The glare Kent gave him almost made him step back.
“Drop it,” Kent ordered.
“No.”
“I said drop it.”
Pablo felt like he was stuck to the ground, like he was some little boulder jutting out of the peninsula. He didn’t want to use the knife, didn’t even know how. But this was the only way to get Kent’s attention.
“Make me.”
“I got better things to do,” the guard said, turning half back to the ship. “Once I’m done I’ll take you back to your mom. She can deal with you.”
“Mom’s on my side.”
Kent shook his head, acting like he regretted it more than he probably did. “That won’t be good for your mom.”
Pablo glanced over his shoulder. Hong-gi stood where he had left him, looking uncertain. Beyond him there was no movement. How long before that other person got here? They would be trapped in a minute.
But what if it was Mom, or that scavenger? They could shoot Kent right off the end of this rock.
Pablo needed to get out of the way. If they were sneaking up they wouldn’t have a chance to warn him to duck. He had to get to one side of Kent so they could get him.
But the spine of rock they stood on was really narrow. The only way to get to one side of Kent was to get right next to him.
Coming closer would distract Kent too. Pablo licked his lips and crept forward.
He got a few steps before Kent looked back at him again.
“Damn it, kid.” Kent closed the antenna and put the little transmitter in his pocket. For a moment Pablo was worried he was going to pull out the M16 strapped to his back, but instead he balled up his fists.
Pablo edged closer, trying to get out of the way of whoever was coming up behind him. He wanted to look for them, but that would give away what he was doing.
But what if it was another guard? Then they had lost and there was nothing they could do.
Pablo held out the clasp knife and edged towards Kent.
Kent whipped his arm forward, the edge of his open palm hitting Pablo’s wrist. The knife clattered to the ground.
Pablo hissed with pain, tears filling his eyes. He doubled over and held his wrist.
“Man up, kid. I didn’t break it. Now get back with your Chink friend and stop causing trouble.”
Pablo edged further onto the end of the promontory, getting out of the way of whoever was coming up behind.
“I said beat it!” Kent grabbed him and swung him around, pushing him towards the base of the peninsula and getting him in the way again.
Sunlight flashed off of something metal in the rocks behind Hong-gi. Pablo dropped to the ground.
Kent noticed it a moment later. He unslung his M16 as an arrow shot down the length of the peninsula and hit him in the leg.
Kent grunted and fell on the ground. A moment later another arrow hit him in the shoulder and the M16 fell with a clatter.
Pablo leapt up and tossed the M16 over the edge. As Kent groaned, Pablo pulled the pistol out of his holster and tossed that away too. Kent reached for the clasp knife but Pablo was faster. He knocked it away, his gut wrenching as he saw Mitch’s gift arc into the water. Then he went for the pocket that had the transmitter.
Kent recovered enough to struggle. Just as Pablo pulled out the transmitter, Kent grabbed his wrist with his good hand. The two played tug-o-war for a moment. Kent tried to reach up with his wounded arm but winced in pain as the arrow in his shoulder shifted with the movement of the muscle.
As Pablo tried to pull away, the Kent tried another tactic. He squeezed with all his strength on Pablo’s wrist. The boy yelped in pain but didn’t drop the transmitter. He heard running feet approaching fast. All he had to do was hold on another few seconds.
Kent wrenched his wrist and the transmitter fell to the ground, landing on its buttons. Pablo cringed and looked at the ship. It didn’t explode. Then he looked down at the transmitter. Kent reached for it, his face beaming with triumph.
Hong-gi dove in and grabbed it. Kent lunged for him. He missed by a centimeter and fell on his front, twisting the two arrows in his body and crying out with pain.
“Hold it right there!”
The Asian scavenger stalked up to them, her bow drawn back. Her face radiated rage and the wind blew her long black hair behind her. Pablo gulped. He was sure glad that anger wasn’t for him.
The two boys scurried behind her. Hong-gi fiddled with the transmitter.
“Careful!” Pablo said.
“I’m not touching any buttons,” his friend replied. After a moment he figured out how to remove the battery and held it up with a grin.
“We won!” Pablo whooped.
“You little idiot,” Kent growled. He had managed to sit up, his tightly clenched teeth bared in pain and anger. “I was trying to save you.”
The scavenger shook her head. He turned to her, staring her down along the length of her arrow’s red shaft.
“Go ahead,” he said. “Get it over with.”
The scavenger seemed to consider for a moment before saying, “There’s an old Chinese expression parents use on their children, ‘when will the iron be forged into steel.’ It means that the child needs to toughen up. My father always used to say it to me when I cried. He stopped saying it when I killed my first bandit. It felt like I had passed some sort of test, but I always regretted killing that man. I can still remember the look on his face. Oh, I didn’t have a choice, just like I didn’t have a choice when I killed one of your men back there. But that’s going to hang on me as much as the bandit I killed. I don’t want to be steel all the way through, not if it means I can kill people and not regret it for the rest of my life. People like that, people like you, are the reason we’re scavengi
ng through ruins and soaking up contamination every time we drink a cup of water.”
She eased her bowstring forward and put the arrow back in her quiver.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
Within half an hour Yu-jin and the boys were safe on the ship. He and the Chinese crew had seen the fight through binoculars and The Doctor came in the motorboat to bring them to the freighter moored just outside the entrance to the bay. Captain Wang, uncertain of what was going on, had decided to be cautious.
He listened impassively to the whole story as Yu-jin explained. The Doctor, Pablo, and Hong-gi stood beside her on deck. She told them about the riots, the bomb, everything. A team lowered themselves on ropes from the stern and removed it. As the conversation continued, The Doctor watched with obvious impatience, frustrated he couldn’t understand. Finally he spoke.
“Look, I need to get back. Will Captain Wang stay now?”
Yu-jin translated his question.
“Yes,” the captain replied. “He’s proven his worth and we shall have a three-day trade fair. Tell him than we can start once the situation is stabilized in the city. Until then we’ll moor a little offshore.”
“We need solar cells most of all,” the Doctor told him.
“As I mentioned, we cannot trade that technology, but we can supply you with the rare earths for you to make your own replacements. My superiors didn’t specify that I couldn’t trade those. Would that be satisfactory?”
The Doctor nodded eagerly. “I have a good electrician. Thank you.”
“We want the lights to still be on when we get back. If your economy is doing well, everyone benefits.”
“You’re a smart man, captain. Now I really must get going. There’s a big mess back in New City to clean up.”
The Doctor turned to Yu-jin. “You coming?”
She blinked. Was she coming? Her gaze moved to the two sailors named Song. They stood a little apart, smiling at her.
You could have a new life here on the ship. In a month you’d see China.
She looked back at the shore. Her whole life was back there, such as it was. And there was more work to do.
“I’ll have them row me ashore once I’m done here. I’ll see you later.”
She said this in English, and then in Mandarin. Her heart clenched when she saw the disappointment on the faces of her two distant relatives.
“Sorry, I have to make my own way,” she told them.
“We’ll see you on the next voyage,” Song Jianfu said.
As The Doctor turned to go, Pablo asked him, “What’s going to happen to Jessica?”
“She’s going back to her father where she belongs,” The Doctor replied with a scowl.
“Oh,” Pablo said, looking disappointed.
The Doctor motioned towards the motorboat. “Come on, kids, hop aboard.”
Pablo and Hong-gi exchanged glances.
“Um, we’ll come back with Yu-jin. We have some stuff to do,” Pablo said.
The Doctor shrugged. Without another word he got back in his boat and motored away. They watched him go.
“Your mayor is a remarkable man,” the captain said.
Hong-gi spoke up. “Please don’t blame New City for what happened, sir. The Doctor tried to protect us.”
Captain Wang smiled down on him. “It seems your friend did a better job. What’s your name?”
“Wang Hong-gi.”
The captain’s eyes widened with surprise. “And do you want to stay with your friend or stay here on the ship like you planned?”
Hong-gi looked at Pablo for a moment. “I have nowhere to live, even if The Doctor keeps all the Asians safe.”
“You don’t have any family?” Yu-jin asked, putting a hand on his shoulder.
Hong-gi looked at his feet. “No.”
“Yes you do,” Captain Wang said. “Don’t we share the same surname?”
Hong-gi gave him a confused look. “But you were born on the other side of the world.”
The captain gave him a sad smile. “Too many of us have died to turn our backs on distant cousins. You can work on this ship as Gebre’s assistant. He’ll teach you how to use the radio and you can teach him to speak proper English.”
Yu-jin glanced at Gebre, who looked a bit abashed. When she looked back at Hong-gi he found him crying and hugging Pablo.
“Why does everyone have to leave?” Pablo sniffled.
As she tried to comfort the two of them, the captain whispered something to Gebre, who and hurried off. She soothed both boys, telling them how they would see each other at the next trip and congratulating them for being heroes. That cheered them up, but only a little.
Gebre returned holding a box.
“Translate for me, Yu-jin,” the captain said. “Pablo, you have been very brave and saved your friend. Because he is of my family, you are now a friend of mine and I want to give you a gift.”
With a grin, Gebre opened the box. A marine radio sat inside, its antenna coiled around it. A small solar cell sat in the box next to it.
“You can use this to talk to your friend, and we’ll tell you when we’re coming back.”
“Cool!” Pablo said, his eyes lighting up.
Yu-jin looked at the lowering sun. “We best get going. Can you row us ashore? We need to pick up his mother, who was injured fighting the guards.”
Pablo’s eyes went wide. “Mom’s injured?”
“It’s not bad. She’ll be fine.”
“And you just left her out there?” Pablo said.
Yu-jin smiled. “No, she left herself out there. She knew there were more important things to be done. She got a slight wound in her leg. Instead of having me take her back to New City she told me to go finish the job. That was more important in her eyes. She’s a lot like you.”
Pablo turned first to Hong-gi and then Captain Wang. “I got to go. Captain, can I come back before you sail off?”
“Certainly.”
Pablo and Hong-gi gave each other a high five. The two sailors named Song escorted Yu-jin and Pablo down to one of the boats and rowed them across the water as the sun sank low in the west. Pablo couldn’t take his eyes off his new radio.
“That’s quite a present,” Yu-jin said.
“I’m going to talk to him all the time. This one looks even better than the one Jessica had.”
“That thing’s really going to be useful. The Doctor will be glad to hear you have it.”
Pablo gave her an odd look and didn’t reply. As they came ashore she embraced her two relatives and told them she’d see them the following day. Then they hurried ashore, eager to find Annette before the light failed. The crew had left them off a bit north of the opening to Toxic Bay and they walked through gritty sand dunes interspersed with bits of old building material.
Suddenly Yu-jin realized Pablo wasn’t walking next to her anymore. She started to turn when his words made her freeze.
“I’ll break it.”
She continued her turn, moving slowly like if a man had a gun on her.
Pablo stood a few paces behind. The radio sat on the sand. He held a chunk of concrete over it. He was shaking, but his jaw was set and his eyes locked into hers.
Boy and man, Yu-jin realized.
“Don’t come near me or I’ll break it,” he said.
“Why?”
“Adults mess everything up. They’re the reason the world’s all poison and ruins and stuff. Kent took my last radio and was going to use it to blow up the ship. I’m not letting anyone have this one.”
“The Doctor wouldn’t—”
“This radio’s mine! Captain Wang gave it to me! And I’m keeping it.”
Yu-jin stared at him. She could probably stop him. Kick sand in his face or dive for the radio and block the stone with her body. Distract him. Any one of a number of things.
And she realized she wouldn’t.
Learning to stand up to your elders, eh? I’m twice your age and I still don’t have the knack for it.
She jerked a thumb over her shoulder in the direction they had been heading. “I’m going to walk two dunes that way and wait for you. Meet me when you’re done hiding it.”
Pablo looked suspicious.
“You’re not going to peek?”
“I promise.”
“People promise lots of stuff.”
Yu-jin sighed. Yeah, they did. Like how she had promised Randy that she was going to live with him, and how she had convinced herself this was true even though she knew it wouldn’t work out, when she knew she would eventually break the heart of a man who had been nothing but good to her.
Pablo still held the chunk of concrete over the radio. His hands shook. It was a lot of weight for such a small kid.
“OK then, I’ll make you a deal,” Yu-jin said. “I won’t peek if you promise to tell me when the ship is coming back. I have…family…on that ship.”
“I will if I think it’s safe to.”
“Fair enough. See you in a minute.” Yu-jin turned and walked away.
She walked over two dunes and sat in the sand. She waited for a long time, thinking about little other than the fact that the life she was going to live in the Burbs would be nothing like the one she had carefully planned out over the past five years. Hell, she didn’t even know if she was going to live in the Burbs. The Doctor was already talking about giving her citizenship.
So much for the quiet, easy life.
Pablo appeared over the dune in front of her.
“You circled around,” Yu-jin said with a smile.
“Makes it harder to track me. I hid the radio really good. You’ll never find it. Not in 28 million years.”
She got up and dusted the sand off her pants. “Guess you really do have the scavenger’s life in your blood.”
Pablo brightened. “You think so?”
“Yes.”
They headed south. Pablo surprised her by taking her hand.
“You sure my mom is OK?”
“Yeah, the shot wasn’t too bad. We’ll probably meet her coming this way. She’ll take a couple of sticks and the shoelaces from one of the guards and make a brace for her leg, and then use one of the assault rifles as a crutch. She’s probably making pretty good time.”
We Had Flags (Toxic World Book 3) Page 26
