Escape to Canamith

by Richard Friedman

  “That’s funny. Days off? Now? I can just picture it… I’ll get a call tomorrow from the General and I’ll tell him I’m under the weather and need to stay in bed. I don’t think that’ll fly.”

  Kenyon interrupted with positive news.

  “Hey, guys, we’ll be back on the road in a minute, and it looks clear ahead. Professor Jenkins, I’ll have you in Taylorville soon.”

  “Taylorville?” asked Aldo. “Doesn’t your sister-in-law live in Taylorville? Lila, what’s going on?”

  “I’m not sure how to tell you this, Aldo, but I told J.J. to leave Sanderell and go to his sister’s house in Taylorville.”

  Aldo was surprised. He sat there dumbfounded for a second or two before he implored Lila to reconsider her choice. “Lila, are you serious? Taylorville? Why did you do that? You know the barrels have been removed. The whales are dead. There’s no less danger in Taylorville than in Sanderell.”

  “Maybe, maybe not. It’s hard to explain. I wanted Sophie with family while I was gone. His sister Kate hates me, but she’ll help take care of Sophie in case anything happened to me. I never realized how much I missed that girl until I got to the capital. I’ll never leave her again.”

  “I understand that. Perhaps if I had a wife or family it would be different. The closest thing to a family I have is the university and, well, you.”

  “Aldo, you have people that love you.”

  “I have people? I’ve got nobody.”

  “I thought you and that Alisha girl were an item?”

  “I wish. I’ve buried myself in my job and Alisha told me that I was putting her second in my life. I’m not the first person guilty of that.”

  “You’re not the first or the last. I haven’t exactly told you everything. I haven’t even told J.J. yet, but I’m thinking about taking my family back to Canamith. There’s so much to tell you…”

  “How about telling me how you came to Sanderell. Your records are a bit sketchy on that part of your life.”

  “Why were you looking at my records?”

  “Hey, don’t shoot the messenger. That came from the top of the department the first week I started. I didn’t even know you then.”

  Kenyon jerked the truck to the right and Aldo hit his head on the side of the truck in the same spot that was injured earlier.

  Aldo shouted, “can you watch it, please?”

  An hour later, Lila had finished telling Aldo all he needed to know about Canamith and Lila’s departure from the village. Kenyon pulled into Kate’s suburban development. It was quiet. Too quiet. They passed by the local elementary school. The school was closed and the parking lot was empty. The local grocery store was empty and broken glass littered the sidewalk and parking lot. Kenyon used his GPS device and when the female voice said to him, “Your destination is on the right,” Lila was seconds away from a reunion with her family.

  Kenyon opened the door for his weary traveler and grabbed her luggage and laptop, put them on the driveway and before he could say anything, Lila raised her right hand to her mouth in a gesture to silence the man who saved her life.

  “Kenyon, don’t speak. I want to thank you a million times for everything. I started out this trip questioning you, but you came through with flying colors and it’s given me all the more reason to love and respect you and your fellow soldiers. You are the bravest, toughest men and women I’ve met and I wanted to say thanks.” Lila tried to wrap her arms around the soldier, but his girth made it impossible for her hands to reach around him. She managed to get a big squeeze on his shoulders, and that was enough to make Kenyon blush.

  “Oh, it’s nothing, Professor Jenkins. I’m just doing my job. You take care now.”

  “Yeah, not a care in the world.”

  Lila realized it was time to say goodbye to Aldo. They had worked together for many years and now the uncertainty of the situation made their reunion in the foreseeable future tenuous. Lila’s hunch was that she wouldn’t see Aldo for months and that pained her.

  “Shhh,” Aldo said. “There’s nothing for you to say. You know where I’ll be. I’m not done fighting this thing. You’ve made your decision and it’s not my place to stop you. I didn’t drag you out of the capital, and I’m not going to stop you from marching back into the mountains. Lila, trust what your heart tells you.”

  “I have to make a decision that gives Sophie the best chance to live. Where will she be safe? Can you promise that the University is safe? Where does this end? I don’t even have a one-week supply of food and water in the house. Who knows what Kate has, or wants to share? It’s the last thing you’d expect from me, but I can’t put my rational thoughts ahead of my emotions. Not this time.”

  “I never thought I’d hear you say that, professor.”

  “Yeah, me either. I think from now on you should call me Lila. I think we can dispense with the formality under these circumstances. Why don’t you come with us?”

  “I’m not the adventurous type. I throw up on planes, remember? You should see me in a tent. Where would I even go to the bathroom?” Aldo said grinning.

  “Aldo, always the jokester. Are you sure you won’t come with me?”

  “Yeah, thanks for asking, but I’m going back to the University and see what I can do there.”

  “Goodbye, Aldo. Be careful. I’ll call you, or see you, or who knows what.”

  They hugged for a minute. Gorrell kissed her on the top of her head and said, “Go on, get going…Lila. You are the mother of a girl who is waiting for you. Hurry up. Grab your gear. I hate long goodbyes.”

  With that, Lila grabbed her backpack and laptop computer, and strode to the front door of the house.

  Lila would never see Aldo Gorrell again.

  CHAPTER 31

  “Mommy!!!!!”

  Sophie leapt into Lila’s arms. Lila gave her kisses over her head and face. Sophie smiled and tears of joy ran down Lila’s face.

  “What’s wrong, mommy? Why are you sad?”

  “I’m not sad, Sophie, I’m happy. These are happy tears, sweetheart. See, I told you mommy would be back.”

  “That doesn’t make any sense, mommy. What are happy tears?”

  “You’ll understand someday when you have children.”

  Lila hugged J.J., who was equally glad to see his wife return home safely. Even stoic Kate offered a smidgen of affection and gave Lila a welcoming hug. The four of them stood by the doorway talking. Sophie tugged on her mother’s shirt, asking for Lila to pick her up.

  J.J., Kate, and Lila were talking simultaneously when a new voice joined in.

  “Hey, sis, remember me?”

  Lila turned and rushed Mathis. He stumbled backwards when the force of her hug was stronger than anticipated.

  “It’s great to see you,” she sobbed. “I’ve missed everyone. The last few days have been, well…I’m emotionally drained. I missed you and Buck so much. What is happening to our world?”

  “We’ve missed you too.”

  “What are you doing here? Is dad okay?”

  “He’s fine. That’s not why I’m here. Can we speak in private for a few minutes?”

  J.J. shot a look at Lila making his aggravation clear, but understood that Mathis and Lila were going to speak in private whether he wanted them to or not. He steered Sophie down the hallway to her bedroom.

  “Come on, Sophie. Daddy’s going to read you a story. Mommy will be there in a minute.” J.J. looked at Lila again and made sure she knew Sophie was eager for her to join them in the bedroom.

  “I love your stories,” Sophie bubbled. “I want to sleep in your bed tonight.”

  “We’ll see, sweetie, we’ll see,” J.J. answered.

  “I’ll be right there, Sophie. Listen to daddy,” Lila added.

  Father and daughter skipped down the hallway. Kate retreated toward her bedroom, and before she closed her door she issued a warning to them.

  “Don’t venture off the porch. Stay close to the house, and make it snappy. I don’t wa
nt a bunch of wild animals picking up your scent.”

  “Yeah, I’ve had enough of that myself,” said Mathis.

  Lila and Mathis stepped outside and sat side by side on the porch swing, with a faded flower pattern on the cushions and a metal chain link that squeaked as brother and sister gently pushed the swing to and fro.

  “This brings back a lot of memories, huh?” asked Mathis.

  Lila smiled a little and said, “Yeah, it takes me back a few years.”

  “Everything about your life was different then.”

  “I’m the same person you knew. I’ve just drastically altered my mailing address.” She laughed, then continued. “Here we are.”

  “So much for small talk.”

  “We don’t have time for small talk. If dad is okay, then why did you come?”

  Mathis sat back in the swing and planted his feet firmly on the ground, preventing the swing from moving.

  “Lila, for the people of Canamith, this moment is a culmination of 2,000 years of hard work and courage. How can you explain what’s happening out there?”

  “I can’t,” Lila stated with a sigh. “There’s a reason out there and I thought I could find it, but the people I was working with thought I should come back home and spend every possible minute with J.J. and Sophie. Your archaic belief that this has been planned or orchestrated by nature is crazy. Those types of things don’t happen. You’ve been raised to believe it, but science doesn’t work that way.”

  “I never said, nor did the Elders ever say, that the readers of the ancient scrolls ever said that this is orchestrated by nature. Those are your words. I do believe the planet somehow is responding to the threats that Man has brought against it. The ancients in Canamith predicted that this day would come. How did they know? Perhaps I’ll find out someday, but for now, believing is enough for me. I don’t need to see the lab results, the testing of theories, the research papers. I don’t need that stuff to see what I can plainly in front of me. Lila, look around. You’ve destroyed the world beyond your ability to fix it. Dad always says, ‘have a plan B’. What’s your Plan B, Lila? What’s your Plan B?”

  Her younger brother’s words repeated in her head. Lila had heard those same words when she was a young woman talking to her father before she left the village. She remembered that night like it happened yesterday.

  “I’m worried about your safety out there. I insist you stay here. This is where you belong. How would it look if my only daughter left the village?”

  “Father, I’m going to report to the Dean of Admissions. I’m confident with the education I have I’ll be welcomed with open arms.”

  Then she heard those words from her father in her head.

  “Lila, what is your back-up plan? What is your Plan B if the dean doesn’t accept you?”

  And Lila remembered the last thing she told her father that night before heading out away from Canamith that night.

  “Oh, Dad, I’ve had it with your damned Plan B…Goodbye.”

  It would be five more years before Lila and her father would talk again.

  Lila returned to the conversation at hand.

  “I don’t have a Plan B, Mathis. I guess I’m sticking with the original one for now. I understand your comments, and believe it or not, I was defending your position earlier in the week to people at the capital. I’m torn between my love for you and Dad and Buck, and my chosen field of expertise that flies right in the face of what you’re saying. I don’t know what to do, Mathis. I don’t know what to do.”

  “That’s unfortunate, sis. Everyone would love to meet that daughter of yours. You know where I’m headed in the morning. I’ve got a tight time frame to get to Canamith before they seal the tunnel doors. I hope you join me.”

  “You think Dad is waiting for me and my family with open arms?”

  “Don’t write him off that easily. Dad loves you. He wants you back. More than you could know. What are your choices? Do you think it’s safe to stay here? You’ve seen the reports of death and despair. J.J. filled me in on the way here. People are dying. What makes you think it will get better?

  “Please come back home,” Mathis said with more than a tinge of pleading in his voice.

  “I don’t know. That’s asking a lot.”

  “What’s a lot? To choose to live? People are locking themselves in their homes. How long do you think it will be until the food supply is dried up? The trans-ocean underwater cables have been damaged. Care to speculate who is responsible for that? The lines are deep under the ocean, and it will take months to fix them. Can J.J. protect your house? You’re going to require protection if you manage to find any food because roaming packs of criminals will be there to steal it. I wouldn’t take my young girl out in that kind of environment.”

  “You’re painting a bleak picture. I believe we’ll figure this out any day and life will get back to the status quo. People need to calm down.”

  “That’s a dream, sis. All you have left are dreams. The current state of the planet is going to get worse.”

  “That is your unscientific opinion?” asked Lila.

  “Those are the facts, not opinions!”

  “There are a lot of smart people working on the problem as we speak. In fact, I should still be at the capital with my colleagues.”

  He had been practicing this message and he wasn’t going to stop until he had used all his skills. “The world that you know is going to end. It’s too late to go back in time. The warning signs have been around you for years and you failed to heed them. Perhaps not you, but enough of you have ignored the signs that disaster was imminent. You shouldn’t be shocked and surprised by this. You’re the scientist. I said your world is going to end, but I should have used a word you scientists are familiar with… extinction. That is the strongest word I can use for what I believe will happen.”

  “I’m exhausted and I want to see my husband and daughter, if you don’t mind. Do you have anything else to say?”

  “You have poisoned the air. You couldn’t even imagine the air back in Canamith. It’s clean. Do you remember clean air? You indiscriminately spew pollution into the air, as if the atmosphere was a harvesting site designed for your filthy habits. You filled the oceans with garbage and hazardous waste. Listen to me, Lila, I’m not making this up. Is this a world you want Sophie to live in? You’ve destroyed everything you touch.

  “Our village has maintained a healthy population based on the crops that we can grow. Your population increases by millions every year. How are you going to feed these people? And now, with mass food shortages and random gangs killing people for cans of food or water? I can’t think of one good reason why you’d stay here.

  “You’ve tried to make a difference. I believe your intentions were true, but it’s wasn’t enough.

  “The people of Canamith have been preparing for this day for 2,000 years. My message for you today is clear: The planet has found that ‘someone else’ to clean up Man’s wanton actions. It is the planet and the creatures on the planet that have begun reclaiming what once was theirs. As foretold by the ancient scrolls in Canamith… Man’s reign over this planet is near an end.

  “The planet has reached the breaking point, Lila. There’s nobody to negotiate with. All you had to do was to take care of the planet as you would have taken care of your own children. The people of Canamith will survive. Come with me. Please, I’m begging you. You have no chance to survive out here. Bring J.J. and Sophie. You can return to the outside world when it’s safe. Think of Sophie. What is in the best interest of your daughter?”

  “Are you done?” Lila asked.

  “Yes.”

  “Where’s the boy I left in Canamith all those years ago?”

  “He grew up.”

  “Let me ask you again. Did Dad send you here?”

  “He doesn’t even know I left the Village. I don’t know which is worse, staying out here in your world, or dealing with the wrath of Dad when I get back home to Canamith. Will
you at least think about what I’ve said before you say no?”

  “I’ll think about it.”

  “I’ll see you in the morning either way. It’s too dangerous to try and leave tonight. I’m pushing my time frame to the max. I must leave at first light in the morning. The tunnel doors are closing tomorrow night and I’m going to be there before they do. ‘Night, sis.”

  Lila stood with Mathis and the two shared a long embrace.

  Lila spent that night at Kate’s cuddled close to J.J.

  “What’s happened at the capital?” J.J. asked in a soft tone, careful not to wake the sleeping child between them on the bed.

  “It’s awful. They showed us video of a power plant releasing nuclear fuel into the air. They were evacuating people for miles and miles around the contamination site. Somehow, rodents penetrated the core and thousands of rats died, but not before they did considerable damage. They disrupted the power, or the backup system, I can’t recall… anyway, the plant operators couldn’t provide water to keep the rods cool and radioactive waste is spilling out into the atmosphere at the Johnson Nuclear Facility.”

  “I hadn’t heard anything about it,” said a shocked J.J.

  “That’s because President Griggs has shut down the media. I’m not authorized to discuss it with anyone. Cell towers have been blocked in certain parts of the country to prevent people from sending messages via their mobile devices. I wasn’t supposed to know of it, but Aldo intercepted the direct feed from the President to Drake’s private line. At least 3,000 people are dead there and the damage to the community will last hundreds of years. They’re going to have to move everyone out of there. Can you imagine? You grow up somewhere, your memories, your high school, the local stores… all those things. It’s terrible.”

  “Why does Drake have a private line with the President?”

  “He’s heavily involved with many projects. It’s not a big surprise to me.”

  “I’m frustrated that I can’t do anything to make it better. I wasn’t raised in Canamith. I grew up in the city. I’m out of my element.”

  “J.J., you’ve been great. You’ve dropped what you’ve been doing while I’m running around from the school, to the capital, wild car chases through the countryside. My colleagues were almost eaten by wolves. I’ve had more excitement recently than in the last two years.”