Ariel's Charm

by Marnie Lester

  Picking herself up, Ariel walked to the narrow bed and lifted the small pile of linen that was left on the end of it. The pile consisted of one coarse, heavy sheet, a similar pillowcase and a thin, itchy wool blanket. It also contained a heavy blue cotton shirt, jeans, white socks and two pairs of underwear. Darkness was falling as Ariel made the bed then, climbing into it, she gave into the exhaustion that she was feeling. Although she had expected that she would be unable to sleep, within five minutes she fell into a heavy but troubled sleep.

  The following morning she was awoken by the shrill, lengthy ringing of a bell. Through Ariel’s sleep fuddled mind her immediate thought was that she was hearing a fire alarm. It took a few minutes of blinking before she remembered where she was. With the realisation of being at the correctional centre the emotional catharsis that she had experienced the night before came back to the surface of her mind. Her throat still ached and her eyes stung. A short time later what sounded like a heavy object could be heard banging on the doors. She recognised Randolph’s voice.

  ‘Everybody up! Morning assembly in five minutes.’

  Glancing at the small barred window, Ariel noticed that only a thin pale light was seeping into her room. Ariel guessed that it was probably between 5 and 6 o’clock in the morning. Still exhausted, Ariel dragged herself out of bed knowing it would be unwise to defy the order given. She crossed to the small basin and splashed water on her face, hoping to remove any physical traces of her crying the night before. Ariel lifted the clothes and, holding them up against herself, she knew that they would be miles too big. The prospect of wearing clean clothes made the size of the Brentonville uniform seem unimportant. She dressed in the clothes, tightening the belt that had been provided and a short time later heard a key grate in the lock of her door. The door swung wide and the grinning face of Randolph greeted Ariel.

  ‘Okay, new girl, out the front for Mr. Largo’s morning assembly.’

  Entering the corridor, Ariel saw rows of sleepy children stumbling towards the stairs, their heads bowed. The sound of their feet echoed through the corridor. It was impossible for her to catch the eye of any of the other children. A few minutes later they reached the front door of the facility and continued out into the yard. The inmates filed into long, straight rows facing the grounds. Ariel noticed that the grass was covered in a sparkling layer of frost and shivered at the cold. She looked around amazed at the number of young people she was seeing. She estimated that there were at least two hundred faces of varying age, size and race. It seemed incredible to her that so many young people could be criminals. She could not help but wonder how many of them had come into the facility in a similar way to her.

  As she glanced up and down the rows, her heart suddenly jumped in her chest. There, in the third row looking back at her, was a familiar face. She could not believe that she was seeing the steady green eyes of her friend Marco. Her mind reeled at the extraordinary appearance of the person whom she most wanted to see. She felt tears fill her eyes at the sight of her one friend from Riverview. How was it possible that this far from where she had started she had found the one thing that she needed the most? A friend!

  Chapter 27

  A few minutes later Largo walked to the front of the assembly. He was again dressed in a dazzling white shirt, this time paired with neatly tailored dark grey trousers. Randolph and Simon stood on either side of him, each holding a clipboard. Largo waited a few moments, ensuring the attention of all who were assembled was focused on him. Then he began to speak.

  ‘Good morning boys and girls.’ Largo paused and looked around at his captives. Although there were many children assembled, his gaze focused on one child. ‘As you all know, you are guests of Brentonville Children’s Correctional because you are … bad!’

  Largo’s smile contrasted with his negative pronounce-ment. Largo’s eyes flicked around the assembled group making each child squirm. He enjoyed seeing the expressions of submission, humiliation and shame that marked the children’s faces. It was a weapon Largo used frequently and well. Those with very little or no self-esteem were much less likely to rebel. Total control was Largo’s most precious poison. That control was as essential to him as breathing and he relished it. He could also tell from the children’s faces that it was not the first time they had heard such criticisms.

  ‘The only way to teach bad children to improve their behavior is through hard work. Idle hands are the devil’s playground.’ This last comment was accompanied by a sly smile.

  Randolph and Simon stepped forward, clipboards at the ready. Largo glanced with approval at his helpers.

  ‘Prefects Stowe and Howard will now hand out your work assignments.’ Largo’s gaze flicked over Ariel. ‘They will be in charge over the next couple of days as I have something important to attend to elsewhere. I am sure that I do not need to remind you that the prefects must be shown the same level of respect as you give me. I will hear of any bad behavior and I will exact punishment.’ Largo paused and looked over his audience, his eyes finally coming to rest on Ariel. ‘Am I clear?’ he added.

  Ariel understood him very well. His message to her was crystal clear.

  After making this announcement Largo went back inside the building. Ariel knew he was planning on returning to Walhalla, no doubt to celebrate his capture of her. She again wondered how he was accomplishing the leap between worlds. She knew that he could not use the charm so how was it possible for Largo to move so easily between realms? Ariel looked at Marco, wondering if he could give her the support that she needed to answer some of the questions bubbling around in her mind. Mostly she wanted to know how Marco had come to be here, at Brentonville, just where and when she needed him.

  Her thoughts were interrupted by Randolph’s bullfrog-like voice.

  ‘Okay you lot — group one; you’ll be rock picking in the far west field today.’ A few groans sounded at the announcement. Both prefects scanned the lines to find who was objecting. Clearly these were boys who relished the feeling of power that their positions gave them. ‘Group two; you’re on kitchen duty. Group three; garbage and clean up.’ Randolph scanned the lines looking for Ariel. When his eyes found her, he glanced at his clipboard. ‘New girl, you’ll be in group one.’ A malicious grin aimed at Ariel followed this instruction. ‘Okay everyone, file into the mess for breakfast then to your work groups.’

  The children turned to move back into the building and Ariel hung back for a moment, waiting to see if Marco would approach her. As the lines filed in, she took her place in line beside Marco. At first Ariel began to wonder if she had been mistaken; that this was her friend, as he did not make eye contact. On the pretext of squeezing through the doorway he suddenly leaned close and whispered.

  ‘Ariel, we are both in the same work group. We can talk when we get out to the field.’ Their eyes locked. ‘Show no sign you know me. It would be dangerous for both of us.’

  She looked at him with a combination of surprise and hope. Maybe this situation wasn’t hopeless after all.

  Chapter 28

  The Brentonville mess proved to be a surprise.

  The inmates were offered a choice of scrambled eggs, hash browns, toast, juice or two different cereals. Ariel wondered why Largo did not use the same type of hunger-induced loyalty as he did in Walhalla. She then realised that it was unnecessary here as he was the ultimate power in the correctional facility and rebellion was not an option for the inhabitants. His regular absences were not an opportunity for the children to rebel; the threatening presence of the prefects prevented such.

  Ariel joined the line of children waiting to collect their breakfast. She genuinely did not feel hungry, yet somehow she knew the day ahead would be challenging. It would be much more so on an empty stomach. Moving forward, Ariel selected toast and fruit juice then turned to find somewhere to sit. At the far right of the mess hall Ariel noticed Marco sitting at a long table with other young people. Ariel moved to an empty seat at another table.

  Ag
ain she was struck by the almost unnatural silence that filled the room. The only sound was the soft clink of cutlery on crockery. The appearance of apathy in the children suggested that they had long accepted their confinement. They seemed to know that no one would come to their rescue. Ariel felt a surge of anger at a world that would allow children to be incarcerated; particularly when, she assumed, many of them were probably as innocent as she. That thought brought to mind the image of Sheriff Hobbs and Deputy Joliffe. Ariel still remembered her horror at seeing money change hands. Clearly there were corrupt officials who thought nothing of imprisoning innocent children for profit.

  Ariel looked across at Randolph, Simon and another boy who must also be a prefect standing at different points around the room where they had an uninterrupted view of all the inmates. It would seem that these boys did not eat at the same time as everyone else. Remembering that it had been Randolph who had woken them, she wondered if they rose and ate earlier than everyone else. The possibility that they ate with Largo seemed likely. It would be an ideal opportunity for the prefects to keep Largo informed of any problems involving the inmates. Remembering his statement about exacting punishment Ariel felt an involuntary shiver. Ariel understood that the punishments that she had received in Riverview would seem gentle compared to that which, she thought, these people were capable of inflicting.

  Approximately ten minutes later Randolph stepped forward and blew a loud whistle. As one, the children rose from their chairs and returned their dishes to the serving area. Ariel joined the others in returning their plates and noticed that the meals were served by other inmates; Ariel remembered Randolph nominating group two for kitchen duty. Randolph, Simon and the other prefect stood at different exits, holding up cards with Group 1, 2 and 3 respectively. Ariel joined the line forming in front of the boy holding the Group 1 card. He was unfamiliar but Ariel noticed that he had the same malicious smile as Randolph and Simon. He was taller than Simon. He had a narrow, almost rat-like face that was dominated by a large, beaky nose. His dark brown eyes roamed over the group that assembled in front of him and momentarily rested on Ariel. She resisted the urge to turn around to ensure that Marco was in the same group.

  Something told her he was there, that he had always been there, and that he always would be there. Ariel remembered the day she escaped from Riverview. She remembered Marco deliberately putting himself in harm’s way to aid her escape. But why? Why was he here yet again, just when she needed a protector?

  As they filed out of the main building, Ariel saw a dust covered pickup truck that stood idling outside the doorway; its russet red panels faded with age and dotted with rust. An older boy sat behind the steering wheel, chewing a finger-nail while he waited for the group to get on board. One by one they climbed onto the empty tray. Ariel clambered aboard and noticed that there was nothing for them to hold on to. The last inmate climbed aboard and closed the tail-gate as their supervisor slid onto the front seat beside the driver. With a jerk, the truck rolled forward as the children fell against each other, struggling to maintain their balance. Ariel heard the rat-faced boy laughing as he watched their struggle in the truck’s side mirrors. She felt anger at hearing the laughter of the two boys in the cabin of the truck. It was unthinkable to her that someone could find it funny that these children could fall from a moving vehicle. Ariel had a sudden horrible image of a child falling under one of the tyres of the truck. She tried to brace herself as best she could, knowing that these boys would not care if she fell.

  About fifteen minutes later the truck rolled to a stop in the centre of a large field. The field seemed to be little more than dirt with a covering of fist-sized granite rocks. The children jumped down from the truck and spread out over the field, each holding what looked like an old canvas sack. The sacks had a variety of faded labels indicating that they had been used for everything from potatoes to flour. Ariel took a sack and moved as far from the truck as possible, flicking her eyes around to see where Marco was working.

  After noticing what the others were doing Ariel bent down and began lifting the heavy stones and piling them into her sack. The sack increased in weight quickly and Ariel wondered just how many more rocks she could put in the sack before it became far too heavy for her to carry. She wondered what was she to do with the sack once it was filled. Straightening up for a moment, she stretched her back that had already begun to ache and noticed a scattered line of children with full sacks heading to the edge of the field. She also saw a few returning with empty sacks. Clearly there was somewhere to dispose of the rocks although Ariel could not see it from where she was working.

  The time seemed to drag on interminably. Ariel did not know how much longer she could endure this. Her throat burned with thirst and her stomach growled with hunger. She now regretted eating so little that morning and now she also understood why the Brentonville mess served such a large breakfast. Just as this thought passed through her mind she heard a loud whistle.

  She glanced up to see one of the prefects standing on the back of the truck calling, ‘Lunch!’

  The children stopped working and listlessly started to walk towards the truck, each dragging their sacks behind them and stumbling on the clods of the open field. The children then fell into line behind the truck. Ariel was curious to see what would be served. The boy had two large burlap sacks at his feet and Ariel noticed a crate beside him with water bottles. As the children approached he reached into one sack and withdrew a bread roll, then the other and withdrew an apple. Clearly this was lunch. Tossing one of each to the first child, he then took a water bottle and threw that as well. The boy laughed uproariously when he saw the child fumble the three items, dropping his bread roll on the ground. Ariel watched the child retrieve the bread roll then walk away, vigorously brushing dirt from it. Clearly the child was to eat that bread roll or go without.

  The children quietly accepted the token meal then went about finding a spot to sit and eat. Ariel took her food and then looked around hoping to spot Marco. She could see him working still on the other side of the field. She began walking toward him, and stopped when she noticed him looking at her. He gave a small shake of his head. She looked around and then sat where she was already standing and ate her food.

  It seemed only minutes later that the whistle sounded again and a voice called out, ‘Okay you lot, back to work!’

  Ariel moved back to the area where she had been working and resumed the unpleasant task of rock picking. She soon became conscious of someone working just behind her and glanced over her shoulder to see Marco picking rocks approximately a foot away from her. Keeping his voice low he began speaking.

  ‘Ariel, I need to tell you this quickly. I came through with Reynaldo. I am also from Walhalla.’

  Ariel felt her jaw drop at this extraordinary revelation. Before she could think of a response he continued.

  ‘I couldn’t tell you before. Reynaldo made me promise not to tell you. He wanted to be the one to talk with you about your parents. He just wanted me to be a friend to you. I left the orphanage the day after you did.’

  Ariel remembered her sense of surprise when Marco seemed determined to make friends with her at the orphanage. A moment of embarrassment crossed her mind that perhaps his friendship was not genuine. She glanced at his wide eyed, open face and knew that he was incapable of deceit. If he had not genuinely liked Ariel she felt that she would have known.

  She tried to put her thoughts in order. There was so much that she needed to ask him; so much that she needed to know. Ariel glanced around to see if their conversation was being observed by others then whispered quickly.

  ‘But you told me in the orphanage that your parents were killed in a plane crash.’

  ‘My parents are dead. They died from the blight in Walhalla. It is a sickness that has killed many since Largo began his reign. Some people think he is contaminating some of the harrow he gives to the villagers. He gives the contaminated grain to those who have sworn loyalty to your pare
nts.’ His lips thinned and a veneer of bitterness covered his handsome face.

  ‘Does Largo know who you are?’ Ariel replied, wondering if Largo had somehow arranged Marco’s detention as neatly as her own.

  ‘No. I was a stable boy in Golden City. Largo does not notice those whom he considers inferior.’ A sneer twisted his words.

  ‘How did Largo become supervisor here? It seems like he was waiting for me.’ Ariel shuddered as she expressed her fear.

  ‘There is a rumour that the previous supervisor disappeared about 12 months ago. The other children have told me that they remember him as a very kind man.’ Marco glanced around to make sure nobody else was listening. ‘The prefects had little if any authority while he was here. When Largo took over, he introduced a new prefect system and picked the boys whom he thought most likely to crush the spirit of the children. Also, Largo gave his prefects a free hand to implement their own rules and he encouraged their bullying and harassment of the children.’

  Ariel glanced around and noticed that the other children seemed intent on their rock-picking. Their level of focus told Ariel that fear of retribution and resignation to their current situation governed their behavior. While they talked, Ariel and Marco continued to pick rocks trying to make sure that they stayed relatively close to each other.