The Breeding Tree

by J. Andersen

  Professor Donovan begins with his motivational speech. “You’ll be fine. You know the procedure. And remember, if you measure or administer the saline solution incorrectly, you’ll have to proceed using the forceps on the brain. It’s the only alternative at that point.”

  Great motivational speech. Makes me want to run away screaming. Stick to your day job, Professor.

  Professor Limbert, on the other hand, looks as if he wants to hug me. Instead, he tosses a curt nod, making his gray hair quiver on his forehead and says, “You’ll be fine, Katherine. Micah will help you.” He leads us to the table in the middle of the room where Brody is being kept. “Just keep your eyes open, and you’ll know how to do it right.”

  His eyes are kind, and I can’t help but find myself smiling in reassurance. Something about his serene presence eases my mind. My brain is clear, and I’m checking everything around me.

  The back door of this room leads to a hallway that’s only used by the research scientists, and if I can sneak through the classroom at the end of the hall, there’s a door that leads to a back alley. But I won’t have to use that because everything will go according to Micah’s plan. If I keep telling myself this, maybe I’ll begin to believe it.

  Beside me on the table is a tray covered with that horrific blue paper. Underneath, the syringes and scalpels and forceps are laid out in a neat row. A bottle of salt solution sits on the corner.

  Micah stands to my left while the professors sit opposite me. It’s Micah’s voice that guides me through.

  “What’s the first step, Kate?” he asks.

  “Checking the fetus’s weight and measuring the appropriate amount of saline solution.”

  “Yes, go ahead.”

  Taking a deep breath, I look at Brody one more time, hoping this isn’t the last I’ll see of him. He opens his eyes and looks right at me as if to cheer me on. Or maybe he’s saying good-bye.

  “Kate.”

  “Huh?” A minute has passed since I uncovered the capsule and all three men are staring at me.

  “Katherine, are you all right?” Professor Limbert asks.

  “Yes, sorry, I was just walking through the procedure in my mind first.”

  “Very well,” he says with a glance at his compact. “Continue.”

  Taking the weight measurements, I write down my findings. “Five pounds, eleven ounces.”

  “Low birth weight,” Professor Donovan pipes in. “Tests have already confirmed lack of lung development and markers have been found in his blood. All this combined confirms what?”

  “The need for disposal of the fetus,” I hear myself saying.

  He nods and makes a notation in his compact.

  “Go ahead and measure the saline, Kate.” Micah’s shaking voice sends a surge of fear through me. Is his plan not working? I look at him, eyes wide, but he’s got all his features under control and won’t meet my gaze.

  I do as he says, pulling the plunger slowly to make it look like I’m measuring exactly, and I lay the syringe alongside the capsule. “Now, I have to drain the fluid inside the capsule to at least half and replace it with the saline.” I speak matter-of-factly, but my heart is racing.

  “Go ahead and hook up the drainage tube.”

  Inserting the tube is easy, but actually allowing the vital liquid to flow out makes my breathing stagger and my heart pump faster. I watch as Brody curls smaller, trying to stay within the liquid, and I swear I see fear on his face, too.

  I’m draining it slowly, trying to buy another minute of time. Another second. Glancing at Micah, occasionally, does me no good. He refuses to look at me, but I do catch him glimpse at the clock every few seconds. The crinkle on his forehead deepens as the second hand ticks by. And when his hand reaches to run through his hair and stops short—the rubber gloves probably—and his shoulders rise with the calming breath he’s trying to inhale, I know he’s wondering if we can pull this off.

  “The syringe, Ms. Dennard.” Professor Donovan looks irritated. He twists his wrist to get a good look at his watch. Must have something more important to do than kill my son.

  “Sorry,” I say. “I’m nervous.”

  Professor Limbert speaks up, “Nothing to be nervous about, Katherine. Everything is going to be just fine.”

  My fingers wrap around the large syringe, cold and hard. I lift it to the top of the capsule and unlock the barrier separating Brody from the world. It’s how we’d birth him if he were deemed viable. Just lift him out. The bile in the back of my throat rises as I begin to squeeze. Slowly. A few drops at a time.

  Micah, I silently plead. Please do something! I can’t go through with this. My hands tremble, and I’m sweating in the sweltering heat of this room. Closing my eyes, I’m holding back tears.

  Micah, do something.

  The knock on the door makes me jump, and I have to catch myself before I depress the entire salt solution into the capsule. Thank you!

  All the men in the room swing their faces toward the door. Donovan looks irate as he kicks his chair back and gets up to answer the call. From where he stands, I can’t hear what he’s saying, but his stance, with crossed arms and constant head shaking, add to his irritation. I take the few moments of reprieve to look at Micah. Finally, he meets my eyes and flicks his hair off his forehead with a tiny twist of his neck.

  I’m not expecting it when he leans into me and whispers in my ear.

  Turning back to Donovan, I see Professor Limbert has joined him and is growing increasingly agitated. They’re both arguing with whoever is behind the door, but finally, Limbert steps aside and holds the door for the group of men who enter.

  There are six of them, all well over six feet, and with heavily muscled arms they carry rifles in their hands. More guns are strapped to their hips along with handcuffs and stun guns and an array of other unidentifiable weapons. A raid. At the back of the pack stands Saul Goodman. He lifts his eyes to meet mine, and I’m sure I see pity in them.

  “Micah Pennington?” one of the men says.

  “I’m Micah.” He steps forward, a look of confusion on his face. “What’s going on?”

  “You’re under arrest.”

  I gasp. Micah looks shocked. “What? Why?”

  Saul’s staring at me, gauging my reaction. But I don’t know what’s going on, so if he’s here to spy on me, there’s nothing to learn.

  “Micah?” I ask.

  “It’ll be easier if you don’t put up a fight.” The man in front stands with his hand on his holster, ready to draw at any moment.

  Micah’s peeling off his gloves now, turning them inside out. “I’m not going anywhere until I know what this is about.”

  I can’t tell if the bewilderment he’s portraying is part of his ruse or if this is just as much a surprise to him as it is to me. What have they found out? Then it hits me. They know he’s a Natural Born, and they know about the lab and the underground city and Brody. The Hidden City will be destroyed. They’ll raid it as soon as they can get men over there.

  “Sir,” the man in the center says. The others flank Micah on either side as if readying themselves for a potential disaster. “If you’d come with us.” Their eyes are ready, and their guns raised.

  Now Micah’s raising his voice, and he crouches his legs ever so slightly and puts his hands out in front of him. It looks like he’s about to surrender, but there’s a tiny bounce in his legs. He’s expecting a fight, and I’m watching the scene with horror. This is not part of the plan. Getting arrested is definitely not part of the plan.

  “Not until you tell me what’s going on. Why am I being arrested?”

  The head police officer pulls a paper out of his pocket and unfolds it. “Micah Pennington,” he reads, “a warrant for your arrest has been issued due to the following infractions: Improper use of disposal devices. Lack of attendance at mandatory proc
edures. Suspicions of stolen property. And public misbehavior.”

  Micah shakes his head. “This is ludicrous. I haven’t done anything. What have I stolen? What have I done that’s improper? Huh? Tell me!” He looks at the two teachers in the room. “Tell them, Professor Limbert. I haven’t done any of this.”

  But Professor Limbert retreats sheepishly into the corner. “I know, Micah, but it’s our word against theirs. Maybe if you go with them peacefully, you can get this all figured out.”

  The band of men slowly surrounds Micah. “I haven’t done anything!” he shouts again, and when one of the giant men takes hold of his arm, he yanks it away and throws a punch into the man’s nose. “Keep your hands off me! I haven’t done anything wrong.”

  “You have now,” says the head police officer. “Add assaulting an officer to that list.”

  In seconds, all six men are on top of him, holding him down and yanking his arms behind his back. He’s on the floor struggling against the weight of the men, but it’s no use. Saul has his knee on Micah’s head, pressing it to the floor.

  I catch Micah’s gaze through the tears in my eyes. “Go!” he mouths.

  The men jerk him from the floor and push him out the door, stumbling over his own feet. Through my haze, I hear Donovan telling Limbert he’ll accompany Micah to the station. “You have Kate finish the procedure,” he says. Professor Limbert agrees.

  Finish the procedure! Are you kidding? They’ve just arrested my boyfriend, and they’re going to make me go through with this? These people are freaking insane. If I can get Professor Limbert out of the way, I can grab Brody and run away. But when I allow myself one more look toward the door the police just dragged Micah through, I see my teacher walking toward me.

  He passes me and reaches high on the wall behind me. I hear a snap, and when I turn, I see a crack through the lens of the recording device programmed for this room. Then he rushes around, grabbing things I don’t recognize and throws them into a shoulder bag he takes from the supply closet.

  “Kate!” he yells. “Snap out of it!”

  His face is right in front of mine, and he’s grabbing more things off the table and shoving them into the bag. “Take the baby out of the capsule, Kate.”

  I stand there, numb. What is going on? “Kate! Grab the baby. Hurry, we don’t have much time.”

  It’s like I’m hearing everything he says through a thick fog. It’s muffled and foreign, and I don’t understand. This isn’t the professor I know.

  He’s pulling open a cupboard in the back of the room and removing items I haven’t been taught to use.

  Finally, his instructions reach the synapses of my mind, and I do as he says. I reach my hands into the sticky fluid and pull Brody out of the top of the capsule. Professor Limbert is at my side in an instant with blankets ready to wrap the tiny body. He grabs a small rubber syringe and clears Brody’s nose and mouth, and snips the umbilical cord, disconnecting my son from the synthetic placenta at the bottom of the pod.

  “Come on,” he says, rubbing Brody’s skin vigorously. He’s not talking to me. Brody’s skin has a red tint to it, but not like that of a normal newborn. He’s been burned by the little bit of saline in the fluid. The few drops I had to administer.

  I stand in shock, watching Professor Limbert work. Another minute passes before the child lets out a cry. The professor sighs and drops his shoulders in relief. “Good. Good boy,” he coos. Turning to meet my gaze, he speaks quickly but in hushed whispers. “He’ll be okay, Kate, you just have to keep him warm. Watch his breathing. His lungs may have been affected, but hopefully it’ll clear out on its own.” Professor Limbert takes more blankets and wraps the baby in one, then another, tucking the ends behind the child.

  “I have to keep him warm?” I’m in a daze, and I can’t grasp what’s happening. Everything’s moving so fast.

  Pushing the baby into my arms, Professor Limbert slides a small hat over Brody’s head and takes a step away from me. “Yes, Kate. You need to get out of here. Quickly. Your father will see to the ID change. They’ll think he’s been disposed of, but you have to get him out.”

  “My dad? You know about my dad?” I cry.

  “You’ll need this.” The strap of the bag he filled tugs on my shoulder. “It’s got some supplies in it. Formula and baby needs, but it won’t last long.”

  “I have to take him to Micah’s lab.”

  “No, it’s too dangerous.”

  “What do I do with him, then?”

  “Take him to the Hidden City, Kate. He’ll be fine there.”

  I stare at him. Professor Limbert? The man who taught me all the disposal techniques, the one who walked me through my first chemical disposal firsthand knows about the Hidden City. Is he a sympathizer or a Natural Born?

  He throws another bag at me. “These supplies will get you there, but you’ll need to go now.”

  The bundle in my arms squirms as I look at the face of my baby. He’s breathing and snuggled into the warmth of the blankets. But what do I do if he starts crying? Or if he needs medical attention? Or if he needs to eat or be changed? I know nothing about caring for a newborn. I’m instantly regretting not having prepared more for this day. It wasn’t supposed to happen this way. We were supposed to have more time. To take Brody to Micah’s lab. To birth him there. It wasn’t supposed to happen this way.

  Professor Limbert pushes me along, but my feet feel as if they’ve grown roots into the floor. “Kate, if you don’t go now, they’ll suspect something. Then we’ll all be in trouble. You need to leave. Now.”

  I’m at the back door. Limbert opens it for me. “Welcome to your new life of hiding, Katherine Dennard. Good luck.” With that, he pushes me through the door, bundles and all, and tosses my coat and scarf at me.

  “But—” I don’t have a chance to finish my statement before he shuts the heavy door in my face as I’m sliding my arms into my coat and wrapping my scarf around my neck with one hand.

  “I don’t know the way to the Hidden City. I don’t remember how to get there.” I’m sobbing to the cement walls. Tears stream down my cheeks when I realize Professor Limbert is gone. Micah is gone, and I’m on my own with a newborn I don’t know how to take care of. On my way to a place I don’t know how to get to.

  THIRTY SEVEN

  NOTHING HAPPENS ACCORDING TO PLAN

  THE EVENING AIR IN early March bites my skin as I press my back against the door leading to the back alley. Clutching Brody to my chest, I pray he doesn’t cry out until we’re beyond The Institute’s borders and away from the city. A harsh wind whips through the alley, pinning me to the wall and slipping under my coat as if to say, “You won’t survive against me.”

  The gust must have reached Brody because he inhales a tiny breath and lets out a pathetic whine.

  “Shhh,” I whisper into the collar of my coat where I’ve nestled him, holding him with one hand. “It’s okay, little man.” The sound of my voice quiets him, and his fluttering eyes settle.

  I want to pause. To have a moment to take in the magnitude of what’s just happened. To lay this little creature down in front of me and examine every tiny part like a normal mother would. I want to know if he has long fingers and toes and if his ears are shaped like mine. I want to feel his breath on my skin and rub my cheek against his silky hair.

  But I can’t. Not now. Not ever if I don’t get moving this instant.

  I turn down another alley. Standing there, I give myself a moment to gather my thoughts. I’m on my own. Micah’s been arrested. There’s no way he can help. Shake it off, Kate. He’ll find a way out. Focus. Get to the Hidden City.

  “Get to the Hidden City,” I reiterate. I’m hoping hearing my own voice will motivate me to move. “Step one: Get away from The Institute.” Easier said than done since The Institute spans most of the city. It’s the hub of the whole community. Only home re
sidences lay outside its fenced borders. And beyond that, the entire community is surrounded by high chain link fences. But I can’t let myself focus on that. One step at a time. If I can at least get away from the research center and school, that’ll be a start.

  “Step two: Back alleys only.” Isn’t this what Micah told me? Following his directions, I turn down the dark alley and make a left at the end. Of course, it’s blocked off by a seven foot tall fence. Okay, so the fence problem came a little earlier than I thought. Climbing it wouldn’t be a problem if I weren’t laden down with two bags of supplies and an infant in my arms. But there’s no choice. Taking the main streets isn’t an option. Anyone could see that I’m escaping dressed like I am.

  The alley is fairly clean. Must be the garbage has recently been removed. The Institute makes sure that within its borders, everything is cleaned up quickly. It’s all about precision and cleanliness. A great philosophy if you’re just going about your business, but they don’t take into consideration those who are breaking the rules and trying to escape with a stolen infant in their arms. Obviously.

  Luckily, I spot one lone crate sitting upside down by a doorway. I rush over, grab it, and place it down next to the fence. It’ll give me one less foot I have to climb on my own. But I can’t let go of Brody and climb at the same time. Think! Now’s not the time to be slow on your feet. You need to get out of here, now! Unwrapping the green scarf Gran knitted me so many years ago, I slink out of my coat.

  Brody whines against the icy air. “Sorry, buddy. It’ll just be a second.” I wrap the scarf around my chest and Brody, strapping him to the front of me like a papoose. Thank you for making this scarf so long. Then I tie the ends together and bounce once or twice, holding my hands underneath, just in case he might fall. Nothing. He’s not going anywhere. I won’t run without holding him, but I can at least get over the fence with two hands. Shaking the snow off my coat, I sling it over my shoulders and button it around both of us and grab the supply bags, wishing I didn’t have to carry them. I’m not used to being so bogged down, but I can’t afford to leave them behind either. And I don’t know how long I’ll be traveling on foot.