The Lemerons (The Secret Archives Trilogy Book 2)

by Valerie Puri

  “What?” Confusion flooded Sash’s mind.

  Awareness of his surroundings returned to him. He pulled his attention from the victim he pinned to the ground. All around him were feet and legs. He lifted his gaze and froze.

  At least two dozen people surrounded him, all with various states of shock and anger on their faces. Many of them were shouting their disgust at him. They carried with them hammers, axes, and other work tools. All of which could be used as weapons. Did they coordinate this? Were they planning to kill him?

  Sash climbed off the man, backing away from the mob. The curly-haired girl, Belle, stood directly in front of him. She folded her arms across her chest and gave him a look that said, “gotcha.”

  Thirty-Eight

  Travis

  Travis grinned. Sash, the untouchable terror of the town, was caught red-handed. There was no Victor to protect him now, either. Isaac could try, but with so many witnesses, what could he do?

  Alan ripped the black sack off his head. The others closed in around Sash, blocking his retreat into the tunnel. His father looped a rope around Sash, pulling it tight. He struggled, but his arms were pinned. There was nothing he could do.

  Alan kicked Sash’s legs out from under him. His body slammed to the ground with a loud thud. His face flushed red with anger.

  “What are you doing? Let me go,” he ordered.

  Jack tied his wrists together with impressive speed.

  “That’s enough out of you,” Alan grunted, rubbing the back of his head.

  Belle stepped forward. “Lock him up in one of the empty docile cells in the kitchens. Keep two guards on him at all times.”

  Two men hauled off Sash in the direction they came.

  “Serves him right.” Travis said.

  “Now, with that ugly business out of the way, let’s get to work,” Belle stepped through the door to the shed.

  Travis and the others followed.

  “This is the first thing to go,” she gestured around her. “The wood is old, but solid. We can use it. You five start dismantling this shack. The rest of you, with me.”

  “What is this place?” Alan asked.

  “A facade, Mr. Thompson,” Belle answered.

  “For what?”

  “You’ll see,” Belle pressed forward into the darkness.

  Travis remembered there were steps at the back. He lit his lantern. Shadows sprung to life around them as the little flame danced. Catching up to Belle, he helped light her way.

  Down they went. It was just as he remembered it. He swallowed.

  Why did I agree to come here?

  Belle kept her head held high, and her steps didn’t waver. Drawing from her bravery, Travis picked up his pace. He had more help this time, and he knew what to expect - for the most part - at the end of the hall.

  They came to the bend in the tunnel. Almost there.

  But how would they get in? Last time he and Ethan got lucky.

  Belle didn’t pause to think when she reached the lab entrance. She just banged on the door until the little viewing window opened. The man with the funny goggles appeared in the opening.

  “Alex, open up, it’s Belle,” she said.

  Travis couldn’t see his eyes, but he felt them. The weird man’s face moved around as he scanned the group through his tinted lenses. Alex slid the little door of the viewing window shut.

  They stood in silence. Nothing happened.

  “Now what?” Travis whispered.

  “We wait,” Belle said

  Travis shifted uncomfortably. This wasn’t working out as he expected. They could chip away at the walls to break through, but that would take too long.

  The door groaned as the rusty lock disengaged.

  Travis raised his eyebrows, surprised when the door opened.

  Belle stepped forward, Travis at her side. Having his father and everyone else gave him confidence. Together, they were stronger. And the Order’s secrets would soon be exposed.

  Alex stood in the middle of the room, wringing his hands nervously. When everyone entered, Belle turned around and addressed the group.

  “Take that door off its hinges, and use it as a platform for the scaffolding.”

  Smart. Without a door, they can’t seal this place off anymore.

  “Take that door, too,” she pointed at the opposite end of the room. “Rip everything apart. Salvage what you can and haul it out of here.”

  Travis’s father set to work on the door with a crowbar. A few others joined in. Working together, they popped the door right off its hinges.

  “How do you know about this place?” Alan looked around the room. His eyes settled on the morgue drawers.

  “I was held prisoner here,” she crossed her arms and nodded at one of the tables in the room. “Sash tortured me right over there.”

  The machines were still in place. Travis remembered Jennie hooked up to one when he came here with Ethan. He could still hear her screams from the electrical current running through her. Thankfully, it looked like no one got around to repairing the wires after Ethan cut them to free Jennie. It was still broken.

  Alan went to the equipment. His face twitched as he shook his head. He smashed the machines with his hammer, sending pieces flying.

  “Take the tables out of here,” Belle said. “We can use them for building. Salvage everything.”

  The room was a flurry of activity.

  “Not my machines,” Alex protested, gripping at his cheeks. “No, put that back. Stop tearing my cabinets off the wall.”

  He spun around, pulled in every direction, trying to stop everyone from destroying his lab. He tugged at his short messy hair, sinking to his knees.

  “Why?” he cried out.

  “Because together we need to save the Commune,” Belle said. “Aren’t you tired of just being a jailor? Don’t you want to be a valued scientist again?”

  She walked past him, letting him consider her words. She entered his office and stacked up the remainder of his files. She took a lot of documents the last time they were here, but now she collected the rest.

  “Travis, Mr. Caraway,” she beckoned to them through the glass partition. “We need to get all these documents somewhere safe. Don’t tell anyone where you’re taking them in case we have someone in the Order here with us.”

  His father nodded. “I know where to take them. Come on, let’s get this done.”

  They bundled up the files with some of their rope. It didn’t do a good job of concealing what they were hauling, but they didn’t have anything else.

  Alan finally got the other massive door off its hinges. He stepped through the opening.

  “Jumping juniper,” he exclaimed.

  He re-entered the lab, his eyes wide. “There’s an entire crew of dociles down here. Did anyone know about this?”

  Belle left the office to address Alan. “Yes. Victor, Sash, Isaac, the rest of the Order, Alex, and their victims,” she stated flatly.

  “Isaac? I don’t understand. Is he a victim or with the Order? Did you know about this? You kept mentioning the blue glass, so you had to. How?”

  “Isaac’s goals are not aligned with ours. He’s with the Order. Sash brought me here and tortured me. I was next in line to be turned into a docile.”

  Alan’s jaw fell open. “You’ve got to be kidding. First Elder Victor’s with the Order, now Elder Isaac? How did you get out? This place is built solid.”

  “It’s a long story,” Belle turned and addressed the others working on removing building materials. “Start working in there. Break apart those cells and haul the building materials to the wall. We need it all for the scaffolds.”

  “Come on,” Travis’s father whispered to him. “Let’s go while everyone’s occupied.”

  They slipped out of the office, heading for the exit.

  “What do we do with all the dociles?” Alan scratched his head. “If we tear out the glass, we don’t have anywhere to hold them.”

  Travis glance
d over his shoulder, curious about how Belle would answer. She looked off into the distance, her mind going somewhere else. After a moment, she refocused on Alan.

  “Free them.”

  Thirty-Nine

  Belle

  Alan gaped at her, aghast. “Surely you can’t mean it. The enclosures keep us safe from any harm they might do to us.”

  Belle stood at the threshold of the docile corridor. The blue glass allegedly kept the dociles, docile. But these weren’t dociles, they were victims.

  Anger boiled within her chest. The last time she was here, the Order threw her in one of those cells like an animal. Her teacher was being held captive in the cell across from her. Victor told the entire Commune that a lemeron had attacked and killed Mrs. Townsend. That was a lie. Sash abducted her and brought her here.

  Mrs. Townsend revealed herself to Belle and communicated with her. Not with words, but with gestures. There was intelligence still behind those eyes. The Order was out to suppress it.

  Belle screwed up her face. At the time, Mrs. Townsend appeared to be undergoing a forced transition into a docile. What if the people behind the monstrous shell could be restored? What if she could save Mrs. Townsend?

  She had to try. It all started here. The first step was to start treating them like humans again. They would figure out the rest later.

  “Come with me,” Belle ordered Alan.

  Taking a deep breath, she stepped into the corridor that had once been her hell.

  “I want you to look in each and every enclosure as we pass and tell me what you see.” She kept her eyes straight ahead as she spoke.

  “Dociles. But I don’t understand why they’re here or where they came from.”

  Giving Alan the opportunity to take it all in, they continued in silence. Finally, she stopped. She shot a quick glance to the left at the enclosure that once was hers. It remained empty. Did Alex plan to stick her back in that cell as soon as he got the chance?

  Belle turned her back on it and approached the enclosure opposite it. She knocked on the glass.

  Alan’s eyes grew wide. “What are you doing? We’re not supposed to engage with the dociles.”

  “According to who?” she asked.

  “The elders,” he stressed.

  Belle’s lips curled. “I’m an elder now, and I’m engaging.”

  Movement within the dark cell pulled Alan’s gaze. A gaunt figure wearing a blue dress shuffled forward. The stiff fabric still held the shape of voluptuous curves, but the skin wrapped skeleton beneath did nothing to fill it out. Wisps of brittle hair clung stubbornly to the docile’s grey scalp. A slight twitch in its face resembled a hairless eyebrow rising.

  She still remembers me.

  “Alan, this is my teacher, Mrs. Townsend.”

  He let out a long breath. “Marlene was right. Victor was turning us into dociles. Hearing about it is one thing, seeing it just knocks the sense right out of you.”

  “Release her, and all the others,” Belle commanded.

  He hesitated. “Won’t they go crazy like the lemerons if they’re all together? Pack instinct, and what not?”

  The docile Mrs. Townsend slowly shook her head. Belle beamed at her.

  “See? She says nothing to worry about. Besides, think of the bigger picture. They can help us build up our defenses and fight the lemerons.”

  “If you say so…” Alan said, his tone filled with doubt.

  “Go get some others to help you open up these cells. Bring Alex, he’ll need to unlock them first. Then salvage the building materials.”

  He nodded and went back to the lab, leaving Belle alone. A shiver ran down her spine. She was right back where she swore she’d never return. It was an improvement from the last time though, at least now she was on the right side of the glass.

  Mrs. Townsend placed her palm on the blue glass. Belle lined up her hand, resting it against hers. The surface was cold to the touch, sending another shiver through her body.

  “I’m going to get you out of here,” Belle promised.

  Someone shouted in the lab. Belle snapped her head around to see what was going on. Alan was dragging Alex to her by the arm. He was flailing his arms, protesting the whole way.

  “It’s not right,” he shouted. “You’re destroying everything. I won’t let you take my beautiful creations away from me.”

  Disgusting. Belle scowled. He’s talking like these dociles are his trophies.

  Alex stilled when he saw her. “You, you did all this just to get back to your enclosure,” he laughed in a high pitch squeal.

  He’s lost his mind.

  “I’m not setting foot inside one of those prisons.”

  “Yes, let’s start the process right away. You were always my favorite. I can’t wait to deliver you to a higher purpose.”

  Belle slapped his cheek to stop his mad-scientist dribble. “The only thing you’re delivering is your keys into Alan’s hand.”

  Alex cocked his head to the side, his tinted goggles reflecting the blue sheen of the glass. “I don’t understand. Why don’t you want to become something greater?”

  “Because I have a higher purpose for you,” she said, using his own words. She stepped closer, squaring her shoulders. “You are going to reverse this process. Instead of creating more dociles, you’ll return them to their previous human state.”

  He rubbed his cheek and mouth with a clumsy hand. He mumbled as he thought out loud. “R-reverse it? Never been done before. But it could be. Most recent subjects ideal candidates for control cases.” He gasped and mumbled on. “What of the dociles that have always been? Need to know if I can reverse it in them, too. Yes. Yes, this - this is a stimulating challenge.”

  He refocused and addressed Belle directly. “I’ve thought it through,” he said, excitement bubbling over. “I’ll do it.”

  Belle smirked. “Good. Now hand over the keys.”

  Alex reached into his pocket and pulled out a large ring filled with keys. He dropped it in Alan’s outstretched hands.

  Belle nodded. “Let him go.”

  Alan released his grip on the scrawny scientist.

  “Yes. Who to start with?” Alex mumbled while pacing. He stopped, a smile spreading across his face. “Of course. Victor is mid-transition. I can stop it and reverse it before the process is complete.”

  “Did you say Victor?” She asked.

  “Yes. Yes. Victor.”

  Belle and Alan exchanged a questioning look.

  “I thought he was locked up. How did he get down here?” Alan asked.

  “Isaac brought him,” Alex pointed further down the corridor. “He’s just a few enclosures that way.”

  She swallowed. Of course, Isaac got access to Victor. Both men were dangerous, and part of the Order. Maybe this would clue Alan and the others into the fact that Isaac can’t be trusted either.

  If anyone in the Commune deserved to be a docile, it was Victor. They could justify letting him rot in his cell and finish the transformation. How satisfying it would be to see her enemy destroyed and turned into a docile.

  If I order his processing continued, I’d be no better than Victor. I’m nothing like him.

  As conflicted as she was, she made up her mind.

  “Do what you must, Alex, but move this operation above ground. No more hiding in the dark. And whatever you do, keep Victor locked up.”

  Forty

  Marlene

  The stench of burning death filled the air as the lemeron corpses smoldered. Evening was pressing down on Arborville. The glow emanating from the burn pile did little to comfort those around. It was tainted. Cursed light fueled by the bodies of cursed creatures.

  More lemerons would come, trailing behind those they burned. She knew their destination: the Commune.

  The song buzzing in her head kept getting stronger. It called her back to the wall. Too many lemerons were gathering there. Marlene gripped the railing outside of Brendon’s house. She dug her fingernails into the dry wo
od.

  She lost herself from the influence of a few lemerons. What would she do with the call of over a thousand when she returned to the wall? If she wasn’t able to snap out of it like she did today, what harm would she do to those she cared about?

  It was a reality she didn’t want to face but feared she wouldn’t have a choice. She had to fight the threat to her people and her home.

  “Are you ready?” Brenden asked from behind her.

  She released her grip on the railing, turning to face her husband. “Yes. Let’s get this over with.”

  Brenden raised a horn to his lips, giving it three short blasts.

  The city built among the treetops stirred to life. Doors opened, the inhabitants gathering along the suspension bridges and decks outside of their treehouses. Brenden gave the horn another three blasts.

  Ethan came from around the back of Brenden’s house, Jennie trailing behind him.

  “What’s going on?” Her son asked.

  “It’s time we ended these monsters once and for all,” Marlene stated.

  Jennie’s eyebrows rose. “All of them?”

  Marlene only pursed her lips in response.

  “I mean, how many are there in the world?” Jennie asked, looking puzzled.

  “We destroy those plaguing us and the magnet that brought them here.”

  Jennie furrowed her brow. “You can’t mean the dociles.”

  Naive girl. “We will do what we must to safeguard ourselves.”

  “But -”

  Brenden cut Jennie off before she could finish her protest. “Our audience is waiting. You can continue this argument in private.”

  Marlene eyed the people spread amongst the trees. This was a hardened group. Most, if not all of them, wore some kind of weapon on their person. Even the children who couldn’t be in double digits yet. They were always ready.

  What a contrast to her own people. They were sheltered by the wall and brainwashed by the Order. They were victims of their own complacency. But no more. The rude awakening at the wall would force them to act. If they didn’t, the Commune would be overrun by lemerons, and there would be nothing, and no one left.