Shymers (24 page)

“I had to be extremely careful. I had to be sure it was really you. I know your mother, Olive. I knew this is where she last lived. When you didn’t show up by the blackberries, I figured this would be the next best place to find you.”

He must be one of the Rebels that checks for refugees. But he knows my mother? “How do you know her?”

“From the market.” His voice is still low, although gentle. Once again, there is something about him that feels familiar and, oddly enough
,
saf
e
. “I know she was suspended. I know they took you away to an orphanage.”

“Did the soldiers do this to my home?” I ask, my voice shaking.

His hard gaze softens. “Yes. They came back here the day after they took you. They searched the area for more homes and set fire to everything they could find.”

My heart sinks. Had people died in the fires? Were they innocent families hiding from Society, like mine? “Was anyone hurt?”

“I don’t think so. I was able to salvage a few of your things before the soldiers got here.” He offers a small smile.

“What did you save?” I ask. Maybe I will have some kind of physical memory to cling to after all.

He shifts his weight and looks over to where my last home stood. “Just your blanket and a box. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to save more.”

My breath catches. “What was in the box?”

“All I saw were books printed on paper and a pink box.”

I close my eyes, elated that he was able to save my possessions—especially my grandmother’s box that holds my family memories. “Thank you,” I whisper, opening my eyes.

He dips his head. “I’ll give them to you later. Right now we need to get out of here.”

“Why? Where will we go?”

“The Rebels have built hiding places in the forest. We will be safe there.”

I look around the quiet forest. “I grew up out here and know my way around. What are you afraid of?”

“There are soldiers everywhere.”

Frowning, I nod. “Yeah, I saw some out this way yesterday. Since when do they patrol this far away from the border?”

“Since word got out that the Rebels are planning another revolt.”

Harrison

16 – How Could You Just Leave Her?

The safehouse underneath the factory is bursting with Rebels. Each face scowls at me as I pass, angered by my intrusion. Their bodies are packed so tightly that at times we have to push our way through. The sweet smell of dirt mixed with what I learn to be cigarette smoke overwhelms, making my eyes water over. I follow close behind Lani, keeping my eyes lowered for the most part. Each time I steal looks at the faces coming at me, I decide there must be an equal mix of Futures and Shymers alike.

Lani stops in front of a large gathering so suddenly, I nearly run into her.

“Guys, this is Tayrn’s cousin,” she announces. “We’re going to help him get over the wall when Chance is done working.”

One of the biggest guys steps forward. His arms are as large as my thighs and his bald head gleams underneath the room’s lights. Similar to Lani, he has piercings on his face, but it’s hard not to stare at the glowing tattoos that decorate his arms. He is dressed from head to toe in a black material that looks rough and heavy. “What’s your story?”

Since fighting among Shymers would lead to suspension, there was never any violence in my community. I know from Grandpa Red’s stories, however, that altercations were common in the old days, and I had seen a few at school between Futures. I wonder if this Rebel would hit me if he saw me as some kind of threat to their cause.

“I’m crossing the border,” I answer, holding my head high. “I’m done with Society and its mixed up rules. It’s time for a change.” I brace myself for his reaction.

Surprisingly, he offers me his hand and grins. “Welcome to the rebellion.”

“Thanks,” I say, shaking his hand.

“I’ll be right back,” Lani yells in my direction before walking away. I am left in the corner, still facing the large man and his friends. I shift my weight, hoping to break the tension. The room buzzes with other conversations and loud music.

“The name’s Rico,” the man tells me.

“Harrison.”

“Are you here for the uprising?”

My jaw drops. “The what?”

Rico laughs, shaking his head. “I guess not. Lani hasn’t told you? We’re planning to take down the government and try to make things right. Free people from suspension, remove all the outrageous rules they’ve placed on Shymers, the whole works. The plan has been in motion for a really long time. We were just waiting for our leader to make a move.” His eyes are bright with excitement.

I balk, unable to believe what he is saying. Hope stirs deep within my gut. What if I were to join them? What if I could somehow help to make a difference in the lives of other Shymers before I die? Sadly, it’s too late for my little brother and sister, but it’s not too late for the others living in orphanages, and those living with their families in shame. It may not be too late for Olive’s mother, either. Maybe she is still alive and she can be freed from suspension.

Then, with a sinking feeling, I realize I can’t do both. I can’t run off with Oliv
e
an
d
be part of the rebellion.

“A lot to take in, isn’t it?” Rico asks, tearing me from my thoughts.

I dip my head. “It’s good. I just wish it would have happened years ago.”

“You a Future, like your cousin?”

“No. I only have a few months left.”

“Man, I’m sorry,” Rico offers, his face sullen. I almost laugh—as big as he is, he still reminds me of Olive in this moment with her sympathetic ways. My sweet Olive probably doesn’t even know that she would make a perfect Rebel.

“So are you in?” Rico asks.

“I do…I mean I want…” I stutter on my words. I don’t know what it is I want now. Of course I want to be with Olive, yet I feel like I can’t turn my back on these people either. I couldn’t ask Olive to join the Rebels. Putting her in danger would almost be as bad as having to tell her goodbye.

“I understand if you’re feeling a little reluctant, being a pretty boy and all. You don’t have to look like us to be one of us, although most of the Rebels try to live normal lives in Society. Even Lani wears a wig during the day so she’ll look normal and not raise any suspicion. Harboring someone like you isn’t anything new to us. It’s how most of Rebels start out—ready to run from what they know isn’t right and ready to makes changes. If you join us, we’re not going to make you dye your hair and get a bunch of tattoos.”

I chuckle. “No, it’s fine. That’s not what I’m worried about. I was supposed to leave with someone, but we were separated. Now…I can’t really do anything else until I find her.”

“She must be a pretty special someone,” he says, nudging me with his elbow.

I nod. “She is.”

He laughs and claps me on the shoulder. “In that case, I hope you find her. Whatever you kids need to do to in order to be happy is good with me.”

I shove my hands deep into my pockets. “Still…there’s a part of me that wants to stay and help you. What you’re planning to do…it’s pretty big. It’s important. I don’t know how to walk away from that.”

He grabs me by the shoulders and stares into my eyes, his gaze intense. “Find your lady, kid. Once you do, don’t ever let her go. Not all of us are given the chance to be with the one we love, my man. There are plenty of us here to fight. We’ll help you cross safely to the Free Lands. You worry about living the rest of your life out the wa
y
yo
u
want.”

Nodding, I take his words in. Before I can say anything in return or maybe even thank him, Lani appears back at my side to pull me away and introduce me to more Rebels. Rico disappears among the dimly lit faces of the others.

Suddenly, I think of Edgar. I should have run away with him to join the Rebels much earlier, like we planned. Maybe he would have made it to the Free Lands if I had come along. My mother told me she was a coward for not running away, but I think I’m a bigger coward for not standing up for what I believe in years ago.

We have just met a woman named JoLynn who has medical training when Lani turns to me with a crooked grin. “Are you ready to have your communicator removed?”

I swallow and blink a few times. “Umm…” Edgar and I had planned to have our communicators removed, but I don’t know how it is actually done. This underground room looks unclean with all the dirt and smoke.

“They’re probably already looking for you,” JoLynn tells me. “It should have been removed hours ago, when you first left the orphanage. You’re putting the rest of us in danger.”

Knowing she’s right, I nod. “Let’s do it.”

JoLynn leads us to the opening of another room. Inside she strikes a match to light candles that sit on top of an old, bulky metal table. Patting the metal surface, she motions to me. Obediently, I jump up to sit on the cool table.

“You may want to pay attention,” Lani says. “If you find the others you may have to cut theirs out too. It just depends on how much time there is for them to pass over the border. You were lucky that I brought you here first.”

“Drink this,” JoLynn says, shoving a bottle of clear liquid in front of my face. “It will burn, but it helps with the pain. It’s important that you make sure your hands and the knife are clean when you perform something like this. I have a supply of blades and surgical glue that you can take with you in case you need to do it to one of your friends.”

I press my lips against the bottle and take a drink. The liquid burns a trail of fire down to my stomach before making my entire body tingle. I take another swig. The tingling intensifies and my body begins to feel heavy.

JoLynn laughs and snatches the bottle away from me. “Take it easy there, big guy. You need a clear head when they take you over the border.”

I can hardly focus on JoLynn’s instructions as the searing pain starts behind my ear. In this moment, I’m glad Olive doesn’t have a communicator and won’t have to endure this kind of pain. But the procedure is done before long. JoLynn repairs the wound with a type of surgical glue and hands me a small black bag filled with the supplies. “You’re good to go!”

I slide off the table, unsteady on my feet.

Lani punches my shoulder. “See? That was a piece of cake!”

A loud bang makes me jump. I reel around to find JoLynn holding a hammer over the now broken communicator. She winks at me. “Don’t forget to destroy them when you’re done.”

“Thank you,” I tell her. The words still sound foreign to my ears, yet they sound perfect in the moment.

Lani has to assist me in walking back through the underground community. I leave feeling a connection to the Rebels—maybe even some kind of duty. If only I could find a way to be with Olive and fight for the rights of the Shymers, things would be perfect.

* * *

Lani and her friends help me over the wall by climbing up a crude ladder made from rope. When I question the simplicity of their plan, Lani explains they have to use something that is easy to hide if the soldiers come searching. Before sending me on my way, she tells me not to waste any time in finding the Rebel contact on the other side.

But once I land on the other side with a hard thud, I don’t go far from the wall. Instead I take cover in the tall grasses with my eyes strained for any sign of my cousin, Olive and Bree. The quiet of the forest around me is strange and unsettling. Still, it’s better than the sounds of soldiers pursuing me, or helicopters overhead. The minutes that tick by as the day ages are excruciating.

My thoughts are assaulted with ways this plan could continue to go wrong. What if Director Mahr somehow learned I had been sneaking away each night to spend time with Olive? It’s a possibility, especially if he had, for any reason, decided to activate my communicator before JoLynn removed it. He may even suspect that Olive and I were running away together. He could have soldiers take her away from school. If he catches on in any way, she won’t be safe.

I can’t stop thinking about the large man named Rico with the glowing tattoos. The way he talked about the rebellion with so much passion pulled me in and stirred so many feelings to the surface that I had when my family was still alive. It made me think of the times my father and I talked of the old world while looking through my grandfather’s book.

How could I make sure Olive is safe and still join the Rebels? After we find each other again, I don’t know how I will ever let her leave my side.

Exhaustion from lack of sleep creeps up on me and is hard to fight off. I am rubbing the drowsiness from my eyes when movement of a figure on top of the wall catches my attention. I rub my eyes again, hoping I’m not imagining things. The figure dangles for a moment on the edge before, quite suddenly, dropping. I hold my breath, waiting for the figure to move again. The grasses move as the person begins crawling. I move closer to the wall, still keeping a safe distance away. It could be anyone coming into the Free Lands.