Authors: Daelynn Quinn
“Where’ve
you been?” I asked. “We started without you.”
She
looked straight into my eyes. Respa was not the shy, demure type. She tells it
like it is and doesn’t seem to care what anybody thinks of her. “I was with
Quorian. Apparently, he’s had eyes for me since I moved in,” she said
nonchalantly, in her low, raspy voice.
Lynx
smiled, “So tell us about this Quorian. Who is he?”
Respa
grabbed the desk chair with one hand, dragged it to the bed and straddled it,
leaning her crossed arms on the back of the chair. “Oh, what to say about
Quorian,” Respa looks up dreamily. “He’s tall. Dark. Incredibly handsome. He’s
an Enforcer. Level 2. And he’s definitely got some stamina.”
Lynx
snorted as she tries to suppress her laughter. I would have done the same if I
hadn’t been so worried. “An Enforcer? Are you sure it’s a good idea to get
involved with them?” I asked.
Respa
rolled her eyes, “They’re survivors just like us, Pollen. They’re no
different.”
“They’re
bullies. They’re not tagged. They are in charge here. They are worlds apart
from us Respa. When Glenn….” Respa stood abruptly, kicking the chair out from
under her, shocking me into silence.
“Enough
about Glenn! I’m sick to death of hearing about him. Get over it already!” Some
women on the other side of the cellblock stopped what they were doing to look
at us. Respa paced the cell, while Lynx tried to calm her down. Respa took a
few deep breaths, gazing down at the floor, hands cupping her forehead, before
turning back to me, more composed. “I’m sorry, Pollen. It’s just that Quorian
is different. He’s not this cold, overbearing tyrant like some of the other
ones. He has a heart. He’s…sweet.”
I
stood and took her hands in mine. “I’m just worried about you Respa. I didn’t
mean to compare him to Glenn. I just haven’t found a reason trust any of them
yet.”
“I
understand, but I’m a big girl. I can’t take care of myself,” said Respa arrogantly.
“You
sure can,” said Lynx, picking up the chair and placing it back by the desk.
I
gave Respa’s hands a slight squeeze, “Just be careful, okay?”
“Of
course,” she said, planting a kiss on my cheek. “But it’s time we get your mind
off that jerk. When are you going to invite Marcus for a sleepover? Lynx can
chill with me for the night.”
“It’s
not like that,” I said. “We’re just friends. Nothing more.”
Respa
snickered, “Oh please. Are you blind or just plain stupid? That man would
follow you to the sun and back if you asked him to. And I’ve seen the way you
look at him. There’s no way you feel nothing.”
Lynx
joined in, “She’s right, you know. He is crazy about you. You really should try
to move on. If I were you, I’d definitely give Marcus a shot.”
I
knew they were right, but I still couldn’t admit it to myself. The next day
Evie and I were playing out in the yard together as we always did. I spent most
of my time at Crimson with Evie, although I did get plenty of time to myself.
After all, she had made some friends of her own and the chaperones in the
children’s wing were very kind and nurturing. I’d seen the way they care for
the children and I trusted them with Evie. But I did prefer to be with her as
much as possible.
The
yard was a large outdoor expanse where prisoners would go to get some fresh air
and exercise. The grass was brown and dry and worn away in most spots, leaving
dust and rocks that the children loved to kick up. The size of two football
fields, the yard was surrounded by a tall electric fence on three sides.
There’s a smaller chain link fence a few feet inside the outer one to provide a
safe cushion against being electrocuted. Since we were not considered
prisoners, we could come and go as we please, but I had Evie on a schedule so we
would always go out after breakfast in the morning, before it got too warm,
since there were no trees nearby to provide shade.
Evie
and I played catch with a blue bouncy ball. I would bounce it on the ground to
her so she could easily catch it. Then she would throw it back to me—or
in my general direction anyway. She is only three after all. Every time I
bounced the ball, a small puff of dust would rise up from the ground, reminding
me of a desert. We must be having a drought, I thought. I only went out a few
hours a day, but never noticed any evidence of rainfall.
Evie
caught the ball I launched to her and stopped, holding the ball and looking
down at it, studying it. As she turned it to one side then another, I began to
realize she was not looking at the ball at all, but her clothes.
“Auntie
Pollen, what does peckooliaw mean?” asked Evie, cocking her head to the side
like a pigeon.
“Peculiar?
It means odd or very different,” I said. “Why?”
Evie
bounced the ball back to me. “The doctor said that my jeans are peckooliaw.
There’s nuffing wrong wiff my jeans, is there?” she asked. I caught the ball
and paused briefly before I dropped it and squatted down with Evie.
“No,
honey. There’s nothing wrong with your jeans. I think the doctor was talking
about a different kind of genes. There are tiny things inside us called genes
and they are what make everybody different. Some people have genes that make
them tall and some people have genes that make them short. Some have genes for
blond hair and some, like us, have genes for brown hair,” I told her.
“Oh,”
Evie said, looking off in the distance, distracted. Some of the children from
Evie’s wing had come out with a chaperone and were playing tag.
“Auntie
Pollen, can I go play with the other kids?” asked Evie.
“Of
course,” I said. “I’ll call you when it’s time to go inside.” Evie smiled and
ran off to join the kids. I sat down on a nearby aluminum bench and watched.
They’d play all day long if they could. I remembered when Drake and I were like
that. Sure there was a few years’ age difference, but that didn’t matter. All
the neighborhood kids got together and played every night until it was too dark
to see. That memory saddened me. All of my old playmates were dead and gone
now.
“Now
why are you sitting here all alone?” Marcus snapped me out of my trance. He was
accompanied by Lynx and Clover, who were holding hands. I never really
understood what she saw in him. He definitely wouldn’t make my hot list with
that beer belly. But Lynx isn’t nearly as shallow as I am. I guess she saw
something in him I didn’t.
“I
was just hanging out with Evie. She’s off playing with her friends,” I said,
cupping my hand over my brow to shade my eyes from the sun.
Lynx
sat down on the bench next to me. “Clover and I are going to catch a movie tonight
in the viewing room. We thought maybe you and Marcus might want to join us.”
She smiled and winked an eye at me.
I
looked up at Marcus who looked as though he’s expecting an answer. He said,
“I’m up for it if you are.” I guess you could say that was to be our first
date.
Chapter
16
I
lurch at the sound of heavy metal scraping and those hauntingly familiar
telltale clicks. My eyes fly open and on the floor, just inside the door, is a
cup of water and a paper plate with white rice, greens, and some kind of meat.
The room looks much brighter to my eyes now, having adjusted to the darkness. I
can’t tell if my meditation drew me in so deeply as to withdraw from the
tangible world, or if I had just fallen asleep against the cold wall.
Either
way, I am starving. I crawl over to the plate and scoop up the rice and greens
with my cupped fingers, only to see the spoon later, after I’ve eaten. I’m so
hungry I break down and eat the dead animal flesh. It disgusts me, the way the
stringiness of the dry meat feels in my mouth, but it’s nourishing.
I
lean back against the wall, my hands clutching my full belly. Then I drift off
again, into the realm of my subconscious.
One
evening Marcus and I were in the laundry room washing some clothes. The
Enforcers, or whoever is in charge here, allowed us to keep our own clothes and
there was a huge room we called the clothing closet that provided free clothes
to anyone who needed them. I guess that’s one thing that set us apart from
ordinary criminals. Had they forced us to wear matching jumpsuits they’d have a
hard time convincing anybody we weren’t prisoners.
I
liked laundering my clothes in the evening. The laundry room was quiet and
empty, and since I don’t particularly like being around people, it worked out great
for me. Only Marcus was there, which was fine, because we’d managed to become
really close friends in the few weeks we’d been at Crimson. Marcus always did
his laundry late at night because he doesn’t like to wear clothes from the
closet, so he would strip down and wrap a towel around his waist while he
washed his own clothes.
“I
can’t believe you still have that shirt,” I said, eying a holey tee shirt as he
put it in the dryer. “Why don’t you just throw it out?”
“I
love this shirt,” said Marcus. “It’s comfortable.” I rolled my eyes and turned
back to my washer as the buzzer sounded, announcing the load had finished. “You
know, there are a lot of clothes in the closet and they are all free to take,”
I said.
“Yeah,
dead people’s clothes,” he said. “I’ll wear my shirt ‘til it’s nothing but
thread before I wear some dead guy’s clothes.”
“You
just wait,” I said, loading my damp clothes into the dryer. “One night I’ll
sneak into your room and snatch that shirt right off your back and burn it!”
“Then
I guess you’ll just have to get used to this,” said Marcus, flexing his
sculptured pectoralis major muscles. I hoped the flush on my cheeks was not
noticeable in the low light.
“Stop
it,” I laughed as I threw a sticky, wet shirt at him.
“Oh,
you want to play it that way?” he smirked, throwing back the shirt, which I
caught and promptly threw into the dryer. He reached up on a shelf above the
machines to grab a spray bottle full of water and started spraying me. I
erupted with laughter, and ran around the room trying to take cover. I even
tried to block the squirts with my hands but it was no use. I was soaked.
“I
think this is the most fun I’ve had in months,” I say gleefully.
“Me
too,” Marcus drops the bottle on top of the dryer and closes the gap between
us, gazing into my eyes. I peered around the room nervously, trying not to get
my eyes caught in his, because then it would be impossible for me to look away.
Something stirred inside me and I just knew he would kiss me. And as much as I
wanted him to, I was scared out of my mind. I’d been with Glenn for so long, I
didn’t know how to be with anyone else. I wasn’t sure I was ready to start
over. But there wasn’t time to analyze my relationship status. I glanced up at
his eyes and was instantly imprisoned by his gaze. Marcus leaned in toward me
with firm desire. His tempting lips drew nearer and I gulped and licked my lips
in anticipation.
Suddenly,
as I was about to close my eyes and surrender to Marcus, the door burst open,
slamming back against the wall. Marcus and I barely had a moment to look up
when Glenn came storming in.
He
didn’t say a word. His expression said it all. Eyebrows furrowed, lips frowned,
his body stiff and aggressive. Glenn barreled into Marcus like a football
player going for a tackle, knocking him to the floor so hard, they both slid
all the way to the far wall. Glenn pulled his elbow back to deliver a punch,
then another, then another. Marcus was alert and focused and managed to dodge
every one of them.
“Glenn,
stop!” I yelled. He ignored me, but it distracted him enough to give Marcus an
opportunity. He jerked his legs up and kicked Glenn off of him, rising to his
feet in a guarded position. Glenn stood up also, circling Marcus, never taking
his eyes off him.
“She’s
mine,” said Glenn.
“Like
hell I am,” I interjected.
“No,”
said Marcus, “She’s not an object to be owned and thrown away.” Glenn lunged at
Marcus again, who ducked to the side and returned a punch right into Glenn’s
gut, forcing him to double over in pain.
“We’re
done here,” said Marcus. But when he turned back toward me, Glenn lurched
forward, grabbing Marcus around the neck and leaned him back against the
washing machine. He held one hand tightly around Marcus’s neck, while the other
fist pulled back and fell just below his eye.
I
couldn’t bear to just sit back there and watch. I jumped onto Glenn’s back, my
arms around his neck and pulled until he released Marcus. He turned and pushed
me back. I tumbled back, slamming the back of my waist into the dryer and then
crashed into the floor. I wasn’t really hurt that badly physically, but seeing
me like that must have awakened something in Marcus. A surge of strength seemed
to build up inside him and he raised his fists to target Glenn. One. Two. Three
times he hit.
I
couldn’t take it anymore. “Stop!” I shouted. Marcus struggled to restrain
himself, but he did with gritted teeth. Glenn cowered by a dryer. His face
flushed red and his left cheek began to swell. As pathetic as he looked, I had
no sympathy for him and shoved him toward the door.
“Damn
it Glenn, stop! You lost me the moment you slammed that door on me. You have
yourself and no one else to blame for that. We’re over, Glenn.” I pushed him
out the door. In an act of finality I took out the engagement ring, which I had
been keeping safely in my pocket, and threw it at Glenn. It bounced off his
chest and clinked onto the floor. The sound was so dainty, yet seemed to echo
down the corridor.
Glenn
looked at me with the same biting scowl he came storming in with. “You’re just
a useless tramp,” he said, picking up the ring. “You’re boyfriend better watch
his back.” Glenn disappeared and I stood there for a moment trying to calm the
tremors quaking my body. But I only relaxed when Marcus walked up behind me and
cradled me in his arms.
In
the morning, I went to Evie’s cell, which she shared with three other little
girls, to take her to breakfast, but found that she was not there. The little
girl sitting on the edge of the bed told me that the nurse took her away. She’s
already had blood drawn from her. Twice.
Why would they need her again?
I wondered if it had something to do with what she
said in the yard. About her genes being “peculiar.”
I
felt anger rising in me but I breathed deeply, trying to suppress it. It
wouldn’t do me, or Evie, any good to cause a disturbance here. So instead I met
Marcus for breakfast and waited for Evie at our usual table in the recreation
floor of our wing.
The
recreation floor was on the lower level of our wing and consisted of three
sections: a TV viewing area, a fitness area, and an area with tables set up for
playing cards or board games. Evie liked to play games so we spent a lot of our
leisure time there.
When
she finally arrived, she had a large bandage the size of my hand wrapped around
the inside of her right elbow, which almost matched the one on her left arm.
She looked pale and lethargic, almost ghost-like. That was a defining moment in
my life. That was the moment I decided it was time to leave Crimson.
“You
want to do what?”
Lynx’s
pale skin grew even sicklier and the way her eyes widened you’d think she’d
seen a specter.
“We’ve
got to get out of here, Lynx. Something’s not right. I’ve got a really awful
feeling about this place,” I said quietly, pacing the room.
Lynx
looked down and shook her head. “Pollen, you do realize this place is a
prison.”
“But
we’re not prisoners!” I exclaimed, a little too loudly. I looked around to make
sure we hadn’t attracted any unwanted attention. Luckily, everybody was going
about their own business and didn’t seem to notice me. I hushed my voice and
continued, “We’re not prisoners. They said it themselves. They can’t force us
to stay here.”
“In
theory, yes,” Lynx agreed, reluctantly. “But they’re not going to simply open
up the gates and let us out. Look at the Enforcers marching around, guarding
every major thoroughfare.”
I
paused when I spotted movement out of the side of my vision. It was Respa,
strolling in and munching on an apple.
“Then
we’ll find a way to escape unnoticed,” I declared.
“Wait
a minute,” Respa said with her mouth full. She had stopped mid-stride and had
that same incredulous look on her face. “What did you say?”
“She wants to leave Crimson,” said Lynx.
Then she turned her attention back toward me. “Again, Pollen, this is a prison.
I mean, a real, high security prison. This place was built to ensure people
could not get out.”
“I
understand that. But people have escaped from prisons before. With your genius,
Lynx, and Respa’s know-how, I know we could come up with a good escape plan.”
“Whoa,
hold up,” Respa announced. “Even if you two choose to go through with this
suicide mission, which it is, count me out. I’ve actually got a life here now.
And better than the one I had before.”
Before
the virus discharged its toxic fury, Respa lived with her crackhead boyfriend
and handed out bags of greasy hamburgers at a drive-thru. Her existence was
pretty meager before coming here. Why couldn’t she understand? It could be
different now. She could be free to live her life however she wanted.
Lynx
gently tapped her fingers on her knee, something she did while formulating and
contemplating ideas. I continued to plead with Respa, but she was adamant about
staying.
“It’s
possible,” Lynx announced. I relaxed in the comfort of knowing I did not have
to do this alone. Respa, on the other hand, turned to stone.
“You’re
not really doing this,” said Respa.
“I
hate to admit it, but I’m also worried about the true intentions of our
captivity here,” said Lynx. “And I can’t let Pollen go through with this on her
own. She’ll never make it alone with Evie in tow. Respa, you said Quorian is an
Enforcer. Does he have access to the main security room?”
“I
think, but…” Respa started.
“Good.
Get him to bring you copies of the prison blueprints. We’ll also need to know the
Enforcers’ schedules. Mainly the changing of the guard.” Respa’s brow arched
with concern.
“But
how?” Respa insisted.
Lynx
smiled, “Use your irresistible charisma.”
I
placed my hands on her shoulders, “Respa, I understand why you won’t go with
us. But will you at least help us?” She looked at the floor, weighing her
options then raised her head with that impish smirk and nodded reluctantly.
And
help us escape, she did.