“They’re high ranking employees in the labs - scientists, military. We’re collecting intelligence on them in case we ever do get the chance to do something,” Alexis began, but a glance from Quentin silenced her.
Do what? I wondered, my mind racing. I thought back to Alexis’s dismissive response to my filming. Could it be that they had actually dreamed about overthrowing the military, too? Could they really be the ones to help us change things?
But my thoughts were cut off, as Joshua stalked off, disappearing through an opening into a dark duct.
Alexis frowned. “What’s the matter with him?”
“I don’t know,” I said quickly before hurrying after him. It took my eyes a moment to adjust to the darkness in the next tunnel. I walked toward Joshua and half expected him to turn away but he didn’t. I touched his shoulder and felt him trembling.
“What’s wrong?” I whispered. Fear shot through me; he was shaking.
I wrapped my arms around him. He pressed himself against me and his trembling ebbed away.
“Talk to me,” I said against his chest.
His breath pushed against my forehead. “One of the men in the photos.” He swallowed.
I waited.
“He was my dad.”
“I’m scared,” Izzie whispered.
“Me too,” I said, though admitting it even to my best friend made the fear even more real.
From the deck chairs in the Smith’s backyard, we watched our dads carry boxes of powdered soup, batteries, glow sticks and first aid equipment into the bunker where Izzie’s family would spend the quarantine.
Mr. Smith had already helped my dad get our family bunker ready yesterday.
“It’s so much food. It doesn’t look like it’s meant to last for only a few weeks. More like months.”
I’d noticed it too. “They’re being careful. You know how they are. They want to make sure we don’t run out of food.”
Izzie gave me a doubtful look. I closed my eyes and tried to enjoy the feel of sunrays on my skin and the smell of grass but the queasy feeling in my stomach didn’t cease.
Izzie slipped her hand in mine and we linked our pinkies. “I’ll miss you,” I whispered. We’d never been apart for more than a few days.
“Don’t worry, my dad says it’ll be over before we know it.”
Chapter 8
“I thought your dad was dead.”
“So did I,” Joshua said, his expression turning hard.
“May — maybe it wasn’t him? Maybe you made a mistake.”
“It was him, Sherry.” His voice died. Silence settled around us. His chest heaved against my cheek like he was trying hard not to cry.
“But how is that possible?”
Joshua pulled away. “He lied. He betrayed us, left us for dead. That’s how.”
It had been more than three years since Joshua’s father had left him with his mom and sister in a public bunker promising to return. But he never did. Joshua’d thought his father had died. What other reason could there have been for abandoning his wife and children?
“Maybe the military told him you were dead.”
“He should’ve checked!” His words echoed in the drain. Like I should check on Bobby, even if everyone said he was dead.
A head peeked out of the neighbour tunnel. It was Alexis. “What’s going on?”
“We’re just talking,” I said hastily. Why did she have to barge in now?
Joshua exhaled. “I need a moment to myself,” he whispered, so only I could hear him.
I hesitated. “Are you su —”
“Please.”
Disappointment washed over me, but I tried not to let it show. I stumbled toward Alexis, squinting as I followed her to the table.
“Coffee?”
I nodded. A pot of steaming black liquid appeared in front of me. It was bitter and strong.
“What were you and your boyfriend fighting about?”
I looked up. “We weren’t fighting. He was —” My eyes were drawn to the pictures on the wall. I moved toward them and it didn’t take me long to find Joshua’s father. They shared the same strong cheekbones and blue eyes. His photo was one of the headshots. But there were other, blurrier ones, that must have been taken from a distance, or secretly. “How did you get those photos?”
Alexis followed my eyes. “We found them on the internet a few months ago before the labs upped their security. Quentin is a fantastic hacker.”
A hacker? My mind was working overtime. It looked like Quentin had been investigating the government for some time. He could be in possession of all kinds of useful information. And not just that. Once we’d collected footage of life on both sides of the fence, Quentin might be able to help us work out how to broadcast it to a larger audience.
“What are you collecting all this information for?” I asked.
Alexis shrugged. “Know your enemy, I guess.”
Trying to remain casual, I pointed to the photo of Joshua’s dad. “Who’s that?”
“He’s one of their scientists. He’s been giving interviews for the government-controlled TV station about their progress,” Quentin said behind me.
I jumped. I hadn’t even seen him come in. He sat down opposite me.
“I thought they kept it a secret,” I said, puzzled.
“They keep the bad stuff secret,” Quentin said wryly. “They only talk about their successes – transforming the rabies, getting it under control, creating the cure. That’s what they always say on TV. It’s all bullshit.”
“Is there a cure?” I asked. I tried to keep my tone even, but inside I was screaming for the answer. Everything hinged on it.
“That’s what they say. And from what we’ve gathered it’s true.”
Relief soared through me. So it was real. We really did have a chance to save Dad. And maybe we could help other infected people on the other side of the fence.
I pushed the cup of coffee to one side and leaned forward. “Where is the lab where they produce the cure?”
He shook his head.
“Please. You have to tell me,” I said, struggling to remain calm.
“There’s no way in hell you can get inside. Unless they catch you and then they’ll only use you as lab rats.”
“What if we know someone who works in the lab?” Joshua said, walking into the main room and leaned against the wall. His eyes flitted to the picture of his dad.
Quentin stiffened. “Do you?”
Joshua’s mouth tightened. His eyes looked red, and I knew he had been crying. I felt sad and angry with him all at once. Why couldn’t he come to me, so I could support him? Why did Joshua always feel like he had to be strong for everybody? I don’t think he realized how useless his tough-guy act made me feel. I tried to catch his eye, but he wouldn’t even look my way.
“That guy is my father,” he said.
Quentin’s mouth dropped open. “Adam Bender’s your father?”
The cup in Alexis’s hand hovered inches from her lips. “You said you came from the Void.”
“I do.” A muscle in Joshua’s jaw twitched and he turned away.
“So he left your family in the Void?” Alexis asked.
I couldn’t stand the look on Joshua’s face. “That’s not important, is it?”
“Of course it is. It’s a matter of trust. We hardly know anything about you,” Quentin said slowly. I had a feeling that he was close to to throwing us out. What would we do then?
“Do you think I’m some kind of spy for my father?” Joshua snapped.
Quentin narrowed his eyes. “I never said that. There’s no need to be so defensive.”
“Look, Joshua didn’t even know his dad was alive,” I said, cutting in before this got out of hand. We needed the Undergrounders; we couldn’t risk antagonizing them. “You probably know more about his dad than he does.” Joshua looked at me gratefully.
“Okay. I get it. But if you haven’t talked to him for years, you’ll have a hard time
doing it now. The scientists live in a closed-off colony in the Colorado Rockies near the lab. And they’re heavily guarded.”
I relaxed, glad that Quentin didn’t think we were spies. “To protect them or to keep them from running?”
“Probably both,” Quentin said.
“So is that the lab where they produce the cure?”
Quentin searched my face, then Joshua’s, before he nodded. “Yes. We think so.”
“Where is it?” Joshua asked.
Quentin sighed heavily, then reached for a map and spread it before us. He pointed at a spot in the Colorado Rockies. “It’s somewhere in this area.”
Joshua took the chair beside me. “Do the scientists use their own cars to drive from the lab to their homes or is there a military shuttle?”
Quentin smiled. “You think you can intercept your father on his way to work, right?”
“That’s my plan.” His voice was controlled. The emotion I’d heard when he’d found out about his dad was gone. But I knew it still there, buried deep inside. Joshua was staring at Quentin intently.
“Look, I don’t know how the scientists get to work,” Quentin said. “I don’t know where they live. I’m not even completely certain that this is the lab where they make the cure. I’ve been trying to hack into their system for over a year and haven’t got anything. There are no guarantees.”
“Are there ever?”
A look of silent understanding passed between Joshua and Quentin.
I sank down on the bed, trying to take in everything we’d just discussed. Joshua had gone off somewhere; he said he needed some time to himself. I understood, or at least, I tried to, but it still bothered me that he wouldn’t share his feelings with me.
Tyler’s breathing was rhythmic, but I knew he wasn’t asleep. I’d seen him close his eyes when I’d entered the room. I wasn’t sure what to do about him.
“Are you hungry?” Alexis said as she came in. “We’re having a barbecue.” She smiled but shadows played around her eyes.
“A barbecue?”
“Yeah, kind of.”
I touched Tyler’s shoulder. He winced and I dropped my hand. “Do you want to come? You should eat.”
“Maybe later,” he whispered, not even bothering to open his eyes.
After a brief moment of hesitation, I followed Alexis through the kitchen into a separate drain where a fire burned in a home-made barbecue. It had been built from a shopping cart and what looked like a washing drum. Skewers of dark meat were cooking on it, which Marty turned, so they didn’t burn. The rest of the Undergrounders sat on logs and crates, whispering and eating.
“Want one?” Marty asked, holding out a paper plate with two skewers on it. The meat looked weird, but I accepted the plate anyway.
I sat down on a log beside Alexis as I looked around the drain chamber.
“I just saw Joshua,” she said. “I’m sure he’ll join us soon.”
I wasn’t so sure. I took a skewer and pulled a piece of meat from it with my teeth. The taste reminded me of lamb, only more stringy. “Why’s everyone’s hair cut off?” I asked between bites.
“Lice. They’re everywhere. It keeps them at bay.”
At once, it felt like something was crawling over my skin. I had to stop myself from scratching. “Why didn’t you cut your hair?”
Alexis gripped a strand of her hair as if to remind herself that it was still there. “I’ve always had long hair. It’s the one thing from my former life I can keep. Well apart from this,” she said, twirling the ring around her thumb. “I won’t give either of them up.”
“Did someone give it to you?”
“It was my dad’s wedding band. He told me to keep it for him until he returns from the war.”
For the first time I saw a glimmer of Alexis’s vulnerability. I could tell she wanted to change the subject.
“What kind of meat is this?” I asked. It was beginning to taste more and more like waste water.
“Are you sure you want to know?” Quentin took the seat beside me. I nodded.
“It’s rat,” Quentin said.
“Rat?” I put the skewer down on my plate. Alexis stifled a laugh.
“It’s our version of shish kebab.” He chuckled but as fast as it had come the smile was gone. His eyes looked almost black in the dim light of the chamber.
“That’s —” I stopped myself from saying “disgusting”. Not too long ago I’d been so hungry, even the thought of eating a dog had seemed okay.
As if he could read my mind, Quentin said, “It is disgusting. I know.” He popped the remaining strips of meat from my plate into his mouth. “But believe it or not, it’s not much worse than the synthetically enhanced beef you used to buy in stores. And don’t let me get started on the stuff people get sold as beef now.”
“Now that is disgusting,” Alexis added.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to insult you.”
Quentin touched my arm. “You didn’t. It takes more than that to insult me.”
My eyes were drawn to the scar on his face. I wanted to ask him how he’d gotten it, but some questions led into a darkness I wasn’t sure I could stomach right now. Quentin must have noticed my gaze. He traced a finger over the scar.
“It’s a good reminder,” he said quietly.
“Of what?”
“That my actions have consequences. And not just for me.”
I frowned, trying to make sense of his words. “What happened?”
The fire sizzled and crates scratched over the ground as people moved around the chamber. I was beginning to think Quentin wouldn’t answer when he finally spoke. “I lived with my parents in Vegas. They didn’t want to move. My father was against the relocations. He thought the military were trying to cover up their incompetence. I thought he was paranoid.”
A bitter grin twisted his lips. My stomach knotted.
“I’ve always been good with computers. So I decided to prove to my father that his conspiracy theories were bullshit. I hacked into the computer system of the military but what I found there was even worse than all the stories my father had come up with.”
“What did you do after you found out?” I whispered.
“I was shocked at first but at the same time I felt invincible because I’d broken past their firewalls. I bragged about it in my hacker group. We even started making plans to overthrow the government. I wanted to make the information I’d found public. I —” His next words were harsh. “I was an idiot.”
“The military found out?” I guessed.
“They came one night a few days later. A guy from my hacker group had betrayed us. They killed my parents and then they came for me. I fought them, even shot a soldier with my father’s gun. But they overpowered me. The guy I’d shot in the leg gave me the scar. He would have cut me worse if his buddies hadn’t stopped him. But they still needed me.”
“They wanted you to work for them as a hacker?”
He nodded. “They kept me at the military base near Vegas. They’d captured me and a few of my old hacker buddies. Their families, too, had been killed. After a week of torture, I agreed to work for them. Turns out I was the best hacker of my friends.” He took no pride in this; I could hear the self-hatred in his voice, could see it in the lines on his face and the way he held himself. “After two months I escaped. I thought they’d catch me but they didn’t. That’s how I ended up down here in the drains.”
I tried to imagine how hard it was for Quentin to tell me this, tried to be sympathetic, but all I could feel was excitement. He must have so much insider knowledge about the government and how they operate. If we could get him to help us with our plan to show people how their government had abandoned us in the Void, I was sure it would strengthen our case. He’d already told us where the lab was. If he could break into their system again, we might be able to find new evidence to expose the government. And with all his technical expertise, he might even be able to help us put together the video and get it
broadcast.
I felt a shiver ripple down my spine. For the first time, I really believed that the power to change things was within my grasp. Now I just needed to find a way to convince Quentin to help us.
“Do you ever think about trying to bring them down again?” I asked hesitantly.
Quentin shook his head. “I can’t break into their system, at least not from here. It’s completely locked. I’d have to be inside the building at one of their computers to have a chance now.”
“Do you know that for sure? Have you ever tried?”
“Of course I’ve tried,” he snapped. “The only way I’d be able to get in the system now was if I was working for them. And there is no way I would ever go back to the military.”
“Well I’m not returning to the Void without some hope of us getting our life back beyond the fence.” I could feel the indignation bubbling inside me. “Joshua and I are going into the lab to get that cure for the survivors in the Void. And once we’re back there, I am detemined to tell people on this side of the fence the truth. I’m not letting those government bastards get away with this.”
“Fine. But you’re on your own. This is a suicide mission,” Quentin said harshly.
I wanted to scream. “But if you helped us, we could really stand a chance.”
He glared at me. “This isn’t my fight.”
“How can you say that? It’s everyone’s fight, Quentin. This world is so messed up. We have to change it, so those kids–” I gestured toward the youngest Undergrounders – “don’t have to live in fear.”
But I could see he had stopped listening. “I have to keep those kids safe. That’s precisely why we’re staying out of your mission.”
Then, refusing to look me in the eye, he stood up and walked away. Alexis followed.
Defeated I buried my head in my hands and tried not to cry. After a little while I heard someone approaching; it was Joshua.
I pulled myself together and sat up. “How are you?”
His eyes darted away. “I’m fine,” he said. He hadn’t seemed to notice that I wasn’t.
“Do you want to talk?” I reached out for his hand.
“No. I’m fine.”