I slowed to a jog, not wanting to give up. But there was nothing left to do.
It was over. Done.
Then, suddenly, the door opened and Eddy’s head popped out. “Run!” He screamed something else, along with Tony’s name, and the jet slowed slightly. The speed was not yet so fast that I didn’t have a chance to catch it, so I mustered up every ounce of energy I had and gave chase.
My lungs threatened to burst as I pumped my arms, running faster than I ever thought possible. Eddy was lying on his belly and reached out to me with both his arms. “Grab hold!”
I had to sprint even faster to get ahead of the wing, and then I lunged, reaching with my right hand. Eddy grabbed my hand, then clutched my arm with his other hand, so he had me with both. My left hand still held the gene gun, which I heaved over Eddy’s head before grabbing onto the side of the door.
“Hold on!” Eddy yelled as the jet increased in speed.
“Don’t let go!” I screamed. My legs could no longer keep up so I curled them up using my abs, pulling myself off the runway, but putting more strain on my grip on the door.
And Eddy’s hold on me.
His face inches from mine. I was all sweaty, and my hand and arm began slipping from his grip. “Don’t let me go!” I screamed. “Eddy!”
And then we were speeding down the runway, heading to take off as I still hung halfway out.
Over the roar of the jet, I heard another explosion and felt the jet tremble, then another.
From the cockpit, Tony yelled, “We’re not gonna make it!”
Eddy grimaced, his face red with exertion as he struggled to hold on to me. But I felt my own grip on the door failing, my legs were too heavy to keep holding up like that, and Eddy’s hands began to slip.
I grunted, trying to hold on. But I couldn’t any longer and I started falling—
Then Lexie was there, kneeling, half on top of Eddy, yanking on my other arm with a strength I never knew she had. I was almost in, on top of her and Eddy, part of my legs still dangling outside the door.
But none of us had leverage inside the jet, and with Lexie’s added weight, I felt us start to edge our way out the door. My upper half was barely inside the door, and the metal legs of the front seat were just out of my reach. I strained for them with my fingertips, as my brother and sister did everything they could to hang on to me and keep us all from sliding out the door.
My fingers reached out. Come on!
Just as Lexie screamed, “I can’t hold on!” the front of the jet began to lift, sliding us back far enough so I could grab the metal leg. I pulled with everything I had left, dragging myself all the way in, where I fell on my side on the floor. Lexie and Eddy scrambled backward to safety, then Eddy reached out and shoved the lever for the door, which closed as the jet left the ground.
Eddy and Lexie collapsed beside me, and the three of us lay there, chests heaving. We heard a series of booms, all rocking the jet, causing enough turbulence that we had to grab on to the legs of the seats.
Tony yelled, “You all in?”
“Yeah,” yelled Eddy.
The jet shuddered.
“Better buckle up!” Tony yelled.
I crawled up into the seat by the window, Lexie beside me, and Eddy across the aisle. I doubled over, trying to catch my breath as I strapped myself in. Tony slowly circled back around to head east. I looked out the window.
The entire island was ablaze, explosions still bursting. Even if the scientists had tried to leave, it was obvious that none had made it.
Lexie put her hand on my leg and I turned to face her. Tears streaked down her red face. “When Dad didn’t come home, it was my idea to meet you at the jet. I thought we were leaving you. Why weren’t you with Tony?”
I managed a bit of a smile. “I wanted to make sure you and Eddy weren’t at the house.”
“You were worried about leaving us?”
I nodded.
She leaned her head on my shoulder and sighed. “Neither one of us are.”
“Are what?” I asked.
“Monsters,” she said. “Neither one of us are monsters.”
Eddy reached across the aisle with his hand. I grabbed it and held on. He was crying, too.
Lexie sandwiched our hands between both of hers. She said, “It’s over.”
Yeah. Finally, it was.
Leaving my hand where it was, holding on to my twin’s, both snug in our older sister’s embrace, I turned once more to the window. My knees stung, my legs and arms felt like I’d run a marathon, and I was still panting. My own eyes filled with tears as I watched the island, in flames, recede from my view, until there was nothing below but blue, blue water. Lexie’s head was still on my shoulder, so I leaned my head on hers, closed my eyes, and let Tony fly us home.
EPILOGUE
Now that we’re back home, I am trying to come to terms with it all. What my father did to those people. Maybe they all knew what they were getting into. Maybe not.
I told my mom only what she needed to know: Dad’s plans to bring us all there and keep us prisoner, again. I told her enough about the research to make Dad appear insane, as he was.
But that room with the cribs? I keep that to myself. I didn’t even tell Eddy or Lexie. No good will ever come from anyone knowing that.
I told Mom that Dad died in the explosion. Not a lie.
Eddy, Lexie, and I don’t agree about Tony. We left that part out when we told Mom everything. We fudged the truth a bit, making up a story about a rogue pilot who saved us in the end.
Obviously, Phil’s days at YK are done. Even if we were to somehow explain how Phil Whitaker, CEO, was now a teenager, Mom would throw him out.
So, for now, we keep Tony as a family friend. Sort of like that saying: Keep your friends close, your enemies closer. He knows we control him. But then, he was always controlled by my dad, so it’s not that much of a change for him. He has enough money to see him through this second life he has acquired.
And honestly, Tony is the only person besides me who knows about that crib room.… Maybe I need someone around that I can talk to about it. Plus, we would still be on that island if he hadn’t flown us home.
Somehow, deep down, I feel like that redeems him, at least a little bit. But I know very little about redemption, so who am I to judge?
Today, I finish it.
Lee is driving me in the SUV to the Progeria Institute. My backpack sits in my lap, my hands resting on the outline of the object inside. We drive through the gate and Lee parks next to the first red building.
I walk inside and head right to Dr. Barkley’s office. He’s expecting me, and greets me at the door. I take a seat across the desk from him, still holding my backpack in my lap.
I tell him, “There’s something you need to know that I’ve been keeping from you. My name is Eli Yanakakis. I am Rex’s son.” Saying it aloud wasn’t as bad as I had anticipated.
He started to say something, but I kept going. “I have something that may help your research. But you cannot ask where I got it.”
He nods. “No questions. I understand.”
I open the backpack and pull out the gene gun. I set it on his desk.
His eyes widen as he carefully picks it up.
I say, “I think … I hope there may be genetic material in there that can help your research.” I don’t tell him that I had his original research on the flash drive for weeks, and that it was recently destroyed in an explosion. I hope the contents of the gene gun will make up for that.
He looks at me. “But where—”
I set a finger on my lips and shake my head.
He smiles. “No questions.”
We shake hands and he walks me outside.
On my way back to the SUV, I notice the large building with the pool. I go inside and hear the sounds of laughter and splashing water. I watch the kids in the pool and sit on the bench Verity shared with me that first day.
Will I ever stop being conflicted, wonder
ing whether blowing up the island has hurt any chances there ever were of curing progeria? My only hope is that Dr. Barkley can do something with the gene gun.
I sit here, hoping no one will ask what I’m doing. Because I’m sitting here, waiting, for only one reason: I am hoping Verity might show up.
After forty-five minutes pass, I realize she’s not going to be here. I glance at my watch, wondering whether I should stay a few more moments. Or give up.
“EJ?”
My breath catches in my throat as I look up.
Verity is standing in front of me, wearing a flowered miniskirt and bright orange hoodie. She looks so wonderful to me.
All I can do is smile at her. Now that she’s here, I’m not sure what to say.
She asks, “Why are you here?”
I say, “I had an appointment with Dr. Barkley.”
She rolls her eyes slightly. “Another paper to write?”
I start to say something to appease her, then stop. My plan is to be honest with her, and that means being true to myself, who I am. I am done trying to run from it. “No. There was never any paper.”
She frowns.
I say, “And my name isn’t EJ. It’s Eli. Eli Yanakakis.”
She sinks down onto the bench beside me, like her legs have given out.
Go ahead. Make your judgments. Decide I’m some spoiled, rich-kid freak.
“Why?” she asks.
I am confused. “Why what?”
She asks, “Why have you been lying to me?”
The question throws me off for a moment. “Because … of who I am.”
Verity raises her eyebrows. “So you lie whenever you meet someone?”
I shake my head. “No. I mean … I never meet anyone. You’re the first girl I’ve met since—”
“Since you came back from … down there.”
So she knew. The moment I said my name aloud, she’d probably had news reports flash through her head.
I nod. “And you must think I’m a freak.”
Her tone softens. “God, no. I mean, I don’t know what happened down there. But I think you’re nice, and—” A look passes across her face. “Is this what you were going to tell me the other day? When we were going to meet?”
I nod.
“What happened?”
I blow out a breath and don’t say anything for a moment. “It’s kind of a long story.”
“I have time.” She smiles.
I smile back. “Next time.” I look down at my hands. “Listen, it’s … it’s hard for me to trust people. And I’m sorry I lied.” Then I reach out with both hands and lightly grasp her elbows, pulling her toward me. “If you give me another chance, I—”
She doesn’t pull away, but her eyes narrow. “You’ll what?”
I don’t know.
Part of me wants to let her go, back away, give up on it all, and never see her again. That would be the simple way.
But I am Eli Yanakakis. And it seems to be a genetic flaw that I never do anything the simple way.
I take a deep breath, then move my hands up to cradle her face.
I lean in, close my eyes, and kiss her. When I pull my face back, she smiles up at me. “That’s what I wanted to do when I saw you.”
My face gets hot and my grin widens.
“So can we reschedule our date?”
“It was a date?” she asks, smiling.
I take a chance. “Yes. It was. It was absolutely a date.”
She laughs. “Then I would be honored, Mr. Yanakakis.”
“Call me Eli.”
“Eli.”
Then Verity grabs hold of my hand and squeezes, like she never wants to let go. And that happens to be fine with me.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Kudos to Scott Mendel and Liz Szabla, who always do and say the right things to spur me on. I am grateful to Jean Feiwel and the entire team at Macmillan. Without them, my words on a page would remain simply words on a page.
As always, love to Tim, Bailey, and Tanzie for dealing with a messy house/hungry pets/lack of meals at times. All my extended family is amazing: extra mahalo to Wendy and Rudy, who provide me with an ever-ready Big Island retreat.
There are people who make my life better just by being in it. And they make me laugh. In case you don’t know who you are: Jessi Eaton, Karen Dinsmore, Jalyn Thompson, Linda Beck, Maranda Robbins, Lori Dresen, and Kristi Hanson.
Thanks to Mark Roughsedge for early feedback, and the rest of my fellow blogging Spuds on One Potato … Ten: Your support as we all traverse this crazy business together means the world to me. But when it comes down to it, this book would not have happened without the readers of The Compound. All the letters, e-mails, and the students I met in schools and through Skype all wanting to know: What happens next? You finally persuaded me that I needed to know, too. I hope you like what I found.
A FEIWEL AND FRIENDS BOOK
An Imprint of Macmillan
THE FALLOUT. Copyright © 2013 by S. A. Bodeen. All rights reserved. For information, address Feiwel and Friends, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Available
ISBN: 978-0-312-65011-7 (hardcover)/978-1-4668-4842-9 (ebook)
Feiwel and Friends logo designed by Filomena Tuosto
First Edition: 2013
macteenbooks.com
eISBN 9781466848429
Table of Contents
Title Page
Dedication
Epigraph
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Chapter Forty
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
Copyright
S.A. Bodeen, The Fallout
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