Final Days: Escape Read online

“Take back the camp,” Val whispered through gritted teeth. “Defeat Mary and her followers.”

  Andrew grimaced, thinking about how many people would die in that struggle. “Maybe we will, but we still need a safe place to strike at them from.” And a way to keep you out of it, he reasoned to himself. He couldn’t go toe-to-toe with the Saints if he was constantly worrying about them shooting Val or taking her hostage. She was a liability, and the only way to solve that was to take her out of the equation. Keep her on the sidelines. “Val.” He nodded to her and she looked at him, waiting for him to continue. “Tonight, when everyone else is asleep, I need you to give me directions to the entrance to Hound’s place in the forest.”

  “It’s down a stairwell under a secret hatch, slightly below the surface of a pond.”

  “Yeah, I’m going to need you to be more specific than that.”

  Val frowned, but conceded with a shrug. “Okay.”

  “Good. Is everyone else clear about what we need to do?” Andrew directed the question to each of the others in turn.

  Roland and Tony both bobbed their heads. Val gave no reply.

  Kendra smiled wanly at him. “It’s a good plan. Better than waiting around for the other shoe to drop.”

  “More like the other guillotine,” Roland muttered.

  “Yeah,” Andrew agreed, and cast another glance at the shore. The guards were watching them now, but without any hint of suspicion or alarm. The distance between them had been enough to keep their conversation private. Good thing, because if the Saints knew what we’re planning, we’d be as good as dead.

  FOUR

  Roland

  Dusk settled around their colony as Roland walked toward the far edge of camp. The growing fields were far away, and it was a different world this side of Eden. The forest was close, adding long shadows to the purple cotton-leafed trees on the ground.

  “I’m beat,” Tony muttered.

  “You and me both, kid.” The day of manual labor in the lake had taken its toll on Roland, but he was already feeling much stronger than he’d ever been. Years of hiding inside his grandmother’s house, pecking at a keyboard, had left him pale and weak. Now, only a few months into his new life, he stood taller and his belly fat had significantly decreased. That’s what I get for not having any salt and vinegar chips to sustain me. He missed the salty snacks. Even though he’d just had dinner, his mouth watered at the idea of his favorite treat.

  “Are you sure we’re going to find them in Eden Fifteen?” Tony asked.

  “I dunno. This is where they sent me when the treatment plant needed a pipe replacement a couple of weeks ago. I’d say if there were any unused cameras, they’re here.” Roland paused at the large section of their spaceship, and peered around. It was hard to believe the very ship with which they’d arrived on this new world now made up their camp.

  “How do we access it?” Tony asked.

  “Were you even listening earlier?” Roland barked, maybe a little too loudly.

  Footsteps coming around the round section of Eden caused him to clamp his mouth shut. “What is it, water guy?”

  Roland held out the small component in his hand to the armed man. He didn’t recognize this one, but he was bald and didn’t seem like the friendly type. “Transducer fried this morning. Can’t have fresh water without it. I was told I could find a replacement here.”

  The man nodded, waving them closer. “Sure thing. Wait where you are.” He turned, keying in an access code. Tony and Roland both attempted to see what it was, but the man seemed to feel their prying eyes, and he shifted his body in front of the pad. The door sprang open, and he jammed a hand out. “Give it to me.”

  Roland shook his head. “Do you mind if I do it? There are about twenty different amperages of these things around camp, and the last guy gave me the wrong one. That’s why this is fried.” It sounded plausible to his ears, and the Saint’s disinterested expression spoke volumes.

  “Whatever. The kid waits outside,” the bald man said.

  Roland entered, the lights inside flicking on with his movement. “What’s your name?”

  “Mack.”

  “Short for something?”

  “Mackenzie. Never mind. Get the part and move on,” Mack told him gruffly.

  “Will do.” Roland investigated the room. It had shelving from floor to ceiling, with tiny blue plastic bins, each with a label. There was a computer on a desk in the center of the space, and Roland plopped down, smiling at Mack. “Need to find its location first.”

  The guy leaned against the exit, staring outside, and Roland moved quickly. Using the search field, he typed in Camera, hoping no one was watching the network. It showed five different positions. He scrolled through them, noticing the different types of camera components. When he found Camera: Surveillance, he memorized the box number. “One one three Alpha,” he whispered to himself.

  He discovered the transducer, too, even though this one wasn’t damaged, and moved across the room, searching for the camera box. Mack wasn’t paying attention, and he jogged to the far edge where the “Ones” started. He found the proper bin quickly, and snatched a compact brown box, shoving it into his pocket. It stuck out too much, and he was sure it would be noticeable.

  “Hurry up!” Mack shouted, and he jumped at the noise.

  With the camera in his possession, Roland wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead and retrieved the transducer. The small silver cylinder was in a bin beside three more like it, and he took one.

  “Got it.” Roland walked through the exit, patting Mack on the back.

  “Don’t touch me,” the man said, but Roland only lifted a hand in a wave and continued walking. Tony caught up to him, and they heard the door to Eden Fifteen slamming shut.

  “Did you find it?” Tony asked.

  “You doubted me?”

  “Every step of the way.” Tony laughed, but it ended as soon as they saw John, the murdering psychopath, step into their path.

  Roland’s heart raced. He was sure John would stop him and demand to see what the bulge in his pocket was, but the man only stood there whistling as he stared toward the crops in the distance. He didn’t move to accost them, so Roland led Tony around him, staying at least five yards from the man at all times.

  He hated it here. He despised the constant fear everyone was living under, and could only hope to move forward with their plan. It was the only way to survive. If they gave in, Roland wouldn’t be able to live with himself. Not after he was finally beginning to live again.

  The trip to Eden One was slower than he liked, but Roland was grateful his exhausted legs could only move so fast. Otherwise he probably would have been running, and making himself a conspicuous target. By the time they pressed through the entrance, past the armed Saints, he was sweating through his uniform, and he met the others in their corner where they always were.

  “We good?” Andrew asked quietly.

  Roland nodded once.

  “I don’t know about you, but I’m going to sleep like a baby tonight,” Val said.

  “Maybe you won’t snore, then,” Tony quipped, and Val threw a pillow at him.

  “I don’t snore! Dad, on the other hand…”

  Roland’s sleeping bag was between Tony and Kendra, and the woman moved closer as he lowered himself to the floor. “Thank you.”

  “All in a day’s work.”

  “Think you can link it?” she asked, staring at the box as he pulled it from his uniform. He slipped it into his bag, setting it beside the control tablet inside.

  “I’d better be able to,” he said.

  A banging at the entrance cut off her reply, and the skinny redheaded guard Arthur clunked his gun against the metal doorframe. “Lights out! See you tomorrow for another day in paradise!” he called, and the doors slid shut, sealing them in.

  “I hate that guy,” Val muttered.

  Someone started crying across the large open room, and Roland sighed. Kendra’s hand found his, and she
squeezed it. “You can do it.”

  Roland nodded, slipping into his sleeping bag. There were a couple of dim lights flickering, in the event that someone had to use the bathrooms during the night, but he needed to do his work beneath the covers so no one spotted him.

  It was musty inside, and he wondered if they’d ever wash the bedding. He hated that he smelled of sour sweat and fear because of them. Because of her. He let that anger swell, then simmer, inside his mind, pushing it to the recesses of his thoughts as he opened the tablet. He tried to move only slightly under the covers, comforted that Tony and Kendra were keeping watch.

  The camera packaging gave him a little trouble, but eventually he had the small thumbnail-sized device clear of the plastic and cardboard. He used the tablet from the water treatment plant to search for a connectable device, and found the serial number labeled on the box. He clicked it, and they synced up with more ease than he’d expected.

  Hound and the technical team had made everything user-friendly, so that anyone could use the technology if needed. Roland doubted anyone had guessed that their colony would be altered so drastically within a matter of weeks. He almost laughed at how ridiculous the situation was, but had no strength left.

  The camera was ready. They only needed a way to disguise it.

  Roland unzipped himself, letting warm air out, and he balled up the garbage, shoving it to the left side by his feet. Kendra tapped the floor, and Rollie slipped the camera into her palm. She hid it away and turned from him.

  Roland’s heart was still beating too fast, and he lay on his back, staring at the ceiling above, realizing sleep would elude him despite his exhaustion.

  * * *

  Kendra

  Another day, another shift in the soil. The pale blue sun hid behind some cloud cover today, and the air held a sharp tinge of ozone. She wondered if a rainstorm was due, and what would happen if the mist found their camp again under the current situation. As dry as it was, she didn’t want to find out, and hoped the storm would blow over without hitting Eden.

  She spotted her sister inside the mess hall and hardly recognized her. Carrie had gone from being a self-assured leader to this shell of a woman. Her dark hair was greasy, hanging in long clumps to her shoulders. Her pallid skin had a sheen to it, and Kendra was more worried about her than ever.

  Maybe this task was beyond her, but Kendra had to try. They couldn’t go on like this. “Hey.” It was all she said as she took a seat opposite her sister. Eric walked by, nodding to her slightly, and continued outside.

  “Hey.” Carrie glanced up, her eyes narrow and watery.

  “Look… I know this is hard on you…” Kendra wondered when she’d suddenly become the bigger sister, but didn’t voice the question.

  “All of that time. Those years I spent working for them. I could have been at home with my family…”

  “It wouldn’t have changed anything.” Kendra leaned closer. “We’re together. And I need you to stop wallowing in self-pity and focus, Carrie.”

  Carrie set her spoon down and met Kendra’s stare. “For what? Why bother?”

  “We have a plan.”

  Her sister smiled. “A plan. Like the last one, when you left us right as Morris made her move?”

  “We had to see…”

  “And what did it accomplish? We discovered there are more of the predators over there. They live in huts. How is any of that going to help us now?” Carrie broke eye contact.

  Kendra had intended on telling her sister the entire plan, but held back. She wasn’t ready. She was too volatile. “You have access to Hound’s residence.”

  “Sure. I clean it for him.”

  “He’s a robot. Why does he care about that kind of thing?” Kendra asked.

  “He’s not what you think…”

  “Then what is he?”

  “I don’t know. An alien…”

  “Are you going to help us?” Kendra was already growing tired of the conversation. She needed Carrie to compose herself.

  Carrie nodded. “What do I have to lose? It’s already gone.”

  “Is there somewhere inside Hound’s quarters you can put this?” Kendra flashed her palm open and closed it again.

  “He has a plant, an unusual species I can’t identify. It’s thick. I could jam it in there, and he’d never see it. I water it every week.”

  Kendra smiled. “Will it give us a view of him at all times?”

  “Mostly. It’s across from his… charging station.”

  “Good. When are you scheduled to return?”

  “Tomorrow.” Carrie reached for it, but Kendra slipped it into her own pocket.

  “I’ll give it to you then. I don’t want anyone finding it.” What she didn’t say was that she felt far more comfortable carrying it herself.

  “Do you not trust me?”

  Kendra shifted in her seat. “It’s not that… you’ve been spending a lot of time with him, instead of us. It doesn’t look good to the others.”

  Carrie’s face softened, and she glanced around nervously before spilling the beans. “I understand Hound, and even if he isn’t what I thought, he’s not with Shelley. He’s only letting this happen because you and Keller learned the truth. He can’t have everyone finding out, so he’s happy to relinquish control to Morris temporarily.”

  “He told you that?” Kendra wondered if any of it was true.

  “In fewer words, but I’m in his ear. He listens to me, Ken. I think I can persuade him to side with us and take back the colony.” Carrie’s eyes were wide, bloodshot.

  “I’m not sure… we can’t trust him. Keep doing it, and in the meantime, we’ll work on Plan B.”

  “And you can’t tell me what it is?” Carrie asked.

  “Not yet. I hope you can understand.”

  “This plan… will it work?” Carrie asked, her posture straightening up the longer they spoke.

  Kendra shrugged. “I don’t know, but it's worth trying.”

  Carrie nodded and rose. “I better get to work. See you tomorrow.”

  Kendra followed her from the mess hall, feeling the breeze on her face. Carrie stopped, whispering in her ear before breaking apart. “Thank you. I needed this.” She stalked away, moving for Eden Five, where Lewis Hound spent most of his time.

  Evan waved at Kendra from near a shed, holding an extra gardening tool in his grip. The backhoe machines had dug up another five acres of land, and they were expanding their crops again.

  Tomorrow couldn’t come soon enough.

  FIVE

  Hound

  Lewis Hound sat behind the desk in his quarters, watching Carrie work. She was busy dusting a vine tree from Eden’s northern hemisphere. He didn’t really need her coming in here to clean. It wasn’t as though he made much of a mess, but he wanted to keep her close. It was one way that he could keep her safe from Mary and her band of fools.

  When the time came, he would be done with the reverend, but these people needed a lesson first. They had to recognize that he wasn’t their enemy, that there were worse fates that could have befallen them. When the time was right, he’d present the solution and emerge as their savior in deed as well as name—not the risen one Mary spoke of, but as himself: Lewis Hound, the billionaire who had saved them from certain death on Earth, and who would save them again from Mary’s reign of terror.

  Carrie finished with the vine tree and caught his eye. He smiled, but she shifted her gaze, her eyes darting. She was afraid of him. His smile faded.

  “I’m not the one you should fear,” he said. “I won’t harm you, Carrie.”

  She began sweeping an invisible layer of dust from the floors, but said nothing to his reassurances.

  He went on. “You forced my hand. You and Keller and the others. If you hadn’t seen me for what I am, if you had chosen to simply accept your roles in what I’m building here...”

  Carrie looked up quickly, her eyes flashing. “Then you wouldn’t have gone along with the reverend’s coup?
” she challenged.

  Lewis spread his hands. “Exactly.”

  “Okay, so end it. Arrest her or kill her and deal with the rest of her people, and we’ll fall into line behind you.”

  Lewis sighed. “If only it were that simple. But when the time comes, I’ll do exactly that. You can help me speed things along. Get your sister, Mr. Miller, and Eric Keller to side with us. Even Roland. They’re ringleaders, whether they know it or not, and everyone else will follow suit.”

  “They won’t come out supporting you while you’re still backing Mary and her ridiculous religion.”

  Lewis smiled again. “I agree. So explain to them that I’m merely playing along.”

  “I tried.”

  Lewis cocked one eyebrow at her. “Did you?”

  “Yesterday. With my sister.”

  “And what was her reaction?”

  “She still doesn’t trust you. That’s why I’m telling you to make the first move. Do something to prove that they can trust you.”

  “I’ll take that into consideration, Carrie. In the meantime, work on the others. I’m especially interested to hear how Keller and Andrew react to the news that I’m not really on the reverend’s side. They need to accept me for what I am, and to understand that it changes nothing about my mission. They must also agree not to attempt to spread word of my secret. If we’re to regain control of the colony through peaceful democratic leadership, then people must not be allowed to realize what I am, or else Mary’s dictatorship will need to be replaced with another one just like it. And I’d rather that we put such draconian methods to rest.”

  “Fine,” Carrie replied, “but at least level with me. If you’re an alien and that’s part of how you managed to do all of this”—she broke off and gestured helplessly to his quarters, likely indicating the colony ship as a whole and the technology that had brought everyone here—“then where are you from? What are you? Why did you save us? And where are we? It’s not Proxima b, and we have reason to believe that you’ve killed people for saying as much. So why? What are you scared that people will learn?”

  Lewis felt his thoughts slowing as a deadly weight settled in his mind. Was Carrie too far gone? He really didn’t want to have to get rid of her. Lonely as this posting might be, it was made better by having familiar faces around him. If not his equals, they were people he could confide in and trust, or at least he thought they were. Not everyone could handle the truth. And some things were better buried than revealed.