But the Children Survived (50 page)

“I still think we should put him in the basement,” yelled Pat.

*****

Christie went back to the residence and showered.  She changed into new clothes and made her way to the cafeteria.  She smiled when she saw that Maria Elena had joined the girls for breakfast.  She then sat down with Andrew and George.

“Well, guys, what's the plan?”  She looked from one to the other. 

“Christie, I have to tell you two things,” Andrew said.  “The first is I put a baseball bat in your lab by your computer just in case you find yourself alone in there with Gerald.  The second is....you can go outside.”  Andrew told her about Calvin and about the new people coming to the biosphere.

“For real, you're not kidding.  We can go outside,” Christie said.

Andrew just kept nodding his head and grinning at her.  She started to laugh and jumped up out of her seat.  She ran to the field door and opened it.  She ran down the stairs and across the field.  When she got to the back, she opened all the doors and climbed the ladder to the hatchway.  Calvin had seen her running and met her at the ladder.

“You need the code, Christie.  091379,” Calvin said.  Christie turned and looked at Calvin.

“It's true, right.  I really can go out there.” 

Calvin nodded.  He watched as Christie entered the code and the hatchway opened.  She stuck her head out and breathed in the air.  She climbed up to the surface and stood on the ground.  She could hear the breeze rustle through the trees.  Calvin climbed out the hatchway.  He was on his way to meet Joe and Dani.

“I'm bringing them back Christie.  They want to see the biosphere.  Do you think Gerald will cause any trouble?”  Calvin hadn't heard about last night.  He didn't know about the wounded children or Gerald's madness. 

“I hope not.  I know Andrew and George have a plan to watch him.  He's one guy against us all.” Christie paused.  “Bring them back.  I want to meet them.” 

Calvin turned and walked towards the vehicles.  He looked up and noticed the Mercedes was gone.

“Shit, somebody stole my car.  I knew I shoulda’ taken the keys.” 

Calvin didn't know that Simon had left the night before.  He thought that more people had come out of the woodwork.  But there were so many cars on the roads, why take his baby?  He would have to take one of the trucks, but it just wouldn't feel the same.

Chapter 62

Christie looked around the parking area and started walking.  She walked to the dirt road that led to U.S. 19.  She walked to the entrance of 19 and saw for the first time the devastation that Andrew and the men had dealt with.  The bones piled up on the side of the road had been laid there by them, and this was just a small sample of what the rest of the country must be like. 

The smell was still slightly putrid, but not too bad.  Christie turned around and walked back to the hatchway.  It felt so good to be outside, but she wanted to check on the kids' wounds. 

As she was just about to enter the hatchway, Christie heard vehicles approaching.  She turned and saw Calvin's truck followed by two school buses, an SUV, and a sedan.  She watched in amazement as the kids clambered off the buses and the adults emerged from the cars.  She could just make out Mindy's blond hair and she could see the dog, only now there were two. 

Calvin waved his arm to indicate they would be entering the biosphere through the back and to follow him.  Christie came down the ladder and positioned herself to allow the others to enter.  The kids started coming down first.  Christie directed them to form a line along the field and wait until everyone had come in. 

The kids kept staring at the huge field.  They couldn't believe it was underground.  When Dani came down the ladder, Christie almost kissed her.  She was so glad to see another adult woman.  Then she saw Jenny come down and she was beside herself.  She wasn't alone anymore.

Once everyone was inside, Christie told them to go to the top of the stairs and out the door.  Mindy and Mark raced ahead to show the kids where to go.  They all ran up the stairs.  The adults had to keep reminding them to slow down. 

“You have a really great kid there,” Christie said to Dani. 

“I know, and I missed her so much.”  Dani was awestruck by the size of the biosphere.  She had no idea that this was what Mindy had been talking about.  It was just amazing.

“You don't know how glad I am to see you,” Christie said, with tears in her eyes.

“I think I do.  Jenny is great, but I really needed someone older to talk to.” 

The women stopped walking and hugged each other.  Then they proceeded up the stairs to the second floor.  Christie could hear Jason talking to Calvin. 

“You have to tell me about them,” she said to Jason, pointing at the two dogs.

“They were the first purple babies,” he said. 

“Purple babies?”  Christie looked at Dani. 

“That's what all these kids are.  They all came from the same place.  Their mothers were treated by the same doctor who used this purple solution to prevent miscarriage.  I was one of the mothers.” 

“Is that what kept you alive?”  Christie was confused.

“No, no, we were trapped in a cavern.”  Dani kept walking and left Christie to ponder that answer. 

Jason stood by Christie and told her he had files at home that explained everything.  Christie told him to bring them the next time he came to the biosphere. 

The kids were running towards the center of town, with Mindy and Mark in the lead.  Mindy saw her old friends Maria Elena, Katie, and Alyssa and ran to greet them.  Mark's mood became dark when he saw her run to them.  He stopped running and held back until Jason caught up with him.  Jason was with Jenny so he was no fun either. 

Mark hated being left alone again.  He kept walking slowly.  He got to the Town Square and stood to the side watching the kids meet and greet each other.  Mindy waved to him to come over, but he just stood there.  He looked up the stairs leading to the labs.  He wondered if Gerald was still up there mooning over his cow. 

Mark slowly climbed the stairs.  The kids were too distracted to notice and the adults were lost in conversation.  Andrew and George had forgotten they were supposed to be watching Gerald.  Pat was cutting birthday cake in the cafeteria and passing it out to everyone. 

Mark got to the landing before Christie noticed him.  She excused herself and started towards the stairs.  She called to Mark, but the kids were too loud and he couldn't hear her. 

Jason looked up as he heard Christie calling to Mark.  He saw Mark standing on the landing.  He was standing right below it, so he ran over to the stairs, and climbed them two at a time.  When he got to the top, he grabbed Mark's arm.

“Hey, buddy, where are you going?”  Jason asked.  Mark turned around and Jason could see he was in one of his moods.

“Nowhere, I'm just bored, I guess.”  They both leaned against the railing and looked out over the City. 

“Interesting view up here, isn’t it?”  Jason ruffled Mark's hair.  “Come on Mark, let's go back down.  They've got birthday cake.” 

Jason watched Mark's face to try to figure out what is really going on.  He saw Mark watching Mindy with her three girlfriends. 

“She cares about you, too, Mark.  She just hasn't seen them for a while.  Didn't you make any friends while you were here?”

“No.”  It was always hard to get Mark to talk when he was in a mood. 

“Well, I'm going back down.  I'm really wantin' that birthday cake.” 

Jason waited for a minute when he saw Mark thinking.  Mark shrugged his shoulders and turned to follow Jason down the stairs.

Jason walked down the stairs first.  Mark began to follow him, but he felt something grab his shirt sleeve.  He hadn't seen Gerald’s hand come out of the door. 

Gerald grabbed Mark.  Mark tried to break free, but Gerald was stronger.  He pulled Mark through the door and into his lab before Mark could holler for help. 

Mark continued to struggle, trying to get away from Gerald.  Gerald had a mad man's grip on Mark. He took one hand off of Mark as he tried to take a syringe out of his pocket.  Mark felt Gerald’s grip loosen and noticed Gerald’s attention was on something else.  Mark used the opportunity to pull away from Gerald and head for the door.  Gerald was right behind him. 

He pulled Mark away from the door and threw him across the room.  Mark landed on the floor and slid into a cabinet.  He looked up at Gerald, afraid to move.  Gerald was holding the syringe in his hand and was slowly approaching Mark. 

Jason took the stairs two at a time and got to the bottom of the stairs before he turned to make sure Mark had followed him.  Christie grabbed Jason's arm. 

“WHERE IS MARK?”  Christie was yelling above the noise in the town square.

“I THOUGHT HE WAS RIGHT BEHIND ME.” 

Jason could see the panic stricken look in Christie's eyes.  She remembered using Martha's photo to blackmail Gerald into giving up Mark.  She was petrified that Gerald may try to extract some twisted revenge on Mark. 

“WE HAVE TO FIND HIM,” she yelled.

Christie ran up the stairs with Jason right behind her.  Christie remembered Andrew telling her about the baseball bat he'd placed in her lab.  She sprinted past Gerald’s lab.  The bat was exactly where Andrew said it would be.  Christie picked it up and headed for Gerald’s lab.  Jason was just about to open the lab door when Christie stopped him.

“He's crazy,” she said.

Jason looked into Christie's eyes.    He could hear Gerald ranting at Mark.  Christie held up the bat.

“I'm going in first.  I'll hit him over the head and you grab Mark,” she said. 

Jason nodded his head.  Christie quietly opened the door.

“You risked our lives you selfish boy.  You could have killed us all.  You are an evil boy who must be dealt with,” Gerald yelled.

Mark was pinned against a cabinet.  Gerald stood over him, syringe in hand.  He was standing between Christie and Mark. 

“Martha never hurt anyone.  You did this.  This whole thing is your fault.  My Martha would be here if not for you, you stupid, self-centered boy.” 

“I didn't even know her.  I wasn't here.”  Mark was crying out, but Gerald wasn't listening.  He didn't see Mark, only the accumulation of his failures and his own inability to save Martha. 

Christie walked slowly towards Gerald.  Mark saw her and she nodded. 

“You liar!  You went out the hatch that day.  You were there.  But you survived.  You're not human.  I know your secret.  You're an alien and all your friends are getting ready to destroy us.” 

Gerald’s eyes were wide and his forehead glistened with sweat.  Jason was following Christie, but he couldn't see a way to grab Mark.  Jason understood what Christie had meant by Gerald being crazy.  He thought of running for help but he didn't want to leave Christie alone with Gerald and he wanted to try and save Mark.  Christie kept moving closer to Gerald.  Gerald continued his rant.

“You are just like my wife.  You take and take.  You steal from me and call the police.  You have me arrested for your crimes, Arlene, your crimes.” 

Gerald was moving closer holding the syringe just a few feet from Mark.  Mark kept looking at Gerald, trying to think of something to say that would snap him out of his crazed rant.  Mark saw Christie raising the baseball bat and relaxed a little. 

“And that stupid lawyer couldn't help.  It was his job to stop her.  It was his job to make it go away.  Neil Cramer.  If he were here right now I would spit in his face.  Someone beat me to it.  Someone killed the son of a bitch before I could.”

Christie stopped.  She heard Neil’s name and couldn't figure out how Gerald had known him.  She heard Gerald say he had wanted to kill Neil. 

Her mind went in circles as she tried to figure out what Gerald had to do with her wonderful husband.  At that moment all she understood was that Gerald was angry that someone had killed Neil before he could.  Rage began to rise up in Christie.  This horrible man had survived a nationwide tragedy while her wonderful family had suffered a terrible death. 

“So here you are, my boy.  You came back.  Did you bring your little blond friend?  She was another troublemaker, wasn't she?  Just couldn't mind her own business.  Well, after I finish with you, I will lure her up here with her stupid dog and take care of them, too.” 

Gerald’s eyes were wide.  He was breathing hard.  He was within one foot of Mark. He raised the needle up and as he did, Christie lowered the bat down on his head. 

Gerald was stunned by the blow.  He wavered a little, trying regain his footing.  Blood is streaming down his face.  He looked down at Mark and remembered the needle in his hand.  Once more he came at Mark.  Christie hit him again, harder this time.  Gerald fell to the floor.  Christie dropped to her knees and brought the bat down on Gerald’s head, over and over. 

Her daughter's face flashed through her mind.  She remembered her husband's kisses while she brought the bat down again and again.  Gerald would pay for all the hurt she’d endured, all the pain she'd felt for the children of this place.  She hit Gerald’s head until there was nothing left but shattered bone and blood. 

Mark had been trying to get past Christie.  When she stopped hitting Gerald, Mark crawled past her to Jason.  They ran to the landing and started calling for help.  Andrew heard them and looked up at the landing.  He ran up the stairs as fast as he could. 

“She lost it,” Jason said.

“Who lost it?”  Andrew asked.

“Christie.  She just couldn't stop hitting him,” Mark said. 

Chapter 63

Andrew stood at the door to Gerald’s lab.  Christie was huddled against the wall next to the door, unable to move.  He saw the lifeless body of Gerald Todd.