Monsters (31 page)

“So you’re talking to me now?” he asked, trying to shift the topic.

Lisa smiled. “Looks that way.”

“Can I join you?”

“Sure.”

Her leg was no longer in a full cast. Her new cast extended from just below her knee to her ankle, allowing her to hobble around without a crutch.

James climbed up next to her, standing on the rim of a wooden box and pulling himself up on the railing.

“There are stairs, you know.”

“Ah, that’s not anywhere near as impressive,” he replied.

“Or as stupid.”

She was still smiling, which James felt was heartening. He sat down next to her on a bench seat and stared out across the fields as a thin crescent moon sat high above the fading glow of the sunset.

“So were you deliberately trying to piss McIntyre off? If so, that was pure genius.”

“Oh, no,” James replied honestly. “That was pure stupidity.”

Lisa laughed. “I don’t know. Seems like an easy mistake to make. I mean, from the way it was told to me, and it seems pretty harmless.”

“You’d think so, but the captain’s taken offense. He thinks we were trying to make a fool out of him.”

“Oh, please. He does a good enough job of that himself.”

James laughed.

“He’s assigned us to the honey wagon tomorrow.”

“You know what that is, right?” Lisa asked.

“Oh, I’ve a fair idea. It’s sewage disposal, from what the guys tell me.”

“I hope you have a strong stomach.”

“What’s his problem?” James asked.

“You don’t know?” Lisa asked, an air of surprise in her voice. “McIntyre fancies himself as my father’s successor. Dad sends him out to find me, to rescue his wayward daughter, only I’ve already been rescued by some lone hunter. How do you think that makes him feel?”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“I’m surprised he didn’t start you on the honey wagon.”

James laughed. “Hey, how is your leg?”

Lisa’s tone of voice changed slightly, increasing in pitch. “It’s fine.” And James found himself wondering quite how he should interpret that. Something bothered her beyond just the inconvenience of the cast.

Her voice lowered a little, softening as she added, “They say the bone is malformed, that it twisted slightly as it mended, so I’ll be stuck with a limp.”

“I’m sorry—”

“Don’t,” she said, cutting him off. “You don’t need to be. If it weren’t for you I wouldn’t have my leg, or my life.”

James was silent. For a few seconds, he felt awkward, then the moment felt strangely natural as time moved on. Sitting there, the stars were brilliant. With no clouds in the sky, the heavens shone with a radiance James normally only saw high in the mountains. No words needed to be spoken.

Lisa sighed.

“I’m sorry,” she began. “I’ve been a real bitch.”

James tried not to burst out laughing. He hadn’t expected her to be quite so forthcoming, but she had always been blunt.

“No. It’s OK,” she continued. “You can laugh. I know it’s true.”

Turning toward her, he could see she was smiling.

“Have you figured it out yet?” she asked.

“Figured what out?”

“What all this is about.”

“No,” he replied.

“Loyalty.”

“Loyalty?”

“Sure,” Lisa said. “They mean to break you. Break down your sense of individuality and mold you into another loyal soldier. That’s the reason for the command structure. That’s the reason for sending you to work on the honey wagon. It’s not punitive, not really. Who gives a damn what color you painted that stupid trailer? No, it’s more than that, it’s about exercising authority over you and getting you to submit to their rule.”

“I could say I won’t do it.”

“You could. But you won’t. And that’s what they’re counting on. At each point, you sink further into the mire. At each point, it becomes harder to say no, harder to pull out, and they’ve got you, they’ve got your allegiance.”

“You really don’t like your father, do you?” James asked.

“I hate what he’s become,” Lisa replied. “I hate how he molds others in his image.”

“You think things are that bad? I mean, I look around and I see progress. Sure, it’s not perfect, but nothing any man does is ever perfect.”

“Listen to yourself,” Lisa said. Her voice was soft and dispassionate, as though she were talking to a child. James didn’t find that insulting, rather it made him more curious, more determined to understand the issues that caused her such concern.

“That cliche,” she said. “The very words you used, those are their words. Without realizing it, you’re reinforcing their logic. But think about it, think about what that phrase means, nothing man does can ever be perfect. It’s an excuse for shortcomings. Instead of a determination to change, it accepts the status quo. Sure, no one’s perfect. But we’re not talking about perfection, whatever the hell that is, we’re talking about change. We’re talking about not putting up with bullshit.”

She looked him in the eye as she spoke.

“You see progress. I see slavery. You see the pressed uniforms and brass buttons. I see the widows and orphans toiling away to sustain an illusion. You see technology being revived with the use of radios and computer tablets. I see shiny toys, luring the magpies and crows out of the sky, bringing them in close enough to catch. You see the past being revived. I see monsters lurking in the shadows.”

James swallowed the lump in his throat. Lisa rested her hand on his as she spoke. There was something eerie about her words. They held a truth he didn’t want to accept.

“You haven’t seen the real McIntyre, the real Gainsborough. You’ve seen the magician’s cloak, the rabbit springing forth from a hat. You’re enjoying the show without ever going backstage.”

“But we have to do something,” James said. “We can’t just go on running from wild animals. We have to make a stand. We have to do something to try and turn the tide.”

“Yes,” Lisa replied. “But not this. We should not climb on top of others, using them to get what we want. I have no doubt about the sincerity of my father. He sincerely thinks he’s doing what’s right, doing what’s best. He’s going about rebuilding the only way he can, but deep down, there’s something else at work. And I don’t think even he realizes that. I don’t think he understands the forces at work in his own life, the role of pride, ego, ambition, selfishness and the desire to be adored.”

The balcony door behind them opened and General Gainsborough walked out.

“I thought I heard voices out here,” he said rather jovially.

James stood, feeling like he’d done something wrong, wondering if there was some punishment worse than the honey wagon awaiting this indiscretion.

“Oh, please,” Gainsborough said. “Don’t stand on my account. It’s good to see you two kids together.”

James looked at Lisa. Her eyes were full of longing. There was so much more she wanted to say, he could see that. Looking back at the general and his warm smile, James felt a sense of conflict. He wasn’t sure what to think. He excused himself politely and walked away, struggling to resolve Lisa’s words with the harsh necessity of life around him.

It had been almost three months since James arrived in Richmond, and he was getting itchy feet. He had managed to get word out to his father through traders, letting him know he was fine, but it was impossible to explain the complexity of his situation. Three words had come in reply, “Watch your back.”

The tablet was a real hook, but so was Lisa, especially now things had thawed between them.

James tried to keep himself aloof from the constant appeals by various commanders for loyalty and dedication. Lisa was right, there was a subtle undertone to so much of what they did. From praise for his work to reproof for his mistakes, there were days where it seemed everything was fake, said only to reinforce the culture of submission. If it hadn’t been for Lisa, he wouldn’t have seen the spider web, he would have been caught up in it like so many others.

Late one afternoon, word came from McIntyre for James and half a dozen others to gather in the gymnasium. They crowded around as McIntyre addressed them.

“Tonight, the general is going to make an important announcement.”

McIntyre stood over them, standing on a low stage, looking out over the heads of those gathered there. “I need you to transform this gym into an auditorium. Clean the floors. Wipe down the chairs. Get someone to scrub the marks by the door.

“I want fifteen rows of chairs, ten on each side. Use a string along the rows to get them straight. Use a block of wood to ensure the chairs are evenly spaced. Then run the string long ways, so each chair is perfectly placed. When the General walks in, I want him to see an orderly arrangement, with nothing out of place.”

“Really?” James asked, questioning what he thought was an absurd notion. “But the chairs will move as soon as someone sits on them, so why bother?”

As the words left his lips he realized he was alone on this. The other soldiers stared at him with disdain.

“Discipline is its own reward,” McIntyre replied coldly. “Details demonstrate respect.”

James had the feeling he was going to end up on the honey wagon again.

“Anders. You’re in charge. I want this place to shine. Phillips, you’ll coordinate ushers, make sure the first two rows are reserved for the elders.”

“There won’t be enough seats for everyone,” one of the others said, but with an air of deference that wouldn’t offend.

“They can stand,” McIntyre replied.

The work crew set about cleaning and setting up for the evening meeting. With half an hour to spare they were released so they could wash up and return for the announcement. When James walked back into the hall, he could see someone had hung a banner over the stage that read “
Reclaiming the Promised Land
.”

The gym was packed. Lisa sat near the front, seated at the end of the second row behind the elders. James made his way over and stood near her, leaning against the wall. She looked over at him, hunching her shoulders, and he was surprised to realize she had no idea what this was about.

Outside, the sound of a generator broke through the night. Bright spotlights lit up the stage. Gainsborough walked on stage and the audience rose to its feet, clapping and cheering.

“Thank you,” Gainsborough said, looking twenty years younger as he stood there bathed in the bright light. “Thank you. Please, be seated.”

It took a few seconds for the clapping to subside.

“As I stand here before you tonight, I cannot help but feel the weight of history bearing down upon us. The importance of our lives, the importance of what we are doing here, of all we are building, cannot be overestimated. For centuries to come, people will look back on these days and marvel, realizing this is where the fight began. They will celebrate our lives. They will honor our lives. They will recognize that we took the fight to the monsters, that we refused to give in, that our lives shaped their future.”

“As some of you no doubt have heard, tonight we take a bold step forward into that bright, new future.

“For years, we have dreamed. For years, we have hoped. But now is the time. The future is upon us.”

Gainsborough looked around as he spoke. James wondered how far into the audience he could see through the blinding spotlights, but he was personable, as though he were talking to just one or two people, not over a thousand people spilling out into the walkways and corridors surrounding the gymnasium.

“When we started this settlement, the naysayers said it would never last. They said we’d succumb during the first winter. They said the old ways were buried beneath the rubble of the cities, but we have shown them otherwise. They said we would lose sight of the rule of law and would descend into chaos. But I say, they were wrong.

“For seven years now, we have held the prison. We have fought off monsters. We have stayed. We have progressed. We have electricity. We have running warm water. We have sanitation.”

That brought a smile to James’ face. Working the honey wagon had been torture. Thankfully, pumping sewage was only a monthly chore. James had vomited until he’d been left dry-reaching. It didn’t seem to matter how long he was in the tanks, the smell seemed to be ever-present, coming in waves. He’d burnt his clothes afterwards and scrubbed under his nails until his fingers felt raw. Even then, the smell seemed to linger in the background for days. Lisa told him it was psychological, that she couldn’t smell anything on him, and maybe it was, but the revulsion he felt was real.

Gainsborough continued, his voice booming through the hall.

“We have shown them that there is a future for mankind. We have shown them that together we can defeat monsters.

“And now we will show them that this was just the start, just the beginning.”

He paused, probably for dramatic effect, thought James.

“We have sacrificed much. We’ve lost friends, brothers, fathers, husbands, wives, daughters, sisters. But their loss has not been in vain. From here, we move on into the Promised Land.

“And so, I’ve decided. We’re going to do it. We’re going to take back Washington D.C.”

The crowd erupted, standing and cheering. Gainsborough stood there, basking in their adulation, his smile radiating, his arms outstretched.

“My scouts,” he began, trying to talk over the cheers. “My scouts have probed the approaches to the city. We will harvest technology. We will establish an outpost. Over time, we will build a second settlement there in the halls of the Pentagon.”

Spontaneous cheers and whistles continued to resound from various parts of the hall.

“And we will collect the tribute that is rightfully ours. We will move in force, a thousand strong, bringing in troops from the surrounding villages. We will circle to the north, then out to the west and down to the southern villages of the plain before returning to Richmond with the riches of our spoils.”

Again the crowd erupted, getting to their feet and cheering. Lisa got to her feet and hobbled to the side door, pushing her way through the throng. James joined her. He too had heard enough.