SAFE (14 page)

We
huddled in a small circle not far from her, but far enough to where she
couldn’t hear what we talked about.

“Look,
Lucan. Why don’t you go below, see what you can find that might be of some use
to us, and I’ll keep interrogating her. We need to learn everything she knows
and then we’ll figure out what to do with her,” James said.

As
much as I didn’t like her and knew she was crazy, I wasn’t a murderer and
couldn’t kill a defenseless girl. She was tied up, no weapons, and was no
longer a threat towards us. Before Lucan left, I told them what I thought and
that we shouldn’t kill her. Instead, I suggested we leave her there, let fate
sort it out. James said he’d think about it and Lucan didn’t take either side. Then
he walked over and jumped down into the hutch while James and I walked back to question
her.

All of a sudden, she decided to speak. “How did you
get around my cameras?” she asked, glaring at James.

He
bent down to her level. “Is anyone else coming? Are you here alone?” he questioned.

She
didn’t answer.

“How
did you get around my cameras?” she said again. “I have a few in the area.” She
nodded to the trees in the distance.

James
replied—annoyed. “It wasn’t hard. Once we knew someone took Penny and we followed
you here, we were naturally more aware of our surroundings and heard the cameras
moving as we waited outside. From there it was simple—all we had to do was stay
out of sight. Now that I answered your question, you need to answer one of
mine. What’s your name?”

“Mag,”
she said, kicking the ground with her heels.

“Nice
to meet you, Mag. Now why would someone put you on this Land to kill us?” he
asked. It didn’t make sense; no one other than the guards would have any reason
to want us dead. So a contract, or however she put it, didn’t match with
anything else we had learned.

“
Who
placed me here is what you need to ask,” she replied, adjusting her arms, which
were still tied around the trunk.

“Yes.
Who?” James said.

“His
name is Colonel Adams West.”

“And
why would this colonel hire you?”

“The
same reason he hired the person before me and the person before that person and
the people before them. To keep you here or kill you. My orders were to kill
you on sight.” Her words held a defeated tone. She kicked the ground with her
heel again as she said the word
kill.

James
and I looked at each other, stunned by her answer. I shrugged my shoulders in an
I don’t know
kind of way.

“Guess
you should’ve killed us when you had the chance. Why would anyone need to keep
us here?” James continued.

She
began laughing uncontrollably. “Wow, you all really are a bunch of stupid lab
rats—just like I thought.” The words
lab rats
were spit out like a
repulsive, bitter taste invading her mouth.

“Lab
rats?” I asked, unsure of why she would use that term to describe us.

“Look
at you.” She nodded up and down towards James. “How dumb do you have to be to
think the way you and your friend look is normal? I mean, really. Come on!”

“He
is the way he is because of the vaccine our people took when we first settled
this place! There’s nothing wrong with
him
. Just
me
,” I said, raising
my voice, a question towards the end of my statement.

“Look,
all I was told is this island is some… sort of… experiment, for lack of a
better word. It started with the people in power before Colonel West was in
charge, after the lands were broken up by the earthquakes. Whatever vaccine
you’re referring to, I have no idea what that’s about. All I know is, you’re
all a part of research, or test subjects, for a plan ending with lots of money.
By whom and for what, I don’t know.”

As
she rambled on about experiments, I remembered my backpack.

“James,
did you grab my pack? I think it was left back at the campsite,” I said.

He
nodded and pointed at the ground near Lucan’s duffel bag. I walked over and
picked it up, grabbing the glass vials from inside. I held them in my hand, facing
Mag. “These are the vaccines I was referring to. My dad said they were being
used on the other Land. Do you know anything about that?” I demanded. James
gave me a funny look; I hadn’t the chance to tell him about the vials yet.

She
shook her head. “I already told you what I know. Now, will you let me go or
not?”

“Who
else knows we’re here?” James demanded.

“Nobody.”

“How
do we know you’re telling the truth and that there won’t be an armload of you
people waiting for us as soon as we step foot off this place?”

She
chucked again. “Wow. You really don’t get it, do you? There is no way off this
island for you. It’s surrounded by water. You’re not leaving.”

James
gave me a worried look and Lucan jumped back out the hutch door.

“Did
you find anything?” James asked.

“Not
much, just some more ammo and a few guns. I think this is what she shot us
with,” he said, holding up the long, metallic gun she was piecing together
earlier. “Other than that, the place is empty.”

Mag
was still tied up, not trying to escape. I walked over to Lucan and James and unfolded
the map. “Look, I found this below. Maybe she’s lying,” I said, draping the map
flat against a large rock. Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough light to read it,
so I took it back over to the door for a better visual.

 “Okay,
it says we’re here.” I pointed to the hutch, the grave, and the perimeter. We observed
the drawn waves of water surrounding the island. It was a surprise to us that
the edge of the Land on this side of the perimeter, including close to where we
were, was drawn with distinct ridged and jagged shapes.

“Are
these cliffs?” I yelled over towards Mag and pointed to the map.

She
nodded.

I
sunk in my posture. “How are we supposed to get around that?” The idea never
crossed my mind that there wouldn’t be a beach entrance of some sort.

The
three of us shot different ideas around, leaping off the cliffs, climbing down,
or walking the edge of the Land just to see if we could find an easier spot to
enter the ocean. We knew we didn’t have a whole lot of time. If nobody was
coming for her, then guards might still be coming for us—casing the Land wasn’t
an option. We were left with either jumping into the water or climbing down the
cliffs and then
still
going into the water. There was no way of lowering
a boat, mainly because we didn’t have one, but even if we managed to make one,
how were we supposed to get it safely to the water? The other Land couldn’t
have been too far if they were sending supplies and vaccinations over. We each agreed
swimming would be our only option. We realized our eyes were never meant to see
the map so we didn’t question the hand-drawn accuracy. And if Mag had been here
as long as she said, then it was probably about as accurate as possible.

“James,
do you think she telling the truth about us all being part of an experiment?”

“What
are you talking about?” Lucan asked.

“Nothing,”
James replied. “Look, of course she wasn’t telling the truth. She’s trying to
mess with our heads so she can find a way to escape when we’re debating the
details and not paying attention to her.”

Mag’s
voice murmured into the conversation. “If I were able to show you how to get
off the island, would you let me go?”

James
looked up at us. “No,” he replied. “It’s a trick... We can’t trust her.”

“With
the two of you, there’s nothing she’ll be able to do without one of you
stopping her. Why not just see what she’s talking about?” I suggested.

James
and I looked at Lucan. His vote would decide what to do, like a kid stuck
between two parents arguing. Either way, one of us would be disappointed in
him. He nodded towards me and shrugged his arms, “What do we have to lose?”

“You’re
making a mistake,” James blurted. Then he turned around and walked over towards
Mag. “How do we know you’re not leading us into a trap?”

“You
don’t. I guess you’ll have to trust me,” she smiled.

“Don’t
think for one second I won’t kill you. If you so much as look at us the wrong
way… We don’t need you. You kidnapped Penny and killed god knows how many other
people. I don’t trust you, but I will allow you to lead us wherever it is
you’re talking about.” He untied her and she slid her back up slowly against
the tree, rubbing her wrists. James pointed a medium-size gun directly at her
and signaled with the tip for her to start moving.  

“It’s
this way.” She pointed to the left behind us and began walking.

I
asked where the dog was and apparently neither of them had seen her. She was
with them when they were tracking me, but they lost sight of her on the way
here. I hoped she was okay.

The
further we walked from the hutch, the thicker the trees became and the less light
there was. We couldn’t see anything.

“I’ll
get the night goggles.” Lucan unzipped his duffel bag, pushed aside a few
objects, and continued digging around. “They’re not here!” He dug around
frantically, and then he turned the bag over on its side. “There’s a hole! It
must’ve torn when we ran after her. The goggles and some of my other stuff are
gone.”

James
walked over and snatched the girl’s vest from her hands. He picked up a large
stick, wrapping the vest around the tip until it was secure. “You still have
the matches and lighter fluid?”

“Yes,
that I do
have.” Lucan tossed over the two and James drenched the vest
with the liquid and lit it on fire, making a suitable torch.

I
slipped my pack on and James handed over the torch for me to hold. Lucan grabbed
his duffel bag and held it sideways over his shoulder with the tear on top,
careful not to let anything else fall out.

I
looked at Lucan. “I want a gun.” I needed something to guard myself with and
decided I deserved a weapon as much as the both of them. It was about time I
learned. “Something easy,” I added.

Lucan
pulled out a gun twice the size of my hands. “It’s the smallest one I’ve got.
All you have to do is point, aim, and shoot. But be careful not to aim it at
any of us—it’s loaded.”

I
reached over and grabbed the heavy, metallic piece, the sheer weight of it catching
me off guard. It was much heavier than the guys made it appear. I tightened my
grasp, then walked past James and steadily lit the path for Mag. Pistol in my
left hand, torch in right. James had a gun aimed at her from behind. The torch was
bright; I had to be careful not to set the forest ablaze, low-lying branches
everywhere, leaves layering each arm a single foot above my head, and tall
shrubs every few steps. I became more alert after sparks lit a tree, and quickly
swatted them out with my boot as they floated to the ground. I pinched what was
left of the charred leaves with my fingers, making sure they were out, burning
my hand in the process. However, I acted as if it didn’t bother me, not wanting
to appear weak—to either of them.

A
mile into the hike, Mag requested a few minutes to rest. Before any of us could
respond, she seated herself down against a small tree, the back of the trunk
encased with a thick set of thorns. The thumbnail moon barely lit the sky,
making the stars visible through the thick branch line. For a moment, it was
peaceful, as if I was back in the comforts of home. I breathed in the grassy
air through my nostrils and felt the purity of it in my lungs. It was tempting
to keep my eyes closed and wish beyond anything that my inner thoughts were real
instead of my present reality.

Many
questions ran through my mind about everything Mag mentioned to us. Was she
telling the truth about the entire research experiment? But how could nobody
have known, not even had a notion about the idea? Maybe my dad did or he simply
knew that President Falcon was a bad man. If the wall was one huge perimeter
put there to keep us in place, then why hadn’t anyone ever tried to escape? Or
maybe there had been someone and we just never heard about them. After all, there
was a reason the West guy contracted people like Mag. And if that were true and
the other island didn’t exist with all the families that chose to leave in the
past, then where was my sister? Where were all the vaccinations going my father
spotted leaving on a ship? How high did the clearance level run before an
individual, a guard, discovered the truth, if ever?

My
arms dropped to my side. The over-mounting pressure of endless questions weighed
on every piece of me.

“Penny!”
James yelled. I opened my eyes and saw the torch dipping towards the ground near
my feet. The end of the torch charred against the ground, breaking off in one
huge chunk. What was left of the vest was of little use now.

 “Sorry!
Lucan, you have anything in that duffel bag of yours?” I asked. The sizzling
remains of the vest dying against the earth, tiny embers turning grey.

“Nice
one, Penny,” said James.

“Shut
up, James,” I replied, tired of his know-it-all attitude when this was
obviously new territory for each of us.

The
torch was completely out and Lucan scurried around in his bag. I couldn’t see a
thing—the stars were bright, but not enough. I heard a small click a few yards away
and then James’ voice.

“Don’t
move, Lucan,” he ordered.

The
sounds from the scurrying duffel bag became silent. “I feel it,” Lucan replied.

“Feel
what?” I was worried, wondering what the two of them knew that I didn’t.

Then
I felt something else. “Is that you, James?” I asked.

“Nope,”
Mag’s voice was only centimeters from my ear and a cold metal tip pressed
against my temple. I then heard two gunshots fly past my head.