Six (33 page)

Genevieve opened her mouth to say something, then closed it again.

“If you do not keep to this arrangement,” continued Parker's father, “then you will have to explain to your investors why a solution was never found.”

He glared at Genevieve, his jaw locked tight. “I hope that I have made myself clear.”

The whole room was completely silent as he looked away from Genevieve.

“Parker,” he said. “Emma. We're leaving.”

The guards appeared to hesitate. They all looked over at Genevieve, who didn't say anything.

Then, still staring at Parker's father, she gave a slow nod.

The guards stepped back, and Parker and Emma ran to their father.

*  *  *  *  *  *

Parker's father didn't say anything as he walked hand in hand with Emma and Parker down the corridor and through the lobby. They took the elevator in silence—their father stroking their newly dyed hair. He didn't say a word about it. He didn't say anything. When the elevator doors opened, he took them across the lobby and through the main doors. He didn't stop until they crossed the doors of the terminal and stepped out into the brilliant sunshine.

Parker found himself standing on a sidewalk made of sparkling white marble. Framed ahead of them by two towering palm trees with purple leaves was a pure white sandy beach that led out to the still waters of the bluest sea that Parker had ever seen. Parker turned to their father as he knelt down in front of them and took them both into his arms.

Parker and Emma wrapped their arms around his neck as their father gripped them tight.

“I'm so sorry,” he said. “I'm so, so sorry.”

In response Parker clung tighter, burying his head in his father's neck. They stayed like this until, finally, their father lifted his head. Parker saw his father's eyes were red, but he was smiling.

“I can't believe it,” said his father. He gave a small laugh. “I can't believe you're here.”

Parker looked at his father. He had to say something.

“Dad. Solomon told us that—”

“Your mother?”

Parker nodded.

Their father nodded back. “You do know that she had no choice?”

“I know,” said Parker. “Where is she?”

Parker's father stood up. “She left as soon as I called her. She'll be here any . . .”

He stopped. Parker looked up and saw his father was looking down the sidewalk. He and Emma both turned their heads.

Even at a distance Parker knew it was her. She was running, black shoes in one hand, her head down.

And then she looked up and saw them.

For a moment they all stood frozen—staring at one another across the distance—as if none of them could believe this moment was real.

Parker let go of his father and ran toward her.

They had waded out at least a mile, and the water was still only up to Parker's knees.

As he waited for Emma to catch up with him, he looked down at his toes, tanned and clearly visible through the shallow water. He wriggled them into the smooth sand. There were no fragments of shells, no seaweed, and no fish. Not yet. There were talks about introducing fish to SIX, but that wouldn't be for a while yet. Parker had only been on SIX for two weeks, but already he knew it took a long time for anything to happen here.

He felt a splash of water hit him on his back, and he turned to see Emma grinning.

“We have to go back,”
she signed.
“Lunch is ready.”

Parker turned. His mother was standing on the deck outside their house—a white-stoned villa with wood-framed windows and purple ivy draped along the veranda that ran the length of the house.

She waved. Emma and Parker stomped quickly back through the water and ran across the beach and up the wooden steps to where she was standing, two blue towels in her hand. In the two weeks since they had arrived, she had changed. She looked less gaunt, and she looked as if she had slept.

She wrapped one towel around Parker first and kissed the side of his head.

“I'll bring lunch out,” she said as she wrapped the other towel around Emma. They had been offered a chef—most of the elite on SIX had them—but their parents had turned the offer down.

Parker and Emma sat down at the wooden table. There was no need to change out of their swimsuits—it was warm. It was always warm.

Their mother brought out a tray of bread, vegetables, fruit, meats, and two tall glasses of juice. She placed it in front of them and went back in, returning a few moments later with plates and cutlery.

“Geoffrey!” she called as she sat down.

Their father emerged from the house. He looked tanned and rested. He held up two thick books.

“Catalogs have arrived,” he said.

He placed them on the table and sat down.

“What do we do with them?” asked Parker.

“Just go through them and mark whatever you need—clothes, toys. You can each get a computer too.”

Parker and Emma both nodded, but neither said anything.

“And don't forget school starts next week,” added their mother. “So make sure you get everything you need for that—I've left the list on the kitchen counter.”

Parker's father looked down at his watch. “We need to eat up, Sarah.”

He reached out and grabbed a piece of bread, and the rest of them followed suit.

*  *  *  *  *  *

“We'll be back around six,” said their mother as she picked up their empty plates.

“What are you going to do?” asked their father.

Parker shrugged. “Probably go to the club.”

The Bowveld Country Club was where Parker and Emma had spent most of their days since arriving. It had tennis courts, six pools—one with slides and a wave machine—and, sometimes, other children.

“Okay, good,” said their father. “Have fun.” He and their mother both gave them each a kiss and left to go to work.

Parker reached over and grabbed the two thick catalogs. He handed one to Emma, and then opened his and turned on Effie.

Wow,
said Parker.
There's so much stuff.

He flicked through the pages and stopped at one filled with colorful photographs—row upon row of every toy imaginable. All he had to do was place a tick under any picture and, within days, whatever item he'd chosen would be his. He should have felt excited, but instead he felt strangely indifferent.

Look at this,
said Emma. She raised her catalog up to show Parker a double page filled with pictures of bicycles. She had a sad smile on her face.

But no goats for Africa,
said Parker.

Emma frowned.
Don't joke about it, Parker.

I'm not.

His sister sat back in surprise and stared at Parker.
Really?

Parker nodded, then quickly looked back down. Even though they were talking on Effie, it still unnerved him. The cameras and microphones were hidden, but they both knew they were there, listening to every spoken word—watching for any sign of rebellion.

Complete loyalty—that was a condition of living on SIX. They were the first wave of citizens. Soon—though the booklet didn't say when—the Exodus would be taking place, and those who had been given a ticket to SIX would leave Earth. The investors, and whoever they chose to bring with them, would arrive to live here forever. When that happened, it would be the responsibility of anybody already on SIX—of the Ambassadors, as they were called—to welcome the new arrivals and show them how good life on SIX was. In bold black letters, the booklet had clearly stated the penalty for not complying—expulsion from SIX.

Do you think we could ask for the money instead—and tell them to use it back on Earth?
asked Emma, interrupting Parker's thoughts.

You know we can't,
said Parker.
They'd throw us out of here before we even finished asking the question.

So what are we supposed to do? Nothing?

Parker sighed.
I don't know. I just don't want to get us—or Mum and Dad—into trouble.

Emma dropped her shoulders in defeat. Despondently, she reached out, grabbed a pen, and began to make marks in the catalog. Parker took the other pen and looked down for a moment, then gave up; he was too distracted. He closed the book and looked out at the white sand and sea.

Neither Parker nor Emma had said anything to their parents about how unhappy they felt about their new life. It seemed so—well—ungrateful. They had been reunited with both parents, after all, and in a world without crime or hunger, where everything they wanted was theirs at the mark of a pencil. And yet, or rather because of that, it felt so wrong.

The problem was that the more Parker learned about the Exodus, the more he felt disgusted at the injustice of it. Emma had been teasing him—during their talks on Effie—that he was sounding more like her every day, and Parker couldn't deny it. Everybody, it seemed, was in a state of frenzied excitement at the arrival of the new citizens—perhaps influenced by the propaganda on television and in the newspaper—and yet there had not been a single mention about the fate of the ones who would be left behind. Who, he wondered, would be picked? And who had the right to make those choices?

Of all the people Parker knew, he expected that Michael would be the most likely to end up here—purely by virtue of his parents' wealth. But what about his family and friends back in England? Brendan or Anteater? Or even Polly?

The more Parker thought about it, the more he thought of the Exodus as a lottery of the worst kind. And yet—
and yet
—he was already one of the winners. He was here, sitting in what was meant to be paradise—so why could he think about nothing but how to change things? Right now he knew he was powerless to do anything. Until that changed—and it was possible that wouldn't happen until he was older—he would just have to learn to stop thinking about his old life. In time, and with enough practice, he hoped he might eventually learn to be happy here.

Practice, after all, makes perfect.

Also by M.M. Vaughan

 * * * 

The Ability
 * * * 
Mindscape

 * * * 

MARGARET K. M
C
ELDERRY BOOKS

An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division

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This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author's imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Text copyright © 2015 by Monica Meira

Jacket art copyright © 2015 by Sam Kennedy

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M
ARGARET
K. M
C
E
LDERRY
B
OOKS
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The text for this book is set in Georgia.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Vaughan, M. M.

Six / M.M. Vaughan.—First edition.

p. cm.

Summary: When twelve-year-old Parker's father, on the cusp of a technological breakthrough, is kidnapped, Parker is determined to find him, but his search soon uncovers a sinister project that threatens far more than Parker's family.

ISBN 978-1-4814-2069-3 (hardcover)

ISBN 978-1-4814-2071-6 (eBook)

[1. Science fiction. 2. Teleportation—Fiction. 3. Kidnapping—Fiction.] I. Title.

PZ7.V4518Si 2015

[Fic]—dc23

2014041581