Aberrant (13 page)

"We don't believe that to be the case. Your mother was
special, and we are confident you are, as well. We promise that the news of
your pregnancy will be uplifting. You may be uncertain now, Olivia, but this is
what you were made for. We will protect you and your child."

I didn't believe her. The smile on her face led me to
believe she was trying to tell herself she wouldn't hurt me. I wanted to reach
out for Joshua's hand, but I didn’t think the council would approve.

"Our punishment for defying the laws is separated
living quarters?" I repeated, hoping that was it. I could live with that. I
would be miserable locked in the tech center for a while. If I could regain
their trust, perhaps they'd let me stay in a room on a different floor in the
dormitory. I would certainly miss having Joshua across the hall, but it didn't
mean I couldn't ever see him.

Landon's eyes narrowed. "I'd like to put trackers on
Olivia and Joshua to ensure they don't break the law again. Do I hear any
objections?" He asked the council.

No one defied him, though, Rebecca spoke up. "If we are
putting trackers on them, then I don't see the need to have Olivia locked up. I
recommend we put her on Jacqueline's floor. She'll still spend her afternoons
in the tech center, but she can be provided more comfortable sleeping
arrangements. She's not a prisoner here, Landon." She shot him a
disapproving look,  then sent me an apologetic one.

Landon grumbled, "I can agree to that."

I felt slightly better that they wouldn’t lock me in the
tech center all the time. I didn't feel confident about being tracked by Haven,
but I didn't see another choice. We could leave now, head for the unknown and
take our chances in the Gravelands. But we didn't have any food or water, and we
didn't have a vehicle to get us anywhere. We'd likely die on our way to the
next town.

Rebecca stared at me gravely. "I expect you both will
abide by our laws from here on out or you will both be exiled," Joshua and
I nodded. "Jacqueline will let you gather a few things from your room and
then she'll take you both to the tech center to get your trackers implanted. Dismissed!"
She announced.

Joshua and I both headed out of the council hall with
Jacqueline leading the way. The line of young men had barely dwindled. I
avoided their stare, their curiosity as they slowly proceeded forward, giving
the attendant their name. I wondered how they knew about me and more
importantly what they knew. Jacqueline walked a few feet ahead of us, giving us
privacy to talk. I silently thanked her for still respecting us and our wishes.
She was probably the only one in Haven who liked us. I didn’t know if I should
be relieved or angered by the recent news. I could feel the whispers, like
tingles against bare skin as we walked further from council hall and rounded
the corner. I was grateful to be out of sight from all those curious stares. "I
guess we should consider ourselves lucky," I remarked. I didn't feel lucky.
I tried to sound upbeat, but everything was quickly falling apart around us.

Joshua scoffed at the idea. "Lucky? I wouldn't go
that
far," he emphasized. "This is how it starts. Eventually, they'll make
it a crime for us to see one another." He sounded disgusted.

"They sort of already are," I remarked, trying to
understand the council's decision. "I think they just want to make sure
I'm protected." Though I didn't quite understand how setting me up to meet
multiple bachelors was any form of protection. It seemed as if they only wanted
to keep Joshua away from me. The one person I could trust, implicitly. I knew
the rules were different because I was different. They didn’t seem particularly
bothered by Joshua having a girl in his room. It didn’t seem fair.

"Seems like they don't really care what we think at
all," Joshua retorted as we headed into our building. "Were you okay
last night? I worried when Landon escorted you out of the dormitory."

I walked slowly up the stairs, Jacqueline just a few feet
ahead of us. "Aside from being locked in a room with no windows." I
sighed. "At least they're giving me freedom from the tech center and a
real bed. I should be grateful," I mocked. I didn't feel grateful, but I
knew his mother at least tried to make it easier for me. As soon as we crested
the top stair, I froze in place. The building shook with an alarming intensity
as the first drone flew low overhead. The downstairs chandelier swayed and I
held onto Joshua's arm and my eyes widened in terror. "What do you think
is going on?" I asked watching the movement grow stronger as vibrations
echoed through the dormitory. A nearby painting affixed to the wall crashed to
the floor, the glass breaking. I could feel the ground quake beneath my feet as
Joshua grabbed my hand, refusing to let go.

"We're being attacked." It wasn't a question.
Together, we jogged briskly down the hall toward our rooms. I didn't know how
much time we had. All I knew was the government was here, and they were
searching for me!

The first explosion caused the building to rumble as a bomb
dropped just outside the dormitory. Dark smoke filled the hall, blinding us. I
gripped his hand tighter as he dragged me toward his room. We split up, but
only for an instant while Joshua ran into his room to grab the map and I threw
open my bedroom door, rushing towards the dresser. I needed my father's
journal. Desperately, I reached behind the furniture, struggling and coughing
as the building shook with each new bomb that fell.

Joshua came into my room, ignoring all rules as he helped
push the dresser further from the wall, knocking it to the floor allowing me
more than enough room to grab the journal and go. I tossed it inside the pack
and Joshua put the map inside before we stepped out of my bedroom. I glanced
down the hall, not sure what I expected to see. To the right the dormitory had
been hit, and a roar of smoke and fire filled the confined space. Jacqueline
was gone. Hand-in-hand we ran in the opposite direction toward the staircase.

My eyes burned. Coughing, I refused to let go of his hand as
we stepped outside. Drones weren’t the only things attacking Haven. Tanks
rolled into town. A few soldiers jumped off, taking over the perimeter, guns
drawn. I paused, gripping Joshua's hand as we were shrouded in smoke. Just a
few feet away, a soldier lifted his weapon and unleashed fury on a group of innocent
people. I covered my mouth with my hand to keep from crying out when a child no
older than three hit the cement. His eyes remained open as blood seeped from
his head. He didn't move. Didn't blink. It took only a moment to realize he’d
died instantly. All I could do was stand there in shock.

"We have to move," I heard Joshua's voice, but it
didn't register. The smoke swirled around us and gunfire erupted in every direction.
He grabbed my arm. "Olivia, I need you to focus." I nodded once,
trying my best to clear the cobwebs from my mind. I couldn't, though. I wanted
to run out to the child and protect him, but it was too late. I was too late.
They were here because of me, innocent blood on my hands. I felt the heat
radiating from the dormitory and my eyes flashed back. "I need you here
with me, Olive."

"I am," I insisted, knowing if I didn't focus we'd
both be dead. I spotted more soldiers – their standard issue uniform and the
Cabal crest on their jacket sleeve told me all I needed to know. The government
had come looking for us. "Which way?" I couldn't see the exit. With
the smoke enveloping us and the fear coursing through my veins, I forgot the
direction we'd come from.

"The border," Joshua held my hand tight in his. "This
way," he insisted as he tugged on me to follow. Together we jogged through
the smoke along the edge of the buildings, careful not to run too fast into a
soldier. I could hardly see my own hands in front of me. I could feel the heat
radiating as we came upon a flaming building. I heard a woman's scream, and Joshua
gripped my arm, holding me back. "No," he told me, seeing the
soldiers across the street as the woman ablaze ran out of the burning building
and into the street toward the enemy. She threw herself on the ground trying to
put out the flames roasting her skin. In her rush of panic and pain, she hadn't
seen what was right in front of her. I sucked in a horrified breath recognizing
the blonde hair, and I witnessed a spray of bullets as her body went limp. I
buried my face in Joshua's shoulder, unable to see any more. It was Scarlet, the
woman who’d found us in the tunnel and driven us to Haven. I could do nothing for
anyone here. It was dangerous to stay any longer, and the gate entrance was the
biggest risk. Haven had only one way in and out of town, and we had no other
choice. Barbed wire encompassed Haven, so we were otherwise trapped.

Joshua's voice was barely above a whisper, with no hint of
emotion as he, too, witnessed Scarlet's murder. He was trying to focus, so we could
both survive. "Keep moving," he insisted. He gripped my hand and led
me past the burning structure through the smoke as we neared the edge of Haven.

Seeing the guarded gate ahead, I glanced around finding an
empty vehicle parked to the right. "Come on," I pulled Joshua with me
as we rushed toward the vehicle while we still had the chance. It just happened
to be the same one we had arrived in with Scarlet. Thankfully, the keys were in
the ignition. I started the engine, and though unsure how to drive, I quickly
figured it out. We backed up first as I didn't quite know what 'R' stood for. I
ran something over, but didn't look back to see who or what it was.

Joshua moved the stick into 'D' "Drive!" he
exclaimed and I hit the gas hard, maneuvering the wheel as we hit the gate and
busted through toward freedom.

CHAPTER 11

I coughed and gasped for air, grateful we’d made it out of
Haven alive. We’d left behind so many less fortunate than us. I tried not to
think about the child shot on the street or how Scarlet had burned and then been
executed. So much destruction had followed us to Haven. I couldn't do that
again to innocent people.

I shifted uncomfortably in the seat, eyeing the rearview
mirror, watching as smoke billowed in the distance behind us. No one followed
us – at least, not yet.

"Why do you think they attacked Haven?" I asked
Joshua. The town had remained untouched at least twenty years. Why now did the
government seek retribution? I already knew the answer. I hoped Joshua could
see another reason, and be the optimist in all of this.

"I would guess it has something to do with your escape
from Genesis." Joshua kept glancing back. "Wow! Haven is really
burning."

The smoke swelled higher into the atmosphere. "Maybe
they'll think we're dead?" I hoped the government would leave us alone. I'd
had enough adventure for a lifetime.

He grabbed my pack and dug into it for the map. "That
would be nice. We should come up with a plan and figure out where we have to go
until we can fuel up."

"Lucky for us we won't need fuel," I smiled
pointing at the car noticing the dashboard with an energy symbol. Some things
had been worth reading about in the textbooks. "Sunlight on this thing
will power it. We picked a good car to take." I reminded him, "We can
share the driving. Tell me which way?" We were driving on unmarked roads
as it was. The dirt showed through the grass from all the years of travel. "Where
are we going, another rebel town?" I wasn't crazy about heading to Torv or
Spade. After what Haven expected of me, the thought of going to any city
terrified me.

"No," Joshua shook his head. "We can't take a
chance their allies are compromised, too."

"So, what then? We'll need food and someplace to sleep."
I was anxious as I hit the gas harder, driving further into nothingness. "Won't
the drones see a single vehicle in the middle of nowhere?" I asked.

“It’s possible, but we don’t have another choice. If we can
get enough distance between us and Haven, we should be in the clear,” Joshua
offered. I hoped he was right. "We're going to drive west for a few days,"
he insisted. "As far as I can tell there's a city four days west of here. Remember
how I told you about the city missing from the map in the museum?" I didn’t
know if that was good news or not, but after what we'd endured, I was willing
to go almost anywhere. "We'll try and gather what food and supplies we can
on the way. I suspect we will run through some ghost towns. We should try and
get whatever's been left behind."

I hoped he was right. I hoped we would be able to find food
and water while heading west. I could see absolutely nothing on the horizon and
had seen nothing on our way from Genesis. This is why they called it the
Gravelands. We'd already driven an hour into nothingness, and it only seemed to
stretch further.

We took turns driving, but the heat exhausted us when the
sun was out. The night air was just as brutal. My stomach refused to stop
grumbling, and I knew Joshua had to be just as hungry. We hadn't come across any
sign of food on the way. I didn't expect a garden filled with vegetables, but I
hoped we’d find some remnants of an old civilization, but to no avail.

My head pounded from lack of food and water. Although I
tried to sleep so I could drive for a while, Joshua did most of the driving. I
felt bad that I couldn't keep up with him.

"What's that?" I mumbled, staring off into the
distance, unsure if I imagined what I saw.

Joshua held up a hand shielding his eyes from the blazing
sun. "Looks like smoke." He veered off our current route and headed
up the trail. I felt my ears instantly pop as we climbed a seemingly endless
mountain. The trees and vegetation around us were beautiful, but I didn't know
what plants were edible and doubted Joshua knew any more than I did. "How
about we ask for help," he breathed through parched lips glancing at me. "It's
worth a shot." I knew we had limited options. We'd die of dehydration if
we didn't try to find water soon. We headed toward the smoke at the peak of the
mountain, and I wondered who would choose to live here, in the absolute middle
of nowhere. Then again, maybe these people had the right idea.