Deliverance (5 page)

I let myself smile and relax. Professor Higgins seems really nice. “That sounds great.”

He moves to a stack of files on his desk and pats a chair beside him. “Great. Let's begin, shall we?”

 

 

 

 

7

 

The morning passes slowly as Professor Higgins tells me all I'll need to know for training and working on my HELP comp. Unfortunately, it looks like I'll have to turn the thing on. He also gives me pointers for getting along with the other trainees—the ones who are natural-born Greaters. He warns me that they won't like me very much, having tested above my station.

By midday he opens up discussion on my ideas for helping the people we call Lessers.

“We can do more with them,” I say. “If Lessers weren't given the pills—if they were worked with and better trained—then we could open more factories. We could prosper the country, and grow into what we once were.”

My old feelings surge to the surface. The Lessers live in a prison state at all times. They are locked away in their own cities, and they aren't given the chance to be something better. Sure, they can Test and aim for Middle, but most of them don't. Everyone knows the chances aren't that high. They need a chance. They need help. They need deliverance.

Professor Higgins nods, looking at his desk. A thick line creases his forehead. “You're absolutely right. Of course, you're not the first person to have such ideas, but you're the first student I've come across who actively wants to do something about it. Most of the trainees I get don't actually want to get their hands dirty.” He glances up and smiles. “It's probably because you aren't from around here. You're used to hard work.”

I don't know how to respond to his words. Most people don't say anything negative about the Greaters at all, at least not openly.

He pats my hand and sighs. “Don't worry, Hana. I mean that as a compliment. Supreme Moon wouldn't have brought you here had it not been for his belief in your abilities. My words won't get you in trouble.”

Professor Higgins obviously doesn't know much about me, and possibly even less about Supreme Moon, but I do let his words calm me. Also, he seems to be just as interested as I am in helping the Lessers. It gives me hope that maybe we can really make a difference.

“Well,” he says. “I have some files on the Lesser cities. We'll work through those so you can get a better idea of what actually goes on in them. Then you can begin to consider what changes you would like to see made.”

He stands and groans as he massages his lower back. “I'm getting to be an old man. If you'll excuse me for a moment, I need to take care of a few things.”

I smile and nod. In the few hours we've spent together, I'm happy to realize that I like the professor. He's not the average, pompous Greater—not that I've known many Greaters, only the doctors at Mom's hospital, and that was only for a few short weeks. Still, he laughs often, and he takes what I say seriously. He reminds me of Ms. Sewell from school back home.

I glance around as I wait for him to come back. We've been working at his desk, but at the table beside us sits a stack of folders. The files for the Lesser cities?

I watch the door as I move toward them. Is Mom's information in a file like this somewhere? Do they keep tabs on the Lessers?

Thinking of her as Lesser stabs my heart. She is so much more.

I lift the first file and just begin to browse through it when Professor Higgins returns. “Ah, getting started already, I see.”

“Can I bring them to the desk?” I ask casually. At least he sees my behavior as normal.

“Please do.”

I heft the stack into my arms and place it on Professor Higgins' desk. “How many Lesser cities are there? There are so many files.”

He sighs and flips through the first one. “Too many,” he says.

Too many, but how many? I glance at the stack and count eight. Eight! We were always given the impression there were only three Lesser cities—one Greater City, three Middle cities, and three Lesser cities.

“You are keener than the others,” he says, watching me over the rim of his glasses. “You haven't taken a single thing I've said at face value.”

I hold my breath, waiting for what he'll say next. A few months ago he wouldn't have been able to speak these words about me, but I've learned to question, to find truth for myself.

He watches me quietly, and then a slow, small smile creeps across his face. “You give me hope.”

I draw back. Of anything he has said today, this surprises me the most. A dozen questions race through my mind, but I don't know him well enough to ask them. Not yet. I file the information away for later because he may be someone who can help me in the end.

“Let's get to work,” he says.

The first folder is for Lesser City 8. It's located in the west; somewhere out toward what was once Kansas. This Lesser City is for those who are good at ranching. They raise cattle.

Where does the milk and meat go? Because, as far as I knew, we raised a few cattle ourselves in Middle City 3, and that's where we got our meat from. I assume every city is the same—self-sustaining.

This means the cattle of Lesser 8 don't go toward feeding the nation. Who do they profit? Surely one Greater City doesn't need all the cattle of an entire city.

Lesser cities 7 and 6 come next, and both are random textile cities. My confusion grows with every folder I come across. The people are being used to create, to grow, to build—but who is seeing the profits? Greater City must have more citizens than I knew if all of this wealth benefits them.

Lesser City 5 makes me catch my breath. It is a military base, with “un-enlisted” soldiers. At the bottom of the last page there is a single, scrawled sentence.
Internment Camp.

Those words haunt me. What does internment mean? I don't ask Professor Higgins because I'm almost afraid to know the answer, but I have a suspicion about what is behind the walls of Lesser City 5.

He skims over that file and quickly places it to his side. I frown, getting the distinct impression he doesn't want to focus on that city.

The lower we get, and the closer to our end of the country we get, the more random the Lesser cities become. Most of them are poor, run down cities with little to offer their people. These are the ones who need my help, and these are the cities I will focus on. I scoot the folder for Lesser City 1 closer to me. They sent Mom somewhere to die. Was it here?

“Can we visit some of the cities?” The question pops out before I can talk myself out of asking. It's what I've hoped for from the beginning—working with the Lessers and visiting their cities. Isn't it what I promised Jamie? It seems like a lifetime ago.

Professor Higgins' eyebrows rise. “You want to see the Lesser cities?”

“I can read all about them on paper,” I explain, “but seeing them in person will give us a much better idea of what we're dealing with.”

He seems to consider my words, weighing my request with his knowledge. Finally he sighs and nods. “I will have to request permission, and I can't promise anything. I do see your point, though.”

Tears burn my eyes. It's what I had hoped for, but I never imagined it would be so soon. Supreme Moon wouldn't deny my request; I have to believe that. He knows I want to find Mom—he mentioned it himself. The only reason to veto the trip would be cruelty, and he does want to put on a good front.

Professor Higgins clears his throat. “That is all we need to do today. Why don't you come back tomorrow?”

I swallow around the lump in my throat and nod. “OK. Thank you, Professor. For everything.”

He smiles and pats my hand as he's done so many times today. “You are more than welcome.”

I stand and start for the door, but then I realize I still clutch Lesser City 1's file to my stomach. I laugh nervously and replace it on the desk, but Professor Higgins pretends not to notice.

I hurry outside and head home. As I walk, I consider everything I saw today. There are eight Lesser cities, and there are no explanations as to why.

Why have we never been told about the extra cities?

A cool breeze blows in from the lake and a shiver races down my arms. I hug them to me and walk faster. The buildings don't sparkle anymore. The people and transporters don't fascinate me. In fact, everything seems much darker than ever before. There are lies here, lies everywhere. It reminds me that I'm here for a reason, and it probably isn't to help the Lessers.

 

 

 

 

8

 

Sindy waits inside my building when I return home. She lounges on a pretty blue couch in the lobby, her blond hair pulled into the same slick ponytail she usually wears. She stands when she spots me. “I've come to take you to dinner.”

Great. “At the mansion?” I ask.

“No, just the two of us. Supreme Moon asked me to show you around the city. He said you were curious. I can wait while you get ready.”

I force a smile and nod. Spending the evening with Sindy is about as appealing as eating with Lilith Winters back home, but it's better than eating with Supreme Moon again.

I hurry toward the stairs. Disappointment washes over me when I realize Sindy is following me to wait inside my apartment. I swerve toward the elevator instead.

She's probably coming to plant something inside my apartment that will tell her every move I make. Supreme Moon may never step foot inside my home, but he's there all the same.

“How did your training go?” she asks as we ride up.

“Fine. I like Professor Higgins.”

She smiles absently.

A few days ago, I didn't know Sindy. I didn't know if I could trust her or if I liked her.

I'm pretty sure I know the answers now.

She sits on my couch while I grab clothes and rush to the bathroom. I slam the door and begin changing into fresh clothes when something hits me. The bathroom has a door. She can't see me inside this room. I quickly scan the room for any items that could be watching me, but I don't find any lenses or blinking lights.

I am free here.

My whole world opens up.

A huge smile spreads across my face. How have I never noticed this before? The prospect of going to dinner doesn't seem so disheartening now. I can sit through an entire night of torture with Sindy if it means I can come home to solace.

A few minutes later I emerge, ready to be shown around the city.

Sindy sits in the same spot, her legs crossed exactly as before. Maybe she didn't come to place spy gadgets in my apartment at all.

“Ready?” she asks.

“Sure. I'm starving.” It's actually true, which is strange. I hadn't been hungry before I changed. The relief from finding a secret place must have whetted my appetite.

“Excellent,” she says, leading me out the door. “I know a lovely restaurant near the lake, and then we can go to a concert. It will let you see another part of the city.”

I smile but don't comment, not wanting to give away just how much I want to see more of the city. Supreme Moon may be giving me exactly what I need without even knowing it.

Sindy makes mindless conversation as the transporter whips us through the streets. She points out buildings, which she claims are famous landmarks, and I pretend to be interested. It isn't until we get to the restaurant that I find I really am interested in something.

In the distance, across the lake, lights blink in the sky. They're dim, but they're on. It's after dark, and they dance clearly across the glistening water.

As far as I knew, Greater City's limits stopped at the lake. Who has enough electricity to light up an entire city on the other side?

“What is that place?” I ask. Regret fills me right away. I shouldn't have let her know I was interested at all.

She glances up nonchalantly then looks back to her menu. “Some sort of factory.”

“They run it at night?”

“Hm,” she says, still reading.

Sindy is a liar.

Hot dread creeps into my stomach. Is this the life I have to look forward to—one of open lies and deception? A life of never being able to trust anyone?

“I suggest ordering the painted salmon. It's delicious.”

I do as she says, but I barely taste the food. Something is happening across the lake, and I want to know what it is.

We finish our food and head to the concert she promised. I've never been to a real concert. There were so few of them back home. The only ones I remember were small, when locals put on performances on Sundays in the park. Those were nice.

She calls the concert building an arena. The seats line up in ascending rows that seem to reach to the sky, but we sit right up front. A stage sits before us. It's filled with instruments and lights, as well as strange looking boxes. When the first musician comes on the stage and begins playing, noise comes from the boxes. Keegan's words come back to me. He had called them speakers, and he said they made everything louder.

A small smile tugs at my cheeks, in spite of myself. He saw all of this, and he enjoyed it.

Homesickness washes over me and I wrap my arms around my stomach. Where is Keegan? Is he safe? The day after I learned my Test results, he had smiled and shrugged. “It doesn't surprise me at all,” he'd said.

He returned to his training two days later and I haven't heard from him since.

Tonight I watch others play the guitar and I wish it were Keegan.

The musician finishes his song and Sindy claps. People around the arena are clapping, but I don't move my hands. This man's music means nothing to me.

The man exits the stage, and another musician steps out. He arranges the seat and the speakers.

“Are you enjoying the show?” Sindy leans close to me. “Have you ever heard live music?”

What other kind of music is there? And I didn't live in the desert before I came to Greater City. I don't voice my sarcastic thoughts to her, though. I decide to treat her as I would Supreme Moon—with polite respect so that I might actually get the things I want.