Rite of Rejection (Acceptance Book 1) (8 page)

Behind the dining hall, dumpsters line the chipped concrete wall. I scan the dusty ground, but I’ll never find anything without climbing into the huge, foul smelling containers. There isn’t a graceful way of getting in. What would my mother say if she could see me diving headfirst into a giant box of refuse? I could laugh if I wasn’t fighting back the urge to be sick.

Holding my nose, I pick through piles of potato peels and empty sacks of oats, but there’s nothing Elizabeth will accept as food. The smell is overwhelming and the sky above me is growing lighter every minute. If I’m going to make it into the Admin building before it starts filling up with workers, I need to leave now. I grab a handful of potato peels, shove them in my bag and throw my dirt-smeared legs over the side of the dumpster.

I dash across the open ground between the dining hall and the Admin building, my heart pounding in my ears. I chant “I can do this, I can do this” under my breath over and over as I run. I’m almost to the door, but stop dead in my tracks. Daniel didn’t mention anything about a security camera, but there it is, pointed directly at the main entrance. Video evidence of me sneaking into a building I’m not supposed to be in using a OneCard I’m not supposed to have is probably one of those things that can land a girl in Quarantine. I can’t do this.

I turn around and jog a few feet back toward the dining hall dumpsters, my failure a sour taste on the back of my tongue. A scavenger hunt is all they asked of me to be accepted. Difficult for sure, but hardly life-threatening. I couldn’t even do that. Over my shoulder, the glass-fronted building taunts me; physical proof that I’m not capable enough to be a contributing part of their group.

Back at the dumpsters, I bend over, my hands braced against my knees while I gulp down a dozen ragged breaths. I stare back at the building, scouring the façade for another way in, but the front door is the only entrance. I can’t do this…but…what if I can? What if I can get that Noteboard?

My mother’s voice in my head is practically screaming at me to run back to the bunkhouse as fast as my tired legs can carry me. It’s one thing to pick up random garbage lying around the PIT. It’s gross, but not against any rules. Breaking into a government building crosses a line I’ve never even seen before. If I go inside, I will officially break the law, no matter what Elizabeth says about the lack of rules. I’ll be a criminal in more than just name. For the first time ever, my mother might be wrong.

Using my last store of energy, I sprint to the main entrance. Please let me be too fast for the camera to identify me. I grab Daniel’s card and swipe it along the reader by the door. The little black box emits a high pitched beep and the door slides open enough for me slip inside and catch my breath. I can’t rest long. There are four flights of stairs to climb if I have any chance of finding this blasted Noteboard.

Eight

I scan Daniel’s card on the fourth floor landing and dash through the door before it even slides all the way open. Breath pours out of me in loud wheezes. If I get out of this, I need to do something about getting into better shape. Hemming skirts and baking cakes were great practice for becoming someone’s wife, but not-so-great preparation for life in the PIT. I don’t care who hears me now. If my face is on that video camera, I’m as good as caught. I just want to find the Noteboard and get out.

To my left, a wall of glass separates the main floor of cubicles from another area. That must be where they keep the computers. I dash around the corner and plow right into the open entrance of a cubicle. The desk chair catches me before I fall on my face, but my scraped knee is on fire. Whoever sits here left their coat hung over the back of the chair and the cheap wool grated right over my cut. I’m probably bleeding, but I don’t have time to stop and inspect it now. A wall of glass is straight ahead, separating me from the room containing exactly what I need.

A backlit sign next to the door reads Technology Room. I send Daniel a silent thank you as I once again scan his card, but there is no reassuring beep and the door doesn’t slide open. I scan the card again, but the door stays stubbornly closed. Noteboards by the dozen sit out on long tables, mocking me through the thin layer of glass.

I’m tired and frustrated and I just want to sit down on the floor right here by the door and wait for a guard to catch me where I don’t belong. Breathe, Rebecca. Breathe. It doesn’t matter if I leave now anyway. The camera downstairs probably caught my picture. If I leave, red uniformed guards will show up at breakfast, or worse, the others’ bunkhouse, and cart me off to Quarantine.

I have no idea what Quarantine is like, but it can’t be good. Conditions in the PIT are barely livable. How do the guards in there treat criminals considered too dangerous to interact with other convicted criminals? A bead of sweat runs down my spine like a spider scrambling to escape the crush of a boot.

It’s time to get out of here. The least I can do is head back to the bunk so Eric can have his bag back. Elizabeth will be irate if I get caught and the guards confiscate it.

My hand is on the door to the stairs, but a prickling feeling on the back of my neck holds me back. The forgotten coat on the desk chair isn’t the kind worn to stay warm. I run back to the cubicle. This is a suit jacket. Not as nice as any from the Acceptance ceremony. More like the kind my father wears to work. What if the owner didn’t mean to leave it here? What if that isn’t all he forgot?

Losing your OneCard is a big deal, but it still happens. My father lost his a few years ago, somewhere on his way home from work. He always kept it in the inner pocket of his suit jacket. My mother figured he dropped his card after swiping it for the transport. He spent all morning the next day at the Cardinal Territory Outpost getting a new one and got a reprimand at work. The wasted time at the CTO probably bothered him more than the black mark in his file. Is there a chance the owner of this jacket keeps his OneCard in the little inner pocket, too?

I’m almost too nervous to check, but at this point I don’t have anything to lose. I’m already pushing my luck with each passing second. Any minute employees are going to come up here and turn on the lights. And there I’ll be, with my hand in the cookie jar and nowhere to hide.

I slide my hand in the satin lined pocket and pull out a white rectangle of plastic with a black scan line running the length of it. First I break into a government building and now I’m stealing someone’s identity. The irony of becoming a criminal because of the PIT isn’t lost on me, but I don’t have time to doubt or justify my actions.

I throw myself at the Technology Room and whimper with relief when the scanner beeps. The door slides open and I rush inside. There isn’t time to be picky. Noteboards, cables and hardware cover every open surface. I grab the nearest Noteboard and shove it into Eric’s bag. Taking too much stuff is sure to set off alerts in inventory numbers, but at this point I’m most likely already going down. If I’m going to get caught, I might as well go out with a bang. I grab another Noteboard and a handful of cables.

Kneeling down on the floor, I shove the extra equipment in my nearly full bag, a tight fit with all the other items I collected tonight. Sweat drips down my forehead. I lean back to wipe it away and find another precious gift staring me in the face. Stuck to the side of the cold steel garbage can is a half-melted piece of chocolate. I don’t have time to find something to wrap it in. Scooping it into my palm, I stand up and make a mad dash to the door.

I need to get out of here, but my conscience won’t let me leave with a stolen OneCard. There are lines I won’t cross, and pulling an innocent man down for my crimes is one of them. Using only my fingertips, I pull back the corner of his jacket and slide his card back into the inner pocket. I get as far as the next cubicle when the stairwell door slides open.

“I really appreciate this, John. My wife would kill me if I lost another card.”

“Emily and I just celebrated fifteen years. Trust me, I understand.”

Footsteps echo down the empty rows and I dive under the nearest desk sucking in a moan when my knee bangs against the chair. Two pairs of legs march right by me, stopping only a few feet away in front of the desk I was just at.

“Oh, thank the Cardinal, it’s here. I was starting to worry I’d have to scour the Airbus station.”

A man wearing the distinct red of a Cardinal uniform rocks back on his heels and a booming laugh bounces around the cavernous room. “Now you’ll have time to make it home for a couple hours of sleep and Cindy won’t make you crash on the couch.”

“I think I’ll pad my luck with a quick stop at the bakery. Nothing says ‘please forgive me’ like a butter croissant.”

“For a man only married six months you’ve certainly caught on fast.”

They share a good laugh and I use the sound to cover up a slight shift in position. My legs are desperate to stretch out of this tight ball, but fear freezes everything but the slightest of movements.

“Alright, let’s get you out of here and back home to that new wife.”

They turn and walk past my hiding spot again, adrenaline exaggerating the loud boom of each footstep. The stairwell door opens again, followed by the soft click of it closing.

The floor is deadly silent, but I can’t move yet. What if that guard is still close by? If Cheryl was here, she’d know exactly what to do. She’d tell me to get up and run. Hesitation never held her back from anything she wanted.

I summon my last reserve of strength and pretend Cheryl is right next to me, running through the office, down the stairs and out through the lobby.

Outside, the sky is showing the first red-and-orange signs of dawn. I dash across the courtyard, ignoring the camera. I’m resigned to getting caught, but I’m going to get these computers to the others first. The narrow alleys leading back to Elizabeth’s bunkhouse are empty. It’s still too early for anyone else in the PIT to be stirring for breakfast.

Breathless, but giddy with success, I push against the rusted metal door of the bunkhouse. They’re all here, sitting on the bunks, waiting for me.

“She’s back.” Eric’s smile warms me and helps ease the stitch of pain shooting up my abdomen. He’s at my side in an instant, leading me to a bunk so I can catch my breath.

“Yes, thanks for the obvious.” Elizabeth doesn’t move from where she’s scowling on a bunk in the corner. “Cutting it awfully close, aren’t we, princess?”

“She’s here,” Daniel’s voice cuts in and Elizabeth bites back another hurtful barb.

“It doesn’t mean anything unless she’s got everything on the list.” Elizabeth walks across the room until she’s standing right in front of me. “What do you say? Did you get everything?”

“It’s in there, but there isn’t time. I need to get out of here before you all get in trouble.” I toss the bag to Elizabeth and move past her to the door. What I wouldn’t give for a few minutes to say goodbye to Eric; to thank him for what he’s done for me. There isn’t time. Guards could be on their way here right now, and every minute I stay risks putting them all in danger.

“Whoa, you aren’t ready to go anywhere.” Eric links his arm through mine and tugs me back toward the bunk.

I shake my head, but don’t have the energy or strength to fight him. “I have to go. The cameras.”

“What cameras?” Elizabeth moves closer to the bunk. A flicker of concern passes over her face. She may not care what happens to me, but I won’t be thanked for putting the others in danger.

Eric rubs my back and, after a minute, I’m breathing steadily again. “There’s a camera in front of the Admin building. I didn’t have time to find another way in, so I had to run in front of it. If it didn’t catch my face on the way in, I’m sure it got me on the way out.”

Eric stiffens next me and I can’t blame him. I’m a human ticking time bomb that could go off any minute. “Elizabeth, we have to—”

Elizabeth doubles over, grabbing her stomach, and laughs out loud bursts of air.

My confession of imminent demise has sent her over the edge. Daniel starts laughing, too. He has my bag full of scavenger hunt loot in one hand, but the other is covering his mouth in a vain attempt to keep his giddy laughs inside. Even Molly is chuckling lightly from her spot in the corner.

“Why are you laughing? This isn’t funny.” I don’t understand their laughter, but it makes me feel better. Elizabeth would risk everything to protect the short list of people in this room. If they were in danger, she wouldn’t be standing there laughing her head off.

“I’m sorry,” Elizabeth says, wiping a tear from her eye and standing up straight to catch her breath. “It’s just…the look on your face…absolutely precious.” She takes a deep breath and manages to get her laughter under control. “Those cameras haven’t been on in ages.”

There are no words. The cameras didn’t record my face. Guards aren’t hunting for me. I’m safe; we’re all safe. And Elizabeth is a jerk for letting me sit here in a panic.

“What in the world?” Daniel has my open bag of loot in both hands, holding it as far away from his face as possible. “Why does your bag smell like rotting garbage?”

“Oh.” I smile at Daniel’s wrinkled nose. That’s what he gets for laughing at me. “That’s the sock and potato peels.”

Elizabeth doesn’t waste any time dissolving her smile. “If you think a handful of peels are going to cut it as—”

I hold out my hand before she can finish her sentence. The leftover piece of chocolate is almost completely melted and unrecognizable, but the sweet smell is unmistakable.

“That’s chocolate,” Eric says, grabbing my wrist and holding my palm up under his nose. He closes his eyes and breathes in deep, taking advantage of his first glimpse of sugar in almost a week.

“Cardinal on a cracker.” Daniel springs up from the bed, a Noteboard in each hand. The smile on his face reminds me of my cousin on his birthday last fall. He’d been asking his parents for a new Noteboard game for months. When the brown-paper wrapping revealed just what he wanted, his face almost split in half with the size of his smile. “There’s two Noteboards, plus a ton of cables and connectors.”

Elizabeth grabs the bag and pulls out the remaining items one by one. They all get tossed into a small pile on the floor except the potato peels which she flings out the door. I enjoy the look of disgust when the stench of the dead man’s sock hits her. Serves her right for what she put me through.

“That’s it, then. She did it,” Daniel says, clutching the Noteboards like his firstborn child.

No one else says a word. The others look to Elizabeth standing in the middle of the room with the empty bag. I’m waiting for her to disqualify one of my finds and by the look on her face she’s looking for a way to do it.

Molly gets up and lays a light hand on Elizabeth’s shoulder. The tension leaves her face and she tosses the empty bag back at Eric.

“We’d better get moving if we want to get breakfast.” Elizabeth turns on her heel and walks out the door, with Molly following close behind.

Eric and Daniel stand. I’m not sure if I’m supposed to stay or go or run away. “What does that mean? Am I in?”

Eric offers a hand to help me off the bed. “Welcome to the club, Becca.”