The Arrival (15 page)

Yes, you are. You’re an Eslite. You’re
the bad guy.

No, Miranda. I am not the bad guy. If I were,
then why would I help you?

He had a point. How else could I explain
his actions?

Why are you helping me? Nothing makes
sense.

I waited but heard nothing. Dead
silence.

Dimas. Answer me, damn it. If you’re not
the bad guy, then who is?

Miranda, I have to go. In time, you will
understand the reason for our arrival.

I want to know. I need to know now. Tell
me.

Patiently, I listened, eager for the
answer. But emptiness filled the space between us. The connection gone, like a
switch between radio stations. Was he a figment of my imagination? Had I finally
lost it? No. He had been with me the night I injected myself with the serum. It
was a night burned in my memory that would never be erased. The way he took my
pain away. The way he comforted me. And the way he made me feel.

Holy cow.

I shifted in my seat as a wave of heat
inundated me. He was with me. Telling me that he wasn’t the bad guy. That he
wasn’t the one responsible for the death of Aliah or the others.

One thing was certain. I would do
whatever I could to avenge their deaths. I would do it not only for my freedom,
but also for Kate, Gaby, Jessica, Destiny, and all the girls at Nidus. If Dimas
was willing to help me, then the Eslites were in for a big surprise. I’d work
the mind that God gave me and outsmart them. I had one hit so far, and I was
just getting started.

We would be free.

θ

We pulled up to the bus station, located
a few blocks from Dad’s office, which made me even more nervous. I glanced at
the time on my phone, five minutes after noon. I did a quick check, making sure
I didn’t see his car. The sandwich shop across the street was one of his
favorite places. The last thing I needed was to run into him and have to
explain what I was doing there.

“Thanks, Bryce.” I opened the car door,
eager to get out and avoid any further conversation between us.

“Miranda.” He took ahold of my arm,
keeping me firmly in my seat. “Can we talk for a minute?”

I let go of the door handle. “Sure,” I
said, turning toward him. “What’s up?”

“I’ll go get our tickets,” Kate said in
a solemn voice, easing from the backseat.

“Good idea.” I leaned forward, allowing
her more space to get out of the car. “Hey Kate.” I reached into my backpack.
“Here’s my money, and you’re probably going to need my ID.”

“Oh, yeah. I almost forgot.” Kate took
the cash and card. “You want me to use this one?” She flashed my pseudo
identification, as a precautionary and a double verification.

“Yep. It’s best we travel under our
alter egos.”

“Got it.” She wiped the smeared mascara
from under her eyes and put on her sunglasses. “Be right back.”

I partially closed the car door for some
privacy and to give me the option to flee.

“Is everything okay? I mean, I know
you’re upset about Aliah, but you’ve been acting kinda weird since I picked you
up.”

I guess he sensed my lack of response to
his gestures, but I lied despite everything telling me otherwise. “No, I’m
not.”

“Yes, you are.” He gripped the steering
wheel firmly before releasing it. “I know who you are, and you’re not the
same.”

“That’s because I’m different, Bryce.”

“What do you mean?” he arched a brow.
“You’re the same girl I fell in love with in the eighth grade.” He leaned
closer. “The same girl I dream about day and night.”

“No, I’m not.” My pulse quickened as the
blood rushed to each extremity. “That girl doesn’t exist anymore.” I shook my
head. “I’m not good for you.”

He grinned. “You’re a good person,
Miranda, and you know it.” He reached an arm behind my headrest and inched
nearer. “I see you’re wearing the necklace I bought you.”

“Oh, yeah.”  I fingered the silver heart
pendant with a key that dangled to the side. “Thank you. It’s pretty and really
thoughtful of you.”

“You’re welcome.” He faltered for a
second. “I thought it was perfect because there’s only one person that holds
the key to my heart, and I didn’t want you to forget.”

I pressed my lips together, ignoring the
painful tug in the center of my chest. As much as I hated to admit it, he still
held a piece of me that I wished I didn’t need.

“Despite what they’ve done to you at
Nidus, I know, deep down, what’s written on your heart.”

I stared him right in the eyes. “No, you
don’t.”

“Yes, I do.” He placed a finger under my
chin, holding my gaze steady. “Because I inscribed it there.”

Oh, God.
Why did he have to continue to wreck me with his words? Dimas and Bryce were
making me a freakin’ mess. I couldn’t deal with it right now. “Look, Bryce,
what we had was great while I was home, but now that I’m enslaved by the
Eslites, you and I can’t have the same relationship we once had.”

“I know.” His chest rose and fell and a
silent exhalation swept across my face. “But I promised you that I’d always
love you, and I’d always protect you.”

“Oh, Bryce.” I pushed away and grabbed
my head with both hands. “You can’t protect me. No one can.”

“Miranda, I’m going with you.” He opened
the driver side door and got out.

“What?” I jumped from the car. “No,
Bryce! You can’t.” I scrambled after him, trying to catch him. “Bryce.” I
called to him, but he ignored my pleas.

“Stop!” I grabbed his arm, swung him
around, and then lowered my voice. “I don’t want you to get hurt.”

A few people turned to see what the
commotion was about. I put on my sunglasses and pulled down my ball cap. As the
daughter of the mayor, I didn’t want anyone recognizing me, which happened on
occasion.

Bryce ran his fingers through his buzz
cut, keeping his arm up as though trying to shield his face. “I don’t know what
I’d do without you. Miranda, I can’t lose you.”

“Nothing’s going to happen to me.” I
clutched his other arm, drawing him to me. “I promise, I’ll be safe.”

He slid his hands around my waist. “You
promise?”

“Yes.” I gave him a gentle smile. “Now
will you please go home?”

He pressed his body against mine,
bringing our lips mere inches apart. His eyes locked with mine, and a rush of
suppressed feelings suddenly surfaced. Why was he doing that to me?

Why couldn’t he let me go?

Why couldn’t I let him go?

“Miranda, I love you.” Bryce whispered
the words across my lips.

Just as our mouths were about to unite,
he paused, and his jaw fell open.  A buzzing sound fluttered in my ear, and I
stopped breathing.

“Please prepare to be scanned,” a flat
voice that sounded very much like Shiloh, my personal assistant from Nidus,
said from behind me. I didn’t have to see it to know that an Eslite Locubot
loomed.

The adventure had begun.

I complied, rotating on a heel as the
irritating bug instructed. The bot’s body, about two times the size of a locust
or large grasshopper, was coated in an armor of shiny silver. It flapped its
synthetic wings, displaying an array of spotted black and silver markings that
resembled those of a leopard. Its face appeared almost human, with large bug
eyes that glowed bright neon blue, similar to the ones that watched us at
Nidus. Two arms extended from underneath its face and moved back and forth like
hooks ready to stab me. It inched forward until it steadied in front of me.

“Crap—” Bryce grabbed my hand, trying to
pull me back.

“No, don’t.” I shooed him away. “I have
to let it do its thing. Besides, let’s see if it knows who I am.” I removed my
sunglasses and glared at the eerie insect. Holding my breath, I prayed my
switch with the retinal information worked.

“Scanning initiated,” the Locubot said,
as it projected a blue beam.

With an owlish expression, I opened wide
while my heart beat rapidly. I felt as though I had been frozen, captured in a
moment in time as I waited for it to cease the examination. Several people
watched in fear, despite the familiarity of the protocol. I’d thought that, after
two years of the Locubots flying around the city, they wouldn’t attract
attention. Then again, could anyone get used to the invasion?

“Leslie Warren, you have been cleared,”
the insect announced.

With an audible gasp, I relaxed my
shoulders, allowing my body to move once again. The shiny bot zipped into the
distance, searching for its next victim. One thing about the Locubots, they
never scanned more than one girl in the same area. They flew around, randomly
targeting females, making sure they had been tested or scheduled for testing.

“Oh, no.” Kate’s voice rattled in the
wind. “Was that what I thought it was? Did you just…”

I turned, still somewhat shocked from
the scan. “Yeah, a Locubot.”

Kate lowered her sunglasses and
swallowed. “What happened?”

I glanced at Bryce momentarily and then at
her. “It worked.”

“It did?” She stared at the sky for a
second and said, “Thank God.” Immediately she embraced me.

“Kate, it’s okay,” I said quietly,
holding back the emotions and tears that filled me. “We fooled it.” We hugged,
celebrating one more achievement in our battle for freedom.

“I can’t believe it.” She smiled. “We’re
going to do this. We’re going to get out of Nidus, and send those Eslites to
their own planet.”

“You’re damn right we are.”

Bryce shuffled his feet in the gravel. A
mixed expression twisted across his face. One of happiness and one of
heartache. Had he finally accepted our fate? I hated that things had changed,
but it was out of my control. Until I was free, until all girls were free from
the Eslites, things between us could never be the same.

“I bought round trip tickets,” Kate
said, passed me a brochure.

I pulled the stubs from the slot,
double-checking them. “I hope this gives us enough time to speak to your uncle.”
I read the return and exchange policy.

“If not, we can always catch the last
bus, which leaves at nine.” The sun reflected off the pavement, warming the
day, and Kate shaded herself with her hand. The salty breeze sweeping through
the trees kept it nice and cool and reminded me, once again, why I loved that
place. Because even if I knew I didn’t belong there, it would always be my
home.

I redirected my attention to the small
print. “It says we can exchange the ticket if we need to.” I closed the
brochure.

“Good.” Kate shifted her backpack.
“Let’s just hope we don’t have to.”

“I agree.”

A large silver bus stopped in front of
the station, and for a second it looked like it belonged to the Eslites.
Everything at Nidus was shiny and silver, so I noticed those colors wherever I
went. A quiver ran up my spine, and I repeated my mantra.

Mays are strong leaders. We never show
weakness.

“That’s our ride,” Kate said, doing a
double take. “Are you ready?”

“It’s now or never.” I swung my backpack
over my shoulder and pushed the doubts from my mind.

“Good luck.” Bryce inclined his head,
while shoving his hands in the pockets of his shorts. The change in his
temperament told me he understood why I had to go without him.

“Thanks,” Kate said.

I urged her forward and turned one last
time to Bryce. “I’ll be in touch.”

“Miranda?” he called out.

“Yeah?” I responded, brushing the strands
of hair from my face.

He dotted the tip of my nose. “Don’t
forget where home is, okay?”

I winked and replied, “I won’t.”

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

Without warning, he kissed me goodbye.

***

Four hours later we arrived in Columbia,
South Carolina. The city, much larger and busier than the laid-back town of
Myrtle Beach, resembled a typical metropolitan area. Skyscrapers and large
buildings surrounded us, while people swarmed as if on a mission. A mission
that was much less important than ours.

“How far is it to your uncle’s office?”
I asked Kate, as I surveyed my surroundings. Even though I’d visited a few
times, I wasn’t familiar with the landmarks.

“Too far to walk.” She pulled a guide
from her backpack and handed it to me. “We probably won’t make it. It’s already
4:15, and it’ll take at least thirty minutes to get there.”

“What should we do?”  I glanced in both
directions. “Grab a taxi?”

“We can catch a bus.” She pointed across
the street.

“Will that get us to his office?” I
indicated the building circled on the map.

“Not sure.” She shrugged. “We just need
to get close to the State House, since his office is right behind it.”

I nodded once. “Sounds like a plan.”

We dodged a few cars until we came to
the sidewalk and a city bus stop.

“Excuse me?” I asked an older woman
sitting on a bench near the sign.

She leaned away from me, putting space
between us. “Yes?”

“Do you know what route drops off near
the State House?”

For a second, she gave me a confused
look and then stretched upright. “That’s route four.”

I smiled at her and said, “Thanks.”

“Why are you following me?” She clutched
her purse as if she was hiding something or protecting it from me.

“I’m not…we’re not.” Retreating a few
steps, I bumped into Kate and whispered, “Either she stole something, or she
thinks we are going to rob her.”

“Let’s stand over here.” Kate motioned
to the building behind us. Just as we started to walk off, a large bus pulled
up with the words,
‘The Comet,’
marked on the side. Kate’s eyebrows
peeked from under her sunglasses. “You sure you want to get on this?”

“It’s only a name.” I shrugged.
“Besides, we need to get close to your uncle’s office, and it’s the cheapest
option.”

“I don’t know.” She shook her head.
“Sounds like an omen if you ask me.”

“Come on.” I grabbed her hand, and we
boarded the bus.

I walked down the aisle and searched for
two open seats. Business people and college students filled the bus, and I
wondered how many of those women had been to Nidus or were scheduled to go. I
envied those that didn’t pass the test. I couldn’t help it. Did they know the
kind of life I endured for the past year? Did any of those people have a clue
how much it sucked to have their freedom ripped from them? Then I remembered
the real reason for my rebellion. Not only for my freedom but also for all
females who might become Eslite donors. If they didn’t know, I didn’t want them
to find out.