The Luminosity Series (Book 1): Luminosity (26 page)

By now, the late afternoon sun slipped across the sky,
casting shadows against the mountains. We stuck to the back streets until we snuck
up the trails leading to Cedar Ridge in secrecy.

Later, as the winds died, we sat in his backyard
surrounding a small fire. He cursed to himself as he propelled a rock into the
flames. It was grueling for me to see him this way. Harder than it was for me
to admit that I had lost hope for us ever making it out of this together. Our
odds had been slashed in half, along with the population after the night of the
bombings, the guilt striking me like a match as the whereabouts of my mother
and sister remained uncertain.

The fire crackled. The dry air sent a chill through me
as the time got later. Evan was on the verge of desperation. We hadn’t spoken a
word to one another since we had gotten back to the house.

“I just want you to know I love you, Aubrey... and
nothing that happened in the past, nor what happens tomorrow can change that,”
he said, the words from his mouth an unstable tremor.

I aimed my numb stare at the flames. A tear fell as I
tried to stay nonchalant. He spoke with such finalization. But I refused to
give in. This couldn’t be the end for us, and frankly, I was frustrated he
allowed himself to believe it was.

He stared at his feet as he cleared his throat.

“The reason I was so upset after you came back wasn’t
because you left. It was because once I saw you at the fields that day, I knew
it’d be even harder to let you go a second time,” he said, wincing as he turned
to face me.

I looked away, letting my long hair drape like a
shield as I cried in silence. He took a heavy breath as I stood up, my back turned
to him.

“But I’d rather live through the death of a thousand
suns if it meant you still had a chance...” he said. And then, everything in my
vision blurred. Another piece of me drowned in waves of shame. Losing control,
I picked up a stick from the ground and pitched it into the flames before
expelling my tears in a waterfall of endless guilt. I let him take my hand. But
I wouldn’t allow him to convince me to be strong while he gave up. “Aubrey,
please say something...” he said, clinging onto whatever energy remained.

“I may have a chance, but I still have a choice too.
And I won’t let it end this way...” I snapped. He winced, looking up at me
again.

“If you don’t go through with this, your blood will be
on my hands. That’s the irony of all this. It would hurt to lose you again, sure,
but it’d kill me if you gave up your chance to survive this...” he said.

“This is my choice, not yours. My chance means nothing
if I can’t choose my own fate,” I shook my head stubbornly.

“Letting go is the hardest part of this. You
understood that from the very beginning… so why can’t you accept that now?” He
winced in a quick breath.

“Because I won’t give up on you again,” I sobbed. He drifted
closer, but I shoved him away from me. Tears streamed down his face as he
glared back at me in shock.

“Don’t... don’t act like you have to save me, Aubrey.
It’s over…” Evan sighed, putting his arms around me before I shook him off. I
gazed up at the sky, the auroras dancing above me as I denied myself the
sorrow.

“No. This isn’t over yet. You taught me that things
happen for a reason. But there’s no reason for any of this if it was only going
to fall apart in the end. I won’t let it. I won’t leave,” I said, latching onto
my words in a mess of angry tears. Suddenly, the earth beneath me was spinning.

“You have to do this. For me, and for your family,” he
said.

“You don’t always get to be the hero,” I snapped in an
unsettled voice.

His tearful eyes stared at me now. The gentleness of
his hands swept across my arms as I lost my focus in the emptiness of fear.

“Listen, there’s something I have to tell you…” He
hesitated before speaking again.

“What else could you possibly have to say?” I
whispered in a dreadful voice.

“The colony qualification… I never entered the
selection process,” Evan burst out. His eyes flickered, hovering in the
pressure of my confused stare.

“What are you talking about?” I heaved. He sighed.

“The minute I found out what my mother knew about you,
I opted out. I—I withdrew myself from the qualification,” he said. My heart
stopped.

“Why? Why would you do that?” I yelled at him.

“So she’d never be able to replace your life for
mine,” he snapped. In an instant, the wind picked up. And then, my outrage got
the better of me. “I never told anyone. Just please… don’t be mad,” he begged.

“You idiot…” I heaved in petrified tears. But I didn’t
mean it wholeheartedly.

When he reached out to hug me, I resisted, pulling
myself away to escape. By the time I regained control of myself, I choked on the
smoky air as he wandered after me. I dropped to my knees in disbelief.

“I gave up my chance for you years ago. That’s why you
can’t give this up,” he said cautiously.

I closed my eyes to tears, gasping on my breaths as he
kneeled down next to me, peeling the hair away from my face. When I looked up,
he was calmer now, despite the overwhelming pain. And the minute he closed his
eyes, he rested his forehead against mine, still battling for air. That was
when everything raging inside me stopped—my resistance, my hope, my purpose.

Evan spent years trying to prove I held more value in
this world than I believed I did. Regardless of the rumors, or the lies and
cover-ups, he remained true to his word throughout it all. Now, we had finally
fit the missing pieces of our lives into place, fusing together just to shatter
all over again. But here, a piece of me would forever remain—with him, on the
brink of tragedy, but always too soon lost within its grasp.

We woke to shouting guards, but were too incoherent to
make out what they were saying. Footsteps trudged the crunchy ground as they
lifted us from beside the flaming coals, the smoky air whipping across our
faces as rescue helicopters passed above. As they placed the oxygen masks over
our faces, I remembered the burning trees, the roaring fire consuming the
mountainside. I remembered being trapped by the fire, careless of the danger
lurking our way. I remembered thinking this was the end again.

Along the street below Cedar Ridge, a row of Humvees
waited to transport us. Fully alert now, I examined Evan’s face as the guards
instructed us into the truck. He seemed too weary, too shocked to look at me,
so I glanced at the bags lying beside us. On the outside was a serial number
written on a neon tag—a combination of numbers followed by a sole letter that
would divide us into the camps. It was so bright, I could just make out my
number—A1579. A for Adams, 1579 being the last four digits of my citizen
identification number, I presumed. As the Humvee pushed us forward, I squeezed
my eyes shut.

The guard honked ruthlessly as civilians swarmed the
residential streets, soldiers using their usual method of
communication—megaphones—to direct them toward the warehouse. The entire town
was on the path of a fire that had been raging out of control since the night
of the bombings. Now, retreating was our only option.

Smoke billowed from every angle of the horizon, heat
accompanying the sinister smell of burning oak and pine that hovered in the
atmosphere. Countless trucks lined up along the streets. Soldiers bolted
through yards, evacuating the remaining houses, the sky igniting into an orange
glow while helicopters flocked like birds above us, causing blasts of wind. In
a matter of hours, everything would be engulfed in flames.

Evan took a deep breath, taking my hand while we
progressed down the road, his gesture reminding me of the day I was released
from the hospital, when I watched this small town fall the first time. But before
I could concentrate on the minimal comfort his grip emitted, a woman stumbled
to her knees onto the sidewalk beside us, screaming at the guards. My eyes
stayed fixed on her as we drove by. She tugged at the rifle the guard displayed,
working to get a grasp on it. They surrounded her—applying physical force to
stop her.

On the other side of the street, an elder couple stood
in the entrance of their home before being dragged out by guards. Meanwhile,
the guards sprayed the siding with red paint, marking the familiar X against
the aged home, more than likely lived in by the same family for generations.
The old man toppled to the ground, folding under pressure. Tears strolled down
my lips as we passed by. Soon, there’d be nothing left but a memory not long
ago, when life still seemed real despite our future. That time was over.

I closed my eyes to evade the neighboring images as we
pushed farther down the road, realizing just how quickly things had descended
into chaos. And at that point, I wouldn’t go any farther.

“Stop!” I said. I grasped the handle to open the door,
but it wouldn’t budge.

“Stay in your seat, miss!” the guard ordered.

“Aubrey, what are you doing?” Evan nudged me with a
shocked look.

“Let me out!”

“Hey! It’s our responsibility to get all civilians to
the warehouse! Now remain seated or else I’ll have to restrain you!” the guard
snapped, his speech echoing inside the truck.

I scouted for solace in Evan’s eyes, but it wasn’t
there.

Another helicopter passed above, cutting down to the
ground, the thundering of its engine submerging the air in noise. I whipped my
head back after it passed, glancing at the bags beside us again. Evan looked
furious.

“This is your only chance,” he whispered, blinking in
panic.

“No... We can leave... Please,” I begged, leaning to
his ear.

“We wouldn’t make it out there...” he sighed
impatiently, cautious of being overheard.

“You don’t know that,” I said, knowing the uncertainty
of escape was my final resort to freedom.

“We don’t have a choice now, Aubrey,” he said.

A sharp pain rose in my chest as I avoided his red eyes.
Turning to the smoke-filled sky, I knew after this, nothing remained but a
series of unlikely odds. And in that moment it had become too much to bear.

In a flash of despair, I shoved myself against the
door. With the pressure from my brute force, it flung open. I jumped from the
Humvee before the guards could stop me. All I could hear were Evan’s screams
and the squealing of tires. Soldiers aimed their rifles at Evan as he bolted
from the truck in a sudden panic. But a spike of chaos from the other end of
the street served as a helpful distraction in his quest to follow me. I had
only looked back once before rushing into a nearby house. Frantic to find something,
anything to escape the pain, I shot through the halls. And to my disbelief, the
only bathroom’s medicine cabinet was still stocked with leftover bottles. In
the heat of the moment, it occurred to me that choosing my own way out was
better than a lifetime of suffering.

My heart pounded as I twisted the caps off several
bottles. And in between the seconds, I released myself from the guilt of
letting Evan down. But before I got them open, he pulled me back, screaming at
me in a breathless rage.

“Aubrey, stop!”

Desperate to intercept me, I didn’t have the strength
to avoid him.

As our bodies collided against the wall, the pills
scattered at our feet. He stumbled backward, plummeting us both against the
hard tile floor. Using every ounce of energy to restrain me, I fell beside him,
the air in my lungs puncturing through me as I struggled to find oxygen. My
ears rang, my vision of him doubling as he turned my head to face him. His eyes
widened, appearing redder than I’d ever seen them before, examining me. Evan
burst into a hopeless, frustrated cry. Afterward, his chest pummeled in
panicked breaths, his scream still mimicking itself through the walls. My
eyelids hovered, halfway closed when I saw the shaking of his shoulders and his
horrified glare.

♦  ♦  ♦

I woke up coughing, my head resting against the wall
of the crowded warehouse. Evan sat beside me, leaning forward with his arms
tight around his knees, his demeanor numb and seemingly traumatized. Screaming
children, shrieking parents, and other terrified civilians gasped in horror.
Armed police and military escorts surrounded each exit of the building. Aware
of my fragile state, I lifted my woozy head up, blinking away the blur before
realizing I’d be okay. Pulling himself backward, he inspected my face as he stabilized
me.

“Thank god…” He let out a sigh.

“Are we—Evan where are we?” I asked with a hint of dread
in my voice.

“We’re waiting to be called in… You blacked out before
the guards brought us here,” he said. Just then, his expression turned to resentment.
“What were you thinking? I just... I can’t believe you’d—after I—” He struggled
with his words as tears came. I drew back as the guilt poured out.

“I told you I couldn’t do this,” I said.

“That doesn’t mean you can just end your life, Aubrey...”
he said, aware of the surrounding citizens. I glanced up instantly.

A woman kneeled to the floor, praying with her
forehead rested against her hands. She shut her eyes as her lips moved in
silence. Tears came as another woman and her child were escorted from the
building in a painful, helpless cry of mercy. Evan’s glare followed them. He
looked down, clutching my hand as the door to the warehouse slammed, the gasps
and shrieks repeating. Hopelessness invaded people’s faces like it were
contagious.

Evan shook his head, putting a hand over his face
while he took in a deep breath.

“Where is everybody? Where’s Janelle?”

“They’re gone,” he said in a sigh.

“What? What do you mean they’re gone?”

“They’ve already been evacuated,” he said. “They had
to get people out of here.”

“Where were they sent?”

“Kylie and Nick went to a camp upstate. Same with
Janelle. Aaron volunteered to serve at that location, so… at least they’re
together,” he said with a satisfied glance. I looked at him.

“Yeah...” I raised a brow in an enraged huff.

“Aubrey…”

“You know how this is going to go, Evan. They’re
grouping us by qualification status. If you weren’t in the selection, there’s
no way we’ll end up in the same camp.”

“But at least you’ll be protected,” Evan sighed, knowing
it was useless to argue with me.

“Protected? No. Not after they find out who I am,” I
said cautiously.

“Look, as far as we’re aware, the only evidence was on
the documents we burned. Someone would need to have a good reason to
investigate your identity, especially now,” he said.

“Like your mother?”

“She knows what’ll happen if she talks. Besides, she’s
got heart problems.” His jaw tightened.

“You don’t know where you’ll end up, Evan. You opted
out. For all you know, they could be sending disqualified citizens to the
prison camps. And Kylie and Janelle… they may not have qualified either,” I
said. Evan’s shoulders fell.

“They didn’t,” he mumbled, staring into the space
ahead. My heart sunk from the weight of his words. And then, without warning, I
was forced back to the present moment again.

“A1579!” a voice shouted. It blared from the
megaphone.

In a terrifying reminder, my blood ran cold as the
number echoed in my mind nonstop.
A1579. A1579. A1579.
My pulse pounded
in my chest. I didn’t understand how it was still pumping, still demanding
life. I had nothing left.

“That’s you,” Evan said, drawing attention to us,
pulling me up to my feet.

“No! Evan, I can’t, I—I can’t go in there!” I
stammered in panic. When the guard approached, he pulled me away from him.

“You have to.” He hesitated to release my hand.

“Miss, follow me,” a guard behind me ordered as he
grabbed my bag.

“No! I can’t do this! Stop!” Evan looked hurt at my
unwillingness to cooperate. “Please!” I screamed. The remaining eyes in the
warehouse stared in my direction.

“It’s okay. We’re just going to give you something for
the anxiety...” a guard said, raising a needle to my arm.

“Aubrey, just go,” Evan choked, trying to keep a
steadiness to his voice as the frustration cascaded his gaze.

“No!” I screamed again as the officer injected me with
a temporary relaxant. I tried to fight the guards off, but I was weakening by
the second.

As I was escorted away, I drifted off into an
exhaustive state. Glancing back, I hoped to see Evan one last time, but to my
disappointment, he was already out of sight.

♦  ♦  ♦

I was led into a dark room, a fluorescent light flickering
in the center of the ceiling above us, much like the tiny containment room at
the hospital. A panel of five government officials sat behind a long table, the
light too dim to recognize their faces. The guards released me, taking a mere
step back as the stale air chilled me. I was fully alert now, my heart racing
and my breathing uncontrollable.

“Aubrey Rae... Adams, is that right?” a man asked,
stepping forward into the light. His voice was loud and authoritative, his skin
pale. The sharpness of his bone structure resembled a skeleton—angular, alien-like
in shape. The color of his suit seemed strangely familiar. I stared, suddenly petrified
by the overabundance of guards in my peripheral vision.

“Y-yes, that’s correct,” I lied, swallowing my tears.

“Forgive me, but I must inform you that your previous
qualification into Colony 6 has been… revoked.” His voice taunted me, his
vision a lie detector, a suspicion lingering on the edge of his glance.

“What are you talking about?” I heaved.

“You see Ms. Adams, we believe you are not who you say
you are,” he said. My heart stopped. “According to our database, your last
name, Adams, is not the name given to you at birth. Your identity was changed
just weeks before the disappearance of Andrew Ellis. Now what would explain
that?” he asked in sarcasm.

I forced my eyes closed, sure I’d wake up from this
nightmare. Only this time, when I opened them, he and the panel remained in
front of me. Certain my cover had been blown, I stood still, unsure of what my
next move would be. Just then, the man took another step forward. His uniform
was an indigo blue, and upon closer viewing was an embroidered patch that read
“NASA
- Colony 6”
stitched into it. The name
“Edwin S. Malcolm”
surrounded
a red sun symbol in the middle. Edwin. The man who made the discovery. The man
who withheld the truth.

His eyes stayed dead set on me as I contemplated my
escape.

“Prove it,” I hissed. The man chuckled.