The Variables (54 page)

“What are you doing?”

“Looking,” Blair said and she continued. She wandered to the coffee table and peaked underneath. “I don’t know, Gordy,” she said. “I’ll check upstairs.”

“What are you looking for?” Lucy asked, her voice tense.

Blair walked into the downstairs bathroom. Her voice echoed out into the living area. “Did your father keep any of his viruses around the house?” She exited empty-handed. “His lab has been stripped clean.”

“I wouldn’t know about anything related to that. But I doubt he’d bring a dangerous bio-weapon into our
home
…not with small kids running around.” Lucy put her hands on her hips and tried to channel her mother.
 

Galen stood up and tried to stand tall, too. He lifted his head upward and looked up his nose at Gordy. “We didn’t do anything wrong. Go away.”

Blair stopped and looked at her brother. She shrugged and raised her eyebrows. Gordy turned to them and sighed. “Sit down, Lucy,” he said, and he motioned for the couch.

“No,” she replied. She stood firm.

“I’ll make this quick,” Gordy said. “You have five minutes to take what you need from this place and follow me and Blair to the lower deck. There’s a boat waiting to take you and your family to the shore. Five minutes and the clock is running.”

Lucy’s heart pounded. “What?” she asked, confused. “I don’t understand...I thought no one was supposed to leave...”

“No one is supposed to leave,” Gordy replied. “But my father intends to kill you, and Blair and I are convinced that your death and the death of your family is not in the best interest of our Islands.”

“Wait,” Lucy stared straight at Gordy. “You’re willing to spare us because it benefits
you
?”

Gordy smiled and shook his head. “You’re young, Lucy. When you’re older you will understand.”
 

“What if we refuse?” Galen interrupted. Lucy tried to hush him.

“You will die,” Blair said. She walked down into the living room and stood beside her brother. “We are not your enemy…we’re here to help you. This isn’t a trick.”

“This doesn’t make sense. Why not let us die? No one seemed to have any problems killing people before,” Lucy said to directly to Blair. Her voice had a bite to it, but Blair ignored the implications. Lucy looked to Gordy next. He rubbed the back of his neck with his hand and looked at his sister.
 

“I’ve made it clear that my motive is selfish,” he replied. “Four minutes.”

“Selfish, how?” Lucy ignored the countdown.

“My father has certain things he cares about...chief among them is control. It’s more about knowing that he has managed his own world and less about understanding what we need for the Islands to survive. But you see, I care about this place and I intend to take control of Kymberlin...perhaps sooner than later. I don’t need a mutiny on my hands within the first week. Killing the King family in a public display…within the first month of its existence? It’s bad policy.”

“So, this truly has nothing to do with us. No sense of compassion.”

“No,” Gordy said matter-of-factly. “It has everything do to with the future and sanctity of this world. Killing you serves no purpose in the larger scheme of the Islands…showing you mercy and kindness will serve our purposes better. But you see, I’m not in charge yet. My father will still override my wishes and he
will
kill you.”

Galen and Lucy exchanged a look.

“How can I trust you?” Lucy asked.

“You can never trust another human being fully and without reservation. You can only hope that their needs match with your needs. In this case, we are aligned. You want to live…and I need you not to die on Kymberlin. Escape is our mutual best interest.”

“People will ask where we’ve gone…”

Blair cleared her throat. “We will tell them that due to the circumstances of Scott King’s death and the explosion that took the lives of Ethan, Teddy, and Grant…that in your deep grief and mourning we thought it best to relocate you. To Copia.” She beamed, pleased with herself.

Galen looked confused and he started to ask a question, but Lucy stopped him. “And when people discover that Copia is a sham?” Lucy could see Galen’s mouth drop with surprise, but he didn’t say a word.

“They won’t,” Blair added. “Copia will succumb to a raging fire within the next four months. We already have footage and the pictures to prove this.”

“All that work…”

“Will be to preserve a quality of life that is good and needed. You can’t convince people to live a life of beauty and simplicity without selling them the lie. That’s what no one has ever understood. If you want to better the world, if you want to make changes for the good, you can’t trust that people will see their inherent value and intrinsically desire change. People are stubborn. If you want to change the world, you just do it.” Gordy said. He looked out their large window to the dimming day. He sighed and shook his head. “Time is running out, Lucy. I can’t answer any more of your questions…”

“Did my father jump?” Lucy crossed her arms in front of her body and waited for Gordy’s response. She felt so immediately unafraid of him and his family.
 

After a pause, Gordy nodded. “He was wounded. It was his last moment to exercise free will. Jump or fall. And he jumped, yes.”

“The explosion...”

“Jesus…” Blair whined and she stamped a foot in protest. “The guards will be back soon, Gordy. Lucy, please…”

But Gordy didn’t blink. He looked right at Lucy and took a breath. “The bodies were unrecoverable,” he answered slowly. Methodically. As if he knew. As if he were repeating the lie knowing that it was a lie. “Three minutes, Lucy. Or I will be unable to help you.”

“But you’ve admitted you’re only helping yourself,” she said. “Don’t spin it. If it didn’t matter what the public thought of our deaths, you wouldn’t be here.”

“We are creating a world where people can feel free and happy. Is that selfish? To want this place to succeed? To save you in an effort to save the Island from self-destruction? You see, Lucy, I care about this place. My father would rather crash everyone and everything into the sea than give up control. But I intend to see this through...my sister designed this place, the towers. It was Kymberlin’s idea. Not this perverted government with a leader who uses force, but she designed the building...the idea of sustainable energy, of a community where people could follow their dreams. It was an unattainable utopia that my father turned into an obsession.”

“It’s an illusion,” Lucy whispered.
 

“It’s possible,” he responded. “I believe.”

She looked at Blair. “And you’re with Gordy on this?”

Blair looked to the ground. “We know my father,” was all she said. “Let us save you. Once you leave, it becomes our war to fight, our battle and our battle alone.”

Lucy turned to Galen, and she was about to ask him what to do. If Blair and Gordy knew that the King family was alive, would they ever be free from the shadow of Kymberlin and the threat of discovery? She wanted to believe that Gordy would hide their disappearance from Huck. But what if it served himself to bring them back? Would he hunt them down again? She would leave if it meant she could be free of Kymberlin and the Trumans forever.
 

“How do I know that no one will find out what happened to us?” Lucy asked. “How do I know my family will be safe?”

Gordy walked to Lucy. She stood tall before him, pulling her spine upward, tilting her chin in defiance.

“I am offering you a boat. And a small window of time. And you will promise me that you will never come back here...ever. My father will think you are dead. Only Blair and I will ever know the truth. Over time people will forget you...don’t roll your eyes...it’s true. We will continue to grow our empire and let the earth heal, and you and your family will fade away.”

“That’s not true,” Galen said. “People will wonder where we’ve gone!”

Gordy shook his head. “No.”

“In one hundred years, you’ll be a myth,” Blair said. “A bedtime story. A cautionary tale. If you slip out in the darkness, you are dealt a kindness that we cannot give you otherwise...a chance to start over and let this place recover.”

“People forget,” Gordy added. “It’s nature’s kindest flaw.”

“It’s time,” Blair said. She walked to Lucy. “If you believe that the people here on Kymberlin will fight for you...you may not be wrong. But my father will fight for your destruction. You can choose, Lucy. But if you don’t take our out, we can’t guarantee your life or the lives of your siblings...”

Lucy nodded. “Give me a minute.”

“We don’t have a minute,” Gordy said.

“You will give me a minute,” she said, firmer this time. Lucy looked at Galen, “Get the kids. Pack some things. Only necessities and one artifact each.”

“Lucy—” Galen said.

“Do it,” she whispered. Turning her back to her visitors and her brother, she ran up the stairs and knocked on her mother’s door. When she opened it, her mother was awake, sitting against the bed on the floor. She was staring at the wall. There was a single bulb burning from a lamp. It’s light was dim and it cast long shadows against the wall. Lucy walked over and touched her mother’s arm. Maxine didn’t look at her. “Mom, we’re going. Right now. I need you to get up and come with me.”

“Going?” Maxine asked. She shook her head. “No. I’m not going anywhere.”

“Mom,” Lucy said, not trying to hide the panic in her voice. “Come with me. What do you want to take? Anything.” She rose and went to the dresser. The top was empty, bare. She opened up a drawer and there was nothing in there either. “What can I take for you?” she asked and turned.

“Lucy, I’m staying here. I will not run scared for my entire life. I made my choice to stay and I will stay. I owe it to your father to fight for what he wanted for us. I won’t cower to those fools...I will stand tall until the end.”

She watched as her mother stood and walked to the door and held it open. She wasn’t crying or yelling. Her eyes lacked brightness or awareness, but she stood firm and pointed to the hall. She was unwavering.
 

“Go, Lucy. You go.”

Lucy hesitated.

She could hear the voices of Monroe and Malcolm beneath the loft. Galen was corralling them, zipping them into coats, checking their backpacks. His voice carried to her.

“We have a long way to go, little one,” she heard him say. “You can pick one more thing to take. Your book? Okay. Let’s get your book.” He was a good big brother. He was a good friend.
 

“Your father died here. And this is where I wish to die. You can’t take that from me. Let me die, Lucy. Let me join him. Save the kids.” She pushed Lucy gently out into the hallway. And then Maxine started to close the door. Lucy pushed back against the closing door and it banged against the wall. Then she reached in and grabbed her mother’s hand.

“You’re the strongest woman I know.”

“It’s a lie,” Maxine said without hesitation.

“It’s not.” Lucy pulled her mother gently into the hall and she resisted. “Dad’s sacrifice was in vain if you just sit here in this bedroom and wallow. We have been offered a chance out of this nightmare and we’re taking it. Do you hear me?” She waited, and when her mother didn’t answer, Lucy took another step forward. “Don’t make me say goodbye to you, Mom. I’m leaving. I made the choice and it’s my choice and we’re leaving Kymberlin right this instant. And I’m not leaving here without my mother. So, you have a choice...you will pack a bag and come downstairs and help me with the kids. Those kids are not losing their mother and father in one day.”

Maxine lifted her eyebrows. She paused as if she were going to launch into one of her patented diatribes; when Maxine made up her mind, no one changed it. Lucy could see her mother slipping from her. Then Maxine smiled. Her face scrunched up and she tried to push away the tears; she smoothed down her bangs and cleared her throat. “What’s my choice?” Maxine asked in a shaky voice. “You said I had a choice and then only listed one option…”

“Mama Maxine staple parenting tactic,” Lucy replied. “I lied.” She held her head up high. “There is no choice.”

Maxine leaned in and pulled Lucy into a hug. She rested her head against her daughter and pushed their cheeks together. Then in a whisper, she said, “Well shit, Lucy Larkspur. That’s a pep talk I wasn’t expecting from you. Like a slap in the face. On the way out...maybe you can advise me on my financial future?”

The statement seemed incongruous and Lucy pulled back. “What?” she asked, confused, looking at her mother, whose dark eyes sparkled.

“Because I think you just did it. You got what you wanted. You grew up. In that moment…you grew up. And if I didn’t know any better, I’d think you sounded just like that Darla you talked about.”

There was a hidden dock. In order to access it, they had to journey down to the Remembering Room first; then Gordy led them to a secret elevator off the control room. It took them back up to the surface of the ocean and into a small loading dock with a collection of boats. Big and small, luxury, and military. When they slipped through the control room, Lucy noticed that the cameras were off. Kymberlin was experiencing a visual blackout. The operators were gone, too. Gordy and Blair had orchestrated a series of open windows for them—and as she realized the lengths of their charade, she knew that she would be forever indebted to them for this second chance.

As they neared the bottom of the stairs, she looked up to the mirror in the top of the control room where she and Grant had just stood...yesterday? Had it only been yesterday? And she tried to picture them up there now, looking down on the people below and hoping for a miracle.

Grant knew then that he was leaving. He had stood next to her and kissed her and held her hand, and the whole time he knew that he might have to say goodbye. The group of escapees only had a few hours head start, but Lucy hoped that their plan had been a success and that they could catch up to them. She didn’t want to be the one to tell Ethan about their father. She didn’t want to watch his face when she admitted that they couldn’t all make it off the Island.