I’m hurried down a maze of corridors until I’ve lost my bearings completely. Finally Selwyn veers through an open doorway into a great hall with two large windows that extend from the floor to the ceiling. I’m relieved to see Lake sitting on the floor with his back against one of the large windows, but his head keeps dropping forward like he’s struggling to remain conscious. We lock eyes when he looks up and I’m terrified when I see something that I’ve never seen in them before. Fear.
Chapter Thirty-Two
The man holding my arms releases them and, with a forceful shove in the back, propels me forward at such a speed that I lose my footing and skid onto the carpet on my hands and knees. Without moving my gaze I crawl over to where Lake’s slumped and put a protective arm around him.
Patryk stands next to a huge white marble fireplace with tigers carved into the base. I glare at him, feeling hatred fill me up. I should have known better and run when I saw him. I bet anything that he told the governors all about our plan as soon as we left his house and they’ve been waiting for us to try and get inside the building. He doesn’t meet my glare and instead looks at the floor, nervously wringing his hands.
The door opens once more and I’m surprised to see Lake’s father enter, accompanied by another governor who I recognise from one of the paintings in the hallway. Lake’s father looks uncomfortable but uninjured. Lake tries to beckon him over, but he walks and stands with the other governors.
“Ah, Frank De la Rey. The informant,” Selwyn says when he sees him. FD the initials of the informant in my mother’s diary.
Lake straightens up and stares at him in disbelief. “What, NO!” he cries, staggering to his feet.
“Stay back,” Selwyn warns, pointing a thin sword that he’s just lifted from its mounting on the wall towards him. “I haven’t got time for any more of this revolutionary nonsense. Nor have I got room in my midst for liars and sympathises.” He walks towards the fireplace and in one swift movement slices Patryk across the stomach. He doubles over in pain and drops to his knees in silent agony.
I don’t know what to think. So it wasn’t him that told the governors and he really was trying to help me?
“Why are you doing this to me?” Lake spits, looking at his father.
“I’m not doing this to spite you; I’m doing this in spite of you. I’d have provided information about anyone; it’s the only way that I’m able to avoid being removed myself. You’d be surprised what people reveal to the drunk.”
In a moment’s clarity it all makes sense to me. It wasn’t drinking in the alehouse with Adelaide that we needed to worry about, it was Lake’s father. He was there again on the couch when we spoke about our plans to get inside the governor’s building. We thought he was unconscious, but all the time he’d been listening and taking mental notes so he could use the information to excuse himself of future indiscretions. I’d always known the man was a waste of space, but I’ve never hated anybody so much in my life as I hate him right now. I want to feel the bones in his face break under my fist, but all my anger dissipates when I look at Lake. His face is blank, like all the emotion has been taken out of him but I can still see it in his eyes; betrayal, hurt. After everything his father has done he still thought that there was some good in him, but there’s none.
The door opens again and another familiar face is revealed; Jericho. He walks over to his father holding a piece of paper in his hand and wearing a smug expression.
“Well I was going to remove you, but it looks like the countdown’s begun,” Selwyn says.
“Countdown to what?” I demand.
“To the end of the experiment, my dear,” he hisses like a snake at me.
“They’re going to gas you like lab mice at the end of the experiment using the gas pipes that have been rigged under the whole compound. Then we’re going to live in the outside world,” Jericho says excitedly, barely able to contain himself.
“Oh, and you actually believe them, do you?” I spit.
“I do. They sent us gas masks and suits to protect us because, unlike you, we’ll actually have a use on the outside. We’re able to contribute something because we’re different to you!”
“Then what about Lisa, is she not different?” I see a rush of colour flood to his cheeks before he regains his composure.
“No, she’s expendable, like you.”
I open my mouth to reply but Selwyn jumps in. “Shut up, all of you. You have ten minutes until the gas is turned on. I suggest you choose what you do with it wisely.” He turns to Jericho, “Come on, we have to get suited.” Lake’s father turns to follow them. “Not you, drunken old man.”
As they get to the door Lake straightens up. “Not you either,” he says in a defiant voice.
Selwyn pauses for a moment before curiosity gets the better of him. “What did you say, boy?”
“I said that you won’t get out of here alive either.”
I’m confused by what Lake is saying; if he’s stalling for time then I don’t know what for, we should just let them go and then run down to the basement and back through the tunnel to see if the others have made any progress in bending the bars. I turn to Neve, who looks deep in thought, like she’s working something out.
“Oh yeah, and why’s that?” Selwyn asks in a jovial tone which is meant to be patronising.
Lake mimics Selwyn’s jovial manner. “Because although you think that Patryk let them in, you’re wrong. They actually entered the building through the basement where I saw your protective suits.” Selwyn’s face darkens. “They bothered me, so when I sent Neve in after Zia I told her to take the filters out of the masks and pass them to me.”
“Watch them,” Selwyn growls to the two men that I first saw him with before disappearing out of the room with Jericho running after him.
I grin at Lake, “I can’t believe that you thought to do that. You’re amazing.”
“Always one step ahead,” Neve beams at him. “Good job I’ve got blind faith in you.”
“There’s no point celebrating yet. We have less than ten minutes to get out of the compound before the gas is turned on and we’re still no closer to knowing how to do that.”
“But now the governors have to get out too if they want to survive. They must have a key to the gate that lets the food truck in,” I say.
“Only the inside gate. Outside undo the other one and I bet that they’re different keys”, Neve replies.
“Yes, but only the inside one’s electrified,” Lake adds, a smile beginning to form at the corners of his lips.
Suddenly the door flies open again, almost hitting Lake’s father who’s been moving closer towards it, presumably as part of some plan to save his own skin.
“Where did you put them?” Selwyn rushes in with the sabre held high above his head. “TELL ME,” he screams.
“I watched them float away down the sewerage pipe. If you’re lucky they might’ve got trapped in the bars designed to catch debris. Oh wait, that’s not what they’re designed to stop, bummer,” Lake retorts sarcastically.
Selwyn’s muscles tighten and I make a jump for the sabre with both hands. I catch it by the blade and pull backwards, which catches Selwyn off balance and he falls backwards onto the carpet. Pain seers through my hands and I clench them tightly together but hot blood still pours from between my fingers. Lake makes a snatch for the sabre and points it towards Selwyn.
“If you wanna get out of the compound alive, we’re coming with you,” Lake says forcefully.
I suck air in through my teeth and screw my face up in pain, not wanting to look at the damage. Lake shoots me a concerned sideways glance and in this time Selwyn rolls away, gets to his feet and runs out of the door. The door slams shut behind the men and I hear the sound of a key turning from the other side. Neve runs over and pounds on the door with her fists.
“NO,” she cries out in anguish.
Lake tries to look at my hands but I pull them away and march towards Neve.
“It’s okay,” I say calmly. “I think this key will work.” I guess Selwyn thinks that Patryk let me into his office too.
I fumble with my thumb and fist, trying to get the loop of string over my head until Lake comes up behind me and lifts it off. He passes it to Neve, who inserts the key into the lock and sighs heavily with relief when it turns and the door opens freely. A groaning sound from inside the room makes me turn back around. Patryk lies in the foetal position on the floor in the midst of a growing red stain on the carpet. I know that Selwyn sliced him across the stomach so he’d have a long and painful death for deceiving him. My eyes brim with tears as I silently mouth the words, ‘Thank you,’ before running out of the room after Lake and Neve.
Running out of the main entrance into the street, it’s crowded with people in their bedclothes running in all directions and calling out to each other. I can’t see or smell the gas but I know it’s been turned on from the tingling feeling in my throat that makes me want to cough. Others around me cough violently, clutching their throats and stumbling around in the darkness trying to escape the poison. I see a man lying spread out on the wet ground, his body racked by violent shudders before it falls still, his eyes staring blankly.
“GO TO THE GATE,” Lake shouts to people. “The governors are opening the gates.”
He runs in front, leading the way and a surge of panicking people follow him towards the food station. I hold my breath, trying not to breathe in the gas, but the exertion of running makes my lungs ache. I draw in a breath of air which seers my lungs and makes me cough. Once I’ve started coughing I can’t help but take another breath, which amplifies the effect, so I pull the bottom of my jumper up to cover my nose and mouth to try and filter out the poisonous gas.
I start to feel lightheaded as I run, and when a man barges past me it knocks me off balance. I land heavily on the wet cobbles and the sting from my injured hands pierces through me. When I try to stand up again I’m knocked back down by the stampede of people. My muscles spasm as I try to stand and, even when I get to my feet, my legs feel stiff as I try to run towards the gate. I look around for Lake or Neve but there’s a huge crowd of people now surging in the same direction.
I see more people in the crowd being overcome by the gas. A woman, crying hysterically, holds her young child aloft in her arms in an attempt to lift her above the gas but the child’s chest jolts unevenly and her limbs carry unnatural tension. On the floor propped against the compound wall, a slim face catches my eye. It’s Star. Her large pleading brown eyes are wide with terror as she gasps for breath, but each one she draws brings no relief, only more discomfort. Her body is racked by another fit of coughing that leaves blood running from her mouth and down her chin. I want to go over to her but my legs feel heavy and I have to hold onto the person in front of me to remain upright. Another coughing fit attacks and I press the material of my jumper harder up against my mouth and nose, but I taste the strong metallic taste of blood.
Chapter Thirty-Three
The first people climb over the interior gate into the space between the gates. The electric charge usually running through the gate has been deactivated by the governors and I hope that Lake’s amongst the first out. My legs shake with the effort of standing and my muscles scream in protest. I stare at the top of the gate, willing it to open, but the gate opens inwards so are being prevented by very people who want to get through them.
Looking back at Star she’s now slumped over onto her side and her body vibrates as though an electric current is running through it. Her mouth’s wide open in an expression that looks somewhere between a gasp and a scream. Alarmed, I search for the woman who’d been holding her child in the air and find her doubled over with the exertion of coughing violently. The child’s limp form lies on the ground beside her.
Suddenly I spot the back of Neve’s head in the crowd not too far away. I push to get to her, but the crowd’s unforgiving and I don’t have the strength. I see the top of the gates part, a small distance at first but this rapidly increases as the crowd surges forward. Pushing with all my strength I catch hold of Neve’s coat. She feels the pressure and glances back over her shoulder, then reaches an outstretched hand towards me which I take as firmly as I can and push through the crowd at the same time that she pulls.
“Zia, I thought I’d lost you,” she gasps in a dry raspy voice.
“Where’s Lake?” I ask hoarsely.
She raises her shoulders in a shrug, covering her mouth with her sleeve.
I scan the crowd again as moves forward. People climb with the last of their strength over the second gate and spill over the other side to freedom. Those that don’t have the strength to make the final climb slide down the gate where they’re trampled by the next wave of desperate people. I stare in disbelief as people further back throw their children over the gate, away from the gas, hoping that they’ll be caught by someone on the other side.
I feel nauseous as we inch closer to the gate until I can touch it. Beneath my feet are a number of fallen people being trampled into the up-churned mud. One of the women is still moving and I reach my hand towards her which she takes with the last of her strength. I pull but instead of pulling her up it just pulls me down, then the man behind me pushes on my back to propel himself upwards towards the gate. I feel my knees buckle and hit the dirt but Neve grabs me by the shoulder. I let go of the woman’s hand, unable to help her, and push with all the strength I have in my legs to stand up again.
“Climb on my back,” Neve screams over the groans of the people around us.
She bends her legs slightly and rests her hands on the gate. I climb onto her back first as if she were giving me a piggy back and then, holding her shoulders, I climb up so that my knees are resting either side of her spine. In one movement I launch myself upwards towards the top the gate and land halfway over resting on my stomach. As I swing my legs over I look back to see another man climbing on top of Neve. He grasps my leg and starts to drag me back as he tries to get himself over the gate. Kicking my leg frantically, I fall down the other side of the gate.
I land on my back in a puddle with a thud, winding myself. I’m free. I am the other side of the compound wall like I’ve dreamed about since I was a child, but this isn’t how I pictured it. All around me people are injured and dying. Children squirm on the ground with obviously broken limbs where nobody broke their fall. I crawl a short distance from the gate to get out of the way of the constant stream of exhausted people climbing over onto the other side, but I don’t see Neve.
The fresh air starts to revive my aching muscles and I cry out her name but I doubt she can hear me. Eventually I see a hand with black damaged fingernail polish clap the top of the gate, followed by another one. I let out a cry of relief when I see her face screwed up with the effort, appear over the top of the gate. I force myself up onto my feet and stagger over to help her down on the other side.
“Is Dave here?” she gasps as I help her away from the compound to recover.
I shake my head slowly. “No-one else is here. It’s just us.”
I realise that I know where Lake went; he ran ahead to tell the others in the pipe that the gas had been turned on and the gates were being opened. I feel a stab of guilt that I didn’t figure this out earlier and I let him go alone. Neve lies on her back, taking deep lungfuls of the fresh early morning air. Dawn is beginning to break behind us, and I run my hands through the wet grass for the first time in my life; it’s cold and refreshing.
Hordes of people flood over the gate whilst we wait. I recognise the street-savvy woman that served me wine in the alehouse throw a booted leg over the top, followed by Adelaide’s wife and children, but I don’t see Adelaide himself and worry that the secret service may have also paid him a visit. Suddenly I see another figure that I recognise in the early morning light. The small, nimble figure of TJ rests momentarily on the top of the gate, catching his breath before leaping down. He’s followed by Scott and Max but ther
e’s no sign of Kim and they don’t look like they are expecting her to follow. Neve and I help them back towards where we’re sitting to rest.
“Did you see Lake and the others?” I ask desperately, but TJ shakes his head.
Scott lies on the grass clawing the dirt. He gasps for breath but his lungs make a gurgling sound as he tries to sucks in air. He coughs and spits blood onto the ground next to him. Max drags himself over and touches his brother’s back comfortingly, but there’s nothing that any of us can do except hope that the fresh air’s able to undo some of the violent damage caused by the gas.
I feel the knot in the pit of my stomach begin to tighten as the number of people climbing over the gate starts to dwindle. Despite the large number of people collapsed on the grass outside the compound, it’s probably less than a quarter of the compound’s population. My eyes sting with salty tears and I wonder whether I should risk going back into the compound to look for Lake. I know that’s what he’d do for me. Neve touches my arm like she knows what I’m thinking about doing, but my mind’s made up.
I stand up. My legs are feeling much stronger now and I take off running towards the gate. Neve calls my name behind me but I ignore her. Once I reach the gate I notice that the doors hinge on the outside and I’m able to use one of them as footing to lift myself up so I can see over the gate. The scene that’s revealed in the light of the new day is horrifying. All around lie limp and lifeless bodies, and those that are still moving make terrible gurgling sounds from their blood-filled lungs.
At the bottom of the gate is a mass of bodies, some of which have been trampled into the mud, but others are still desperately trying to pull their failing bodies over the gate to freedom. I reach out my hand towards them and catch hold of a young boy. His nightclothes are stained with mud and blood and his eyes are wide with fear. No child should ever have to fear that they might die. I pull with all my strength, using my body weight to lever him over the gate until we crash down on the outside of the compound. Pulling him out of the way, a woman in her twenties runs over with another baby in her arms and throws herself onto the young boy, pressing her tear-stained face into his.