Atlantic Island (39 page)

"You're hurt!" she cried.
 

"It's nothing," he said.
 

"Bull. You're bleeding. Your arm is hanging there. We need to get you help."

"I can't. Not yet. There's one more thing to do. You know that."

She nodded. "I know."

"How did you get here?" he asked.

"It wasn't easy," she said. "We were pinned down for a while in the parking garage. Outnumbered, for a while, at least."

"How did you make it through?" Theo asked.
 

"We won, I think, through sheer grit and force. Thank God for Joseph." She indicated the big Austrian, who was standing and talking with Andrew. He was wounded, but it looked superficial. Kylee cast her eyes downward. "We lost a lot of people."

"We had losses too."

She looked up suddenly, worried. "Where are Bill and Ryan?"

Theo sighed. He explained what had happened with Bertier and how Bill had knocked them both down to the beach and out of sight. "I don't know if he's okay," Theo admitted.

She brushed back her hair. "And Ry?"

Theo opened his mouth to speak, to tell her about the horror that had transpired, when he was interrupted. "Oh hell," said a weary voice, "did I miss all the fun?"

Bill was leaning against the door at the end of the hallway from which Kylee's army had arrived. He was bleeding from several places. His face was, once again, a puffy mess. He had dark bruises on his throat.

"Oh, God, Bill." She and Theo ran over to him.

"Hey, hey, don't worry about me! I'm fine. Just a few…horribly painful scratches is all." He winced.
 

"And Bertier?" Theo asked.

"Dead as a doornail, my friend." Bill's voice was jovial, though tired, but he did not smile. Just then, Jamie saw him and came running over. She threw her arms around him. "Easy, easy, baby!" he cried out. "I'm not a well man!" Finally a crack of a smile showed.
 

Kylee turned back to Theo. "You were starting to say about Ryan?"

Theo's shoulders slumped. His eyes watered. "Follow me."
 

He led the three of them to the stairwell. There, Ryan continued to weep over Michelle's body.
 

"Oh, no." said Jamie.

She and Kylee moved closer to Michelle. Bill came around and tried to gently move Ryan off.
 

"Come on, Ry," he said. "Come on, buddy. It's okay man."

"It's not okay!" Ryan screamed. "Look what they did to her!"

"Pretty much all of the people who were responsible for this are dead now, Ry," Bill said. "Come with us. She'll be okay here. When this is over, I promise we'll come back and take her out of here. Now we've gotta go face Tiberius."

"No," said Theo.

"What do you mean no?" asked Kylee.

"I mean, no. You've all done enough. This is my job now."

"Theo," said Bill, "don't be ridiculous. You can barely stand. Let's bring the army up there and shoot the devil in his big, fat head."

"It has to be me," said Theo. "You need to get these people out of here and to safety. You know Tiberius's power. If you all come with it will be a massacre."

"I don't understand," said Kylee. "How can you win if you're so sure we'd all lose?"

"I don't know," he said. "I just know that this is a fight for me and me alone. Just give me one last chance to speak to the people."

"One last…" Kylee gasped. "You don't think you're going to survive this, do you? This is insane, Theo. Insane."

"This army needs its leader," he said. "I can't risk any of you. If I don't come back in an hour…Wes has grenades. Take this place down."

He walked back down the hall. The eyes of the army followed him. Standing by the door he knew would take him to the staircase to the top floor, Theo spoke.

"People of Atlantic Island, you have done an amazing thing tonight. You have made it possible for this country and its people to be free. You have done right by the people who died in the tragedy of the Event, like my friend Mark, and you have done right by all those who died in the avoidable tragedies brought about since by Paul Tiberius and his men.
 

"You have helped me to avenge the deaths of Sam Lucas and so many others who died in the gladiatorial arena, in the prisons, the camp, or here in this Palace. I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Now, I want you to go. Go out and be my representatives in the world. Let the people know as they awaken that they don't have to be afraid anymore."

He pulled Kylee to him and kissed her. When he pulled back, her eyes were full of tears. "I love you," he said to her.

She hesitated, preparing a plea, then stopped herself. "I love you, too," she said.

"Listen to Kylee as you have done so far, and as you have done for me," he said. "Listen to my friends."
 
He looked at Bill and Ryan and smiled. "Listen to each other. You are the future of this nation."

"What about you?" someone shouted. "Won't you lead us?"

"I hope so," Theo said. "I guess fate will decide. Now I have a dictator to overthrow. Thank you all for everything… Thank you for giving me a purpose."

With that, before there could be more protests, he turned and opened the door behind him. He looked back one last time, making eye contact with Kylee. Then the door shut, cutting him off from his people.
 

Kylee took a moment to compose herself. "Alright people," she said, "It's time to go. We're going to retrace our steps down and collect those we've lost."

"What about Theo?" a voice called out. "Will he be back?"

"I don't know," she said. "We have to move now."

Theo heard the door close behind him. One flight of stairs separated him from the small lobby that had once divided Tiberius's and Lucas's offices. He thought there was a chance that he would be killed as soon as he stepped into the lobby. If that was how it was going to be, so be it. He had come too far to turn back, and he was out of options. This part of the script couldn't be written in advance. It had to play out in real-time, come what may.
 

He wasn't positive he had any ammo in his gun. He'd forgotten to check before he left the others. The firearm was held in his left hand. His right arm was as useless as if it had been amputated. Maybe eventually it would be. He certainly didn't think it would ever work the way it had.
 

Black shadows danced in and out of the edges of his vision. Theo knew he was tired, but there was something more than that wrong with him. The shirt wrapped around his wound was drenched with blood. He wondered how long he would be able to stay on his feet.

Theo took the stairs slowly, conserving his energy. He was prepared for the possibility of Tiberius or one of his soldiers bursting out of the door at the top of the stairs and coming after him. If that happened, he'd run straight up, and maybe toss them down to the bottom. It wasn't much of a plan but his addled brain refused to give him anything else.
Conserve your energy
, it said.
Take your time. All in good time, Theo.
 

He thought maybe that was Sam Lucas's voice speaking to him, or at least his own construction of the mayor. It was nice that he still had a friend with him. This made him think of Kylee and the rest. He hoped they were on their way to safety. Even with Bertier defeated, he knew a portion of the surviving Security Force would continue to fight as long as Tiberius remained in control. The rebels were tired and injured. They needed a break. They needed a victory, and Theo wanted more than anything to give it to them.
 

Three more steps to the top. So nobody was going to attack him here after all. Theo was confused. Tiberius must know he would be coming. Why give him the chance to get situated in the lobby? None of this made any sense, but then again he was dealing with a man whose ego and one-sided sense of right and wrong had driven him insane.
 

Two more steps remaining. Theo tightened his grip on the gun. Climbing had been so difficult with his right arm throwing him off balance and the gun in the hand that should be gripping the rail. Now, if he didn't trip and send himself back down the stairwell in a heap, he needed to have his weapon at the ready.
 

On the final step, Theo took a deep breath. He was ready, as ready as one could be. Doing the best one could do in impossible circumstances. That's what he had come to believe defined a hero, and it was the code he would continue to live by now, even if he might not live much longer. He let out the air he had been holding. He went to reach for the door with his right hand, and laughed when his arm didn't move. So much for preparing his gun. He maneuvered the weapon under his left arm, pinning it to his side, and turned the knob with his left hand.
 

He opened the door and walked out into the small lobby. It looked like he remembered it, though of course he had never been there that late. No receptionist worked at the desk. Nobody was there at all. The door to the mayor's office was partially open. Well, it was not the mayor's office anymore, was it? Tiberius's office.

Theo looked around. He knew these circumstances had been arranged for him, but he didn't see an alternative. He had become a cow in a chute after all.
 

"The great and powerful Theo Essex returns to grace us with his presence!" Tiberius's voice came from behind the open door. Theo felt a chill go through him. He was frozen where he stood, caught between conflicting impulses to move forward and to turn and run.
 

"Do come in, Mr. Essex," said Tiberius. "We will talk of many things. Cabbages and kings, am I right?" The voice tittered.
 

He's completely mad,
Theo thought. Despite his reservations, he took a few cautious steps forward, raising his weapon.
 

"You have caused me a tremendous amount of trouble, Mr. Essex," Tiberius said. "The least you can do is sit with me like two gentlemen. We can discuss our differences."

Theo reached the doorway. He knew he only had one small chance to end the nightmare. He brushed the door against his shoulder and pushed forward, entering the inner office.
 

"Ah, Mr. Essex." Tiberius was standing in the center of the room. Theo didn't see anyone else there. "Come in. Take a seat. Your friend Michelle was using one of them but I believe you'll find that seat is no longer occupied."

That was the push Theo needed. "Die!" he yelled. He fired the gun as close to Tiberius's direction as he could manage in his condition. He discovered there had been three bullets left, and he fired them all. Two struck Mayor Lucas's large desk on either side of Tiberius, piercing and splintering the expensive wood. The third bullet tore through the side of Tiberius's left arm and buried itself in the wall.
 

Tiberius looked at the wound, which was bleeding freely onto the carpet. He frowned. "I wish you hadn't done that," he said. "I really liked this shirt." He reached up with his right hand, grabbed the torn sleeve and yanked, ripping the shirtsleeve off below the bullet wound.

Theo stood silent, watching Tiberius. His one attempt to win through force had failed him. Now Tiberius studied the wound in his pale flesh. He made a clicking, disapproving sound with his tongue.
 

"Theo, Theo, Theo," Tiberius said. He seemed sad. Theo noticed the bullet wound was not bleeding much at all anymore. "You think to stop me with bullets? Poor boy. You are out of your depth." Theo stared in awe. Tiberius's wound, deep if not life-threatening, was closing before his very eyes. Within thirty seconds after the gun had fired, the wound was just a scar, and even that was fading.

"I'll ask you again," said Tiberius, walking around to the far side of the desk, "won't you sit and talk with me? Violence won't get you anywhere with me, you see."

"Why don't you just kill me?" Theo asked.
 

Tiberius sat in Lucas's chair. "I may. I haven't decided yet. You fascinate me, Theo. Can I call you Theo?"

Theo didn't respond.

"Very well, Theo. As I said, you fascinate me. You are like a cancer given life. A series of wrong ideas given voice and sent to inspire other people of limited mental faculties. And inspire them you have! Do you even know how many have died in your name tonight?"

"You and your men killed them," Theo said.

"True. But this is where you forget your place in the world. I am the Supreme Leader. The Security Force represents the law. What we have done tonight is punish those who would commit treason against our country. We have done this at great cost, as I'm sure you know."

Before he knew what he was doing, Theo found himself taking a seat.

"There you go," said Tiberius. "Make yourself at home. Now, Theo, you have come so far to achieve this audience with the Supreme Leader. You must have some questions for me."

"Why so much senseless death and violence?" Theo asked. "The gladiator battles. The rounding up of innocents. Taking people's homes. There was a better way."

"What better way?" asked Tiberius. "The way of Sam Lucas? Your beloved mayor believed too strongly in the inherent good of the people. For years, he and I argued over a city so violent, so broken that nothing could save it. Not the money from the casinos, not the influx of high-end shops and new condos. There was a sickness at the core of Atlantic City. The Event gave us a chance to change all that. To finally take action and eliminate crime across the island.

"And that is what I did. Sam Lucas fought me every step of the way, because he always thought the people, left to their own devices would do the right thing."

"And you disagreed?" Theo asked.

"Of course! Human beings are an evil species, prone to violence and greed. Just look at what has happened tonight. What are your 'rebels' if not a group of randomly picked civilians who suddenly found they had it in them to murder other people in cold blood."

"They are fighting for freedom. For a world where they don't have to live in fear of their homes or their loved ones being taken from them."