Imprisoned (35 page)

I was going on thirty-one hours with no sleep, my legs were sore, and I was on edge, waiting for the Enforcers to roar up to us in their car at any moment. Too tired to complain, I just nodded. “Yeah.”

He rolled the bike off of the road as best he could and laid it on the ground, then walked back to me. “Let’s go.”

I pushed myself off of the ground and stood next to him, the backpack in my hands.

“I’ll carry that,” he offered, taking it from me.

I was happy to hand it over and once he put it on, we began walking. We stayed on the edge of the road as we walked—far enough to avoid getting hit by the rare cars that drove by, but close enough to walk on even ground.

We trudged along for at least two miles before a house came into view. It was set well off the road, surrounded by trees, with a long dirt road leading to the front. A moment later I heard the sound of a distant car approaching. We hadn’t seen a car in the last half hour, but every time one passed us, my heart pounded with fear.

I looked over my shoulder at the one that was still quite a ways away, but did a double-take when I thought I saw a light bar on the roof. “Is that a police car?”

Billy looked over his shoulder, then grabbed my arm and urged me forward. “Yeah, I think it is.” His gaze frantically searched the area. “Over there. Behind those trees.”

Though my legs were like lead weights, the rush of adrenaline gave me sudden energy and we sprinted toward the thick trees that concealed the house, and hid behind the closest one. A moment later the car drove by, and sure enough, it carried a pair of Enforcers. Nausea welled up inside me and I felt a sudden dull ache push against my skull.

“That was close,” Billy whispered. “Too close.”

I nodded, too scared and worn out to speak. Hansen’s promise to kill me—for that’s how I thought of it—kept playing through my mind. If they caught me and brought me back to Camp Willowmoss, I had no doubt that not only would Hansen make my life a living hell—before he actually did kill me in some horrific manner—but all of his buddies would too. I simply could not get caught.

“What are you kids doing?” an older female voice called out to us.

I spun around, startled, and saw a woman with deep wrinkles in her face and a puff of gray hair. She wore an apron and stood on the porch of the small house, the door hanging open behind her.

“Come over here, now.” She motioned for us to approach.

I looked at Billy and he glanced at the woman, then he shrugged. The two of us walked side by side to the porch, stopping at the foot of the three steps that led upward. Maybe it was the warm smile on her face or the apron she wore, but she reminded me of my grandmother, a woman who was fiercely independent but loved her family more than anything.

“What are you doing in my yard?” she asked, waving her arm around to encompass the tree-filled space.

I glanced in the doorway behind her, afraid someone else was inside, someone who might be calling the Enforcers to come pick us up. Maybe her job was to stall us long enough for them to show up—then she could get the reward money.

“Well?”

Billy smiled. “I’m sorry we bothered you, ma’am. We’ll be on our way.”

She smiled back. “There’s no hurry, son. I don’t get many visitors out here. Why don’t you come in and rest for a spell? You look plum worn out.”

She was right about that, but I still didn’t trust that she wasn’t just trying to stall us. “We should go,” I whispered to Billy.

“What’s that, dear?” she asked me.

“I, uh, I said we should get going.”

“Oh.” She looked genuinely disappointed. Whether it was because she saw her chance at the reward money about to walk away, or because she really wanted company, I wasn’t sure. “I just made lunch. Heated up some leftovers from dinner.” She leaned toward us conspiratorially. “Hamburger with real beef.” She winked. “I also made fresh apple pie.”

My stomach rumbled at the suggestion. Even though we’d eaten two power bars each, and even though I’d gotten used to feeling hungry, the mention of fresh apple pie made my mouth water. Was she trying to entice us with food because she knew we were escapees from the F.A.T. center or was I just being paranoid?

“Maybe we can come in for just a minute,” Billy said, making the decision for us.

She clapped her hands together once. “Good. I love to have guests.” Then she turned and walked inside.

We mounted the porch steps, but when we reached the doorway I peeked inside before going in—a tidy room with wood floors, and furniture like my grandmother had in her house. And only the old woman.

“Come in, come in,” she said eagerly as she walked into an adjoining room.

Billy gave me a gentle shove and I stepped over the threshold and the aroma of freshly baked pie filled my nose. I relaxed. She was telling the truth.  

We walked toward the room where she’d gone—the kitchen—and Billy whispered, “Do you notice she doesn’t have a TV?”

I immediately caught on to what he was telling me. No TV meant she didn’t know who we were. My fears began to ease. When we walked into the kitchen, she was setting two placemats on a small round table, to join the one she’d already laid out.

“Sit down, sit down.” She smiled as she bustled around.

Billy took the backpack off of his shoulder and set it on the floor.

“Do you have a bathroom I could use?” I asked.

“Oh yes. It’s down the hall and to the right.”

“Thank you.” Not only did I want to freshen up, I wanted an excuse to check the place out and make sure my trust wasn’t misplaced. I walked back through the living room and into a hallway. There were three rooms off of the hallway—two bedrooms and a bathroom. I went into the first bedroom and looked around. A neatly made bed and a tidy dresser nearly filled the small space. I peeked in the closet for good measure, but the only thing I found were a few dresses hanging from the bar and some boxes stacked in a corner.

I went to the other bedroom, which appeared to be the room the woman used. This bed was neatly made as well, but on her dresser I saw several photos of a young family with two small boys. I wondered if these were her grandchildren and if they lived nearby.

I looked in her closet too, just to be safe, but no one was lurking. Next I went into the bathroom and when I looked in the mirror, I hardly recognized myself. My hair was a mess and the worry in my eyes was unmistakable. I freshened up, then opened the medicine cabinet, curious what I might find.

There were a few medications, but nothing that looked like an antibiotic—not that I planned to steal from this woman—so I closed the door and went back to the kitchen.

“Everything okay?” Billy asked.

I nodded. “Everything’s great.”

He smiled. “Mrs. Duncan said she has enough food for us to split a hamburger.”

I looked at Mrs. Duncan, who was mixing a pitcher of liquid, her back to us. At Billy’s words, she turned and nodded, then went back to her task.

Billy leaned toward me and whispered, “I’m Brian and you’re Michelle.”

I nodded. “Thank you for inviting us to lunch, Mrs. Duncan.”

She set the spoon in the sink and carried the pitcher to the table. “You’re very welcome, dear.” She pointed to the pitcher. “Help yourself to the lemonade.” With a twinkle in her eye, she said, “It’s made with real sugar.”

“Did you make your pie with real sugar too?” I asked.

“Oh yes. There’s really no other way to make it taste right.”

“But isn’t that expensive?”

“Well, it’s kind of a treat. But I’ve been around a lot of years and I’m not going to change the way I cook just because a bunch of . . .” She stopped suddenly. “Please, have some lemonade.” Then she turned her back and began working at the counter.

I looked at Billy, my eyebrows raised.

He smiled and shrugged.

A few minutes later Mrs. Duncan set half a hamburger on each of our plates, including her own. “I’m sorry they’re not whole, but that’s all I had.”

“No, that’s fine,” I said. “They smell heavenly.”

She placed a plate of fresh vegetables on the table as well, then sat down. “Help yourselves.”

I took a bite of the hamburger and my taste buds rejoiced. “This is wonderful. I haven’t had real hamburger in ages.” In fact, I hadn’t had one since I’d stepped foot in this world. Only the veggie burgers that seemed so popular.

“Thank you.”

“I’m not sure I’ve ever had a hamburger made with real beef,” Billy said. “Is it difficult to get?”

She suddenly seemed nervous. “Where are you two headed?”

“East,” Billy said before I had a chance to respond.

Her gaze went to the bandage on Billy’s arm, then to mine. “What happened to you?”

I’d only eaten half of my hamburger, but my appetite disappeared under her questioning. “Uh, I fell.”

She nodded. “And you, Brian?”

I had to suppress a grin when she called him by his alias.

“Yeah, I fell too.”

“That’s very strange. You both falling and getting hurt at the same exact place.”

Billy stood up suddenly. “Thanks again for lunch, but we should be going.”

Taking my cue from Billy, I stood as well.

Mrs. Duncan chuckled. “Sit down now. Both of you.”

I glanced at Billy and he looked at me, neither one of us moving.

“Please.”

Slowly, we sat back down.

“You’re those two kids who ran off from that Federally Assisted Thinning center, aren’t you?”

“No TV, huh,” I said under my breath, my anxiety notching up.

“No, I don’t have a television,” Mrs. Duncan said. “But I do have a radio. And of course, Internet.”

I sighed. “You didn’t call the Enforcers, did you?”

“Of course not. I don’t take kindly to what our government has done. I well remember the way it used to be and I don’t approve of the control they want to have now.”

My tension loosened a bit at her words. Unless she was just pretending. But if she’d called the Enforcers, surely they would have come by now.

“Now, what are your real names? I can’t remember what they said on the news.”

“Billy and Morgan, ma’am,” Billy said.

“Oh yes. Well, welcome to my home, both of you.”

“Thank you,” I said, as my appetite returned. “Would you mind if I charge up my GPS device?”

“No, you go right ahead.”

I plugged it in, noticing it was down to fifteen percent, then went back to the table.

When we’d finished our hamburgers and vegetables, Mrs. Duncan brought out her apple pie. My mouth watered as I imagined the sweet flavor. She gave each of us a generous slice and I enjoyed every bite.

“We really do appreciate the meal,” Billy said. “But we do have to get going.”

“I understand.”

“Would you mind if we filled our water bottles before we left?” Billy asked.

“Of course not. You help yourself.”

I helped Billy fill the six water bottles, then we put them in the pack, along with the charged up GPS device.

“Morgan?” Billy said quietly as I zipped the backpack closed. “Maybe we should call this guy we’re meeting and see if he’ll meet us outside of Walland. That way we won’t have to go right into the middle of town.”

“Good idea.” I turned to Mrs. Duncan. “Do you mind if I use your phone?”

“That’s fine, dear.” She pointed to a wall-mounted phone, one with a long cord attached to it.

I took Fred’s phone number out of my pocket and punched it in. He answered right away. “Hi, it’s me, Morgan.”

“I’m glad you called.”

“You are? Why?”

“I’m really sorry, but I’m not going to be able to help you out.”

My heart pounded at this new wrinkle. “Why not? Just a few hours ago you said you would.”

“I know. But that was before I knew you was a fugitive. I can’t afford any more trouble with the gov’ment. I’m really sorry. Good luck.” Then he hung up.

I stared at the phone, now dead in my hand. A moment later a dial tone sounded and I hung the phone back in its cradle. When I turned to look at Billy, he and Mrs. Duncan were both watching me. I looked directly at Billy. “We have a problem.”

Chapter Thirty Eight

“What’s wrong?”

“Will you excuse us a minute, Mrs. Duncan?” I asked.

“Sure, honey.”

I pulled Billy into the living room. “Fred bailed on us.”

“What? Why?”

“He found out the Enforcers are after us and he doesn’t want to get involved.” I frowned. “I can’t say that I blame him.”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“What do we do now?”

“Remind me again why we have to go to this place that’s two hundred miles away?”

I sighed. “I’ll remind you that
I’m
going there. I hope you’ll come with me, but I can’t explain right now.”

“Okay, whatever. I have nowhere else to go.”

Inside I smiled, relieved I wouldn’t be on my own.

“So, how do you propose we get there?” he asked.

I walked into the kitchen and Billy followed me. “Mrs. Duncan, you don’t happen to have a pair of bikes we can borrow, do you?”

“No, I can’t say that I do.”

Disappointment swelled within me, and my shoulders slumped.

“But,” she said, her eyes sparkling. “I might have something better.”

I felt my hopes rise.

“Follow me.” She opened a door that led out of the kitchen and to the back part of her property. Billy put the backpack over his shoulders and we followed her out. She walked towards a barn, but stopped in front of the doors. “Would you mind opening that for me? It’s a little heavy.”

Billy stepped forward and slid open the first door, then the second, then stepped back to allow Mrs. Duncan to enter first.

She walked in with us close on her heels. “Will that do?”

My eyes widened when I saw what she pointed to. I didn’t know much about motorcycles, but this one looked sleek and fast.

Billy walked over to it and ran his hands over it. “This is a beauty.” He turned to Mrs. Duncan, a question on his face. “This is yours?”

“Well, not exactly. It’s my son’s. You see, his wife found out that he almost crashed and she got scared. She told him it was either her or the bike. Well, you can see he made his choice.”