The Other Life (24 page)

Karen lowered herself to sit beside Tyler. “But how did you get out of there? Did they let you go?”

A choked laugh left his lips. “No, they don’t let anybody leave who’s been in the laboratory. I managed to escape. For days I hid in abandoned houses, before I discovered the
fence. Other captives told me about it, but I never believed it was really true. I found a tunnel. It was in bad shape, but I had no choice.” He shuddered.

“When I came out on this side of the fence, I was sick with fever. I ran and ran and didn’t stop, but I don’t remember what happened after that. The first thing I remember is
waking up here.”

“I’m so sorry, Tyler.” Rachel crouched beside him and wrapped an arm around his shoulders.

I couldn’t even imagine what Tyler had gone through. I didn’t think I’d have survived if I’d been in his place. No wonder he’d stopped talking.

Larry shook his head. “But why can’t we reach anyone with a cell and why isn’t there any television reception? If life is going on as it used to be across the country we would
have noticed, wouldn’t we?”

I took Joshua’s hand, needing his support more than ever. He glanced at me and his eyes showed he believed Tyler.

Tyler ran his fingers through the dirt beside his feet, drawing a long line. The words seemed to flow from him more easily now. “The government was thorough. They made sure nobody found
out about us and we never got over the fence unless they wanted us to. There are minefields, spring guns, cameras.”

Larry nodded, his frown clearing as if a riddle he’d been working on had just been solved. “So they sealed us off from the rest of the world. It must be as if we don’t exist.
The government is sending interfering waves. That’s why we stopped getting a signal.”

“But the world would never allow it – the rest of America would never allow it,” I said. “Someone would have stopped the government. Wouldn’t they?”

Geoffrey rubbed his temples. “To the rest of the world, we’re probably nothing more than dead or infected beasts. They will have been manipulated by the government into believing
that we’re no longer human.”

The truth sank in. Nobody would help us. Joshua squeezed my hand gently, steadying me with the gesture. I gave him a faint smile, though I’d rather have cried.

“How come we’ve never seen helicopters or planes or ships before, if the rest of the world is living their lives as if nothing happened?” he asked.

“This is a restricted area. It’s prohibited to fly over or set foot in it. They labelled it ‘contaminated wasteland’. I heard them talk about it while I was in the
lab,” Tyler whispered, his legs pulled against his chest.

Contaminated wasteland. That’s what they called my home.

“Why haven’t other survivors seen the fence?” Joshua asked.

“Helicopters are patrolling the fence area. If they catch people nearby, they take them away to the lab. That’s what happened to me,” Tyler said.

Geoffrey closed his eyes and ran a hand down his face – he looked grey. And that’s when I realized how little he’d said. And suddenly it was obvious.

“You
knew
?” I asked.

Geoffrey froze. “I knew they made plans to build a fence, but I thought it was nothing but talk. I never thought they’d go through with it. And I was too scared to check for myself
if it was true.”

I searched his face while Joshua glared at him. “But you seem to know so much.”

“Like I told you, I worked for the government as a scientist. When they began talking about building a fence, about separating the country, they wanted me to join them. But my family was
already infected at that point and I couldn’t take them with me, so I decided to stay with them. I didn’t know if I was infected myself. I never really thought we’d be
deserted.”

“And the government just abandoned you?” Shock was obvious on Mom’s face. How she could still be shocked about anything after what Tyler had just told us was a mystery to
me.

“I knew too much. I guess they only let me live because they thought I wouldn’t survive more than a few days in Weeper territory.”

Karen scowled at him. “Why didn’t you tell us any of this before?”

“I didn’t really know what the truth was any more. I…” He swallowed. “I was scared and worried too. Worried you’d hate me and cast me out. I’m sorry,
it was selfish of me.” Nobody said a word and Geoffrey dropped his eyes and turned to Tyler. “What else do you know, Tyler?”

“Oregon, California, Nevada and Arizona are restricted areas. The fence runs along the borders of the outer states and separates us from the rest of the country. From here, the nearest
section of the fence is south of Las Vegas. You’d reach it in six hours by car.”

Joshua and I exchanged looks, and we both knew we wanted to see the fence with our own eyes.

Tyler looked straight at us, his eyes wide and pleading, as if he knew what we were thinking. “You can’t ever go there. They’ll catch you and then it’ll be over.
You’ll die. Just like my brother.”

“Your brother?” My mouth went dry, because I was sure another horror story was about to be added to my memory. Another thing I could never wipe from my mind.

Tyler traced the tattoo spelling his name on his wrist. “My twin, Tyler. He died in the lab. He didn’t make it out of there.”

Karen was the first who got over the shock that seemed to paralyse us. “I’m sorry. But if Tyler was your twin, what’s your name?”

Tyler rose and dusted himself off. It was like he was shutting down. “It doesn’t matter. That guy doesn’t exist any more. Just call me Tyler.”

He walked into the house, leaving us with nothing but the certainty that everything was even worse than we’d thought.

Dad turned out the light, ignoring my protests. Izzy giggled. The glow of candles filled the room. Orange and yellow. They flickered, making shadows move on the
walls.

“Happy birthday” surrounded me. Bobby sang off-key on purpose. Izzy tried to drown him out with her loud screech.

I was tempted to cover my ears. A grin spread on my face. All my friends were there. Except for Abi. She’d been sick for a few days. A virus, they said. Nobody was allowed to visit her
in the hospital.

Mom put the birthday cake on the table. It was pink and blue and white. “Make a wish.”

Twelve candles. Their glare dazzled me.

A wish.

That pair of pink Converse.

Or that Brittany got a bad case of acne.

Or…

Brown eyes flashed in my mind. Heat crept into my face.

I want Alex to like me as much as I like him.

Closing my eyes, I blew out the candles. Smoke wafted up my nose and my smile widened.

The next day, Karen and Larry waited for Joshua and me in the kitchen. I’d known something was wrong from the moment I’d visited Mom and Dad in the infirmary cottage
that morning. They’d avoided looking me in the eye, as if there was something they felt guilty about.

“I think we should have a discussion about Safe-haven,” Karen said.

I’d suspected this conversation would come ever since Tyler had told us the truth. It had changed everything and made us realize that Safe-haven was even less of a safe place than
we’d thought.

Joshua exchanged a worried look with me before he turned to Karen. “What about it?”

Larry wrapped an arm around her. “We think it would be better to leave the winery and search for a new place to stay.”

“We?” Joshua echoed.

“The adults had a conversation yesterday,” Larry said.

Joshua’s expression tightened. He didn’t like that nobody had asked us.
I
didn’t like it either.

Karen put a hand on his shoulder but he shook her off. “We agreed to move away.”

“But why?” I blurted out, horrified about the prospect of leaving our home.

“It’s too dangerous to stay here. Tyler’s words made us finally realize it. The Weepers know where we live and now the military does, too. I bet the helicopter had a camera.
And maybe we could find more survivors during our search for a new place to stay. We could join forces. That way we’d be less vulnerable,” Larry said.

They had made up their minds already.

“Isn’t there another way? Safe-haven is our home.”

Larry shook his head. “We must think of the future. Safe-haven is no longer a safe place.”

I didn’t like it at all, but I knew they were right.

The military, or the government, or whoever was behind the fence, knew where we lived and they’d left us to die. They wouldn’t hesitate to kill us if they thought we were a danger to
their web of lies.

Everything was packed, except for the furniture. Larry had found and patched up an old trailer, so we could take the cows with us and wouldn’t have to butcher them
– their milk was more important than their meat.

It was strange to think that this was our last evening in the winery. We’d find a new Safe-haven, a new home, but I didn’t want to leave. I loved the pretence of peace in the
vineyard, this sense of another time. Of my other life.

I exchanged a smile with Karen while we set the table – the plates and cutlery barely fitted. Elbows on the tabletop would be a no-go during dinner. I’d forgiven them for making the
decision about moving without us. Joshua, on the other hand, was still furious.

In fact, I’d sensed anger building in him ever since we’d found out about the fence. I could tell he felt betrayed that Geoffrey had kept it from him. And perhaps he felt stupid for
ever allowing himself to trust a man who had helped to create the virus in the first place. But Joshua didn’t seem to want to talk about it and I didn’t push him. I didn’t want to
spoil our last day at Safe-haven.

Marie stirred tomato sauce in a huge pot. Almost every meal here contained tomatoes and red peppers. I hadn’t gotten tired of it yet. 1,141 days without fresh vegetables made me hunger for
them.

Marie had told me she’d harvest the potatoes tomorrow so we could take them with us to our new home – wherever that would be. We planned on staying close to the ocean. The adults
didn’t want to risk moving closer to the fence.

“Sherry, look!” Mia said in excitement. I turned to her. She held up a piece of paper with her first and last name written on it in block letters. She was beaming at me.

“Larry says I’m a fast learner!” She glanced at Larry, who sat across from her at the table. He gave me a grin. He’d been in teacher mode for a few days. While he’d
tried to teach Emma how to count to five, he’d made Mia write her name and that of every member of Safe-haven. He loved teaching others, and with Mia and Emma he had two willing students.
He’d suggested he could teach me and Bobby too, but we hadn’t found the time. Not that Bobby and I were too keen on sitting down with textbooks.

Mom helped Dad towards a chair, supporting him with an arm around his waist. It was only the second time he’d gotten out of bed. His leg hadn’t healed yet, but at least the swelling
was down. He still couldn’t put pressure on it, though. Our journey to a new safe haven would cost him every bit of strength.

With a groan, Dad plopped down on a chair and wiped his forehead. Karen had told me he’d probably end up with a stiff leg like Larry. As long as he didn’t get rabies, I could live
with that. His fever and sweating worried me. Karen still hadn’t said anything. But what if he was already turning into a Weeper, and she wasn’t telling us because she knew there was
nothing we could do?

Mom smiled at him before she turned to us. “Can I help?” Her skin wasn’t grey any more. It was pale, but at least she could no longer be mistaken for the living dead. Dad and
Mom had gained some weight, though they were still too thin. I wished I didn’t have to worry about them so much.

Karen shook her head and gestured at the set table. “We’re done. You can sit down.”

“Dinner!” Marie shouted. Seconds later Joshua entered the kitchen, Tyler and Rachel just behind. Only Geoffrey was missing. He’d been keeping to himself since yesterday.

Everyone took their seats, chairs scraping over the floor and plates clanking when someone hit them with their elbows. It was strange for me that Grandma was no longer with us. I sat down beside
Joshua. He took my hand under the table and the ghost of a smile crossed his face. I smiled back. It came naturally when I was around him.