Inception, page 17
part #1 of The Defiants Series
“I’m so sorry.” Annie reached for his hand, her touch soothing, her soft fingers the only thing keeping him from doing something he would regret.
“We’ve gotta do something. We’ve gotta come up with a plan.”
Annie stopped at a red light and turned to him, her expression sympathetic. “Whatever you want to do, I’m with you. The longer we wait, the worse it gets.”
He looked at the clock on the dashboard and rested his head on the window. They needed a course of action, but what? He couldn’t think straight. All he could see was Mia dangling at the end of the rope, all because she’d wanted to help her child.
“School’s almost out. Let’s go pick up Ryan.” It was the only thing Charlie could think about. So that Mia’s death wouldn’t be in vain, he had to make sure nothing ever happened to Ryan.
Chapter Twenty
It killed Annie to see Charlie hurting. Though he wasn’t saying much about Mia’s execution, he was clearly affected by it. As soon as they got home from picking Ryan up, he went into the bedroom and shut the door, leaving Ryan with questions that she didn’t have answers for.
She put on a movie to keep Ryan occupied and went into the kitchen. She took inventory of what food and supplies they had left. If the news was right, food restrictions were getting worse, allowing people only half of the list they had been getting before. It had been about a week since she had gone to the store, and she worried that they would soon be out of everything.
She opened the cupboard and jotted down items they were low on—flour, salt, pepper, and canned goods. They still had a few cans of soup, tomatoes, and whole new potatoes. They had three packages of beef jerky left. She focused on the nonperishable items, surprised that she was starting to think like a prepper.
If their list would allow it, they should stock up on premade meals and snacks—packages of cheese and crackers, a variety of nuts, and sports drinks to keep their electrolytes and potassium levels up. She wasn’t good at this. What else should they stock up on? Actually, it didn’t matter what she thought it would be good to stock up on. The Millstone staff had the final say on what they could have based on their food lists. They were almost evil enough to take away all nonperishable items to keep people from being able to go off the grid.
Charlie had kept saying they needed to come up with a plan, but Mia’s death had put that on hold. Annie didn’t expect him to immediately get over what they had witnessed, but the clock was ticking, and with each second that passed, the country was getting even more out of control. Once they came up with a plan, they would need food to last them. Her heart sank at the thought of fleeing and leaving their home behind, but she couldn’t see any other choice. If they stayed, they would either be put in jail or killed. There was no forgiveness since they were already Defiants. There was no way to work themselves off the list or to go down a disciplinary level. Mia had died for trying to buy an EpiPen for Ryan. The Millstone administration would kill for just about any rule violation.
“What’s wrong with my dad?” Ryan asked, pulling Annie from her inventory of the pantry. He stood behind her, clutching a stuffed animal.
“What makes you think something is wrong with your dad?” Maybe playing dumb would buy her some time to think of how to answer him.
“He went to his room. He won’t open the door.”
“He’s not feeling well.” That wasn’t a lie. “Do you want a snack? I bet you’re hungry.”
Ryan nodded. “They gave me milk and peanut butter again today. I gave it to Freddy, so I didn’t get a snack today.”
Annie sliced an apple and poured him some juice. They were completely out of almond milk and lactose-free cheese. It would be the last time she would ever see those types of foods. “If you want something else after you eat this, let me know.” She couldn’t help noticing that Ryan had lost some weight. Before the government shift, he had been stout, but he had thinned down too much, and his clothes were baggy from the sudden weight loss.
“Something is wrong with my dad,” Ryan said again as he went back to his movie. He bit into an apple slice. “They told us at school today that some people died for not following rules. If we don’t follow the rules, bad things will happen to us.”
Annie nodded, at a loss for how to respond. She padded down the hallway and went into the bedroom. Charlie was lying on the bed, staring at the ceiling. When she shut the door behind her, he didn’t look her way. His pant leg was lifted up, exposing the monitor she had forgotten about. It had become such a way of life that she didn’t pay attention to it anymore.
She sat on the edge of the bed. “Ryan is asking questions. He’s noticing that things aren’t okay.”
Charlie continued to stare at the ceiling. “What do you want me to tell him? That his mother just died a horrific death because he has allergies?”
“Of course not. But he needs his dad. He said people were talking about it at school today.”
“They told him his mother died?” Charlie propped himself up on his good arm, finally looking at her. He had been crying.
“No, I don’t think so. He just said people died because they didn’t follow the rules. He said bad things happen to people who don’t follow the rules.”
Charlie took a deep breath and adjusted his sling. “Just what I thought. They’re brainwashing the kids at school.” He scooted off the bed and stood up, scrubbing his hand down the side of his face. He looked exhausted. His hair shot out in every direction, and dark bags were forming under his eyes. “What the hell am I supposed to tell him?”
“I don’t know, but we can’t keep ducking his questions.” Annie went to the door and rested her hand on the doorknob. “We’ve gotta do something soon. We’re almost out of food. We can try to go to the store and see if they’ll give us a list. People are really starting to panic about the walls being built. I don’t know what to expect. Is it media hyping us up, or is it really happening?”
Charlie nodded. “Okay. Let’s start coming up with a plan. Our first step is getting to the grocery store. We need food, regardless of what we decide to do. We also need to get our day’s allotment of gas for your car and my truck. Even though there’s a cap on gasoline, there may eventually be a shortage of that too.”
Charlie stayed in the truck for a few minutes after parking at the grocery store. Annie touched his arm, her presence reassuring. He knew the probable outcome when they went inside—the store was likely picked apart, and their list probably wouldn’t allow them to get all the items they planned to purchase. Frustration was inevitable, and with Ryan in the back seat of the pickup and his mother recently killed, Charlie realized that keeping his cool was more important than it had ever been before.
He was surprised to see the store wasn’t as busy as he’d thought it would be. That could be both good and bad. Maybe people had already come to get their food, or maybe people were being turned away. It was a tactic he assumed the Millstone people would use—hinder the general public from purchasing nonperishable food to prevent people from fleeing, going off the grid, or staying inside their houses for long periods of time.
Gripping the steering wheel, he took a deep breath and stared at the entrance to the store. Men in suits were at each entrance, clipboards in hand, just as they had been each time Charlie had gone to get groceries. Nothing had changed. Purchases were being monitored. Charlie knew it was ridiculous to assume anything different about their circumstances.
“Why aren’t we going in, Daddy?”
Ryan’s question pulled Charlie from his daydream. Even if their list was limited, at least they could get some more groceries in their house. They were running low on a lot of things, and if they wanted to plan their next course of action, this was the first step in deciding what to do.
“I just wanted to make sure the store wasn’t busy. We’re going in now.”
“I want to get some of my cheese. Can we get some of my cheese?”
Charlie forced a smile, opened the truck door, and helped him out. “I don’t know, son. It depends on what we’re allowed to get.”
“Oh yeah. If we don’t follow the rules, we’ll be killed like those people earlier today, right?”
Ryan’s question sent a chill down Charlie’s spine. For a split second, he had gotten Mia’s death off his mind, but it quickly returned at the mention of people dying. He would forever be haunted by the look on her face as they put the noose around her neck.
Stammering, Charlie replied, “I don’t know, Ryan. I don’t know much about that.”
“It’s true. They talked about it all day at school.”
Charlie glanced over at Annie, pleading for her to help. He had no idea what to say to his kid, and thankfully, she intervened, grabbing Ryan’s hand, walking a few steps in front of Charlie. She changed the subject and got Ryan’s mind off the topic of death, and he began to jabber her ear off about something else.
Charlie half listened, feeling like the rest of the world was moving in slow motion. How would Ryan take it when he found out that one of those people who died was his mother? He’d be full of questions that Charlie wouldn’t have answers to. He dreaded the moment and knew it would come soon. Millstone’s people were evil enough to make sure the boy knew every detail—it would be part of their brainwashing technique to ensure the future of America would include their values.
They were stopped at the entrance, and the man working the front clearly knew who they were without even asking. He handed them one list. Charlie glanced it over, his suspicions confirmed—the list was significantly shorter than the last time they had bought groceries. He began to say something but remembered that they were given only one list now that they were married. Before, Annie got a food allowance, and he got his own. Since they’d married, it was all merged into one document.
“Move along, Mr. Cooper. I don’t want to hear anything about the list. And don’t try to get anything extra. You’re on thin ice and could either be locked up for life or killed on the courthouse square. You make the decision and understand the consequences that will come with it.”
It took everything Charlie had in him not to respond. Annie dug her nails into his arm, helping him move along, grabbing a basket. He glanced over the list:
three pounds of 80/20 hamburger meat
two pounds of chicken breast
one dozen eggs
three ham steaks
one pound of broccoli
four cucumbers
half pound of cherry tomatoes
one gallon of bottled drinking water
one box of saltine crackers
half pound of peanut butter
four Red Delicious apples
one pound of bananas
two avocados
two green bell peppers
He flipped the list over to see if anything was on the back. It was blank, and he double-checked the items again. The only nonperishables were the saltine crackers, peanut butter, and drinking water. Though he’d expected that, his pulse quickened. Not being able to do anything about it made him feel like they’d just poured gasoline on a fire.
Handing the list to Annie, Charlie said, “This food won’t last us a week. What the hell are we supposed to do?”
Annie scanned the list and tucked her hair behind her ear. “We buy everything on the list and go home. If we make a scene, we won’t be able to do anything. Take what we can get right now and plan with a level head.”
“Is my special cheese on the list?” Ryan looked up at Charlie with hopeful eyes.
“No, buddy. Your cheese isn’t on the list.”
Ryan frowned. “I want my special cheese. I haven’t had it in a long time.”
“You probably won’t ever get that cheese again, Ryan.” The minute the words came out of his mouth, Charlie regretted saying them, and he wheeled the cart past Annie and Ryan to avoid the disappointed look on his child’s face. Adults were having a hard time with Millstone’s new world, but kids really didn’t understand. Their sacrifices were difficult, and Charlie wished he could give Ryan whatever he wanted.
They loaded their basket with their allowed food items and paid the cashier. Charlie ducked the glances of every Millstone worker—they obviously knew who he was and were on edge anytime he came close by. Deep inside, he found it thrilling that he had made some waves in their world. With his choices limited, at least he could say he’d caused some tension. He had to enjoy the little things—that was all they had.
Inside the truck, Charlie wadded up the grocery list and tossed it in the floorboard. “I’m gonna get my allowance of gas as well. When we get home, I’ll bring your car and get its allotment. It won’t be near enough to fill either vehicle up, but at least we’ll have more than we have right now.”
Annie took a deep breath and looked out the window. “And then we make a plan?”
“And then we make a plan,” Charlie repeated. It really was a black-and-white choice—stay in their home and see what happened or flee and try to get out of the country before the walls were completely built. Though it should have been black-and-white, it seemed many different shades of gray. If they stayed, there were consequences, including stricter rules and possible death. If they fled, they could get split up, be captured and killed, or die after running out of resources.
Charlie felt hopeless. He didn’t like not knowing what to do. He’d always known what to do when it came to protecting his family. Hesitating about everything made him feel he was failing both Annie and Ryan. Watching Mia die hadn’t helped.
He dropped Annie and Ryan off at the house and joined them in carrying the groceries in. He was glad to take the pickup to get gas. He needed a moment to himself. He pondered what Annie would want to do. Did she want to leave her home? What was best for Ryan? Fleeing with a child was going to be difficult. The kid was already losing weight from not being supplied with proper food in light of his dietary restrictions. Charlie wondered what his father would have done. He had passed away a few years back. If Charlie could describe the man in one word, he’d say “stubborn.” If his father were still around, he likely would’ve already been killed or locked up for life. He probably wasn’t the best example for Charlie to consider.
After pulling into the gas station, he slid out of the cab and inserted his bank card. A man on the other side of the pump leaned over and looked at Charlie. He wasn’t in a suit, so he probably wasn’t a Millstone person, but Charlie didn’t trust anyone. He watched the pump numbers change—the gallons barely moved when he reached his allowance for the day, making only a splash in his twenty-five-gallon tank.
“You have the coordinates, right?”
Charlie wasn’t sure he’d heard the man correctly and debated whether to ignore him.
The stranger repeated, “You have the coordinates. Right, Mr. Cooper?”
The mention of his name made Charlie respond. “Who are you?”
“You’re one of the few who have the coordinates. Don’t forget them. Commit them to memory. Don’t ever say them over the phone or put them in a text message.”
Charlie decided to play dumb. He wouldn’t put it past Millstone’s people to go undercover to find out information from Defiants. “I have no idea what the hell you’re talking about.”
“You do.” The stranger nodded. “I understand not wanting to give too much away. Just remember what I said. Get the hell out of here before it’s too late.”
Before Charlie could respond, the man got into his car and drove away. Charlie still had the coordinates in his head, and he recited them to himself, worried that he might have transposed a few numbers or maybe didn’t remember them exactly right. He had jotted the numbers down on a piece of paper at the house and made a mental note to tear the paper up. With the way Charlie’s luck was going, John might have already found it.
Charlie also wondered how they would find the location without any GPS to help them. After they ran away, the chances of their cell phones working would be slim. Any technology would either be wiped out or go dead before they could find a place to charge their phones.
In the garage, he had an old atlas in a box that hadn’t been confiscated. Part of their plan would have to include finding out exactly where the coordinates were located. He was still skeptical about whether the information was legitimate, but what did he have to lose?
Chapter Twenty-One
The first thing Charlie did when they got home was search for the atlas. He worried that when alcohol and restricted books had been confiscated from their homes, the atlas had been taken as well. He tried to remember what books were considered restricted. Biblical books were obviously allowed, but were maps taken? He couldn’t recall whether that was something the Millstone people had listed.
Pulling boxes down, he fought the pain, using only his left arm to move items around. He blew off the top layer of dust, swiping his hands on top of the cardboard to clear off the filth. Layers of dirt made it obvious that no one had looked through the boxes in a long time, giving Charlie a ray of hope that something might finally work in his favor. Would he be able to find out where the coordinates went? If so, would it even matter?
He opened the first box and tossed aside children’s books from when Ryan was little. He recalled Mia fighting with him about keeping them. Before they had divorced, one of their biggest arguments was over whether they would have another child. Looking back, Charlie was grateful they hadn’t brought another human being into the world. He didn’t wish his experience on anyone.
The first box contained only Ryan’s things—books, old blankets, and scrapbooks Charlie had forgotten about. Though he had the urge to reminisce and paused to stare at the contents, he refocused on looking for the atlas. He and Annie didn’t have much time, and they had to come up with a plan. The world was going crazier by the second, and the longer they waited, the worse it would get.
