Revolutionary Read online

  But then reason takes over—that light could be from a Monitor, or from Loudin himself. Though it is possible it could be Rhen, and I would like nothing more than for it to be her, it is far more likely to be a foe than a friend. I turn and see that I am on Level D, so I need to take two more flights before I can reach James’s office.

  I move as quietly and as quickly as I can. I do not want to alert whoever it is that I am here. If it is Rhen, she will know to go to James’s laboratory. If it is not Rhen, I do not want to give my destination away.

  The footsteps are loud and heavy. Not Rhen. They are also fast—they can be because the person running has a light to guide his way. He doesn’t have to feel along the walls with his hands, touch each step with his heels like I do.

  I am finally at the door of Level F, but my pursuer is too close. If I open the door, he will see me, he will know where I am going. I have to protect James. So I keep going. Slowly, staying close to the exterior of the staircase so I cannot be seen.

  A door clicks open. My pursuer is going onto Level F. I move to the edge of the staircase and look, but the man has gone through the door. I cannot see who it was. I head back upstairs, count to ten, and open the door. Peeking my head through, I see the door to James’s office glide shut.

  I walk along the edge of the hallway, still quiet. The man in the office could be Loudin. Or a Monitor. I do not want to alert anyone to my presence until I know who is in there.

  I stand flat against the wall beside James’s door and lean slowly toward the window. I see a shadow, a glimpse of blond hair. A black shirt. My heart explodes in my chest and I push the door open.

  “Alex?”

  He turns around and his blue eyes fasten on me.

  “What are you doing here?” Did the aircraft not work? Did Pod A refuse to get on board it? Did the portable oxygen tanks malfunction? Did we really kill the people we were trying save?

  “We couldn’t leave you here.”

  “We?” I look around.

  “Berk is here too.”

  “What?” I put a hand on my chest, as if that could slow down my heart. “Why?”

  “We didn’t want you and Rhen to have to face Loudin alone.”

  “But who’s flying the aircraft?”

  “Dallas.”

  “Dallas can’t fly that.” I picture the aircraft crashing into the ashy ground. All those lives lost. No army coming to help us.

  “Berk programmed it to fly by itself.” Alex walks to me and tries to hold my hand, but I pull it away. “All Dallas has to do is press some buttons when he’s prompted. He can do it. They’ll be fine.”

  “But you won’t be fine.” I wrap my arms around myself. “Berk won’t be fine. And what about the people in New Hope and Athens? Dallas is going to convince them to come here all by himself?”

  “He’ll have Carey.”

  “If Carey is alive.”

  Alex sighs. “I tried to talk Berk into going, but he refused.”

  “Then why didn’t you go?”

  “They hate me, Thalli.” Hurt fills Alex’s eyes. “You didn’t see their faces when Loudin told them I killed Nicole. They wanted to kill me.”

  I did see their faces—on the wall screen in Pod C. But I know what Alex is saying. He is afraid they’d be so focused on him and what happened when he was there last that they’d refuse to listen to anything.

  “Where is Berk?”

  “He’s going to Loudin’s laboratory.” Alex says this as an apology.

  “No.” I move toward the door. “He can’t. Loudin will kill him.”

  James stands from his desk. I didn’t even notice him sitting there. The light from his communications pad shines from the surface of the desk, throwing odd shadows on his face.

  “I am tracking him.” James points to his communications pad. “And I am tracking Loudin.”

  “What is Berk doing?”

  “He’s trying to see how far Loudin has gotten with the assembly of the nuclear warheads.”

  “How can he do that when there is no electricity?”

  “Dr. Loudin has backup generators in his office,” James says. “He is never without power.”

  I walk to his desk. “Where is Loudin?”

  James points to a red dot on the screen. “In the hallway of Level A.”

  The red dot is rooted in one spot. “He’s not moving?”

  “Berk was able to sedate him right after the lights went out.” James smiles.

  “When did you plan all this?”

  “I saw the woman from Pod A leave, and I anticipated what would happen next.” He sits back down. “So I communicated with the guys above, told them to leave. Alex and Berk refused, and I didn’t have time to argue. So I gave them both a job.”

  “So Berk is going to disable the nuclear bombs?” I place a hand on my stomach.

  “No.” James shakes his head. “It is a bit more complicated than that. We need to know what Loudin knows. Then we’ll plan the next step from there.”

  “But if Loudin finds out you’re helping or that Berk and Alex are here, all your lives will be in danger.”

  “So we don’t let him find out,” Alex says. “That’s part of my job.”

  I look from James to Alex.

  “They’re going to be headquartered in Pod A.” James pulls a small object from his desk. “Loudin will disable all power to that pod now that it is empty, so they will be safe there. They can’t have communications pads or they will be detected. But they can have this.”

  Alex takes the object and places it in his ear.

  James continues, “This is old technology. We used it before we had all the functions on the communications pad we have now. It is a device that will allow communication—Alex and Berk will be able to hear us, and we will be able to hear them.”

  “And Loudin won’t know?”

  “No.” James shakes his head. “Old technology doesn’t show up on the security grid. Most of the Scientists got rid of theirs years ago.”

  “You didn’t?” I look at the object—translucent and tiny, it will fit perfectly in our ears and no one will ever notice it.

  “I used it to keep tabs on my father.” James shrugs. “I didn’t want the others knowing. They’d think I was weak. Dad didn’t even know. He didn’t have one. I hid the transmitter on the back of his chair.”

  I do not know what to say to that. Part of me is hurt—how John would have loved to speak to his son. Another part is relieved to know James cared, that he wasn’t ever completely obedient to Loudin.

  “I didn’t listen all the time.” James presses the tips of his fingers together. “I couldn’t stand to hear him pray. I’d hear him asking God to open my eyes, and I felt such rage that he clung to that faith even after everything he loved was destroyed.”

  “Not everything.” I look down at James.

  He sighs. “I am ashamed now. And it’s too late to do anything about it.”

  “It’s not too late.” I lay my hands on his desk. “He would be proud of what you’re doing. His prayers are being answered.”

  James’s eyes fill with tears. He clears his throat. “Yes, well. There is much to do. Thalli, you can’t let Loudin know Alex and Berk are here. Carry on as if you believe they made it to New Hope.”

  “All right.”

  “Alex, go straight to Pod A.” James stands. “You know where that is?”

  Alex laughs. “Right before Pod B?”

  “Exactly.” James’s mouth tips at the corners. “Berk should be there soon. I told him I couldn’t give him more than thirty minutes before I needed to restore the electricity. As it is, Loudin will know I shut it off. And he is already suspicious of me.” He places the object in his ear, and Alex and I follow.

  “What will he do?”

  “Don’t worry about that, Thalli.” James walks to the door with us. “I know how to work Loudin.”

  “How does this work?” I push the listening device into my ear.

 
“It is motion sensitive.” James pulls on his earlobe. “This turns it on and off.”

  I pull my earlobe and hear static, then I hear James’s voice in my head. “Now go. Quickly.”

  CHAPTER 51

  Thallium.” Loudin’s voice is in my pocket—my communications pad. I push the listening device deeper into my ear canal, and I pull my earlobe so James, Alex, and Berk can hear Loudin.

  “Dr. Loudin.” I pull the communications pad up to eye level, ignoring the tones from the elevator telling me I have reached the top floor.

  Rhen is on the screen, fear filling her eyes. Loudin is behind her, bony hands wrapped around Rhen’s neck.

  “What are you doing?” I ram my finger into the panel on the elevator, willing the cube to move faster to the bottom floor—Loudin’s laboratory.

  “I could ask you the same thing.” His eyes are bloodshot.

  “What’s happening?” Alex is in my ear.

  I swallow hard. “Why do you have Rhen?”

  “I will ask the questions.” Loudin’s voice is hard. “Who sedated me?”

  I hold my breath. Berk sedated Loudin, but I cannot say that.

  “I did.” Rhen speaks, and I am once again grateful for her intelligence, her quick thinking.

  “And what did you do during the time I was out?” Loudin glares at me.

  The elevator tone announces that I have finally reached the bottom level. An eerie tone, adding to the mood of this floor.

  “I am coming to your laboratory.”

  “Don’t.” Rhen squirms in Loudin’s hold.

  Ignoring Rhen, I race down the hallway and open the door to Loudin’s laboratory. He is near the back wall, and Monitors grab me as soon as I enter.

  I try to shake them off, but they are too strong. “Get off of me.”

  “Thalli.” Alex’s voice is so loud in my ear, I worry that the Monitors will hear him. “What’s wrong? Do I need to come there?”

  “No.” I speak without thinking. Loudin jerks his head up. I struggle again, addressing the Monitors. “I said no. Let me go. I won’t leave. Not without Rhen.”

  The Monitors drag me to Loudin and force me against the wall. It holds me, like the chair Loudin had me in before we left for New Hope. My arms and legs are attached to the wall. I do not even have time to try to fight them.

  Rhen is placed in a chair against the wall across from me so I can see her. Her neck is red from where Loudin was gripping her. Loudin stands so his gaze is on both of us, his weapon back in his pocket.

  “Did you really need to restrain us?” This is more for Alex’s benefit than mine. I know the answer.

  “Did you really need to sedate me?” Loudin raises his eyebrows.

  “As long as you plan to destroy the world, we are enemies.” Adrenaline rushes through my body and I lean forward, trying to release myself from the magnetic grip of this wall. But it is useless.

  “I do not have enemies.” Loudin laughs. “Enemies are for the primitive world. Our world is united in mind and in purpose. If you cannot determine to share that mind and that purpose, then you are not an enemy. You are dead.”

  The words hang in the air. I know they are true. I have seen him kill those who oppose him, those who are of no value to him.

  “You have more power over him than you think.” James’s voice is soft in my ear, but it fills me with confidence. I think of the Designer, of music. I refuse to allow fear to overwhelm me.

  “Then kill me,” I say. “Because I will never share your purpose.”

  Loudin walks toward me, standing so close I can see the thin blue veins that line his temples. “Oh, believe me, I will kill you. But you will watch your friend die first. And then you’ll watch this world you love destroyed, along with the people you love.”

  Everything in me wants to give up, to give him anything he wants to save the people I love. But I cannot give up. I pray for strength as I face Loudin, my gaze never leaving his. “Fine.”

  “Good girl.” I can picture James clapping, and I stifle a smile.

  Loudin steps away, a hand on his lower back, reminding me that despite all the medical advancements, he is still old, still human. “You are more like me than you realize.”

  The fact that this man is my father disgusts me. But it may very well be what has kept me alive. James says Loudin sees my anomalies as proof that his DNA is powerful. He wants me to be like him, to carry on his legacy. “I know how like you I am.”

  Loudin’s nostrils flare. “Kristie told you.”

  “If I am different, it is because the Designer—God himself—made me different. To accomplish his purposes.”

  “There is no room for me and your God in this State.” Loudin puts a hand in his pocket.

  “Then we do agree on something.”

  Loudin pulls the weapon out and lays it on Rhen’s neck. She convulses against the wall.

  “No.” I am screaming, pushing myself forward, but frozen in place.

  Alex’s and James’s voices shout in my earpiece. Then Berk’s. They are discussing whether or not to come here. “No. Don’t.” They will be too late to save Rhen, and then they will be here, in the same position.

  Rhen slumps down in her chair, her head on her chest. I blink back tears. I cannot do this. I am not strong enough to be God’s remnant. I am not John.

  Loudin’s hand is on Rhen’s neck.

  “Don’t touch her.” I speak past the lump in my throat. I will not let him see me cry.

  “I was checking her pulse.” Loudin pulls his hand away. “She is alive.”

  I release the breath I was holding.

  “For now.” Loudin replaces the weapon in his pocket. “But this is a warning. She is your weakness. We both know it. Those people out there are your weakness.”

  “You and I have very different definitions of what weakness is.” I spit the words out.

  “Perhaps.” He takes a step back and looks at me—like he would look at a project or a specimen under the microscope. “But I am willing to give you more time to change your definition. You would be useful, powerful. I believe in you, Thalli.”

  Loudin’s voice is soft, almost fatherly. I am reminded how much he truly believes what he is doing is right. As much as he wants to change me to be more like him, I want to see him change to be more like the Designer. But that won’t happen if I continue to argue with him.

  “All right.” I sigh. “What do you want me to do?”

  CHAPTER 52

  The wall releases me. I collapse on the floor but refuse to stay down. I stand, pulling my ear so I cannot hear what Alex, James, and now Berk are saying. They think I am insane. We had this argument days ago. They do not see the benefit in trying to reason with Loudin. They think he is too hardened to respond to kindness, to love. But I refuse to believe that. Kristie saw good in him once. She believed he could be good again. I will choose to believe it as well.

  I watch as Rhen is taken out of the room.

  “Don’t worry.” Loudin nods to the door. “She will recover. As long as you cooperate.”

  I wait until the Monitors have left before I speak. “Don’t you ever feel lonely?”

  “Loneliness is an unnecessary emotion.” Loudin taps on his communications pad. “It clouds our judgment. Productivity is key.”

  I grew up hearing that statement. It was repeated in our lessons, enforced by our Monitors.

  “How do you know you’re right?” I do not follow Loudin into his office, forcing him to turn around.

  “I am a Scientist. And my science tells me that all truth can be observed. Scientists before me spent years observing this world and coming to conclusions based on those observations. Some of those conclusions were that emotion is part of a survival instinct man has developed. Emotions were necessary in the past, mostly to ensure the procreation and care of our species. Since we have developed the technology to allow for procreation without the assistance of emotion, we no longer need it.”

  “So we do not
need to be cared for?”

  “Not in the emotional sense.” Loudin frowns. “Generations need food and education, clothing, that sort of thing. Because studies show that human touch is important for the development of infants, we do permit the Monitors to spend time each day with new generations, holding them, so they can integrate well into life here.”

  “So they can be productive.”

  “Exactly.”

  “And then what?” I lean my head to the side. “A whole world of orderly, productive people who never feel joy or love or even sadness? That is your definition of perfection?”

  “Perfection is unlikely.” Loudin smiles. “Even with me. But better. This world can be better when we shed the superfluous.”

  “But you loved Kristie. You created children with her.”

  “Not in the primitive way.” Loudin frowns deeper.

  “But still . . .” I pull my hands behind my back. “You made sure each generation had a child that was yours and hers. Why?”

  “She is brilliant.” Loudin clears his throat. “As am I. Offspring of two people whose intellect is so superior has great potential.”

  “You believe I have great potential.” I smile.

  “If you release the hold emotions have on you, yes.”

  “But my emotions are what have set me apart. Had I not been emotional, I would still be in Pod C. Or I would be dead, annihilated when they were. My emotions saved my life. Knowing I am an anomaly led you to test me and to send me above to find Kristie. Had I been born without emotions, none of that would have happened. Correct?”

  “Your emotions have made you vulnerable.” Loudin’s jaw tightens. “I chose to manipulate them to achieve my goals. But they are no longer necessary.”

  “So it comes back to you knowing what is best for everyone.” I raise my eyebrows. “For the whole world.”

  “I know you think me egotistical. But it is my logic, not my ego, I depend on. Science tells me I know what is best because I am one of the few people willing to follow science to its logical conclusions.”