羊毛战记 Part 5 The Stranded 82

　　82

　　Weeks later

　　• Silo 18 •

　　The three of them sat around the conference table, Juliette adjusting the gauze bandage on her hand tocover the raised lace of scar tissue peeking¹ out. The overalls² they’d given her were loose to minimizethe pain, but the undershirt itched³ everywhere it touched. She sat in one of the plush chairs and rolledback and forth⁵ with the push of her toes, impatient, ready to get out of there. But Lukas and Peter hadthings to discuss. They had escorted her this close to the exit, this close to the great stairwell, only tosit her down in that room. To get some privacy, they had said. The looks on their faces made hernervous.

　　Nobody said anything for a while. Peter used the excuse of sending a tech for some water, butwhen the pitcher⁶ came and the glasses were filled, nobody reached for a drink. Lukas and Peterexchanged nervous glances. Juliette grew tired of waiting.

　　“What is it?” she asked. “Can I go? I feel like you’ve been delaying this for days.” She glanced ather watch, wiggled her arm so it would fall from the bandage on her wrist and she could see the tinyface. She stared across the table at Lukas and had to laugh at the worry on his face. “Are you tryingto keep me here forever? Because I told everyone in the deep that I’d be seeing them tonight.”

　　Lukas turned to Peter.

　　“C’mon, guys. Spit it out. What’s troubling you? The doc said I was fine for the trip down and Itold you I’d check in with Marsh⁷ and Hank if I had any problems. I’m gonna be late enough as it is ifI don’t get a move on.”

　　“Okay,” Lukas said, letting out a sigh. It was as though he’d given up on Peter being the one. “It’sbeen a few weeks—”

　　“And you two’ve made it feel like months.” She twisted the dial on the side of her watch, anancient tic returning like it had never left.

　　“It’s just that”—Lukas coughed into his fist, clearing his throat—“we couldn’t give you all thenotes that were sent to you.” He frowned at her, looked guilty.

　　Juliette’s heart dropped. She sagged⁸ forward, waiting for it. More names would be coming tomove from one sad list to another—

　　Lukas held up his palms. “Nothing like that,” he said quickly, recognizing the worry on her face.

　　“God, sorry, nothing like that—”

　　“Good news,” Peter said. “Congratulatory notes.”

　　Lukas shot him a look that told Juliette she might think otherwise.

　　“Well … it is news.” He looked across the table at her. His hands were folded in front of him,resting on the marred⁹ wood, just like hers. It felt as though they might both move them several inchesuntil they met, until fingers interlocked. It would be so natural after weeks of practice. But that wassomething worried friends did in hospitals, right? Juliette pondered this while Lukas and Peter wenton about elections.

　　“Wait. What?” She blinked and looked up from his hands, the last part coming back to her.

　　“It was the timing,” Lukas explained.

　　“You were all anyone was talking about,” Peter said.

　　“Go back,” she said. “What did you say?”

　　Lukas took a deep breath. “Bernard was running unopposed. When we sent him out to cleaning,the election was called off. But then news got around about your miraculous¹⁰ return, and peopleshowed up to vote anyway—”

　　“A lot of people,” Peter added.

　　Lukas nodded. “It was quite a turnout. More than half the silo.”

　　“Yeah, but … mayor?” She laughed and looked around the scratched conference table, bareexcept for the untouched glasses of water. “Isn’t there something I need to sign? Some official way toturn this nonsense down?”

　　The two men exchanged glances.

　　“That’s sorta the thing,” Peter said.

　　Lukas shook his head. “I told you—”

　　“We were hoping you’d accept.”

　　“Me? Mayor?” Juliette crossed her arms and sat back, painfully, against the chair. She laughed.

　　“You’ve gotta be kidding. I wouldn’t know the first thing about—”

　　“You wouldn’t have to,” Peter said, leaning forward. “You have an office, you shake some hands,sign some things, make people feel better—”

　　Lukas tapped him on the arm and shook his head. Juliette felt a flush of heat across her skin,which just made her scars and wounds itch⁴ more.

　　“Here’s the thing,” Lukas said as Peter sat back in his chair. “We need you. There’s a powervacuum at the top. Peter’s been in his post longer than anyone, and you know how long that’s been.”

　　She was listening.

　　“Remember our conversations all those nights? Remember you telling me what that other silo waslike? Do you understand how close to that we got?”

　　She chewed her lip, reached for one of the glasses, and took a long drink of water. Peering overthe lip of the glass, she waited for him to continue.

　　“We have a chance, Jules. To hold this place together. To put it back to—”

　　She set the glass down and lifted her palm for him to stop.

　　“If we were to do this,” she told them coolly, looking from one of their expectant faces to theother. “If we do it, we do it my way.”

　　Peter frowned.

　　“No more lying,” she said. “We give truth a chance.”

　　Lukas laughed nervously¹¹. Peter shook his head.

　　“Now, listen to me,” she said. “This isn’t crazy. It’s not the first time I’ve thought this through.

　　Hell, I’ve had weeks of nothing but thinking.”

　　“The truth?” Peter asked.

　　She nodded. “I know what you two are thinking. You think we need lies, fear—”

　　Peter nodded.

　　“But what could we invent that’s scarier than what’s really out there?” She pointed¹² toward theroof and waited for that to sink in. “When these places were built, the idea was that we were all inthis together. Together but separate, ignorant of one another, so we didn’t infect the others if one ofus got sick. But I don’t want to play for that team. I don’t agree with their cause. I refuse.”

　　Lukas tilted¹³ his head. “Yeah, but—”

　　“So it’s us against them. And not the people in the silos, not the people working day-to-day whodon’t know, but those at the top who do. Silo eighteen will be different. Full of knowledge, ofpurpose. Think about it. Instead of manipulating people, why not empower them? Let them knowwhat we’re up against. And have that drive our collective will.”

　　Lukas raised his eyebrows¹⁴. Peter ran his hands up through his hair.

　　“You guys should think about it.” She pushed herself away from the table. “Take your time. I’mgoing to go see my family and friends. But either I’m in, or I’ll be working against you. I’ll bespreading the truth one way or the other.”

　　She smiled at Lukas. It was a dare, but he would know she wasn’t joking.

　　Peter stood and showed her his palms. “Can we at least agree not to do anything rash until wemeet again?”

　　Juliette crossed her arms. She dipped her chin.

　　“Good,” Peter said, letting out his breath and dropping his arms.

　　She turned to Lukas. He was studying her, his lips pursed, and she could tell he knew. There wasonly one way this was going forward, and it scared the hell out of him.

　　Peter turned and opened the door. He looked back at Lukas.

　　“Can you give us a second?” Lukas asked, standing¹⁵ up and walking toward the door.

　　Peter nodded. He turned and shook Juliette’s hand as she thanked him for the millionth time. Hechecked his star, which hung askew¹⁶ on his chest, and then left the conference room.

　　Lukas crossed out of sight of the window, grabbed Juliette’s hand, and pulled her toward the door.

　　“Are you kidding me?” she asked. “Did you really think I would just accept that job and—?”

　　Lukas pressed his palm against the door and forced it shut. Juliette faced him, confused, then felthis arms slide gently around her waist, mindful of her wounds.

　　“You were right,” he whispered. He leaned close, put his head by her shoulder. “I’m stalling. Idon’t want you to go.”

　　His breath was warm against her neck. Juliette relaxed. She forgot what she was about to say. Shewrapped an arm around his back, held his neck with her other hand. “It’s okay,” she said, relieved tohear him say it, to finally admit it. And she could feel him trembling, could hear his broken andstuttered exhalations.

　　“It’s okay,” she whispered again, pressing her cheek against his, trying to comfort him. “I’m notgoing anywhere for good—”

　　Lukas pulled away to look at her. She felt him searching her face, tears welling up in his eyes. Hisbody had started shaking. She could feel it in his arms, his back.

　　And then she realized, as he pulled her close and pressed his lips against hers, that it wasn’t fear orpanic she was sensing in him. It was nerves.

　　She whimpered into their kiss, the rush to her head better than the doctor’s drugs. It washed awayany pain caused by his hands clutching her back. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt lipsmove against her own. She kissed him back, and it was over too soon. He stepped away and held herhands, glanced nervously at the window.

　　“It’s a … uh …”

　　“That was nice,” she told him, squeezing his hands.

　　“We should probably …” He jerked his chin toward the door.

　　Juliette smiled. “Yeah. Probably so.”

　　He walked her through the entrance hall of IT and to the landing. A tech was waiting with hershoulder bag. Juliette saw that Lukas had padded the strap¹⁷ with rags, worried about her wounds.

　　“And you’re sure you don’t need an escort?”

　　“I’ll be fine,” she said, tucking her hair behind her ears. She shrugged¹⁸ the bag higher up her neck.

　　“I’ll see you in a week or so.”

　　“You can radio me,” he told her.

　　Juliette laughed. “I know.”

　　She grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze, then turned to the great stairwell. Someone in thepassing crowd nodded at her. She was sure she didn’t know him but nodded back. Other chins wereturning to follow her. She walked past them and grabbed that great curved bar of steel that wound itsway through the heart of things, that held those pouting¹⁹ and worn treads together as life after life wasground away on them. And Juliette lifted her boot to that first step on a journey far too long incoming—

　　“Hey!”

　　Lukas called after her. He ran across the landing, his brows lowered in confusion. “I thought youwere heading down, going to see your friends.”

　　Juliette smiled at him. A porter passed by, loaded down with his burdens. Juliette thought of howmany of her own had recently slipped away.

　　“Family first,” she told Lukas. She glanced up that great shaft²⁰ in the center of the humming siloand lifted her boot to the next tread. “I’ve got to go see my father first.”

 

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