As the Avatar drifted into that state like sleep, Ling opened her eyes, stared up at the ceiling, and began to softly cry, confused, frightened, and alone.

No one heard.

18
Acts of Conscience

Monday 2040.11.05

“Why not?” Bobby asked, again.

Why not? Why not? Why not? The other boys picked up the refrain and threw it at him. They were unhappy, sure they’d never see him again if he didn’t come with them.

Rangan took a deep breath, shifted in his sitting position, and leaned back against the wall as the dozen chaotic young minds bombarded him.

Because the ERD has my face and name posted, he thought. Because they’re hunting for me. Because you’re safer without me.

He suppressed all of that, focused on the message he and Levi and Abigail had all been giving the boys.

“I’ll see you all soon,” he said. He was stronger today, after more sleep and more time for his body to knit itself together. “I’ll come with you on the first step. After that, I’m going a different way. But I’ll meet you all in Cuba. We’re all going to be together again.”

I hope.

He’s lying, Timmy sent.

Rangan winced.

He’s not lying, Alfonso replied. He’s just scared.

Scared? Rangan? He could feel the boys’ disbelief

He sighed. I’m a little worried, he sent them. He still felt awkward communicating this way, when it seemed so natural to them. But just do what Abigail and the other grownups say, and we’ll all be just fine, OK? Promise me?

The waiting was the hardest. All Sunday afternoon and evening, then sleeping fitfully Sunday night. And again all day Monday, waiting for nightfall, pestering Levi and Abigail for details that they weren’t inclined to give.

“The less you know, the less you can give up if you’re caught,” Levi said. “We don’t even know all the details.”

“Just have faith, Rangan,” Abigail told him. “Faith.”

Sunny beaches. Palm trees. A place where he wasn’t a wanted man. Where he could finally call his parents, and tell them he was alive, and safe, and not a terrorist. A place where no one was about to waterboard him, or torture kids to force the tech he’d co-created out of their heads.

Give me that, Rangan mumbled inside his head, and maybe I’ll have some faith.

Darkness came.

Levi descended into the hidden cellar.

“Truck’s here, boys,” the minister said. “Time to go.”

Officer Barb Richmond let the patrol car drive, its lights off, her eyes scanning right and left, her night vision amplified by the car’s glass.

Madison looked like a warzone. Roofs were gone. Windows blasted out. Cars rolled over or shoved into ditches. Trash and debris scattered everywhere. Trees were down. Power lines were down. Low-lying streets and crossings were still flooded. The storm was gone, but the aftermath was fearsome.