Unplugged: The Beautiful World (#3, Unplugged Trilogy)

Chapter Thirty Two

It's time to leave. We all stand in a mismatched cluster by the front door, gathering supplies and saying our goodbyes to Lucy. The old woman's eyes glow with a sorrowful, knowing light when she finally grips my arm. After watching the telecast with Fake Enna, I personally filled her in about our adventures at the Base and about my manufactured clone. Not for sympathy, but because I wanted someone to know. The aging woman reminds me vaguely of my grandmother, who had always been an exceptional listener.
    "I can't thank you enough for your help," I mutter, not trusting myself to speak any louder than a whisper without getting choked up.
    "It was nothing, my dear. I'm glad I could help." She smiles stiffly. "It's truly been a long time since someone inspired me to come out of my shell. Thank you for giving this old woman a second chance." We hug tightly for fifteen seconds before Leah urges us apart. The setting sun dips below a nearby building, concealing its guiding light. The darkness will be settling soon.
    "We need to head out," she warns, leading Oscar, Becca, and Matthew out the front door.
    "Contact your resistance," I urge Lucy.
    "I will." She nods determinedly, eyes bright with something that belongs to someone much younger. Before either of us can say anything more, I exit the small home and plunge into the street. Becca labors under a hulking bag of supplies and I take it from her, knowing that the burdened child would only hold us back. There are no guards or jeeps in sight, but we're still careful to avoid detection. Remembering the directions from Lucy, Oscar travels down the street and leads us into smaller, branching alleyways. They twist on, maze-like, for many yards. My arms start to grow weary beneath the bulk of provisions that I carry, but I hardly notice. My mind is focused on the task at hand. I try to remember any helpful hints that I may have learned at the Depot, but the memories hide in my subconsciousness.
    "I still can't believe that Jackson left us like that," Leah huffs, tossing her head to throw off a stray strand of hair. "Unbelievable."
    "He was a jerk," Becca whispers in reply.
    "You got that right," Oscar mutters.
    "Hey, let's save the chatter for when we aren't running for our lives," I suggest in a serious tone. My friends grow quiet, and I feel slightly guilty for silencing them. But it's up to me to get them safely aboard that cargo train, and I can't imagine how hard it would be to deal with the reality that one of my companions was taken by a soldier. Jackson's defection was bad enough.
We continue in silence, relying on shadows and stealth to keep us hidden. Occasionally we come across a random soldier, or have to take cover to avoid small projectiles. Finally, Oscar safely leads us to the end of the final alley. It opens up to a run-down street. Across the road, barely in view, is a dilapidating building constructed of white stone. It looks as if it could have been very impressive several years back, but now it's shoddy and crumbling. Small, black figures work on loading and unloading the train cars on the far side of the building.
    "We have to sneak around the guards and somehow get in the train," I mutter, glancing around at my friends. "Any suggestions?"
    "Damn," Matthew says hoarsely. Leah laughs shakily.
    "Did Lucy tell any of you how to get past the guards?" Everyone begins to speculate wildly, and I close my eyes, leaning against a brick wall of the alley. Will I have to use my abilities again? I hope not, seeing as only Matthew knows about them at all. Perhaps there's a logical way to get past this obstacle...
    "Hey," Matthew says suddenly. He squeezes my shoulder and points across to the train's loading dock. I blink my eyes open. Dollies and hand-trucks piled with boxes and crates litter the space that guards don't occupy. Some of them stack several feet into the air. I catch onto Matthew's line of thinking fairly quickly. The corners of my mouth slowly turn up in a smile.  "Want to play hide and seek?"