Vanguard | Post-Apocalyptic YA

Part 18: Unmet Expectations

"I would have expected more from you, Sykes." Governor Bradford is yelling so loudly his words are easy to make out even behind the closed doors of the sitting area outside his office. "You're damn lucky that they didn't try to escape."

I can't hear Jed's response, but I can only assume that it involves a lot of "Yes, sirs." You can never go wrong with those.

Still, he really doesn't deserve to be scolded because nothing happened. I managed to convince Ellen to give up trying to run away until we figured out where Bradford intended to take the ferries, then we finished loading the second truck and waited for Jed to return. Bradford must have gotten word that we were left behind without his best – and most trustworthy men – so now Jed's getting a stern reprimand for his negligence. I almost feel bad for him, but then I remember that he's always been a jerk to me. When the governor unexpectedly swings the door open, I must still be relishing this thought.

"What are you grinning at?" he snaps at me and I immediately turn serious. Clearing my throat, I watch as Jed leaves, and we're ushered into the office in his place.

Bradford closes the door behind us and we stop in the middle of the room. "Now, I like you kids. I really do, but I'm starting to see why no one has tried to come to your rescue. You're more trouble than you're worth."

My inadvertent snicker doesn't escape his attention. He comes around and stands in front of me, his nose just inches away from mine. "Do you find that funny, son?"

Yes. "No, sir," I say.

He backs away and sits on the edge of his massive wooden desk. Pursing his lips, Bradford crosses his arms before speaking.

"Good because I just can't take a chance with you two making a break for it if the opportunity happens to arise again. What else are you good at? Do you think you can help out in the hospital?" he asks Ellen.

"Absolutely not. I faint at the slightest sight of blood." She winces even at the thought.

"Very well." He nods. "What about maps? How were you with geography?"

"Maps I can do, sir." She smiles, her eyes widening at the prospect.

"Excellent. I'm putting you down in the meteorology lab with Chan. And as for you." He turns to me. "It looks like I have no choice, but to put my best crew member in charge of watching out for you."

He doesn't elaborate any further, so after sleeping in after a long night, I only find out the next day what he had in mind for me.

"So, you're Bradford's kid, huh?" I ask, looking down on the little girl from breakfast the other day. "I have to admit, I did not see that coming."

I'm following Lola between rows and rows of different plants laid out on waist high tables, listening to her describe the types and what they each need in order to grow the best. We've been in this hydroponic lab for almost an hour and we haven't even gotten halfway across the massive room. It's actually a series of rooms with the walls knocked down creating a unified space that occupies one whole floor of the building. And unlike the other rooms that O-town occupies, this one is above ground.

Lola tells me that floors two through six are all devoted to growing fruits and vegetables, and she enthusiastically blabbers on about nutrient solutions and growing media, drippers and pumps. I'm initially more concerned with the fact that the windows are seemingly uncovered.

"Are you really sure it's safe for us to be standing here?" I look out the tinted glass.

"I've told you three times already. They're covered with a special filter that blocks out the bad light. My dad says it's actually more effective than the curtain downstairs by the entrance," she explains, plucking out an extraneous seedling from one of the containers. "That's one of the reasons I like to be up here. I can look outside any time I want."