Page 11 of Ablaze

“My door is locked, and I don’t have the key. George does. It’s hanging on a hook under the bar. He offered to let me leave it behind and lock it up for the night.”

“Geez! I can’t get a break here. Okay…let me think. That was probably another way to keep you tethered to the place, a guarantee for him to know you wouldn’t leave it behind. You’re sure he doesn’t know anything else about you or what’s inside your bag?”

“I’m sure. Only what you already know. He knows that I was passing through town and that I was going to the island. He’s never seen inside my bag. When I paid for the room, I did it in trade and got the items out of a pocket. I never opened it up in front of him.”

“Okay, here’s what is going to happen. I want you to stay here. Stay out of sight. If I’m not out in five minutes, I want you to start making your way north toward the island. I’ll catch up with you, and we’ll trade backpacks. Stay off the main path and stay out of the sunlight as much as you can. I’m going to go in there and get that bag. If something goes south and I don’t show up, don’t come back for me.”

“How do I know you aren’t just taking my bag and ditching me?”

He looks me straight in the eye and with a serious face says, “I wouldn’t do that to you. If I don’t show up then I’m dead.”

This is such a selfless act, and I’ve never had someone behave like this for me besides my parents. I have to ask him, “Why are you doing this for me? We barely know each other.”

“Trust me on this one. I feel like I’ve known you a lot longer.” With that, he leaves the safety of our hiding spot and starts making his way toward the bar. I look at my watch. He’s got five minutes and then I’m following his instructions. I’m nervous and sweating. The sun is almost completely up, and I don’t have any cover where I’m standing. I’m hidden out of view from others, but the sun finds me. If I have to spend the day outside, I don’t want to do it alone. It’s going to be hot, and it’s been a long time since I’ve been without cover.

I peek around the corner, and I can see Jesse approaching the door of the bar. The Dome guard standing at the door looks him over. They talk for a few seconds, and he lets him past and into the bar. Time starts ticking now. The fear I feel for him surprises me. I care for this complete stranger, not only because I know what the Dome guards are capable of but because I actually like him.

Jesse

It kills me to have to walk away from her. I travelled for so long to get to her and now, here I am walking away from her and into a situation that I don’t know how it will end. George completely set her up. He either knows who she really is, or he’s got some other reason for calling the Dome into town. I didn’t even know any of the Dome guards were alive and still out there, but it doesn’t surprise me. My parents warned me to never trust anyone, and I don’t. I trust Sadie now, and that’s it. I don’t even fully trust my parents.

I make the short walk from the alley to the front door of the bar. I need to be quick but not noticeably quick. I have no doubt that Sadie will leave me if I’m not back to her in the five minutes. At the front door of the bar, one of the large Dome guards stands at attention holding his weapon. He sees me and turns toward me. He points his gun at me and if I hadn’t grown up as a Dome kid, I would have pissed my pants. I hold up my hands to show him I mean him no harm. I tell him my name and that I’m staying upstairs in one of the rooms. He relays the message to someone on the inside of the door. Once he gets a response, he steps aside to let me through the front door.

George is calmly standing behind the bar cleaning a glass. The curtains have been drawn, and everything has been put away. The door is quickly shut behind me and bolted by the guard. He looks up at me and smiles. “You almost missed your opportunity to get back in during sunlight.”

“I guess so. What’s with the guards? Do you have those during all the daylight hours?” I don’t know what he’s up to, but I have to get upstairs. I can’t waste time standing here talking. He finishes polishing the glass and sets it under the bar top. “No, they’re in town looking for a special someone. They’ll protect us during the day. That’s another thing you get when you pay to stay here… safety.”

I’m not buying his story one bit. I need to find the key under the bar. I walk to the edge and fake a yawn. “George, would you mind pouring me a glass of water before I get upstairs?” I need to get his attention away from this side for a minute to look for the key.

“Sure. No problem at all,” he says as he turns around to fill the empty glass he just put away.

I lean over the edge of the bar and look for the key. I see the hook where the key should be hanging, and it’s empty. George has the key. I’ll have to figure out another way into her room. George turns back around and walks down to the edge of the bar. He hands me the glass of water, and I take it from his hand. He stands there for a second just looking at me. I feel awkward and compelled to say something to him. I want to punch him in the face, but I resist. My calm face masks the hate I have for him.

He breaks the silence first. “I’m headed to bed. It’s been a long night. The bar was hopping with thirsty people. Now that everyone is in, I’ll see you at dusk.”

I nod my head to him and stand there as he walks through a door beside the one leading upstairs. As soon as he’s out of my sight, I head for the steps. I take the steps two at a time being as quiet as I can. When I get to the top of the steps, I look down both sides of the dimly lit hallway. I stand still and close my eyes, listening for any little noise. I can’t hear a peep. I move as quietly as I can toward Sadie’s room. I reach the door of the room and bend down to get eye level with the lock.

I put my eye up to the lock and try to look into the room. The room is either too dark or something is blocking the opening causing zero visibility. I stand back up and put my hand on the knob of the door. I figure I might as well try the door before I make the noise of breaking it down. I turn the knob slowly, and the door opens. I know for a fact this door was locked. Sadie was adamant about the fact that she locked it. George or one of the Dome guards must have come into the room.

I open the door slowly and take a few steps into the room. I leave the door open to shed some light from the hall lamps into the room. I can see a backpack lying on top of the comforter of the bed. It’s open with some of the contents spread out on the bed. I need to be quick about grabbing it because someone may come back for it at any minute. I dash all of the way into the room and scoop all of the items back into the bag. I’ve got the bag zipped up and on my back and ready to leave when I hear the noise of the door close behind me.

I whirl around in the darkness of the room. Thankfully, I’m closer to the curtains, and the sunlight is coming in strong from underneath them. This light provides me with an advantage over the massive Dome guard that is now advancing toward me from the darker part of the room. The light catches the blade of a knife in his hand, and I lunge to miss it. His long swing manages to catch my t-shirt and tears open a small piece.

The guard’s lunge was too far out for him to keep his balance, and I used his momentary stumble to aid my efforts. I ball my fists and punch him in the face. He may be stronger than me, but he wasn’t ready for a fight. He thought I would go easily but now realizes how wrong he was to think that. I hit him a second time as he tries to get up from falling on to the bed. His heavy gear keeps him down as he loses the fight. I don’t know what comes over me, but I’m so enraged that I hit him again. It’s people like him who have caused nothing but pain and suffering to good, hard working people. I stop hitting him when I’ve realized I’ve knocked him out. He won’t be calling for help, and I have no doubt others have heard this commotion.

I need to get out of the bar. I get around to the other side of the bed and move the curtains. The sun is so bright I have to shield my eyes. I look down at the streets and can see several other paid guards out in front of buildings. These are not the Dome guards. I press my face to the hot windowpane to see as far as I can down the street. I can’t see any other Dome guards from this vantage point. I’m going to have to take my chances. It’s the fastest way out of here, and it might be my only way.

I brace my hands on both sides of the window, and it slowly begins to rise. It creaks under the pressure, but it rises just enough for me to crawl out. I get my feet onto the ledge of the window. The awning hanging from the building is about three feet below. I can see the threadbare fabric moving slowly from the hot breeze. The sun is already up and in full force. My palms are sweating from the exertion. I take a deep breath and jump onto the awning. It gives way underneath me, and I crash onto the pavement underneath.

The guards standing at attention under the awning across the street gawk at me, unsure what to make of this. I’ve got one thing on my side though… Everyone hates Dome guards and this far away from the Dome, no one will go out of their way to help them. Luckily, my fall was broken by a Dome guard that was standing watch at the front door of the bar. It was probably the same jerk I encountered a few minutes ago. I get to my feet and run as quickly as I can away from the bar. It will be only seconds before more guards from the Dome are out in the street. I can’t run to the alley because if the guards are on my tail, I don’t want to lead them straight to Sadie.

I run the opposite direction of the alley and cross the street to get off the main road. The sun is fully up, and my clothes are sticking to my body from sweat. My eyes want to close from the brightness, and keeping them open is a struggle. I weave in between buildings, trying to shield myself from the eyes of paid guards watching over doors. The side streets have far fewer guards, so I make my way north quickly.

I try to think where Sadie could be hiding out. If she’s smart, and I know that she is, then she’s still on the move. I head north toward the island, taking care, making sure I’m not followed. The sun is strong, and after walking a while, I’m dying of thirst. I hate to stop, but I have to rest. The sun is zapping my energy faster than I thought it would. The road to the island is to my left, but I stick to a trail that is partially covered by trees. The tree line helps shield me from the harsh sun.

I wipe my forehead with my shirt. I can’t stop myself from thinking of Sadie. I don’t know if she’s ever travelled during the daylight, and I’m worried about her. When I really can’t walk anymore, I sit down on the dirt and rest my body. I have to get water. I wonder if she has any in her backpack. I hate to invade her privacy, but I have to open her bag to see. I’m too thirsty to rule it out, so I pull the bag off my back and pull the zippers down to open it.

I push her belongings around in the bag, looking and hoping for a full water bottle. At the bottom, I find a half-empty bottle and drink it until it’s dry. The water is like heaven in my mouth. That’s the only water in the bag, but she has a ton of the orange pills. If I can find a source of water, then I can use the pills till I find her with my own bag. Then I’ll be okay. I start to close the backpack, and a familiar black envelope catches my eye. It looks identical to the one my parents gave me when I left. I can’t resist the temptation, and I open the envelope and read the contents. I read the letter as fast as I can and when I’ve finished, I realize my mouth has fallen open in surprise. I read the letter a second time.

---