SAFE by Dawn Husted Read Free Book Online Page A

eight years old and I had a horrible fear
of the dark; my father sat on the side of my bed and held my hand, promising me
there were no monsters in the room. I wish he were here now.
    I
heard a thud, followed by a flickering light.
    Finally.
Light. As soon as the light steadied, I saw James on the ground, not moving and
placed in a casual position on his side.
    The
man didn’t say a word as he passed me, walking back out the entrance. A candle
was lit on the table to my left.
    I
heard the rustling noise again and quickly shot my head around, spotting a blonde-headed
child crouched down in the corner behind a small table.
    He
eyed me up and down, squinting, hunching, and observing me with every move of
his head.
    “It’s
okay. I’m not going to hurt you,” I whispered, ducking down a tad to seem less
intimidating. Of course, I think I’m the least intimidating-looking person
around. My brunette curls didn’t look fierce, and what I wore wasn’t scary at
all.
    The
boy shot his hand across the table and grabbed a small figurine; a tiny toy
carved out of wood. He wore a light gray shirt and had no vines either, just
like the old man. He was small and didn’t give off the I’m-going-to-kill-you kind of vibe.
    Even
still, I kept my distance.
    Time
passed, and nobody had walked back into the house. The boy also left. James and
I were the only two remaining. I constantly kept an eye on his chest, making
sure it still moved up and down. Checking if he was alive. I wondered what the old
man was doing, who he was talking to.
    Were
they planning on a way to torture us for information about the Colony?
    Perhaps.
    Then
James began muttering something. I quickly turned and ran closer. His voice was
too low, inconsistent, for me to hear what he was saying. I leaned closer on
the ground and put my face in front of his.
    “James.
James. Wake up. What are you saying?” I said, shaking his shoulders.
    I
turned my head and pressed my ear gently to his lips.
    It
helped a little; the words were still muffled, but clearer. More of a hushed whisper.
The words merged, making one long, repetitive gurgling sound, varying in
octaves, but not in clarity. The only two words I was for sure I heard were,
Penny and Dee or Ida. I had no idea who Dee or Ida was.
    I
shook him again, even gently slapped his cheek, but nothing. He wasn’t making
any sense, and then he passed out again.
    And
I gave up listening.
    Turning
around, I began pacing the room to help me think. I crossed my arms while
talking to myself and threw my hands in the air amidst the unhelpful one-way
conversation I was having. I almost forgot about what started this whole thing.
The virus.
    What
did I have? What was I sick with?
    Why
was taking me to the Academy so important that my dad risked everything by
giving me… those vials .
    Vials .
    I
wondered what they were. I walked over and grabbed my backpack off the floor. I
hadn’t opened it until now. Unzipping it, I was sure the vials had broken when
all the insane driving took place; my pack smashed against the interior side of
the car every time James swerved.
    My
fingertips carefully unzipped the pack and I was relieved to see the vials lying
neatly to one side, unbroken and on top of my clothes. Taking a deep breath, I
gently pulled one of the tiny tubes out of my bag.
    A
small vial with blue liquid, barely enough to seem like it would make a
difference if anyone used it, was inside. The liquid was still. Motionless. And
yet something so tiny had changed my life forever. Surely, my dad would be
caught; someone would find out these were missing. What would happen to him? I
stopped myself from thinking. I knew the Colony; I knew President Falcon. He
and my father were friends. At least I had thought they were until my dad said
he was holding my sister for ransom .
    Whispers,
loud whispers, came from outside the entrance of the house. The voices were a
mixture of multiple people and they were talking about James. One voice,