Archipelago N.Y.: Flynn (14 page)

Startled, Flynn
looked up.

Panting and
covered in sweat, a familiar figure was running down the Scavenger Dock toward
them. Visibly exhausted, Tony Romero came to an abrupt stop in front of Duncan
Roth. “Sir…” he gasped, struggling to catch his breath. “I’m his Crew Mate,
sir! Sorry I'm late!”

“You?” Duncan Roth’s
eyes narrowed. The boy looked like he could barely stand on his feet. “You
think you're fit to compete?”

“I can do it, sir!”
replied Tony. “For the Greater Good, sir.”

The Rottweiler
studied him for a moment then took out his handheld again. “Name?”

“Tony Romero, sir.”

“Fine,” Duncan
Roth said, typing on his screen. “You're signed in, and you may join your…”

“Duncan!” Leo
cried out angrily. “You can't allow this!”

Duncan Roth raised
his hand to silence Leo’s protest then nodded to Tony. “Go on, boy. Join your
team mate.” The Rottweiler then turned to face Leo. “Don’t ever interrupt me
again!” he said and waved the boy away.

Leo, his face
turning bright red, opened his mouth as if to say something then closed it. He
stepped back angrily, shaking his head. Tony, still panting, scrambled onto the
Seeker
and stood next to his friend.

“Tony, what the
hell are you doing here?” Flynn whispered.

“I'll explain
later.”

All teams were
waiting for Duncan Roth to speak. The man was now holding a bullhorn.

“Listen up,
everyone!” began the Rottweiler, his amplified voice rising over the
Scavenger’s Dock. “Today you'll be scavenging within the waters of the Lower
Side. You won't be leaving its boundaries. In a minute, you'll be given maps
with the co-ordinates of your individual challenge tasks. There's a map for
each team, with a different target for each one of you. I’ve personally planted
all targets and drafted all the maps. Each target is unique and different from
the rest. The targets are placed approximately at the same depth and not far
from each other, so it's a fair game... But expect surprises! Don’t try to
cheat, fight or steal another team's target. I'll know! Anyone caught breaking
the rules, will be disqualified! Is that clear?”

“Yes!” cried all
the teams.

“I didn't hear
you!”

“Yes, sir! For the
Greater Good, sir!” This time they all yelled like one, the echo of their
voices bouncing back from the walls behind the docking platform.

“That’s better!”
said Duncan Roth and started pacing again. “When you find your target, you'll
bring it back to me. You’ve got five hours to complete the course. The teams
that haven’t come back by then… will be disqualified.”

His voice was
monotonous, without emotion. “Now,” the Rottweiler continued, “the first three
teams to complete their challenges and bring me their targets, earn the
privilege to be Free Scavengers and members of the Scavenger Crews. All the
others, regardless of the order they come back in, will be assigned to the
Industrial Scavenging Crews… I'm sure you all knew that already.” Duncan Roth
stopped at the edge of the water and added, “Any questions?”

The teams were
quiet, tense and eager to start. Of course, they all knew the rules! Duncan
Roth opened the flap of his canvas bag and took out a bundle of square-cut
plastic maps. He started handing them out one by one to the teams. When he
reached Flynn and Tony, he seemed to hesitate for a split second. Shuffling the
maps, he took one from the middle and tossed it to Flynn. When all maps were
handed out, Duncan Roth waited a few minutes to allow the crews to study their
directions, then stood at the center of the platform and raised his hand in the
air. He was now holding a large revolver. “Let the Trials begin,” he cried and
fired a single shot.

The crews sprang
into action immediately. Having stood perfectly still and quiet just moments
earlier, they were now all scrambling like mad, running and shouting, in a
feverish rush to head out. Loud insults flew back and forth. Rafts bumped and
crashed into each other in their frenzied attempt to be the first to push away
from the dock. A few punches were thrown; ugly curses and deadly threats exchanged…
With so much at stake, there was no holding back. The water around the rafts
was churning from the crazy speed of the pedals, and the pull of the oars.

Flynn had freed
the
Seeker
with one swift move, and was already pushing on the pedals,
skillfully navigating through the narrow gaps between the other rafts. “Sit
back and take it easy. I’ll get us out of here in no time!” he shouted above
all the noise to Tony. “Save your strength for the pump and the diving bell!”

In a couple of
minutes, all the rafts had disappeared from the Scavenger’s Dock, leaving a big
wake behind them.

“Tell me what
happened?” Flynn finally asked Tony, after he had managed to put a good
distance between him and the competition. Only two vessels were ahead of the
Seeker
. One belonged to Pharrell and his buddy, and the other to a crew he
didn’t recognize. But Flynn's raft was light and fast. He had no doubt he would
catch up with those rafts, even overtake them round the next bend. They had to
all go south, past the Fishing Nets, before swinging into the Lower Side
canals. Flynn kept his speed steady as he turned to look at his friend. Tony
lay sprawled on the seat next to him. Some color had returned to his face, and
his breathing was back to normal.

“Well...” Tony
began slowly, “first, don't be mad at Madison!”

“Why shouldn't I?
She screwed up!”

“No Flynn, she
didn't! She had no choice…”

“What do you
mean?”

“She got cornered
by Leo last night… He threatened to put her parents on the List… and then he
took her home with him… back to the Upper Side!”

“How do you know
all that?”

“‘Coz she managed
to send me one of her pigeons with a message.”

“Bastard!” 
Flynn's face darkened. “You were right about him…. Should’ve listened to you.”

“Yeah. I knew Leo
would do something… to make you pay… So, here I am, amigo. ”

“Thanks for doing this,
Tony!”

“It wasn't easy
sneaking out… Mom's sure gonna be mad as hell…,”said Tony and chuckled to
himself.

Flynn smiled and
looked ahead. “Here… take the map,” he said, “have a look at it… See where
we're heading, what's the target… I’ve got to get past these guys.”

Tony buried his
nose in the map, while Flynn doubled his effort and increased his speed.

Madison stood on
her toes against the big glass window and squinted at the rising sun. She
strained her eyes at the faint outlines of the Lower Side buildings, far in the
distance to her right. She took in the tiny silhouettes floating on the water.
The Archipelago’s rafts and boats appeared to be hovering over the smooth
surface of the ocean, like little dragonflies. Somewhere out there was Flynn’s
raft… She was supposed to be on the
Seeker
right now, next to Flynn and
competing in the Trials… There was no way of knowing if her message had reached
Tony…if he had been able to make it to the race on time … if Flynn had been
allowed to compete… All she knew was that the Trials had started, and she could
do nothing, but wait and hope for the best.

Madison stepped
back and studied the window pane one more time. All the handles had been
removed. She had checked and re-checked every inch of it, looking in vain for
an opening. Madison had poked in all the holes and cracks, her fingers sore and
her nails broken from trying to pry the window open. She had also given up on trying
to open the room’s heavy wooden door. There was no way out! Madison had come as
Leo Van Zandt’s dinner guest, but the truth was that she was his prisoner. She
was a captive, locked in one of the many rooms of the Van Zandt luxurious
apartment, somewhere at the top of the Empire State Building.

Madison had never
set foot on the Upper Side, until Leo had whisked her there in his motor boat
the night before. Everybody on the Lower Side knew their neighbors were
privileged, but she had never seen or imagined that this kind of opulent life
existed…all this solid furniture, thick soft carpets, wonderful smells…The room
she was locked in had its own bathroom! A real bathroom! With porcelain toilet
seat, bathtub and sink. Madison had marveled at the clean soft towels, the
fragrant soap and bottles full of lovely scented lotions. The biggest surprise
was when she had turned on the tap and fresh water had poured out, splashing in
the sink, flowing freely… No rations and no limits here on the Upper Side…
Madison had fought the desire to jump in the shower, or to fill the bathtub and
just lie in it for an hour or two…In the end, she had turned the water off and
walked away, hating her moment of weakness.

And then there was
the food… the dinner Leo Van Zandt had promised her. She glanced at the table
and the dozen different dishes and platters on it. The lavish spread included
many delicacies she had heard of, but had rarely or never tasted. Madison
couldn’t believe that there were so many different kinds of vegetables and
fruit! Grown from seeds that had survived the Flood and cultivated exclusively
in the Upper Side greenhouses, these were the rarest of pickings only the
Government got to enjoy… Tomatoes and cucumbers, onions, beans and lettuce,
cabbage and peppers, apples and pears, melon, oranges… They even had grapes!

It was a feast
that could feed twenty people, but it was all laid out on the table exclusively
for her! She had not touched any of it, though… How could she, when her stomach
was a tight knot of nerves? She couldn’t even look at the table any more. Every
time she did, she felt sick…Closing her eyes, Madison reached out and snatched
a few grapes from a plate. She then crossed the room and slumped down on the
big leather couch. In her feet was the small wicker basket she had brought with
her. Slowly, she lifted its cloth cover, and a grey pigeon stuck its head out.
She lowered her hand and the bird started to peck hungrily at the grapes.
Madison smiled at her little friend, then leaned back and sank into the soft
cushions of the couch.

Madison rubbed her
temples, trying to stay awake. She had not slept a wink in twenty-four hours,
and it was becoming harder to remain alert. Again, she went over the events of
what had happened… Leo had brought her to this room and left her alone, but
only after they had exchanged words… words which were still ringing in her ears…

Leo had spoken
first in his usual, unnerving drawl: “I’ll be completely honest with you,
Madison,” he had begun, “there’re two reasons you’re here tonight… First, it’s
because I want the Perry boy kicked out of the Trials…”

Shocked at hearing
this, Madison had cried, “You can’t do that!” and then, “Duncan Roth’s the only
one who can.”

“Ah, you’re
absolutely correct!” Leo had chuckled softly. “When you don’t show up at the
Trials, he’ll have no other choice, but to disqualify your friend.”

Hearing this, Madison
had felt her eyes well up with hot tears, but she had dug her nails into her palms
and stopped herself from crying. “So, what’s the second reason?” Madison had
managed to ask through clenched teeth.

“The second reason
you’re here,” Leo had continued, getting uncomfortably close to her, “is
because I find you absolutely irresistible…I won’t touch you until we’re
officially paired, but you’re my property now… the future Mrs. Leo Van Zandt!”

Stunned and lost
for words, Madison had stood there, unable to respond. The urge to cry had been
even stronger than before. This time she had bitten her lip, drawing blood, but
she had not shed a single tear in front of Leo Van Zandt.

“Enjoy your
dinner, beautiful,” Leo had said, walking out the door. “I’ll see you in the
morning… And don’t forget the Departure List comes out in forty-eight hours.”

As if Madison
could forget such a thing… Worried sick about Flynn and her parents, she had
paced the room up and down, all night long. She had gone over how things might
play out between her and Leo upon his return… Madison knew he was somewhere in
his vast apartment... possibly lurking behind that very door… It was part of
the sick mind games he was playing! Trying to wear her down…  Leo’s intentions
toward her were more than clear now, and if Madison had been any other girl on
the Archipelago, she would have been extremely flattered… But she wasn’t! In
fact, being paired with Leo and becoming his wife was the worst thing she could
imagine. It made her skin crawl.