Consider (26 page)

Chapter 27

People start screaming
and wailing worse than when they thought we were dying. The crowd steps back from the open vertex as it begins to change color and fade. They cannot put enough distance between them and it. Some start throwing anything they can grab at it as they scream and retreat.

The others are gone. Taken.

To salvation? Execution?

Or worse?

Dominick. Rita. Benji. Marcus. Penelope. Dan the Drunk Dude. Rogers, the astronaut. The Secretary of State. At least a third of the Earth’s population. Maybe more. Maybe a lot more.

Dominick.

Consider.

What. The. Fuck.

We often think
of ourselves as smart. Invincible. But we’re not. We’re all fragile creatures at the mercy of the universe. But we are given choices, and there are moments in our existence where neither decision is right nor wrong. But by virtue of making a choice, it becomes right. It has to be right.

I fumble inside my coat pocket and find a slip of paper.

When the truth is shrouded in fear and clouded by dreams,

when fact and fantasy become deviant lovers,

maybe there are no real heroes anymore.

Maybe that’s when heroes are born.

I look at the waning vertex and remember the last time I was here, Dominick’s red converse slipping through the cracks of time. Maybe it’s my overstimulated brain, or maybe it’s from watching too many
Doctor Who
episodes, but something suddenly clicks.

I blink.

There’s no other way crazy lady could’ve gotten my words and altered them.

Unless, somehow.

In my future.

I give them to her.

Maybe that’s when heroes are born.

And even though I don’t fully understand, I know what I have to do.

What I will do.

The anger and truth of the situation fuels me and erases the anxiety. For the first time in my life, the decision comes automatically. No time to analyze. No time to think through alternatives. No time to wonder what Dad or Mom will think. No time to consider.

I turn to my parents and state again, “I love you both.”

They look at me and smile in resolution that we are still a family, alive. But Dad’s face drops quickly. He grabs my arm, hard. He knows what I’m about to do. He knows this is a goodbye. For a second I think he’s going to stop me. Then he lets me go.

I set off for the vertex, racing as it starts to flicker into obscurity.

I think of Dominick and Rita and Benji and Marcus and Penelope and everyone else who entered the vertexes across the world. If they are still alive, they’ll think they’ve been saved. They’ll be grateful. They won’t know that we survived. That Earth is still here. That it was all a trap.

Panic invades everyone, people stumbling and shoving—fleeing the vertex. But I’ve been trained for this. Panic and I are old enemies. I can face it while others are forced to turn away. My hood falls back, exposing my ears to the frigid air as my hair trails behind me in the wind. I hear Mom screaming my name to stop. But I can’t. I need them to know the truth. They deserve the truth. If I die trying, so be it. I promised him.

The crowd flees past me as I jet forward like a salmon swimming upstream. It reminds me of when the hologram first appeared, and people from the train fled as police shot at it. But Dominick isn’t here to protect me, and I can’t lie down and take it anymore. I can no longer be just a victim in an attic, no longer just another victim in a riot. I wear the bracelet from Rita, the ring from Dominick. This is my team. This is my strength to hold on to despite the incredible fear inside me.

My forearms block and push and shove to create a path through the moving bodies. People scream around me, crying for lost loved ones, pushing to get away from the collapsing vertex
.
My heart urges me forward, adrenaline coursing through my veins to make it there in time. I squeeze between two abandoned cars, hurdle over toppled barricades, and run and run as my chest explodes in the cold night air.

I dive into the blue swirling unknown before I can reconsider.

The glowing oval blinks closed behind me and disappears from my world.

I am trapped inside theirs.

Acknowledgements

Writing
Consider
has
been a labor of love and marks the beginning of a lifetime dream for me. I have so many people and organizations that helped to make this book possible.

First, I’d like to thank the wonderful people who physically made this book a reality. To my publisher and the creative team at Jolly Fish Press, especially TJ da Roza, my editor and first real fan, your genuine enthusiasm for the series made the process extraordinary. To my SCBWI critique group, Michelle, Scott, and Peter, thank you for reading my crazy ideas, always taking them seriously, and giving me honest feedback.

Additionally, throughout the writing process, my family encouraged me with their absolute trust in my creative ability. For a writer, that faith is essential. Thank you to Eladio, my husband and best friend, for always giving me the space and emotional support I need to dream and think and write without judgment. To Kylee, for being my very first reader and for always believing. To Chloe, for being my little optimist and dreaming with me. To my parents, Mary and Richard, and brothers, Brian and Todd, for helping me to become an independent, creative, compassionate woman. To Milo and Khaleesi, for distracting me when I needed a break.

Moreover, the friendships I’ve made along this journey have been phenomenal in motivating me through difficult times. I would like to express a special posthumous appreciation to Barbara (Sid) Ferguson, my “big sister,” for adding consistency into my life and fostering my love of books. To Trish, my sounding board, for listening for hours about new novel concepts and asking just the right questions. To Carolyn, patron of the arts, for designing my first business cards and making me feel legit. To Jessica, for taking my beautiful author photos. To my Monthly Twitter Writing Challenge tweeps, for motivating me and many other writers in our online community, especially Sara Whitford, my website guru and online ally. To Brenda Drake’s #PitMad, for the amazing opportunity to find my book a home.

Finally, I’d like to thank the PEN New England Susan P. Bloom Children’s Book Discovery Award Committee, for seeing a spark in my pages and making it brighter.

To the teachers, librarians, students, and readers out there, thank you for celebrating with me.