The Artful (Shadows of the City) (9 page)

“You didn’t,” I had to laugh.

“I did.”

Gia sighed loudly. “Seriously, my patience is wearing thin. What did you do?”

“I traded him my freedom, for the last Snickers bar in the world.”

It seemed to take a moment for Gia to process everything. “So wait, that’s it? That’s the story of your escape?”

“It was a great sacrifice,” he said.

I nodded in agreement.

Gia stared at him for a moment before a warm smile spread across her lips.

“Where’s Peter?” I asked.

“He’s still locked up. They wouldn’t let me see him without their little leader. I considered kicking all their asses, but I figured that’s more your thing.”

“Well,” I wanted to change the subject. “Take us to Peter!” I pointed to Gia, who held up her new spear. The children all jumped to their feet, looking at her in awe. A couple of the girls smiled; only one or two frowned.

“Whoa, she’s actually useful,” Dodger said.

“Just shut up! Before my new opinion of you changes,” Gia replied.

They both held each other’s eyes for a second, before Dodger smiled, motioning for us to follow. They led us deeper into the cave. Toys, clothes, and food made for annoying obstacles, barely visible in the dim light of a candle at the end of the cave. Two guards lay on the floor, spears lying abandoned next to them as they played with GI Joes. Behind them on a bench, shackled by his ankle, was Peter.

He smiled, and, as always, his broken lips that encased missing teeth shook me back to the realization that he was in fact just a mere child, for all his intelligence, conniving nature, and resourcefulness. It was easy to forget that he was only about thirteen years old.

“Who would have thought?” he said. “Dodger and Twist, my valiant rescuers!”

There was a shift in power, yet it wasn’t met with rebellion and civil war. No, at one point, Peter was their leader, then he was their prisoner, and now they were indifferent to him.

“What can you expect?” he told us over a plate of ramen noodles. “They are kids. They do what they are told or throw tantrums. In the end, they just need… want… someone to take care of them and make all the big decisions. James wasn’t all the way bad. He just had very different views on how the Runts should be led.” Peter spoke of the boy who had taken his power with no hatred.

Peter wasn’t a fighter; he was a thinker. So when James challenged him, the fight was over before it began. Gia tried to relinquish power back to Peter, but he stood by the word of his own laws. The only way that would happen is if they fought each other. And he was not willing to fight her, nor did he care to.

“Truth is, Twist, I don’t want to lead anymore. I was raised in a library; my parents were Shakespeare, Homer, Gaiman. James taking the spear from right under me showed me that I’m not fit to be leader. I’m smart, yeah, but can I fend off a wolf for one of these kids? Don’t get me wrong, I would, I’d die trying. But, in the end, where will that get them? After my real dad died, I took it upon myself to help all the kids who had nobody. I thought I could be their parent. I didn’t want them to feel the loneliness I felt.”

“What are you getting at?” I asked. “For as long as I’ve known you, you’ve done it all for these kids.”

“Yes, but I don’t need them to be my followers; I need them to be my partners. Times are changing, Twist, and we gotta get out of here. As soon as I mentioned this, my group was split down the middle. I don’t want them to go because I’m their leader. I want them to go because they want to.”

“Wait, what do you mean times are changing?” I asked.

“I know you feel it, you can’t deny it. Something isn’t right around these parts anymore and like the migration of birds come winter, I have to get us gone before the storm comes.”

“What the hell? What storm?” Dodger asked.

“I dunno, it’s the Empire and Brooklyn, they’re making big moves. You can only have two leaders play nice for so long before one gets greedy. A war is coming, and everyone out here’s going to be a casualty.”

“What makes you think there is anywhere you can go?” I asked.

He smiled, motioning for Dodger, Gia, and me to lean in closer. He took out a folded piece of paper and placed it on the table. A newspaper clipping. An ad for ten percent off a leather jacket. “One of the boys found this. Said a strange man came to town a while back, was talking stories that no one believed. Thought he was a drunk. My boy followed him around for a while, wasn’t long before a Suit gunned him down. After they cleared out, my boy checked the guy’s pockets. Found that, little else.”

“As interesting as that is,” Dodger said. “I’d like to talk about―”

“Look at the date,” Peter interrupted.

I picked up the paper and inspected the upper corner.
January 11th, 2025
. My mouth dropped. Peter nodded. “The world went to hell in 2015. Or so we thought. I’m thinking the whole world isn’t as screwed as the Empire would have us think.”

“You want to go out past the quarantine zone?” I asked. “That’s suicide.”

“Where’d this come from, Twist? Aren’t any ink presses I heard of in the city, and, if there were, they sure as hell wouldn’t be advertising sales on jackets.”

“Take us with you!” Gia surprised us all. “Look at this, Twist. He’s right, there’s no way it came from here. Everyone is always talking about the quarantine zones, but no one ever bothers to ask what’s outside. It’s like we are all brainwashed. We watch airships fly in supplies every day. Where from? Why is it so hard to believe civilization isn’t alive and well outside?”

“It’s all military out there,” I said. “Scientists trying to figure out a way to save us, the zone is meant to keep what’s out there out. For our own protection, we are the only people who the virus didn’t affect…”

“Or it’s meant to keep us in,” said Dodger. “Have to admit. It sounds pretty stupid when you think about it.”

“So what? You want to go out there, too?” I asked.

“Why not?” Dodger asked.

“Why not? Why not?” I looked around at each of their faces, seeking support. Because it was insane! No one ever passed the quarantine zone. The walls were put up around the city for our protection. It just wasn’t done…but why wasn’t it done? “Okay, let’s say we humor this idea. We still can’t go. Not until we get you that cure.”

“What cure?” Peter frowned.

We explained everything that happened up till the moment we reached Central Park. The whole time Dodger and I took turns speaking I noticed Gia’s mind wander. She had the look of someone lost amongst so many thoughts, it was impossible to grasp one clear idea. Already she was travelling beyond the borders.
Would we really go with them
?

“You’re right, no way can I tell you what’s in ya,” said Peter. “But I do have something that can help. Last I saw Smith, he was playing house with Red and her Tribe. Maybe a couple weeks ago, but I’m guessing she’d know where to find him. You can’t trust Stan and his goons, but if Smith has something they really want that bad, once you have it, you can bargain. And there is no greater thing to have than a bargaining piece.”

“Will you wait for us?” Gia asked, pleading in her eyes.

“What’s all this
us
stuff?” Dodger asked.

“Screw you, do what you want. I’m the holder of the staff, remember!” She pointed the spear in Dodger’s face.

“If you guys will come, it would mean a lot to us. We’d have a much higher chance at survival,” Peter said.

“So, you’ll wait?” Dodger asked.

Peter smiled with a nod. “Until it’s time to find the end of the world.”

I spent the rest of the night talking with Peter. Gia eventually fell asleep, and Dodger occupied himself playing ball with some of the Runts. Peter was concerned about Dodger having some alien virus in him. I assured him and myself that he wasn’t showing any negative signs, so maybe there was nothing to worry about. Eventually I fell asleep too. We would have to head out to Union Square and find the Tribe. But we all needed rest, and I saw no point in fighting the urge to sleep.

I wasn’t asleep very long; at least I don’t think I was, before I was awoken by stirring. It took my eyes a bit to adjust to the flickering light of the campfire. Everyone was asleep, Dodger lay holding a ball on his stomach while a group of children all cuddled around him. Other children were asleep in different corners of the cave, or wherever they collapsed. Peter was off, most likely keeping watch outside. But it was the sight of Gia sitting by the campfire that caught my attention. The firelight sent shadows dancing across her face and created a sparkling glimmer in her eyes. She looked so beautiful, almost angelic. She held the newspaper clipping in her hands, staring at it as if it held some secret riddle only she could answer.

“Hey,” I said, crawling over to her side. “What’re doing?”

She looked at me as if I were a second thought and held up the clipping. “It’s just so amazing, isn’t it? This had to come from outside the city, don’t you think?”

I cautiously took the paper from her hand and looked it over. “I don’t know. It’s a nice thought. But I just don’t understand it, why would they tell us the world outside is gone? What’s the purpose?”

“To keep us stuck here. Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens, they are all run by egocentric maniacs. Maybe they just want to keep us all in the dark so they can continue to rule.”

“Ruling all this,” I waved my hands around us. “Doesn’t sound too appealing.”

She looked off into the fire; her normally hard demeanor seemed to melt away in the heat. She looked almost fragile, as if all her hope was hanging on to this one idea. And there I was, ruining it.

“But it would be amazing, wouldn’t it?” I added.

Her eyes lit up. “Yeah, can you imagine a place out there where you don’t have to worry about food or scavengers? People don’t have to suffer underground while rich spoiled brats live lavish lives in towers?”

“Yeah,” I said, holding up the clipping. “Where our biggest worry is deciding where to buy a jacket!”

She smiled at me, taking back the clipping. She hugged her legs to her chest, leaning her chin on her knees. “Come on, Twist! Ten percent off, there’s no deciding!”

“You really hate it here, huh?” I knew my question was stupid the moment I asked it.

“Don’t you?”

“I don’t know. Dodger and I, we just got so used to things, to our game, you know? It sucks, yeah, and I hate Tower Babies. But I guess we’ve grown content.”

She looked at me, with pity in her eyes and that hurt the most. I was at a loss for words. “You guys steal meds and give them to the poor, right?”

“Yeah. I mean at first we just did it for kicks. Stick it to the man, you know? It just drove me mad how those Tower Babies had it all while we suffered. Eventually we met Red. That’s the lady we are going to see tomorrow. Dodger made some deals with her, started picking the towers clean and selling what we took to her and her crew, The Tribe. Kept our stomachs full for a while, but then I started thinking, it’s still no different. People were still suffering while a select few prosper; only now Dodger and I were part of the privileged. So I talked Dodger into giving it all away.”

“I’m sure he jumped right on board.”

“He’s a good guy. I mean, yeah, it took some convincing. I think he was more attracted to the idea of becoming big time heroes. Started calling ourselves the Gutter Punks, got others in our crew, Smith, Lip, Jess… Preach. People started knowing our names. We got mad respect from the Downtowners, while Tower Babies started hatin’ Gutter Punks―we were a thorn in their sides. It was awesome! Just us now. It’s okay though. Dodger and I work best together. I don’t know, feels good knowing you made a difference, guess that’s why we got so content living this life. If we left, who’d help all those people needing it?”

She didn’t speak for a moment; instead, she gently put her hand on top of mine. It sent a shiver through my body. I was never good with girls; I had little interaction with them, and, for the most part, turned into an idiot around them. But now here I was talking myself up to what had to be the most beautiful girl I’d seen my whole life. She was impressed with me, and that made me feel as if I were on the strongest drug.