There Once Were Stars (16 page)

I click on the Resident Center, a special area designated for all the people who live in the dome. Here you can look up everyone in the dome to learn about each other. Everything I could tell someone about myself is listed under my profile. The Order is strict about transparency. Even my messages can be viewed by anyone. I check my name, but there is nothing there. Mrs. Douglass must not have the list completed yet.

I look over and see Waldorf is still busy searching for a requisition form. I absent-mindedly click around the network, entering the image of the Axis, and scroll up through the floors until I reach
Floor 18, Expedition Department
. The computer speaks quietly.

“The Expedition Department: Floor 18. Originally operated as a department of the Axis. Taken under jurisdiction of the Order nine years ago, who closed the program. Recently reopened after the presence of an Outsider displayed the possibility of life outside the dome.”

I’m surprised to see the mention of the Outsider in the notes on the Axis. I figured the Order would have tried to hide him from people. I guess it explains why this department is open again.

I click higher up the Axis. Above us are the Botany and Horticulture labs. Above these are the
restricted access
areas: the Genetics lab and the Microbiology labs. The Genetics lab works with the Botany, Horticultural and Agricultural departments to increase food quality and longevity.

The floors above, reaching to the roof, are the Engineering department, that keeps the dome operational, and the Computer labs, which help keep the network running and run the telescreens to promote the messages of the Director.

I click on the Microbiology floors. As children we are all interested in the mysteries of this department, so everyone knows what the link says. I can pretty much recite it as the monitor reads out loud. Now that I know my father worked there, I want to know more.

“The Microbiology labs are where stores of the virus antidote are housed. These floors have the highest security access, for if we were to ever lose the antidote, immune or not, all of mankind would be wiped out. This department also tests us at birth to track those who have the immunity gene and those who do not.”

I know all about the virus that originated from monkeys and spread to humans. That’s what prompted the annihilation of the monkeys—the intentional genocide of a species. But when it came to mankind, our survival instincts kicked in. Those immune to the virus were sequestered in domed cities, built to withstand the bombs of the Cleansing War. Those who were not immune were killed by the bombs, in an attempt to eradicate any chance of the virus being able to survive. Radiation had covered the world ever since, slowly decaying over time.

I’m about to click on another area when I see a red button pop up at the bottom of the screen. It reads,
Restricted Access granted to Microbiologist Karl Waldorf
. Waldorf is from Microbiology? My finger hovers over the button, about to click on it, when his voice surprises me.

“What have you found?” he asks from the opposite side of the monitor.

I look up at him wide-eyed, wondering if he can see the reflection of the red blinking
Restricted Access
button in my eyes. “Nothing, yet.” I force a smile, my finger shaking as it hovers over the button.
Click
. The logo of the Order pops up as the screen loads.

“Look what I found,” he says passing me a requisition form over the top of the monitor. “I need your signature.” He passes me a pen with his other hand. I place the paper on the monitor and sign my name as the red blinking
Restricted Access
warns me through the paper. I hand the form back to Waldorf over the top of the screen.

“Great! When that list comes through, add the items here.” He points to the middle of the form. I nod.

He grabs a chair, and starts to pull it next to me. I click rapidly, trying to get back to my profile.

“What do we have here?” Waldorf asks, leaning in front of me, and taking over the monitor.

“Nothing—I was just looking around—” My throat aches as I try to find words to get me out of this mess. I can hear my heartbeat banging against my ribs, as if it might give out. How much trouble will I be in for trying to access restricted information? I gaze quickly to the doors. I’d be able to outrun Waldorf, but where would I go?

“Looks like I’ve got a message from Dean Carleton,” Waldorf says surprised.

“I must have clicked it accidentally.”

“No worries. He’s send the list. Looks like he’s taking a personal interest in our project. That’s good news for us.”

“Really.” My voice squeaks out.

“Impressing the Delegates means you impress the Director. That’s how a person moves up around here. Good job.”

I exhale a shaky breath as Waldorf leaves me to transfer item numbers from the list to our form. I end up with enough to fill a box. If Dean Carleton is taking an interest, that means he wants to see the object I’m looking for, which means I need to bury it among a bunch of random objects. I even let Waldorf pick some things that he thinks will be useful for a side project he is working on. I’m happy with this, because if anything, the items Waldorf added do nothing but confuse Dean Carleton even more.

As he looks through my final list, I examine Waldorf. He never mentioned being a Microbiologist before coming here. How does he still have access to their files? I shake my head—Evan’s making me overly suspicious. I know everyone I work with had to have jobs before this, in other departments. I laugh out loud at how ridiculous I’m becoming.

“What’s so funny?” Waldorf looks up from the list.

“I know nothing about you, aside from the fact that you knew my parents. What did you do after the Expedition program shut down?”

“It was truly a sad day when the Expedition program shut down. Not only because of what happened to our team, but also because it had always been my dream to move outside the dome and be an explorer, like the first adventurers to step foot on this land, centuries ago. Before there was an Expedition program, I was a Geneticist.”

“Genetics?” I ask. “They don’t talk much about that department at the Learning Institute. Not like Microbiology, everyone talks about that.”

“Genetics is an associate department to every other floor,” Waldorf explains. “It works alongside all the others, helping them to meet their goals. I don’t know why all the glory goes to Microbiology.”

“How does Genetics help out?”

“Take the farms, for instance. Yes, there’s the Agricultural department out there in the fields with their stations. And inside the Axis we have the Botanists and the Horticulturalists all looking out for our food and plants here in the labs. But who do you think ensures the plant strains we have stay strong? Who do you think created the original strains that could grow in the dome? The Geneticists.”

“Interesting. Why don’t they put them on a lower floor, closer to the others?”

“Because they do a lot of work with the Microbiologists as well, and everyone knows how important it is to keep the antidote secure.”

“What sort of work did you do for the Microbiologists?”

“If I told you that, then I’d have to kill you,” Waldorf winks at me through his low spectacles. He’s not so bad, and now I know why he has access to Microbiology.

“Alright, everyone,” Roe calls out, “pack it up. It’s time to get back outside. We’re going for an entire day today. Let’s not waste it.”

The lab explodes with the sound of hoots and hollers of excitement as everyone gathers their things. One thing’s missing. Where’s Evan? I look around, and Tassie waves to me from Roe’s office. I’m glad she’ll be out there with me. It won’t be easy to avoid him forever.

I catch a glimpse of Evan as we pack up the trucks. We’re all dressed in protection suits, helmets included, but I can still find him in the crowd; the way he moves, confident but at the edge of the group, makes him stand out. I wish he’d look in my direction, but he jumps in with Roe, riding shotgun with Waldorf between them. Tassie and I ride in the back of the other truck, with Cardinal driving. Richards, another scientist with whom I have yet to have a conversation, rides shotgun; his wife, Maria, sits in the middle.

“Do you know Mr. and Mrs. Richards from before?” I ask Tassie.

“Yes, they were botanists like me. Cardinal was a geologist, Waldorf a microbiologist, and Roe was with the Order. Well, still is. I guess she’s the babysitter.”

“A little bit of everything. I guess that’s what you want to have when you explore an unknown area.”

“What did you do before?” Tassie asks me.

I realize she knows nothing about me prior to our awkward meeting my first day.

“I lived with my grandparents down in the apartment districts. We were only a few blocks from the townhouses. That’s where my friend Jak lives.”

“It’s a shame he’s so taken by you,” Tassie says. “I think he’s hot.”

“He’s just a friend.” I laugh.

“Poor Jak.” Tassie giggles. “The boy who never got the girl. I’ll make sure to be there to pick up the pieces when you crush him.”

We start giggling. It feels so nice to have a friend to laugh over silly things with like Xara and I used to do.

“What about Evan?” She motions her head in his direction. “Does Jak know?”

“There’s nothing going on with Evan and me.”

“I’m sorry. It’s none of my business. I just haven’t seen him around you lately. Is everything okay?”

I turn away, and watch the scenery. No, everything is not okay. Evan thinks our dome is hiding something. My once dead uncle, has returned. Add that to both Jak and Evan ignoring me, my future at the Axis is looking more and more like a life-sentence every day.

I reply in the only way Tassie seems to understand. “Boys.”

She nods.

Once we reach the hills, I take off my helmet, and let the wind whip around my hair. Tassie does the same. Her excitement makes up for Evan’s absence.

“I love it!” she squeals. “Where was the meadow?”

“Just over that hill.” I point as we drive past. The look on Tassie’s face falls; I know how much she wanted to see that meadow. Where are we going?

I recall the maps that Roe and Evan had sprawled out on her desk. I have one hidden under my mattress, but I can’t recall what was on the other maps. We can’t be going too far; we only have the day.

The hills are steep, forcing Tassie and I into the cabs of the trucks. I immediately volunteer to climb in with the Richards so I can avoid Evan, but I notice Evan doesn’t hesitate in sliding over to make room for Tassie right next to him. His gaze meets mine. I purse my lips and throw him the nastiest glare I can muster.

Before I can dwell on my jealousy, we reach the top of the hills. It is worth it. At the peak the forest trails down the other side, stretching out farther than I can see. It’s surrounded by grasslands, as lush as the meadow, and to the far left something sparkles in the sunlight. My heart jumps—it’s the river!

The drive down the hill takes longer, and I resist an overwhelming urge to jump out of the truck and run. Something about the freedom I felt in the meadow still teases the edges of my psyche. But Cardinal would freak at the sight of me jumping out. I stifle a laugh at the thought of her serious façade changing to utter horror.

We pull up next to the river. Its rushing waters remind me of a dark version of the public pool in the dome. Unlike the pool, you can’t see the bottom of the river. The water also moves faster here, and the edges are rocky, and slippery, covered in moss. If vegetation is thriving out here again, maybe there is hope for an Outer Colony.

“There’s a shallow end down that way if you’re interested,” Evan says from behind me.

I turn toward him, shrug my shoulders, and turn away to help unload the rest of the truck.

“It might be a little cold for you, Greyes,” he shouts after me. “But then again, maybe you’d like that.”

Tassie shushes him, but not before I can feel the heat rush to my face. Cold? He hasn’t spoken to me all week, and now this? First, he tells me I use people. Now he insinuates in front of everyone that I’m cold. No matter how I try to ignore him, he finds a way to hurt me. I drop what I’m doing, and storm past the truck into the field of wild grass that runs away from the shore.

Tassie catches up to me, which isn’t difficult; I’m not really trying to run away. I just want distance from Evan. Why do I still care what he thinks?

We walk in silence along the tall grasses. When I finally look over, I notice she has her backpack with her. At least now I have an excuse to be away from the river. I can help Tassie gather samples.

“You know…” she clears her throat, “he does it to get under your skin. I can tell. Every time you dismiss him, he does something to get your attention. That’s all it is.”

“You’re wrong. He doesn’t like me.”

“No, Nat. You’re wrong. It’s the opposite. He does like you.”

“What makes you think that?”

“Well,” Tassie says taking a deep breath, “he’s always keeping tabs on you, wondering where you are, asking questions and stuff. When you’re around, he’s always watching you, stealing glances when you’re not looking. And when you don’t respond the way he wants, he reacts. It’s totally
Boy likes Girl 101
.”

If Tassie knew the real reason Evan pays attention to me is because he promised my uncle he would watch out for me, she’d see things my way. But she doesn’t, and I can’t tell her. Instead, she’s left thinking we need relationship advice. Ugh.

“Sounds more like he’s some crazy stalker.” I nudge Tassie with my elbow and she stumbles to the side for a moment. She laughs and nudges me back. We break out into a run, chasing one another, leaving thoughts of Evan behind, where they belong.

I have no idea how long we’re gone, all I know is that, as more time passes, I feel better. Ahead of us are the sparse beginnings of the forest. The trees are almost as tall as the Outer Forest in the dome. I wonder how long it took them to start growing again after the war? I walk up to one and touch its rough bark; it reminds me of Evan’s skin, touched by both the sun and the wind as it grew, unlike those of us—trees included—inside the dome. I lean forward and take a deep inhale of the tree. It smells like outside, earthy and free. Tassie laughs from behind me.