”Hey, Charles?” I asked knocking on his bedroom door. ”Are you awake? I was heading out and wanted to ask you something before I left for work.” I knew I was violating some sacred roommate agreement, but I needed my hands on something and Charles was the only way I knew how to get it without drawing suspicion.

I heard a grumble and a thump, making it obvious that he hadn’t been awake at all. Within a few seconds, the door opened up and Charles stuck his head out of it. His hair, which even on the best days was a bit unruly, had raged some sort of unholy rebellion in his sleep. His mouth was opened slightly as he blinked blearily at me. ”Yeah?” Clearly my roommate wasn’t a morning person. Strange the things you started to pick up once you actually interacted with someone.

”I was wondering if I could borrow one of the loner computers from your library. I…uh… can’t stop by after work to pick one up. I was wondering if you could just bring it…home?” Despite my mentally rehearsing this speech, my tongue tripped over the words left and right.

”Couldn’t you just borrow one from work?” Charles was becoming more lucid now and I couldn’t help but feel he left off the end of the sentence ‘that way you didn’t have to wake me up’.

”That’s not possible, one of the labs is having some serious crunch time. All of the computers are loaned out already.” This was a lie. I hated to do that but I didn’t have much choice. I doubted if the data I would be accessing was monitored but I knew the lab computers, even those that were checked out, were. And while the information wasn’t necessarily classified, I couldn’t find a good excuse to give my superiors about why I was scanning over it.

”Sure.” Charles said and shrugged. ”They’re a bit outdated so no one really checks them out anymore.”

”Right!” I said and offered my best smile. My brother always told me I could get away with murder with my smile. A borrowed computer would be good enough. ”Thanks.” With that he closed the door behind him and I headed off to work.

---

Sweat beaded on the back of my neck as I watched the progress bar scroll across the screen. I was uploading the files from Mildred Backer’s profile onto a portable drive. The process was going about as fast as a galloping llama. (Mind you, I’d never seen a llama and I’m not entirely sure they’re still around, but if they were I couldn’t imagine them running very fast.)

The slight tickle of breath behind my ears was the only indication that Dr. Lark was hovering right above me. I tried not to fidget at the sensation while I fought the urge not to turn around and face him. I wasn’t doing anything wrong. I had to believe that if I had any shot of convincing him.

Fortunately, the good doctor’s voice broke the moment. ”What are you doing?”

At that moment I wished I could have been anywhere else. He leaned over, a wrinkled hand pointing to the progress bar on my screen. Thank the heavens it didn’t list what I was specifically transferring.
I began to lie through my teeth. ”I’ve had some free time in the evenings. Since we finally started getting some good data, I thought I’d bring it home and do a few analysis runs on it.”

”Good idea,” He said removing his hand from my computer screen and placing it on my right shoulder, squeezing it a bit. ”If only all the lab assistants were as… enterprising as you.”

He let my shoulder go and turned his attention to the wall lined with cages. I silently let go of the breath I didn’t know I was holding. There was something about Dr. Lark that had made me uncomfortable but it wasn’t until just now that I’d even considered the thought that he might have had something to do with Mildred’s disappearance. I gingerly rubbed the shoulder he had touched.

I arrived back at my office to see two messages on my voice system. I popped open a bottle of water, and sit at my desk with my feet up. I press a button and the first one is from Assistant Director of Education Wright. He works at the Education Center and assists in making sure that certain sections of the populace gets only the information that they need to know. The difference between my job and his is that I am doing it for everyone. Wright and his band of psychos do actual brain washing on people. He was complementing me on the work I had handled the story concerning the people who raided my parents party. Wright was also expressing his sincerest hope that I would one day reconsider my decision to come and work for him at his department. As I deleted the message I said, "Not a chance in hell." To prove that I am not exactly a cold-hearted bitch I dash off a quick e-mail and thank him for his kind words, but restate that I can do the best here at my current position.

I played the second message and it is from my mom. She is asking if I could leave a few minutes early tonight the Collins and our family had such a great time last night they were wondering if we might join them for dinner and the Duels tonight . I roll my eyes and shake my head at not only the thought of being with Bradley, but being subjected to an evening at the Duels.

The Duels are kind of like the Roman Gladiator competition except in this case it is a well-conditioned highly trained warrior behind a mask who beats on someone from the other end of the financial spectrum. This poor person from the other end of the spectrum is not well trained or conditioned, but rather someone who has a load of attitude and believes in the promise that if they win they go free. In 10 years the number of people who've actually won is zero, and I don't see it changing anytime soon. This is way that the elect can feel better about their position and justify beating someone up. It's what passes for sports here in this day and age. I've been to exactly two of these competitions and I will do everything in my power to see to it that number doesn't change tonight.

I deleted the message just in time for a knock on my door. I said, "It's open."

In walks Phillip Mason my boss closing the door behind him. He is nothing more than a shark in a suit. He loves working here, but if he had his choice Phillip would be out of here and on the Justice Council. Phillip feels that he could make real change if he was there, but he happens to be the only one who feels that way. Phillip wears a silver and gray suit pretty good I have to give him credit on that, and it matches his silver and black...topee.

I asked, "What do you need Mr. Mason?"

He replied, "Oh just thought I would come by and see how your interview with Prefect Wallace went today?"

I shrugged my shoulders and replied, "He's so boring. Nothing new he's only been a prefect for slightly under a week. I think we could do better talking to him in a couple of weeks I was off on this one. Too new right now best if we move on sir."

Mason shook his head and said, "I still don't know why you just didn't let me use my contacts in the Law division. I know Chief Prefect Rodrick personally I could've gotten you an interview with him."

I shook my head and replied, "Again thank you sir, but no. I want to start establishing my own contacts and be more of a force here on my own."

Mason chuckled and said, "Sounds like you're gunning for my job."

I chuckled as well and said, "What can I say you're on to me,"

We both laugh but I am careful not to overdue it. Mason nodded and said, "Well when I do retire there is no one here more qualified than you Ellen. Keep up the good work."

He left my office and the second the door was closed I rolled my eyes and shook my head. There were two reasons I didn't want nothing to with Chief Prefect Rodrick. One he is just barely hanging on to his job. He is a glorified figure head that has been in his job for so long that when he dies they'll just carry him out in the chair he's sitting in. It'll make things a lot easier than trying to cut him out of the chair. Secondly. the last I saw him I was at a party at the Elliston Towers about 6 weeks ago. His favorite game that night was to see how many drinks it would take to get me out of my dress. I'd join a monistary before I even thought of anything like that.

I finally decided to open up my work station and review the video footage from last night. The whole time though my mind is on tomorrow afternoon.,

It wasn’t even eight yet and I was already feeling like the world’s fetch dog. It was akin to waking up with a headache- things were almost guaranteed to not improve from there. A full night’s rest hadn’t increased my enthusiasm towards the Rebel cause and I felt, more and more like I was being wedged between a rock and a hard place despite Wallace’s pleasant attitude and Ellen’s enthusiasm. Now my roommate felt the need to add her name to the list of growing oddities. I wasn’t sure what Nym needed the computer for but I did know she’d been lying when she told me she couldn’t borrow one from work.

I tried to roll back asleep and snooze for ten more minutes but it was useless. The body was willing but the mind was weak. My brain was a whirl and it wasn’t going to stop anytime soon. The only reason I’d been able to fall asleep at a decent hour last night was because I’d been both mentally and physically exhausted. Stretching I rolled back out of bed, using the motion to stand firmly on my feet.

---

”Excuse me?”

It was the voice of a man. By the sound of his fingers drumming on my desk, I guessed he’d been there for a while.

”One second,” I said as I pounded on the enter key of my computer. No matter how I searched, or the changed parameters I used, I couldn’t find any information on the book “A Tale of Two Cities” by Charles Dickens. Oh I found plenty of books by Charles Dickens, and I even found a children’s book called “A Tale of Two Cities” about a pair of young mice from different societal standings but nothing that combined both of my queries. Feeling I might be onto something, I located the latter in the children’s section and skimmed over it. Aside from another remake or “The Prince and the Pauper”, I found nothing remarkable and certainly nothing about a revolution. It was frustrating being a librarian and not being able to locate a book. It was one of my few superpowers in life.

”I’d like to turn this in,” the man said and placed the book on my desk. In my irritated state I was half tempted to tell him off for not placing in the book drop like everyone else but out of the corner of my eye, I noticed his hand lingered on the cover.

”Alright,” I still didn’t look up.

”It’s very important this book goes back to the right place… Understand?” I finally looked up.

The man appeared to be in his early thirties. He had jet black hair and eyes that seemed to see right through me. I had the sensation like I’d met him before because his face felt familiar to me, and yet I was sure I hadn’t. Restraint was a city closed off from the world, but the citizen count had shot well past 2 million. The idea of me accidentally running into him on an evening tram was unlikely and the man appeared to be was too old to be in my graduating class.

”Yeah, okay.” I said, taking the book and placing it next to my computer.

He nodded once and gave me another knowing glance before turning away. I watched him take a few more steps before turning back. ”And Plygard,” he said looking over her shoulder. ”Please don’t involve her.”

I felt my face form a quizzical look. ”Ellen?”

But the man shook his head and simply walked away. Turning my attention to the book, I examined the outer cover. It was a compilation of poems by Emily Dickenson. Before tossing it into the book drop bin, I flipped to the title page.

My breath caught in my chest as I read the neat handwritten words. Not stopping there I flipped to the first chapter. It felt as if someone was reaching out to me from the past, like someone knew exactly how I was feeling and the anxiety I was going through. That someone else knew how it felt to be Charles Plygard.

” It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way…

I still am trying to figure out Ellen Westlake. She has the world on a string and she is willing to risk it all so that others can have what she was given by birth. I don't doubt her intentions, but what was the one thing that made the light bulb cut on for her? Did she witness something? Did she read an account of something at the office that spoke to her? Or like me did she have someone shoot her a look that just cut her right to her soul? Regardless Ellen is about to enter into a world that she has no idea about on any level, and she is going to have to work hard to earn the trust of all involved. We've all seen and heard stories of those in the elite status who send in spies with good intentions. Only to have members of the revolution either taken away and reeducated, and that's if they were lucky.

So I am facing not only the prospect of having to trust someone who could very easily end the revolution, and also convincing others in the group to trust her. There's only one way to deal with this. I gathered my gear together and made my way to the one place in the world where I could make sense of things; the gym in the basement. It's not the Health Club that everyone belongs to as a result of being in this department. It's got gray walls, dimly lit, workout gear that is 30 years out of date, and it's as hot as sauna as well. This is Heaven on Earth for me, because hardly anyone comes down here and I have time to just think and be alone.

I changed into a pair of sweats, a t-shirt, running shoes, and weight gloves. I proceeded to pick up a set of 20 pound barbells and do some curls. The tension and release in my muscles makes me grunt a bit but I know that this is the kind of mindless activity I need right now. Nothing about Ellen, Charles, reports, revolts, or my family. This is all about me and my body on my time. I keep going and before I know it I have reached the end of that set, and I then move onto the ab machine. In the Health Club they would have me hooked up to a machine with LEDs pointed at me and zapping me lightly. Sorry this is the most effective way I've found to workout this area, and besides I'm not in the mood to have lights pointing at my gut. I starter off light but as i went on I realized what Ellen's true motivation might be; that she might be doing this just because it's the right thing to do. For so long I've been conditioned to look at others with skepticism and a slight sense of paranoia, but maybe I might be dealing with someone who truly wants to do the right thing.

I finish up my workout with a new frame of mind and feeling much better than I did when I arrived here. As I turned and began to walk away I looked at the dank and dark room and said, "Thanks for the therapy as always."

Despite my best efforts, time seemed to be moving about as fast as the lab rats running around on their wheels- which was to say despite all the energy I spent, it was going nowhere. I had to mentally remind myself not to keep checking the clock on my computer every two minutes or so. The last thing I wanted to do was cause any sort of suspicion. And yet, the more I worked at being normal, the more abnormal I became until finally Dr. Lark, sounding a bit exasperated at my fidgeting asked me to take an early lunch break.

The carbonated drink in front of me continued to effervesce as I fiddled with the small portable drive in my pocket. I wondered what I should do with the information I found on it. If it contained what I thought it contained, it involved the general health of most of the population of Restraint. How many thousands of people were using it right now? I couldn’t help my eyes from darting around the crowded lunch cafeteria. Most of the labs on my floor were dedicated to pharmaceutical research. How many other drugs where being created under false pretenses? And where these chemical limited to just drugs? Where any of the toxic chemicals in anything else- regulation hotdogs? Regulation toothpaste? Regulation colas? I dismally pushed my drink aside. I knew I was being paranoid, but I couldn’t help it. Even then, if I managed to use the library’s computer to look through Mildred’s drive, what did I do with the information? Did I try to get the information out to the general public? I couldn’t even imagine the consequences.

”Public Execution.” I nearly jumped out of my skin as Sally, with a clang, plopped her metal lunch tray down next to me. ”Don’t you agree, Assistant Yurigei?”

I looked from Sally Enright to a man standing beside her. I knew he worked at a lab down the hallway from mine but I didn’t know what his job was exactly and I couldn’t remember his name.

”What were you referring to?” I asked trying to keep my voice calm as the pair sat down across from me.

”Oh, just the Rebels,” the man said, his brilliant blue eyes wearing an indifferent air, ”Enright thinks they should be publically executed. Do you agree?”

The image of my brother’s face as it had been almost ten years ago flashed into my face. He had disappeared shortly after my fourteenth birthday. Rumor had it he was working with the Rebels. Our family’s reputation hadn’t been the same since. Nevertheless, it was much better to have ones brother disappear off the face of the Earth then to see him publically shot.

”I think the Duels offer enough public death.” I offered, trying to feign indifference.

”Oh yes,” Sally continued, reaching out to pat my right hand, ”But people volunteer for that sort of thing. Don’t you think it would make the Rebels think twice if they knew the consequences of their actions?”

”You don’t think merely disappearing is good enough?” Her companion asked.

”No I don’t. For one thing, where do they even disappear…” But Sally stopped herself in time. We refused to meet each other’s eyes, each of us pretending to be busying ourselves with something important. I worked on unwrapping a sandwich I was no longer interested in.

It was highly frowned upon to ask questions in polite society especially about government practices. Heck, it was frowned upon to ask questions at all. Nevertheless, Sally had brought up a question that had been plaguing me for the past decade. Where did all the people who disappeared go?

As I looked out my window in my office and took in the sights and sounds of what is going on out in the streets. I wondered at times if these people truly know and understand the deception that is going on in and around their lives. I've often wondered at times how it all started? Our way of life as we know it. How did we get here? Did the wrong kind of person get a taste of a little bit of power and want more? Was it someone who had some good ideas and intentions and let the power go do their heads?

My parents frequently ask when I'm gonna get married and give them some more grandkids. I tell them either I'm too busy with my own career or I just haven't met the right one, Truth is that I won't bring a child into this world as it is right now. When there is real and true justice, a sense of balance, and no longer a need for a revolution then I will consider it. Right now though not a chance in hell I won't allow my child to be corrupted by our system and way of life. Someone like Ellen who is a part of the system and sees the wrongs within it are rare. What's even more rare is that she wants to do something about it. As the morning went on I realized that Ellen is risking a far more than all of us, because if they catch her rather than make an example of her the Council of Justice will make her death quiet and very quick. They'd be afraid of her becoming a martyr for the cause and that others within the system will follow her.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts because what I need to be focused on his breaking this all to Mario. He's a fair man and I consider him more of a father to me than my own father, but one thing he hates is surprises. Ellen Westlake qualifies as a surprise very nicely I must say. Just then I heard a knock on my door. I opened it and saw Elle standing there. Glad she dressed down and will blend in very nicely where we are going. Blue jeans and a white t-shirt are the perfect outfit. I on the other hand can get a away with my trench coat, black slacks, and red turtle neck.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________



I felt like Martin was studying me like a rare butterfly until he finally said, "Good you're gonna blend in nicely with everyone else in the part of town we're going to. One more touch." He give me a dark blue windbreaker and said, "Your white t-shirt is too bright this will tone it down a bit. Don't want to draw but so much attention to us."

Martin led me out of the building and down several side streets to a place called "Rizzo's". Not exactly the kind of place I'm used to being at, but I've already learned that you should never judge a book by it's cover. For example in this part of town I've seen more people smiling and looking content in the last 10 minutes then I've seen at one of my parent's parties. Then again if they're dealing with my parents I can sort of understand why they're not smiling.

We entered in and Martin was immediately greeted by a gentleman who's voice I recognized on the tape as Mario. Mario greeted Martin with two kisses on the cheek, and embrace.

He turned to me and asked, "Hey Marty who's your friend here? She's beautiful."

Martin replied before I could say anything, "She's interested in her own copy of 'A tale of two cities' Mario,"

Mario looked at Martin for a moment then at me, and then he said, "Chris! Watch the grill Marty is inspecting our freezer. Someone was complaining about the food and he and his friend are inspecting the quality of our freezer."

He motioned for us to follow him to the back room and led us into the cooler. Mario is either going to talk to us or kill us in here. I'm hoping for talking myself.

Mario looked at me like I was one of his daughters and just got busted for coming in after curfew. He asked with a great deal of anger at Martin, "What the hell is wrong with you? You think because we let you in you can just start bringing people in?"

I asked, "Excuse me? Why are we in here?"

Mario replied with a glare at me, "Because if there are any bugs on you the cold and this motor will disrupt the radio and visual waves." He turned back to Martin and Martin nodded at me and said, "Your interview."

I cleared my throat and said, "I want to help. I want to make a difference. I've seen the pain that my part of society has caused first hand. I work at the Information Command Center and I want to help the revolution."

Mario looked at me as though I had grown a second head and spit in his face. He asked, "Why should I trust you?"

I pulled out the recording of him, Martin, and Charles and said, "Because I haven't destroyed any of you with this." I played the recording and Mario though he kept his emotions in check I knew he was shaken. I said, "I was trying to learn more the other night, but I had to hide in a dumpster."

Mario nodded and looked at Martin who said, "She has a point. She could destroy us all, but she didn't. That's gotta be good enough."

Mario shook his head and said, "Not yet."

I said, "Here's another show of good faith on my part." I pulled out the holo-cube and showed Mario the unedited footage of his son-in-law's arrest and on the spot execution. Mario again did not show any emotion, but again he was hiding it. Mario looked as though he would weep openly.

After the cube finished he blinked twice and looked at Martin and said, "Go have a seat I'll bring you your usual." He looked at me and said, "I'll bring you some spaghetti in a white clam sauce."

I nodded and said, "Thank you." Mario nodded showing no emotion and led us out of the freezer. As he did he was yelling, "See I told you there was nothing wrong with our food. You go have a seat now both of you."

Martin and I sat down at a booth and I asked, "What do you think you obviously know him better than me?"

Martin shrugged his shoulders and said, "You got me Ellen."

A young lady about 7 months pregnant brought us our food. I've got some of the best cooks in the city working for my family, and none of them can even come close to Mario. Martin and I ate in silence and I thought that would be the end of it. Until Mario walked by holding a plate of Strawberry Cheesecake which he placed in front of me. He looked at me, winked, and nodded as he said, "Tomorrow night 7:30 don't hide in the dumpster this time." Mario took a deep breath and said, "Thank you. You've helped bring closure to the family. Thank you and come back soon. You will always have a place here."

As he walked away Martin said, "Well you must've made some kind of impression on Mario. I didn't get a free desert until a year ago."

”Charles?”

I looked up to see Gracie eyeing me from across my desk. I was so caught up in first chapter of the book, I never saw her coming. Without checking the page number, I quickly closed the cover.

”Poetry, huh?” she said, still eyeing the lettering on the cover, ”I never figured you for one to read that genre. Emily Dickenson too. Heavy stuff.” I just nodded along, not really sure what to say. I’ve found, especially with Gracie, sometimes it’s just best if I don’t say anything at all.

”Does this have anything to do with a girl?” A look of shock crossed my face before I could check it. It reminded me of a question I’d once seen in a textbook ‘have you stopped beating your wife yet? Yes or No?’. No matter what I said there was no good answer. She pondered my silence while I flailed about trying to find something, anything that would make her change the topic. ”It’s that roommate of yours, isn’t it?” Too late. ”In my day the government never would have decided to put a single man and woman together but I suppose times have changed and good housing space is a premium.” I could feel the heat it my face rising as the words continued to flow out of my supervisor’s overly tinted lips.

”It isn’t what you think.” A million curses ran through my head as I thought of the idiot who chose the book cover. It was their fault I was in this mess in the first place. No one would have looked twice if I’d been reading Anna Karenina.

”It’s okay Charles.” Gracie said as she patted my right hand, ”We were all young and frisky once.”

I was beginning to see my boss in a whole new light and it wasn’t a nice one. ”I’m…uh… going to grab an early lunch.” I started to walk off, only turn around and grab the book, and head out the door again. By the time I got back the entire library staff would know about my ‘interest’ in poetry and my roommate. To top it all off my headache was still not going away.

---

”Ketchup, mustard, or relish.”

”Mustard.” I replied to the street hotdog vendor as I pressed my watch against the reader. Despite me feeling that my world had turned upside down, it was a beautiful day outside. The sky was a the kind of blue that reminded me of my childhood days. Fluffy white clouds covered the face of the sun, giving the inhabitants below the occasional reprieve.

”Charles Plygaurd, huh?” I looked up at the man with a bit of shock but he simply pointed to the watch reader as he grabbed a dog off the rotator.

”Yeah,” I said, trying to kill the panic rising up in my mind. ”Something… wrong?”

”Nah,” he said placing the hotdog and mustard packet in a brown bag. ”Here’s the receipt.” I looked down at the foreign piece of paper, ”I know call me old fashion,” he continued, ”but I always give receipts. Use it- use it as a bookmark or something.” It was like the man was trying to tell me something. I was tempted to study the piece of paper he was handing me, knowing it contained more information than the price of my lunch. Was this one way the Rebels communicated, recipes and other small sheets of paper that flew under the radar? I was tempted to ask him but I knew better. Asking questions got people killed.

”Hey, one more thing,” he said as he turned to help a different customer, ”You work at the library right? They still give out free bookmarks.”

”Sometimes,” I said and turned back towards my building, a smile on my lips. It felt like I'd just been given my superpower and I didn't have to sneak around dark alleys or hide in dumpsters. Bookmarks were easy. Even Charles Plygaurd could do bookmarks.

As we left "Rizzo's" Ellen looked as though she would jump out of her skin. Her enthusiasm is certainly commendable but she has got to realize that this is not going to be as easy as it looks. There's a difference between being a part of the revolution and being IN the revolution. Just from what I know about Ellen she is not just going to want to be a part of it either, but she is going to want to be IN it. Time for her and I to have a talk.

I led us over to the park in the wasteland. It's far from the pristine park that we first began talking at. The basketball rims have no nets, the playground equipment is about 30 years past it's safety standards, and this is the kind of place that I would only send my officers if they had full riot gear on and they had told their loved ones they loved them one last time. However this is also one of the safest places to talk without prying eyes and ears. I stopped off and got us each a soda and motioned for us to have seat at a nearby bench.

We sat down and I gave Ellen her soda. I said, "Your enthusiasm is commendable, but you need to tone it down. Right now you look as though you're about to burst out of your skin. Being in the revolution is a long hard road, and there is a better than average chance we will either be killed, captured slash re-educated, or die and this war will still be going on Ellen. However we don't do this for ourselves or to satisfy some primal blood lust against those who we feel have wronged others. If you want to do that just go buy a gun and take out the first group you see."

I looked over at Ellen and I took a drink. I nodded and said, "You have heart and that is one of the most powerful assets you have Ellen. You have a great willing spirit and that too is a great asset, but you also have to use your mind as well. Think things through, see the big picture, and learn when to act within the concept of a unique family. That is only going to come with experience and time."

I took a large drink and said, "Be patient, earn the trust of the others, and don't be too hard on yourself. I'm pretty much in the same boat as you in terms of learning what it means to be in all of this."

Ellen looked at me and took a drink. She nodded and said, "Thank you Martin. It was a nice blend of being brutally honest and uplifting at the same time."

I smiled back at her and said, "It's something we learn when we become a Prefect."

Ellen chuckled and I said, "I need to get back to work. I'll walk you back to work."
________________________________________________________________________________



Martin offered to walk me back to work, but I shook my head said, "Thanks but I'll be all-right here. I think I just want to sit here and take in what I'm seeing right now. Get a feel and a sense of focus for what lies ahead. I'll be all-right."

I looked up at Martin and asked, "Did what I say make any sense to you?"

Martin looked at me and replied, "Strangely enough it did. You have a unique way with language Ellen."

I smiled and said, "It comes with working in the propaganda division. Thanks for the soda and the talk Martin."

Martin nodded and replied with a chuckle, "You're welcome. I'll see you tomorrow night."

I watched Martin walk away and then began to turn my attention to what I was seeing around me. As I walked around I was actually amazed at what I saw going on. I saw people who were trying to make their way through life on terms that are less than ideal, but they keep on trying. I watched as parents came home from work to be greeted by their children, children who played together and did so without fear of what their parents thought, people treat their animals as though they were part of the family not just some sort of status symbol.

What I saw happening around me was...life. People wanting to live and who grateful for what they had. Then like a thunderbolt it hit me. I know why the revolution does the actions that it does, and there was actually a great deal of truth to what Martin said. The bottom line was that the revolution fought so that this next generation might have the opportunity to live in a world where life like I was seeing it could be shared by all on equal terms.

I walked back to my office with a sense of focus balanced by my still fresh enthusiasm looking forward to tomorrow night.

Maybe I went a little overboard. I could see with the way Charles was looking at me, he was suspicious. That’s what I got for letting my guilt take over. I tried to tell myself that no one would find out that he helped me essentially hack into the Department of Science information. The files I copied were antiquated at best.

”You made me what again?”

”Lasagna with a small side salad.” He continued eyeing me. ”You seemed to like the spaghetti last night so I thought you might like lasagna.” He still didn’t speak up. ”Do you not like lasagna?”

Charles shrugged as I handed the plate to him. I knew it’d been a stupid move on my part. Taking off time from work, running to the store, and slaving away in our tiny apartment kitchen to make the dish from scratch. I hoped it would taste alright or, if nothing else, not make him sick. Then again with enough cheese and tomato sauce anything could taste decent, right?

He handed me the laptop case, Restraint Main Library scrawled neatly in permanent marker on the outside. ”So what are you going to use this for again?” I openly winced at his question.

Work?”

He watched me, considering my answer. I could tell he didn’t believe me. ”Right Ms. Yurigei, well you have your secrets and I have mine.” With that he took the plate I handed him and disappeared into his bedroom. I wasn’t sure what to think. Something very definite had changed about Charles, like his confidence was suddenly bolstered. Still, I didn’t want to ask. I did have my secrets and the last thing I wanted to do was get Charles involved. Despite us living together for almost six months, I didn’t know him well enough to trust him. It wasn’t just my life riding on this discovery, if my suspicions were correct, the information I had could affect thousands of innocent citizens.

---

I swallowed hard as I read over the text again. Backer’s reports were filled with jargon and other random terminology I had to sort through. It was hard and less than an hour had passed before my brain was pounding from all the concentration. Still I pushed on until the words blurred in front of my eyes and the standard issue watch on my wrist showed 1:08 am.

I could hardly believe it even after all the evidence and data from the study groups. As I’d figured out by scanning over the report yesterday Vitamin 546 was an addictive poison whose main purpose was to lead to fetal death, that way the lower class population would be kept in check. The overall symptoms of the drug were kept in check so long as one continued to take the dose. If one discontinued suddenly without taking the countermeasure Vitamin 546-B, one experienced terrible withdrawal symptoms, and often times death. This making the drug serve a double purpose, as Mildred Backer had wrote, if the underclass were to ever rise up, the government would stop issuing Vitamin 546 and the rebellion would be easily curtailed. It would be hard to strike against the government when all your soldiers were ill or dying.

Restraint was a city wholly enclosed by a giant patchwork metal wall. When I was younger, I was told the wall was built to keep things out, although what no one really knew. As I got older, especially right after my brother had disappeared, I’d believed the wall was made to keep people in. But the wall wasn’t the only thing keeping people in their rightful place.

I shut the computer down and carried into my room. I needed to get some sleep before work tomorrow. I didn’t want anyone asking why I was so tired. But lying in my bed in the darkness didn’t help. My mind kept racing about the other files I’d hadn’t had time to look over yet. Where there any other drugs like this? Any other regulation supplements whose secret task was to keep the population of Restraint in check?

I arrived back at Central Command and made my way back to my office. I started to feel more confident in allowing Ellen to be a part of the revolution. Sure she had the blackmail material and the willingness to help out, but those sometimes aren't enough. What makes an operation like ours effective is that each person brings something different to the table. I bring a working knowledge of the City Government and the law system. Mario brings knowledge of the streets and life experience. Charles though we've only met briefly he is a librarian which means he is an educated young man. Working within the Revolution is more about intelligence than anything else. A person can be taught to fire a weapon or to run from danger, but to know how to use the information that you have been given is a gift.

I approached my office and my secretary Brenda said, "Prefect Wallace Executive Council Member Pierce wants to see you."

I nodded and said, "Thank you Brenda is there anything else?"

She shook her head and said, "No sir there isn't."

I replied, "Thank you Brenda. I'll go see him right now. Hold my calls please."

She nodded and said, "Yes Prefect Wallace."

I took the elevator to the council floor. This is where the real power lies. I have my gun and the serious temptation to open fire. I kill the 9 sitting council members and the Revolution is all over. However there are several security measure in place such as firearms suppressor unit that activates within 3 feet of any council member, and the trained psychos...I mean security guards who could take me down. I could take out though 4 maybe 5 but who's to say the ones I kill won't be replaced by ones who are more merciless.

I walked down a darkened corridor and approached a solid steel door with a call pad on it. I press the button and an electronic voice said, "State your business."

There's a part of me that wanted to reply, "Prefect Martin Wallace here to see how's it going and all that stuff." I decided to go with the standard, "Prefect Martin Wallace here to see Executive Council Member Stuart Pierce."

The voice replied, "One moment."

Within 30 seconds the voice said, "Executive Council Member Pierce will see you now Prefect Wallace. Enter."

The door slowly yawned open and I walked down to Pierce's office. I kinda like Pierce he's really a man of the people type of person. We've met a couple of times and we got along. He was though a great deal of help during my hearings to see if I should be appointed Prefect for my sector. Pierce was almost like my advocate in some ways. I think he does it so that if things get dicey he knows that there are those who will help him if things go bad here someday.

I knocked on his door and I heard Pierce say, "Enter."

I entered his office and gave him our customary salute and said, "Prefect Wallace reporting as requested sir." I stood at attention and Pierce said, "At ease Prefect Wallace. Care for a drink? I'm havin' a glass of Bourbon."

I stood at ease and said, "Not while on duty sir."

Pierce poured two glasses and said, "That's an order." I took the glass that he offered and took a sip. Good stuff for Bourbon I prefer Scotch myself. After my sip I asked, "What did you need of me sir?"

Pierce sat down and said, "Not much just checking in to see how things are going, and to ask you a question."

I replied, "It's only been a few days sir. Not much to report on except for the couple of raids we ran. Otherwise nothing I can really that isn't already in my reports."

Pierce nodded and said, "I read them. Solid information Wallace I think you're gonna be fine Prefect. Tell something though I've noticed that Ellen Westlake has been here a lot lately and you've been with her. Just wondering what that's about."

I wanted to tell him to mind his own business, but instead I nodded and replied, "Sir I've been thinking if we can get more of a tactile look from the media then that may in turn have the population be more aware of us and want to work with us. I've been collaborating with Miss Westlake on that through a series of interviews."

Pierce looked semi-impressed as he said, "Good thinking Prefect Wallace using the people as a resource. I like the idea. Not to mention she is rather easy on the eyes."

I shrugged my shoulders and said, "I'm about my work and service at this time sir. Although..." We both began to laugh and I finished off my drink.

Pierce stood and said, "That's all I really wanted to know Prefect Wallace. Keep up the good work."

We shook hands and made a little more small talk before I left. That could've gone either very badly or just as I had hoped. It also tells me that there is someone watching over us in the office. Need to make a note of that to be more careful.

I felt like an eleven-year-old. It was that nervous, jittery sensation. The kind you got when your best friend handed a note to your crush, stating your feelings and you waited for a response. That almost stifling sense of expectation. I kept checking my watch waiting for a message. It was almost lunch time. Surely Charles was out of bed. Surely he’d seen my scrawled note on the kitchen countertop.

”Please write down all the prescriptions and supplements you’re taking. I’ll explain later.”

It was sloppily scrawled on the front of a napkin. I still wasn’t sure what made me do it. Perhaps his taunting words about us both having secrets? Maybe reading the details side effects of the more horrendous drugs my lab had created over the years? I’d scrawled it down and ran out the door before I’d had the chance to really think about the consequences of my actions.

”Why?” –Charles Plygaurd

The word scrawled across my screen as Dr. Lark pressed a hand against the center of my back. I almost jumped out of my skin.

”Are you alright, Nym?” he said, searching my face.

”Yeah,” I said, trying not to concentrate on the heat radiating from his palm, ”Just really concentrated, is all.” ”Did he always touch me like this?”

”I understand,” he said in a friendly tone and backed away as if sensing my unease. ”I just wanted to let you know that I’d be out of the lab this afternoon. I have a progress meeting.” He paused as if considering something. ”You weren’t interested in coming along, were you?”

”No,” I said, offering another smile. It was hard to relax under his intense scrutiny. I tried to mentally shake myself. It wasn’t as if he knew what I’d been up to yesterday evening. So then why did it feel like all the air was leaving the room? ”I need to stop by the police station to file a report.”

”It wasn’t your roommate, was it?”

I wondered if everyone knew about my living situation? I knew I could thank Sally for that. Then I noticed his eyes skimming over the message playing and replaying on my watch. ”No, nothing like that.” Without meaning to I brought my other hand over my wrist. ”One of my friend’s seems to have disappeared. She hasn’t been answering her phone so…”

”Ah. Well people are known to disappear…” With that he turned off his computer, hung up his lab coat and headed off. I knew what Dr. Lark was getting at, but I highly doubted Claudette was involved with any sort of rebellion. Then again, I never suspected my brother. Grabbing my purse, I locked the lab behind me and headed out.

---

The building itself was a bit intimidating. Large windows of one-way glass reflected on the passersby, judging us, finding mostly of us unworthy. I barely got through the door before I was examined to an inch of my life. A metal detector, a chemical sensor, a retina scanner, and a few other things that even I, being a top notch scientists, had no idea what they were for. Ultimately I was deemed safe and was given a security sticker and a bottle of water. I promptly gave the unopened bottle back. Who knew what had been put into it.

I waited in line until it was time for me to present myself to one of the many identically clad secretaries behind identically decorated desks. ”Present your case.” she announced as I walked up.

”I would like to file a missing persons report.”

She looked up from her computer, annoyance clear on her meticulous waxed face, ”You know you can do that…”

”I tried that yesterday but seeing as I haven’t gotten a response yet, I decided to come in person.” It was clear she wasn’t impressed by my decision, but I fingered my work badge still pinned to my shirt. It would be clear to her, just who I was, and the rank I held in society. I didn’t like to pull class rank but sometimes it came in handy.

”You’ll have to see Wanda.” I nodded. ”She’s in the Domestic Crimes Unit. They handle disappearances but they’re prob. pretty busy this time of year.” I mentally checked my snide comment about what time of year disappearances weren’t a problem. ”Rick will let you in,” she said, nodding to a man guarding a door to my left. ” It’s easy. You’ll go strait, take the first left turn, pass three doorways then hang a right. After the third “T” intersection you’ll see the break room straight ahead. Then you need to take two lefts… wait… a left and then a right… or was it two rights? Anyways, after that the Domestic Crimes Unit is the second door. You’ll know which on it is because it’s brown. Got that?”

I nodded. I wasn’t going to tell her, I had no idea where I was going. Not when she looked at me like I was gum on the bottom of her pristine red heals. It wasn’t until I was on the other side of the door, hearing the faint whisper of voices and taping of keyboards that I even realized that all the doors were brown.

My parents were less than thrilled with what they termed as a hasty decision that I announced when I got home about 3 hours ago, but one that I felt was long overdue. My mom said, "I still don't think that you're thinking this through clearly at all. Moving out on your own Ellen among those...those..."

I interrupted as I was loading up a , "People? They are people mom besides I'm getting tired of feeling a like a prisoner in my parent's home. It's time I'm in mid 20's it's time for me to experience life somewhat on my terms. Don't worry you'll still be able to contact me, so if there are any important family functions I won't miss out."

My dad just shook his head and said, "This is a bad idea Ellen. I don't see anything good coming of this."

I replied, "Well dad if I fail on my own two things. One we know how you love to say 'I told you so, ' and I'll come crawling back here. Two if I fail at least it's on my terms. I have enough money that I can support myself and I already have most of the basic services up and running in my name."

My dad walked away shaking his head and my mom looked like she wanted to break down as she walked away. Truth be known it wasn't just because I felt that it was time for me to be on my own, but if something happens and I get caught my parents are spared the humiliation and questioning. I have strong opinions concerning my parents, but they don't deserve what would happen to them if I got caught. Not to mention, and I hate myself for thinking this but, if they found out what I was doing I couldn't be exactly sure that they wouldn't turn me in.

Surprisingly it didn't take too long for me to pack everything. I just packed up what I thought I would need and earmarked the rest for donations. I told my parents it made them look good and if I wasn't taking it with me I wasn't going to miss it.

I arrived at my new apartment building in a section of town that is at the furthest end of where I just came from. Yet I felt like belonged here all the time. I began to unload my boxes out of my car, set them in front of my door, unlocked my door, and then began to set up my new apartment. I kept the door open in case anyone wants to stop in and chat. No need in being an obnoxious anti-social jerk my first day here.

”Please.”

Nym’s response came so late that I half expected her to ignore my question. There were a lot of things I didn’t understand about my roommate anymore. Like why her behavior started to change just when I’d join up with the Rebels. I was a bit paranoid about her being on to me. Like something I said or did have somehow given me away. But I kept thinking back to our brief encounters and nothing came up. Besides, her behavior between the borrowed computer, spaghetti dinner, and questionable note the morning on the kitchen counter was far more suspicious.

I put down my magnifying glass and sighed. I’d spent the entire morning pouring over a ruined copy of Twenty Years After by Alexandre Dumas. It was the only copy the library had owned and it had gotten on the wrong side of raid. Whatever parts of the book hadn’t been smoke damaged had been tinkled on by the fire sprinklers. For reasons I couldn’t even begin to imagine, no one had bothered to digitize it unlike the more popular books in the trilogy “The Three Musketeers” or “Man in the Iron Mask”. Because either fate or Gracie had in for me, here I was. The scanner had gotten a good bit of the print but some of the words were too smudged to recognize, hence the magnifying glass.

Finally at one, I showed my face. ”I can’t take it anymore.” I said, feeling like a creature emerging from a cavern and into the light for the first time in years. ”I need a break.”

Gracie waved me over. ”Why don’t you grab a cup of Joe. Stretch your legs a bit. You look like you could use it.” She reached out and grabbed something out of my hair. ”Piece of paper lint.” she said, wiping it off on her shirt.

”Thanks,” I said, my brain feeling like much as I headed to the elevator and out to the street.

---

The smell of coffee beans, steamed cream, and sweet peppermint wafted through the air. The doorbell chimed merrily behind me as I stepped inside. As expected at 1:30 during the week day, there wasn’t much of a crowd and no one was behind the counter. Coffee Thyme was one of the more popular drink shops in Restraint. It’s brews were fantastic but were a costly habit I couldn’t afford. I thought fleetingly of the hot dog vendor I’d met yesterday. I was certain that after chatting with him I’d receive some sort of note, but nothing ever came. Where Ellen and Martin up to business as usual? I wanted to ask them but I’d realized too late that I didn’t have their contact, plus I didn’t want to draw attention to them or myself. There weren’t a lot of reasons why a middle-class librarian would consort with an upper-class business woman and I could only think of one reason why I’d have any sort of relationship with an officer of the law.

”You need anything?”. A woman appeared behind the counter. She looked younger than me, just out of school, I’d guess.

”I haven’t decided yet,” I said, glancing over the menu board again. I knew I was dawdling but I wasn’t in a hurry to get back to the cramped restorative room. ”Any suggestions?”

”Whipped mocha on ice. It’s refreshing, plus I earn extra points for selling the today.” she tapped the button on her shirt which featured the drink.

”Uh, sure,” I said, caving in way to easily to her pretty face.

She began scrawling something down on a paper pad. ”Name for the order?” I looked around. The place was relatively empty and no one else was in line. She shrugged. ”The manager’s old fashion.”

”Yeah, I guess. It’s Charles Plygaurd.”

”Charles Plygaurd.” She giggled but I didn’t see what was funny. Without further ado she began working behind the counter and I browsed the rest of the shop examining small mugs and plush bears all embellished with the words It’s time, for Coffee Thyme. I wondered if either Ellen or Nym were the type of girls to collect stuffed animals. I doubted it.

”Whipped mocha on ice ready at the bar for Charles Plygaurd.” she announced and I headed over to grab my drink.

”Thanks. How much?”

She just gave me a goofy smile. ”It’s on the house this time,” she said. I started to protest but she cut me off. ”Just make sure you come back and visit sometime. Oh, and pay it forward.”

I sat in my office going over monthly reports of arrests and kills. Some of the arrests are semi-justifiable muggings, arson, and murders among the lower classes over stupid arguments okay I can accept those arrests. However there are others that I see and could never in a million years justify. If it wasn't for the fact that we are the law I would say at least 75% of these arrests would be thrown out of court. Now that we have so many arrests to deal with and the prisons becoming over-crowded this could only mean one thing; a lot of on the spot executions will be happening in the next couple of months. Those who are in power will now be pushing even harder for on the spot executions of suspected Revolution leaders. Life is about to get very ugly very fast.

My secretary buzzed my office and I said, "Yes Brenda."

She replied, "Excuse the interruption Prefect Wallace, but there's a Mario DeCarlo at the sub-desk who is demanding to see you. Something about several officers under your command who have eaten at his establishment and not paid. He is only willing to speak with you and is causing quite a scene sir."

Mario coming here is not about unpaid bills, and him coming here means that something is up across the board. I replied, "All-right Brenda tell the sub-desk to keep Mr. DeCarlo there I will meet with him. I'll escort him away from the building so he's not making anymore of a scene."

I made my way down to the sub-desk as quickly as I could. Mario being here is a huge risk and not to mention ask for me by name could raise some suspicions as well if I don't deal with this a Prefect, and not as someone who is like a son to him.

I approached the sub-desk area where Mario was giving the performance of a lifetime. Acting the part of the outraged businessman to the hilt. Even I'm almost convinced as he screams in Italian, but I know Mario well enough that if he was truly upset he'd be yelling in English. This way no one would misunderstood what he was saying.

I said, "Mr. DeCarlo I'm Prefect Wallace. I understand you have some issues with some of those under my command. Come let's talk about this outside." I escorted Mario outside who was still carrying on and on. I played the "understanding" Prefect who nodded and said, "I see, I Understand, I can see your point of view" that kind of crap.

Once we were far enough from the station he said, "Thanks for seeing me so quickly Martin."

I replied, "You got it Mario. What's on your mind?"

Mario said, "We are preparing for what is for us a major offensive strike. We are planning on overthrowing Eagle Point. We are gathering various resources. I believe that we will soon contact Charles for maps of the area around it. So we can understand the terrain better and possible find other ways. Ellen will be enlisted right away to garner some more resources."

Eagle Point is a minor re-education station in the mountain region of our sector. It's not a major center but overthrowing a re-education center of any size is a big step for us.

I asked, "Where do you need my help?"

Mario replied, "A surprise inspection."

I nodded and said, "Recon the place got it."

Mario replied, "Yes anything you can find out would be of great help to us. I cannot ask you to be a part of this one Marty. The risk to you would be to great."

I said, "Understood my friend. When is this going down?"

Mario replied, "Two weeks so please move quickly."

I nodded and said, "Inspection will be in 3 days."

Mario replied, "Thank you Marty. Here.." He handed me several receipts and said, "Have to make it look good."

I took them and said, "You got it my friend."

Mario left to go back to his diner, and went back to the office where waiting for me was Vice Prefect Harrison. I sat down at my desk and made sure he saw the receipts.

He asked, "Everything all-right?"

I replied, "Oh yeah taken care of. I doubt Mr. DeCarlo will be giving us any more trouble."

Harrison asked, "What did you do?"

I replied, "Oh told him if he had a problem that maybe we could arrange for a garrison unit to be stationed across from his shop. He gave these to me and just walked away mumbling something about my mother."

Harrison nodded and replied, "Well done Wallace. Keep up the good work."

I said, "Thank you sir."

”Why not. –Charles Plygaurd

I looked down and checked the message when my watch chimed. Under most circumstances I’d be gloating, but currently I was too angry to be relieved at my roommates response. I’d been wandering around hallways for what felt like hours although the digital clocks above the doorways claimed it had only been twenty minutes.

The situation reminded me of the time I’d thrown my first dinner party when I moved out of my family's house. Charles hadn’t moved into the place just yet so I didn’t feel bad inviting over my four closest girlfriends. I’d spent twenty minutes running around the nearest grocery store trying to find lemon juice for the marinade. Was it a condiment? A salad dressing? A mixer? A canned product? A juice product? Was it with the lemons? Eventually, feeling annoyed and frustrated I gave up looking. But I wasn’t going to give up on this. Claudette was one of my closest friends and if I needed to wander around this rat's maze of an office for days, I would.

Fortunately it didn’t take that long. Through the benevolence of a few of the office staff, I finally found my way to the Domestic Crimes Unit. Like the front secretary had stated, its door was in fact brown, but it was only three doors down from the main entrance I’d first come through. I ground my teeth together. If I ever ran into that woman in a dark alley…

As luck would have it, Wanda was on a smoking break. When she finally returned seven minutes later, a cloud of the fumes hovered around her body. ”Can I help you?”

Wanda was clearly upset that I managed to find my way to her office. I offered up my best smile, and sent a silent pray to whoever was in charge up there that I hadn’t ended up in this congregation of jerks. ”I certainly hope so.”

---

Wanda was, as I’d begun to expect well into my adventure, not incredibly helpful but short of combing the streets for Claudette I didn’t know what else I could do. I knew I was being paranoid. Chances are she’d met someone at the club and had run off with them on some momentary fling. She’d come back, she always did. Still, while that explained why her husband hasn’t seen her lately, it didn’t explain why she wasn’t picking up her phone. Sure we’d had a tiny spat but there was no way she was that angry with me. Yes, it was a bit clingy but we’d chatted on the phone almost daily since our school days.

I was so engulfed in my thoughts that I wasn’t entirely paying attention to my feet. This, usually wasn’t a problem in my building’s corridor, but today someone decided it would be a good idea to stack boxes out in the hallway by their door. The toe of my black heel caught the edge of one such box enough to scuff it. I easily caught my balance. ”Who…?” I said, my voice not hiding my annoyance. That’s when I realized the apartment door next to me was open. Apparently Charles and I had a new neighbor. It was really only a matter of time since the McKenzie’s moved out a few days back.

I couldn’t avoid looking inside even though I knew it was rude, door open or not. A woman was sitting on the floor, unpacking on of the boxes she’d brought inside. She looked to be about my age with medium brown hair and pale eyes. ”Uh, hi,” I said, waving awkwardly. ”I guess you’re our new neighbor. I live there.” I said pointing to the unit directly across the hallway. ”My name is Nym Yurigei.”

The apartment was starting to come together rather quickly. Which wasn't that surprising since I didn't take that much from the house. I made arrangements for some of my items to "get lost in transit" some of it in the dump and some in the charity boxes. I made sure that the items in the charity boxes didn't have any of my initials or other identifying markers that could be traced back to me. Not to mention if I had some of my "finer things" as mother would call them on-display that could lead to all kinds of issues. I did some studying back at the office on people who had history of "dropping out" as it were and one of the first things they noted was to never draw attention to yourself.

Just then I heard a voice from outside the door. She introduced herself as Nym Yurigei. She had long hair, soft features, and legs that were almost as long as I was tall. I said as I stood up, "Oh hi there yes I am Ellen Westlake, and I..." I realized one reason for her introduction; I still had some of my stuff in the hallway I was so embarrassed. I continued, "Oh dear me I am so so sorry about that. I didn't mean to take up the hall way like that." I immediately grabbed the few boxes left out of the hall way and pushed them off into the kitchen.

I turned back to Nym and said, "Now then. Hi again as you can tell I'm a bit scattered brained right now. I made the spontaneous decision to move out of my parents' house this afternoon. I decided I'm ready to be on my own and on my terms." I looked around the apartment and said, "It's what I want right now. I think everyone wants that to a certain degree." I shook my head and said, "Sorry I'm rambling on. Where I work and where I came from I'm not used to conversations that aren't forced. I feel like I'm in a whole new world and just getting used to it all."

I took a deep breath and said, "All of that being said. My place is just about together and the rest can wait for now I've earned some down time. Care to come in for some tea?"

”Pay it forward?” I said and began sipping on my drink. As the woman had promised, it was delicious. And it was free. I took another long sip, practically humming to myself. I turned to go the long way back to the library, passing a small city park. It was past mid-day and the park was empty. It was to be expected since in this part of town you either worked or went to school to work. Lolling about on park benches was for the evening or the weekends. A glass tile and concrete fountain sparkled in the center of the area. Green, teal, and blues, cracked and dirty with age formed the image of a sprawling tree. Try as I might, I couldn’t call it attractive even if it had been beautiful once. Like so many things of the past it was now broken and no one had bothered to fix it. It was an impractical waste of precious water.

Still, the drink was good. I took another sip. Almost too good.

”Damn it,”

I reached in my pocket for the crumbled receipt and flipped it over. Just like the hotdog vendor, the barista had produced a receipt. It was weird, especially since I hadn’t purchased the drink. My brows nit together as I read the words. I mouthed them silently as I scanned them the second time. ”Charles-9 hundred Eagles Point the way”

---

I spent the afternoon finishing up my repairs. My brain bouncing constantly between the tiny faded letters of the book in front of me and the words printed on the back of the receipt. I had no clue in the world what it meant or what I was supposed to do with it. The vendor yesterday had mentioned something about bookmarks, but there was no way I’d be able hand them out trapped in this room.

I wracked my brain again. Nine Hundred Eagles. Eagles? Eagles were about as mythical as Minotaurs and Wildebeests. A few history books mentioned them but I was taught they disappeared a while back. Even if that wasn’t true, I’d never seen them in Restraint. And how could they point to anything? They didn’t even have hands? I’d already tried focusing on the number. But the Tale of Two Cities book I’d been delivered only went to 720 pages and as of yet, I didn’t read any mention of eagles. By the end of the work day the only thing I’d been successful at was the restoration. Still, even that was only halfway done, meaning I could look forward to another day of being locked in a closet.

I told Mario that there would be a surprise inspection of Eagle Point in three days time, but I hadn't been on an inspection tour and to show up at Eagle Point and then within two weeks have it get assaulted could raise suspicions. I decided to do an inspection on another station in a completely different sector. Most stations follow standard protocols with minor variations but for the most part they're pretty much a cookie cutter operation. "Don't want to upset the cart, and besides no one would dare try to overthrow one of our stations," is the line that the Council clings to for dear life. There had been other attempts to overthrow stations before but those groups were stupid to be blunt. They would try to do a an all-out direct assault a major one like The Citadel, The Diamond Heart, The Black Box, or any of the others. They would do these attacks without any recon, substantial resources, and once they got in they had no exit strategy.

I arrived at Red Field in the agriculture sector at dusk when there was a changing of the shift, so I could inspect the troops getting ready to go on duty.

I approached the gate and flashed my id and stated, "Prefect Martin Wallace of Central Station here for an unofficial inspection."

The guard snapped to attention after scanning my credentials and said, "We are honored by your presence Prefect Wallace."

I replied, "Thank you. Now how about opening the gate, so I can enter and inspect."

The guard said, "Oh sorry sir." The gate slowly yawned open and I entered. As I did I glanced over at the guard and said, "Well done as you were."

The guard went to parade rest and I entered the garrison area. It's where the troops got their briefings, their weapons checked, and discussed what was going on during the day. I opened the door to what looked like a classroom. The Sargent of the Guard was giving his briefing, the Commander was watching him in case he missed anything, the troops sat and took noted. The Sargent of the Guard said, "And in sector 13 there was a coolant leak maintenance has been made aware of it and...TENN-HUT! PREFECT ON DECK."

The Commander turned and saw me and snapped to attention as the everyone else that was seated sprung up like they were in a jack-in-the-box.

I walk towards the front of the room and turned to those standing and said, "Be seated as you were." I looked to the Commander and said, "Just doing an unofficial inspection Commander. I didn't even bring anything to write with just relax and do your job."

I turned to the Sargent and said, "Carry on with your briefing Sargent." I walked to a corner of the room and just observed everyone. They're highly trained and are very proficient at their job, but they've never seen any sort of battle making them a little slow on the draw. That could be to our advantage.

Once the briefing begins to wrap up I stand next to the Sargent hoping this will get his attention. Once he is finished he asked, "Anything you wish to add Prefect Wallace?"

I replied, "Yes Sargent I want you to gather the troops out in the Main Yard for parade inspection in two minutes."

The Sargent said, "Yes sir Prefect Wallace. TROOPS FALL OUT!"

As they left I approached Commander Taggert and said, "This won't take too long. Once I inspect the troops I'll want a tour of the rest of the facility."

Taggart replied, "It'll be my pleasure to conduct that tour for you sir."

I nodded and made my way to the Main Yard. Taggart is a career man who has no business wearing a uniform. He is career suck-up and politician and is here because his Uncle knows someone and is marking time until he retires.

I inspected the troops and did the Hard-Ass Prefect routine on some of them. and said nothing to others. Once it was over the troops were dismissed and I was given the tour. I felt like I should get a medal for staying awake and not killing Taggart for his sucking up to me.

As I left the facility though I did pick up some useful nuggets to share with Mario.

I hesitated briefly at my new neighbor’s invitation. From the sound of her explanation, she’d practically ran away from home. While it wasn’t heretical to live on your own, the fact that she had made the decision only today, had packed up, and had managed to find a place, seemed extraordinary. Right now between Claudette’s disappearance, the changing relationship with my roommate (meaning the fact that we were actually communicating), and my extra-curricular research, I didn’t want to add anything else extraordinary. I needed ordinary. Plain and simple. Ellen Westlake didn’t appear to be ordinary.

That’s when a thought ran through my mind. Its contents were so terrible that I was tempted to bolt. Maybe the reason Ellen Westlake had moved in across the hallway because of the copied files. Had the government moved her in so she could work as a spy?

I looked into Ellen’s face. The woman was still waiting for an answer. ”Stop being so paranoid. You’re acting foolish.” I chided herself, ”If the government really knew what I’d done they’d have hauled me off like they did with my brother- no questions asked. If I act weird all the time, someone’s bound to get suspicious.” I held my breath to try to calm down.

”Sure. Do you have anything herbal? I try not to drink things with caffeine, too late in the afternoon.”

Like most of the upper and middle class apartments, this one came pre-furnished. I took a seat on the couch that was the twin of the one in my own apartment and waited while Ellen prepared our drinks in the kitchen. In the meantime, I asked about Ellen’s occupation, her age, and if anyone else was moving in with her. Since Ellen had mentioned living with her parents, I assumed the other woman was also waiting for her husband to be assigned to her.

”I moved out of my parents place a few months ago. I thought, at first, when I was contacted about my new living quarters that I’d be moving in with a new husband. Turns out it was just a roommate. My parent’s place was a little cramped and this apartment is much closer to my job, so it’s nice.” With false ease, I spooned some sugar into my cup and stirred. My family had gone through some changes after my brother had been taken away. Our housing status had been down-graded and some people in their neighborhood had been less than pleased about my parents “breeding a Rebel”. We’d moved into a smaller place, closer to the heart of the city after that. I thought it was cozy but I was the only one. ”Charles’s is pretty good as far as roommates go. He’s clean, respectful, and quiet. I couldn’t really ask for a better one.” Plus, he doesn’t ask too many questions about borrowed computers or listing vitamins.