Father sighed despairingly.
"What will come will come." He said in a matter-of-fact tone.
"Am I still going to school?" I asked somewhat hopefully so that I could stay in the protection of our home.
"No. I'm sorry Flora but that is out of the question. Please get ready for school and meet me here in 15 minutes." I did as he wished and stood at the door in my uniform. He tripped his feet up the hall while holding a peculiar looking beverage that smelled of alcohol. It occurred to me that I had never seen mother or father drink.
"Are you okay?" It was a stupid thing to ask since the love of his life had just been taken away to do who-knows- what, but I was worried about him. It was as if mother was the director of his life and without her he just gave up. He gave a bedraggled wave of his hand before heading into the lounge to fetch Aldo.
"Take him with you," he said. "he knows the way." I put on Aldo's lead and made my way out of the door.
"Aren't you coming?" Father stood there staring off into space.
"I love you," he said softly; and then he hugged me. It wasn't rough or tense, but calm and warm like a father's hug should be.
"I love you too," I replied, "have a good day, I'll miss you." I sadly felt that that was the first time father had acted like a father. I felt his face crease into a smile before he stepped back and whispered, "Be safe."
Once again, I became a part of the pedestrians and made my way to the school.
***
Dr Wyse was standing outside waiting for me. "It's nice to see you again, Flora. Many apologies for your expel."
"It's nice to see you too." I made my way to the familiar yellow classroom, with Aldo traipsing in behind me.
I expected 20 students to stare at me, including Noah; when in fact 20 empty chairs stared at me.
"Dr Wyse?" I asked, "Where is everyone else?"
"Hmm? Oh they'll be along shortly. Do you have any questions, my dear? You've missed out on a lot of school."
The clock read 9.15am and so to pass the time I decided to ask her questions about the war.
"Where are the bomb shelters? I recall father mentioning it in the story but I can't remember what he said." I knew in fact that the bomb shelters were in the garden but I did not know where the other bomb shelters were because he said 'most' went to the ones in the garden.
"Oh, the lampposts, my dear." Dr Wyse shuffled some papers as if it were obvious.
"What? They can't possibly move they could kill people if they fell!"
"Neuropsychologists created an invisible barrier so no-one walks under the artificial lamps as they fall."
Was it just me that thought she said artificial?
"Dr Wyse?"
"Hmm?"
"Did you just say the lamps were artificial?"
"Yes, yes the lamps are artificial, you see so they don't know they are bomb shelters." She cleared her throat as if to pronounce the conversation had ended before I could ask who 'they' were.
***
After what had felt like an hour since I had arrived, I looked at the clock to read the time: 10.10am.
Dr Wyse looked up at the clock as well and moved towards the main entrance to look for everyone else. I was going to join her in her search when she stepped outside and barricaded the door.
"Dr Wyse!" I was not okay in claustrophobic situations.
"Flora, just stay in the school please." She said calmly, and I kicked the door to make her move the barricade. Aldo sensed my desperation and began to bark and lash the door with me.
"Stop this! Please!"
"I have been given strict orders to keep you inside the school-"
"For 10.15." I finished. Mother must have informed Dr Wyse of this demand. She gave the same request to my father and I.
"Dr Wyse? What is going to happen at 10.15?"
"I cannot say, I do not know. Do not ask, I do not know. I cannot say, I do not know. Do not ask, I do not know." She rambled on for several minutes repeating the same sentence.
Then it occurred to me.
My parents were leaders of World War 3, but my mother got demoted. She must have already planned the future because that was what was in the basement.
The basement held...
No.
"No." I gasped.
"Yes, yes, yes, but I cannot say." Dr Wyse shook her head furiously and looked at me with an alert fear on her face.
"No! It can't be true!" I screamed.
But then I heard it. The Air Raid sirens.
'They' were coming.
YOU ARE READING
The Encroacher's Trilogy: Dystopia (COMPLETED)
Teen FictionIt is Flora's 15th birthday and she is given the strangest gift of her life. Since the age of 6, Flora had only ever known the facade walls of the Lab and its inhabitants. She had been told numerous times of the stories of the horrors of the outside...
