Permafrost [COMPLETED]

Cade

My phone buzzes in my pocket and I pull it out to see an unknown number.

I press down on the decline button and drop it back into my shorts.

Lori gives me a strange look.

"Not a number I recognized." I tell her and she sighs.

"Can you forget about the phone?" She says sounding drained, a complex expression flooding her features.

"Huh?"

She places her hand on my knee and my leg stops shaking. I hadn't even realized it was.

"What's been up with you? Ever since the phone call at my house and the mysterious boys in the paper. You're all wigged out or something."

"I'm not-" I close my eyes. "I'm fine! Lori, I just had a lot caffeine this morning."

"Cade, there wasn't a cup in the sink." She says confused and I sigh.

"I put in the dishwasher, can we just forget about the cup?" I say hurriedly.

"Are you sure you're okay?" She asks genuinely concerned and I bring my hand up to push it through my hair. "You look like you're extremely anxious about something."

I don't answer her.

Bradley comes up to the microphone and I lose it, rushing out of the small space and onto the grass, quickly.

I hear Lori call after me a couple times but I don't turn around.

I reach the trees in the park on the other side of the road and I stop, glancing to see no one around.

I start my trek up the street walking until my feet hurt and my head pounds.

I sit down on a wooden bench and pull my knees to my chest.

I know exactly what's going to happen. I heard my mom talking to my step-dad about it last night.

If I have to go over to the other side and live with my biological father, I'll die.

I have to figure out a way out of this.

I'll break out of this stupid town if I have to.

The fence will never be able to stop me and neither will the WatchMen.

I sit on the bench for a long time.

It could've been days.

"Hey, blondie!" I hear suddenly and I look to see a car pull up to the side of the bench.

"Levi?" The only reason I recognized him was because Lori has shown me pictures.

"Lori said you ran off, we're gonna go hide out so we don't have to go to the other side. Wanna join?" I almost hop in the car but then I think about my girlfriend.

"What about Lori?" I ask and Levi waves it off.

"She's gonna head over with the girls. They're gonna do a quick supply run." He starts to roll up the window. "You coming?"

I hesitantly open the door to the backseat and slide in, finally acknowledging the other guy in the car.

"I'm Cade." I say, leaning my body up through the seats, sliding my arm out.

"Marcus." He says grabbing my hand and I let go quickly, almost making it awkward.

"You're the other one who got over the wall." I realize and he laughs, his eyes closing for a second, a smile covering his face.

"Word does get around, doesn't it?" Levi pulls back on the road quickly and takes off, the park bench fading with every mile.

"So what did you guys find?" I ask and they look at each other.

"We went over to see if we could find Katherine Shelling's case file." 

"Can't you just get those at RES?" I ask and they both shrug.

"I mean you can but all the cases over there are real and unedited. It tells you everything. When they send the files over the wall, a lot of the information on the case gets left out." Levi says, Marcus finishing his thoughts.

"And you never know what kind of information they aren't telling you."

"Who's Katherine Shelling?" I ask and they stop, Levi stopping the car so hard that I almost fly out the windshield.

"Do you live under a friggen rock? Katherine Shelling has one of the most mysterious case files known to Brookwall. Nobody knows if she really committed a crime." He starts driving again.

"Why would Bradley put her over there if she didn't do anything?" I ask as Levi runs a yellow light.

I hear a dog barking and I look out the window at a running squirrel.

"A lot of people think her husband did it and ratted her out when she threatened to tell the border about him. They took her anyway because the money was missing and they had no other suspects. They had to keep Katherine for 6 months on a suspicion because they still didn't have any evidence that she committed the crime. Everyday they asked her "if you didn't do it, who did?" and she never told them because even though her husband put her there, she didn't want him to get in trouble. Even though they didn't have any leads, they weren't any closer to proving her innocence. So she had to do the 5 years." Levi stops at a red light and I watch a couple walk across the street. This town is not gonna be like this anymore once Bradley sends all the kids over.

"She's a preschool teacher at RidgeViewPre. Why would Bradley even think that she would do something like this. Her husband fixes computers for god's sake." Marcus frowns, keeping his arms crossed.

"Well, Bradley is a suspicious guy." Levi replies. "Half of his life is a secret. Lena doesn't even know what he does most of the time."

"Lena Res? You know her?" I ask and he nods.

"My dad and Marcus' dad both work for Bradley." Levi runs another yellow light and keeps his eyes trained on the road. "I even think Griffin works for him."

"Griffin Garrett? That guy we were just talking to at TownCenter? In the jeans and that weird trench coat? Shaggy brown hair? How can he work for Bradley at RES Corp??" Marcus sounds completely appalled by Levi's sudden thought.

"I think he has a crush on Lena."

"What makes you say that?" Marcus asks Levi as we pass yet another light. How far out of town are we?

"The way he was looking at me. Like he was angry at me for something. And no guy looks at me like that even if I just murdered his whole family. No, this was about a girl. And I bet you it was because I waved to Lena."

"It could have been Riley." Marcus suggests and Levi waves him off.

"Nah, she's only 16. And besides he wouldn't date his sister's best friend." Levi finally pulls up to a old run-down house and I notice a guy standing in the window.

Then I notice the for sale sign in the yard.

"Hey guys, if this house is for sale then why is there-" I look back up but the man is gone.

"Why is there what?" Marcus asks me but I shake my head. Maybe it was just my imagination.

"Never mind."