CHAPTER 25
Thank to those who are reading.
Jeff Moran looked through the open door. The massive space beyond was filled with rows upon rows of people in camp beds. Most of which were on the concrete floor.
The first person he came to was an older woman in her 50s. Scraggy hair no teeth and a black eye. She sat there rocking a comfort blanket to her chest.
Ray the Visitor medic came to stand behind him and pointed, "Most of the humans on this side are highlighted in red so I wouldn't bother to even give them a second look...you can start by cleaning those wounds up on that female over there"
He pointed to a girl in her 20s on the opposite side. Jeff nodded and approached her. He in turn found his eyes scanning the opposite side for Terri who was highlighted red.
Jeff crouched down, "Hello...what is your name?"
"Demi"
She was a black girl dressed in jeans and a denim jacket that was full of batches. Jeff reached out and turned her head and saw the burn on the left side of her neck.
"Does it still hurt?"
She nodded, "Abit...one of their laser bolts scrazed me when I tried to beat it"
Ray wheeled a trolley over with basic medical supplies rattling on the top.
"You have alot to get through Moran...less of the chat and clean her up...she's got a place waiting for her"
Jeff looked up at him and back to Demi, "I see"
Jeff reached for a cool spounge and soothed the burn then he rubbed some white cream in and said, "try not to touch the area...less chance of infection"
He then stood and turned to Ray who rose his eyebrowes, "Okay just follow the list on the way down"
Jeff notioned his head to the opposite side, "What about those people?"
Ray frowned, "I told you...they are to be disposed of"
"Yes but...I mean...how"
Ray smiled at him, "It's painless I can assure you...we use Nitrovenaga 8, it is a gas that will..."
"I KNOW what it does...", his mind raced. Terri, his daughter being sent into that.
Ray smiled again, "I suggest you just do as you are instructed or YOU can also go with them"
Jeff nodded.
XXX
At the underground, Louise laid on her bunk with an itchy grey blanket to her face. Since learning of Jeff's capture she was trying to cling to the hope she would see him again.
After checking up on Jenny and the baby, Juliet came to the door and rapped on the curtain.
"You okay?"
Louise raised her head, "I can't believe Jeff's been captured again! Talk about bad luck"
Juliet leaned on her cane, "I've just recieved info that he's been taken to the camp...Mike saw Martin earlier today and asked about him for us"
Louise jumped up,"The camp! But you heard what he said about that place...once you get there you never come back!"
Juliet tried to calm her down, but she knew she had to be honest with her.
"Martin will moniter the situation, but...I'm not going to lie to you but...if Jeff talks..."
Louise shook her head and laughed at her with a knowing look.
"And what if he doesn't? They'll kill him? Yeah, I guess they'll have no choice, huh? Jeff should NEVER have gotten involved with you or any of you...this is crazy!"
Julie watched Lou stand and pull on a shirt, "No Lou that's not fair...Jeff wanted to help"
"And look what's happened to him...I can't be here...I need to get out, I need to do something to help him"
Louise pushed past Juliet and hurried up the dim tunnel.
"Lou please...STOP HER!"
Louise pushed Elias to the damp wall and was gone up the steps.
Elias frowned and thumbed back as he approached Julie, "Hey what's her problem?"
"I think we might have to make plans to move on...if Jeff isn't made to talk, she's desparate enough to do so..."
XXX
Jenny laid still where she had been for several hours. The birth had been pretty traumatic for her and for Juliet and Ruby. Now, the thing she had given birth to was behind the curtain. She moved her arms and then heaved herself off from the bed and edged over to the corner of the plastic curtain and snatched it aside so she could lay her eyes on the spawn she had dropped.
She gasped, the look on her face was akin to disgust. The thing in the cribb was a nightmare hybrid you could only think up. The thing was female and her skin was leathery in most places. Her little head turned to reveal she had blue eyes that seemed to search out for her.
The thing had hair. It was chestnut in color which matched her own hair color. Jenny flinched when one of the infants hands reached out to her. A hand that was more human than her other hand.
It gurgled something.
Jenny shook her head and backed off from the cribb. The thing gurgled again. Ruby then came in and hurried forward, "Jenny dear why are you up so early...please, Juliet said you have to rest and get your strength back"
Jenny looked at Ruby as she took her arm and moved her back into the direction of the bed. Jenny shook her head and pointed to the cribb, "You should go drown that thing"
Ruby tilted her head, "Come now...you are her mother...she needs you to be strong"
"Mother? To that monster? Do you really think I can be a mother to it? Do you?"
Ruby umm'd and arr'd, "well...arrr...she is your baby...you gave birth to her"
Jenny met her gaze, "Would YOU be her mother? Could YOU look after it? Go up there and in the streets with it"
Ruby really didn't know what to say and even know how to make her understand it didn't really matter. But it did. And the old woman could understand Jenny's point of view too.
"Maybe just give a day or two. See how you feel then"
Jenny got back onto the bed and turned her head around to face the damp wall. Ruby backed away and turned around to watch the baby move about in it's cribb. She reached out and took the human looking hand and otherwise focused on the not so human aspects of the infant.
She let the hand drop and moved the wool-knit cover to the neckline to make sure it was warm enough and went back to the kitchen to make some tea.
It was when Ruby was out of sight when Jenny raised her head from the pillow and looked around...
XXX
At the camp, Jeff Moran searched the line of people that stood ready to be herded off to the gas chamber.
An elderly couple who grasped eachothers hands. A thin woman with a Safeway supermarket tabard on. A black man with a black eye. An Asian woman whose dress was covered in dried blood.
They looked at him for help. Assurance that everything was going to be okay.
A young man in his 20's grabbed Jeff's arm as she searched the line of people, "What's going to happen to us? Are you with them? Are we going to be taken somewhere else? To another camp?"
Jeff was hesitant as he tried to answer but look for Terri had the same time, "Everything will be okay"
He nearly choked on those words as he tore himself away and saw Terri. She was near the rear of the line and was still wearing her Visitor youth corps uniform.
Her hair was lank and she looked like she had been crying.
Jeff grabbed her as she looked the other way. Terri squirmed away in a shriek before she heard her father's voice.
"Terri honey...shhhhh"
Terri was wide eyed and looked like she couldn't believe he was there in front of her.
"Shhhhh Terri...you have to be quiet"
A siren then went off that made them both jump.
Everybody in death row glanced forward with looks of both puzzlement and bewilderment. Jeff pulled Terri out of line and pushed her towards the corner.
A Hand grasped him. He turned and saw Ray grinning back at him.
"I...ermmm"
Ray shook his head, "You like her? You want her for yourself?"
Jeff shook his head, "No no no, you don't understand...she's...she's my daughter"
Ray tilted his head in understanding, "Ohhhh and you want to save her from..."
They both looked towards the double doors with a red light flashing on both sides and the siren still ringing out.
Jeff looked at Ray with pleading eyes, "Please...she's my daughter I cannot just watch her go through there...please...please I beg you please"
Ray's facial expression told the medic that he was considering it, then he looked at Jeff.
"Alright...but these things are balanced out...I will allow you to save your daughter..."
Jeff closed his eyes in instant relief.
"...but you can choose someone from the otherside to take her place in line", Ray finished with a smile of enjoyment.
Jeff swallowed down, "What? I can't, I..."
Ray looked to the beds on the otherside, "female I think...what about her over there...", he pointed and looked back at Jeff for a nod.
Jeff could see the Visitor was pointing to Demi.
"Your daughter can take her bed over there and be saved...and the other one can stand here and meet her maker as you humans like to say"
Jeff stammered. His mind was in a whirl as he looked about the room. The sad confused faces. The crying, the moaning.
"A human for a human, a female for a female, a life for a life, a stranger for your daughter...it's a simple choice", Ray looked at Jeff carefully, eyes boring into him.
Demi looked across to him and smiled and waved at the guy who treated her.
"It's almost as she is willing you to do it", laughed the Visitor still staring at Jeff but somehow could see the other girl smile.
Jeff looked back towards Terri on the floor looking up to him in hope.
Jeff looked back to Demi who was chatting to someone in a springboard beside her.
The the siren stopped and fell silent.
The doors clanged open and two Visitor shocktroopers came forward and snatched each one in line and pushed them along to enter the metallic chamber that lay beyond the double doors.
The stench of death wofted from the chamber that made Jeff want to wretch.
Ray grabbed Jeff's arm to get back his attention, "Tick tock. Times up. What are you going to do...?"
xXXX
TBC