Young Offender, Part 41:
Francoise was surprised Jet didn't pester Albert. The New Yorker kept to himself all day, playing solitaire and and smoking. He didn't even eat the lunch Gilmore had thrown together.
Francoise walked around the small, empty house the doctors had rented to avoid Albert and Jet. She knew he was going to leave and go to Florin's meeting tonight, regardless of what anyone said. She wouldn't have stopped him, anyway, because she planned on going with him.
Albert was in the same solitary, gloom, but Francoise knew he wouldn't go tonight. She admitted he had legitimate reasons. Still, it didn't seem like Albert to avoid those in need. All day, she kept pondering what it was like being in love and being in a marriage for almost seven years. She couldn't guess what it was like losing a spouse. That's why she made an allowance for Albert seeming disinterest in Florin's risky plans.
Finally, Kaminari called for everyone to gather for dinner. Jet put on his jacket as he walked into the kitchen. Albert looked over and shook his head in vigorous aggravation. Francoise braced herself for a violent argument between the two.
"I ain't forcing ya', but come with me," was all the redhead said, gently, eyes shifting between her and Albert.
"I will, Jet," Francoise answered quickly, but Albert grabbed her elbow and shook his head.
"Don't go, Francoise. It's too dangerous. Your brother wouldn't approve." She didn't miss the dirty look he shot Jet before he said, "Jean-Paul is expecting us to take care of you. If you get hurt, I could never look the man in the eyes."
She scowled at Albert and jerked away from his grasp. "Don't presume to use guilt over my brother to manipulate me. Or Jet, for that matter. That's too cold, even for you."
She didn't like how Albert's face turned from shock to anger. He had the good sense to finally looked embarrassed; he lowered his face to his crossed arms.
"It's her choice, Al."
Albert jerked his face upwards towards Jet. "And if she gets hurt, it'll be your fault."
Jet's eyes narrowed. Francoise could have sworn he was going to, and she knew the old Jet would have, cuss or make a nasty comment. Instead, he squared his shoulders and waved Francoise to leave with him. She did, without casting a look over her shoulder.
Francoise wanted to talk, but Jet's stony expression, and the fact that he was silent, didn't encourage conversation. They got to the apartment a little before eight. Francoise knocked on the door and Frau Schuessler let them in. There were three other people there. Florin and two older men, who were wary construction workers. Francoise could smell all the tell-tale signs.
"I'm glad you two came. I'm surprised Herr Heinrich didn't come. Doesn't he know about how the Wall destroys families?" Florin snapped.
Jet glared down at the younger teen and shook his head. "He knows all too well... better than anyone should. I'm not going to hear him criticized for not coming along to this party," he said, voice low and craggy, but firm. "It's his own business and don't pry into it. You've got us."
Florin nodded. "Alright. This is Udo and Axel."
"She's Francoise and I'm Jet."
Francoise nodded to the men who stared at them. They nodded back, still tense. Francoise heard a slight, clicking beat coming down the hallway. Joy hit Francoise as she shook Jet's arm and smiled at him. He gave her baffled look. "It's Albert. I hear him."
A knock at the door a moment later made everyone else jerk. Frau Schuessler opened the door with trepidation. Albert stepped in and nodded to Jet and Francoise. She looked at Jet and was pleased to see a bright smile. She didn't miss the admiration and pride in Jet's eyes. She didn't miss it because she felt them herself.
"I hope I'm not too late," Albert said. He wore a chagrined, lopsided smile, but there was a strength in those eyes. The Albert she knew, and depended on, was here.
"Thought you'd never get here, old man," Jet answered, rolling his eyes and smirking.
She, Jet, Albert, and the man named Udo set out few hours after the meeting had taken place. It was now two in the morning, but she was feeling much too anxious to feel fatigued. She wanted to live up to her brother's ideals. That's what made her determined to help people get to freedom.
Udo had informed them a family of five was trying to escape East Berlin. The father was a chemist so East Germany wanted to hang on to the man's valuable skills; he was desperate to get his children and wife away from the threat of the Communists. Udo had come up with a ruse to distract the Stasi watching them.
He had planted dynamite in an abandoned building two blocks away. He had waited cautiously and set the explosion when people weren't around. The man was careful that it wouldn't hurt anyone, but it would certainly cause chaos. The ensuing mayhem let the three cyborgs slip into the apartment building without notice. Francoise kept her ears trained for any approaching threat as they raced upstairs.
They halted at the fourth floor when they saw two Stasi by an apartment door. Francoise heard the high pitched, metallic whine right before Jet disappeared. Not a second later, the two men crumpled and Jet reappeared by the door. He wore a self-satisfied expression as he knocked on the door.
The middle-aged, German chemist peaked out of the door. Francoise could see fear in the man's eye. She could hear that the ruckus outside was starting to draw police and they were getting it under control sooner than Udo had planed. "Quick!" she urged.
"We're here to get you out," Albert explained.
"You're Udo's people?" The man opened the door slightly and Francoise could see three children, one boy and two girls, all under twelve, and a trembling woman.
"Yes. Quickly, before they get back here," Albert urged. The German cyborg lead the way down the hallway to the stairs. The family followed with Jet and Francoise trailing behind.
Before they could charge down the stairs, a young man in a black uniform hit the landing. Francoise could see surprise, fear, and then determination as he went to draw his gun. Albert moved fast, slamming his body against the young man. Francoise's throat dried as she saw Albert's right hand come up to the Stasi's temple. There was a stony look in Albert's eyes.
Jet ran up to Albert and clenched his shoulder. "Come on, Albert. This ain't you. You kill 'cause you have to. You don't kill someone like this."
Albert nodded and slowly lowered his hand. Francoise watched Jet's shoulders relax, and she felt the same. Albert said, "Let's go. To the rendezvous point."
With that, they left the young Stasi on the landing and fled into the night. Albert led the way three blocks south. The group darted down an alleyway. Albert waved his hand at the sewer grate, and Jet helped him yank the bars from the ground. France turned at the startled gasps coming from the family of five. She put on a reassuring smile and said, "We already loosened it before we came."
"Francoise, lead the way," Albert said. She could hear several adult, male footsteps coming their way. She went over to the open sewer and took Jet's hand. He lowered her into the noxious darkness. Her eyes easily adjusted to the darkness; everything appeared a grainy green. This was one upgrade she planned on putting to good use.
Jet dropped down beside her. They caught the children and had them hold hands. Then Albert helped the mother down, next the father. Finally, Albert dropped down with a dull thud.
"This way," Francoise whispered, tugging the youngest little girl by the hand. Everyone else trailed behind her, closely. She found her way through the maze with her enhanced senses. It took her twenty minutes to lead them under the wall in total silence. She recalled the directions Udo had given her. She led them to a passage to the right.
Francoise start scanning the concrete ceiling and found the rendezvous point. There was a dim light above and directly ahead. She tugged the family with her quickly and was relieved to see the sewer grate was opened.
"We're here," France called out. Florin and Axle peered down in the dark, but their smiling faces weren't obscured from Francoise's eyes. Jet stepped to her right and grabbed the smallest girl. He lifted her up to Florin, who gleefully pulled the child up.
Francoise watched the sewer tunnels while the family was freed. She jerked her attention around when Jet made a leap upwards and pulled himself from the dark tunnel. Jet then held his hands down to her. She looked over to Albert; the man had a grave expression.
She almost spoke his name, but he cupped his hands together and knelt before she could confront him. She put her dainty foot in his hands and was boosted towards Jet. The American grabbed her hands and finished lifting her out.
She looked around at the family they had rescued as Jet helped Albert out of the sewer. There was something in the family's eyes she didn't like at all: mistrust.
Florin and Alex urged the family to follow them down the West Berlin alleyway they had reemerged in. Francoise frowned at the suspicion directed at her, Jet, and Albert before the family was led away.
She turned towards her companions when Jet made a snort. "Weird. I didn't do this for a thank you, but they didn't say a word. And what was with the drop dead looks they gave us?"
"They know we're not one of them," Albert answered numbly. He shook his head slightly and marched down the street towards their temporary home. "Let's get this stench cleaned off of us."
Jet peeked his head into the small room without furniture. Albert sat in a corner, knees drawn up, arms resting on them. The three doctors were sharing the master bedroom, and they'd started turning the basement into a lab where Ivan rested in a corner. Francoise claimed the attic space, so that left Jet and Albert, as had been their luck since they were first captured by the Black Ghost, to share the one remaining room.
Jet looked around to see the man had been generous enough to make them each pallets on the floor to sleep on. He walked in and shut the door, then he continued rubbing his damp, scarlet hair with an old towel. As had been Jet's luck, he always seemed to be the last one in the shower line, no matter how hard he tried to beat the others. At least he hadn't had to compete with Ivan for extra helpings of food.
He had been dreading this moment after they arrived home from the rescue. Albert hadn't been acting unpredictable, which unnerved Jet unlike anything.
He went and flopped down on his side in front of Albert. "So, are you okay?"
"I'm fine. Yes."
Jet gave him a quirked eyebrow. Albert finally continued after a deep breath. "I didn't want to hurt that man, but I felt this incredible anger. It just came to the surface before I realized it. I just remembered that night Hilda died. It was the Stasi that surrounded us and shot at us. All that rage came back."
"I know you well enough to know you weren't angry with that guy, and I know you really don't have it in you to hurt someone like him. You're angry at a situation you couldn't help. You're hurt from losing her."
"I could've helped it," Albert whispered, but sounding furious and full of passion. "The accident was my fault. I was driving. She'd still be living if I would have just moved to East Berlin with her. I pressured her because I wanted to raise children in a place where I could support a family. In the East, I couldn't make a decent living."
"We haven't had many choices after the Black Ghost. I know you and her didn't have much choice then, either. She took a risk because she wanted to be with you. It was worth it for her."
"My bad choice led to her death. I panicked. My bad choice also let us getting caught by the Black Ghost again. I should have stopped us from trying to steal from them. It made us a bigger target."
"We had to do something to stand up to them. I still belive that."
"The whole thing was a nightmare, and with what happened to you, I just..."
Jet shivered at Albert's guilt ridden eyes jerking away. Jet's hand almost flew up to his throat, but he stopped it. Jet hadn't realized how guilty Albert had felt over the pain the Black Ghost inflicted on Jet's jaw.
"Being in West Berlin makes me relive all the reckless, selfish, prideful decisions I have ever made in my life. Tonight made me realize that you were right. I want to stay here. I need to atone for all those bad decision I've made. I want to make things right. I know I can't change my past, but I can change someone's future."
Jet was stunned at Albert's confession. Something was changing, shifting, between them if Albert was willing to share that much. Jet's natural urge to blow off Albert's blame came under check. He bit his bottom lip and remembered his several months of silence. There were gains to be had with quietness. Jet reminded himself Albert revealed a lot more when listened to.
Jet nodded and rethought his words and his tendency towards negativity. "Tonight, you did help someone else get that dream that she..." Jet's face went hot realizing he was disrespecting Albert's former life. "I mean that... Hilda... and you had together. It's a good thing, what you did tonight. I want to stay here for a while, too. This seems like a place we can do some good, in spite of what happened to us." Jet shrugged and smirked. "Besides, I think we should wait here for Jean-Paul to show up."
"We won't be going to New York any time soon. That Wall is solid."
Jet gave a snicker. "Ya' well... I'm more stubborn than a pile a bricks. You know, my life has been a lot different than I thought it would. To confess, I never really thought about it before. All this shit going on in the world. I just blew with the wind. Now, here I am, breaking the law for good in Europe of all places. Who would have thought. Not my folks."
Albert gave a somber attempt at a smirk. "I never pictured life like this either. I guess we're all trying to figure it out." Albert took another deep breath and rubbed the bridge of his nose with in index and thumb. Now, the stable expression Jet knew was back. "It was bitter-sweet watching that family walk away. It also brought up another kind of quandary. About us and our humanity."
Jet gave him a baffled look, but held his tongue. He instinctively knew Albert needed time to sort it out. There wasn't anything Jet could do to drag it out of the man before it was time. Besides, Jet knew Albert had just revealed more than he was comfortable with. Jet contented himself and stretched his arms upward.
Albert stood, walked over to a pile of blankets on the floor and dropped on them. Jet sighed and crawled over to his pallet. He quickly burrowed under blankets, but he couldn't drop off to sleep. His mind bounced, comparing his life before the Black Ghost to his current situation. Also, he was hoping if they stayed, Albert would find some healing.
To be continued.