Escape from Harrizel Read Free Page B

you’re
looking for.”
    Is this a riddle? Or is he trying to push me
over the edge now he knows I can’t escape? It must be punishment
for fleeing, for attempting to save my life. But what would he have
me do?
    “But I don’t know what I’m looking for!” I
scream at him again. “You’re not telling me anything!”
    “You didn’t want to hear any of it before…”
Clarence scratches his chin again, weighing his options as if
either could work toward his benefit, “but if you really want to
know the secret to it all, here it is,” he leans closer, holding my
focus with his. He wants to make sure I hear him. Make sure I’m listening to what he says. “Your memories are powerful… but
your dreams will give you truth . ”
    Another riddle. What am I supposed to do
with that? He smirks as if he’d revealed the location to Atlantis
but I, a mere land dweller, can’t sail a ship. Back on his feet, he
casts a view north.
    “It’s time.”
    “For?”
    “Our departure,” he looks to me as he begins
to pace, hands casually in his pockets. “I told you I prefer the
term ‘escort.’ The others just don’t quite fit. I’m not introducing
you to a new religion—not yet at least. Once you get to Harrizel,
you can decide for yourself. And I’m not snatching you under a
cloak in the middle of the night.”
    “Just the afternoon?” I tug at my wrist
restraints behind my back. Something hard like brick presses deep
into my skin so I stop.
    “And liar,” he goes on, “well, that’s not really an occupation—just a way to get what you want. So
again, it comes back to escort .”
    “Can I still call you Clarence?”
    He stops, offering a slight bow. “You
may.”
    “Then why does it matter what you call
yourself?” I ask through gritted teeth, struggling to sit up.
“You’re taking me regardless.”
    “This is true…” he nods, peering down, “but
I’d rather you feel accompanied rather than taken . You’re
going home , Fallon,” he waves his hand slowly, as if wiping
something clean from the air, the restraints disappearing from my
hands and feet. “To start your new life.”
    I massage my free wrists, rubbing release
into the joints. The thought of fleeing rises but the field is too
wide to run off in any direction. He’d catch me. He’d catch me in
less than a second. And I’d only be bound again.
    “You are correct,” it’s as if he’s reading
my mind, his focus off on the distant trees. “Better to just come
along with me. It’d be less painful for you.”
    “And these are my options?”
    “Sadly.”
    I scowl, angered and terrified all at once.
“Where are you taking me?”
    “To your new home, Harrizel.”
    “Which is?”
    “Jeb will explain things further. I haven’t
done a very good job and for that, I apologize. You’ll learn soon
enough and if Jeb doesn’t teach you, the others will.”
    “Others?”
    “Yes—the other survivors. You think you’re
the only one who escaped the war? Harrizel hosts a little over four
hundred humans.”
    Other survivors? Humans? Then this is real?
I shut my hanging jaw and replay his words. Harrizel hosts a
little over four hundred humans. Is that all that’s left of us?
Or all that he’s taken?
    “And growing?” I try to gauge an idea.
    “Hopefully,” he nods, “that’s my job. To find you… and escort you to Harrizel,” he offers his
hand.
    Escape is futile. But if I go with him,
there’s a chance I’d never be able to leave. I could try and make
my way back… but to what? I don’t even remember this place. Not yet
at least. But what other choice do I have?
    “Will I ever come back here?” I ask,
slipping my hand in his. It’s oversized, like a catcher’s mitt and
he uses it to pull me from the ground.
    “To what? This is no longer your home. This
is no longer anyone’s home,” he threads our fingers as the
same invisible air restraints lock our wrists together.
“Ready?”
    The wind sweeps through the distant