I stayed in the duct until I found a location without Pop Cops. When I dropped to the floor, the closest scrubs jerked in surprise, but soon they beamed at me. The line of people shifted, creating an opening my size. Sliding into the spot, I swallowed, trying to push my heart back down to its proper place, but it refused to budge, choking me.
While waiting for a sign of Cog, pressure built inside me as if I held too much water. My nose dripped and tears blurred my vision. I concentrated on the floor, counting the lines of rivets. If I couldn’t see and was barefoot, I could probably navigate through the hallways of Inside by feeling the little bumps. At least, Inside’s predictability would benefit the blind.
A sudden jolt of insight flashed, like two live wires just connected in my brain. I had the answer to question number three,Your eyes can see, but mine don’t work, yet I see what you can’t. What am I?It was the reason I couldn’t find Gateway.
The noise level rose to my left, and Cog’s head bobbed through the crowd. I gasped when he came into view. New bruises covered his swollen face, patches of blood soaked his coveralls and his hands were cuffed behind his back.
But the most astonishing aspect was his smile. He grinned at everyone.
I leaned out past the scrubs. Four Pop Cops led the way, pushing back the edges of the crowd, and four were behind him.Lieutenant Commander Karla wasn’t there. Instead, Lieutenant Arno followed the procession.
I turned to a woman on my right, and stood on my tiptoes so I could talk into her ear. “Can you take a message to Jacy for me?”
She nodded. Her face pale and serious. When I told her the message she gazed at me in frank astonishment.
“It’s very important,” I said. “Promise?”
When she promised, I stepped into the middle of the corridor. An angry frown replaced Cog’s smile as soon as he spotted me.
“I found it,” I yelled over the buzz and babble of many voices.
I knew he couldn’t stay mad. His whoop of joy rang through the hallway. Everyone stopped talking. The silence became an eerie almost living presence.
The Pop Cops in front finally noticed me. They shouted and pulled their stunners.
Maximum damage, I thought and rushed them. The element of surprise was the only reason I managed to knock one of the Pop Cops over. I yanked his gun from his hand and stunned him.
“No one recycles Cogon!” I yelled. Pleased the ad-hoc battle cry rhymed.
Then everyone moved as if my shout was a signal. Scrubs overwhelmed the rest of the Pop Cops, taking their weapons and knocking them down. A short and brutal attack. I gaped at the unexpected turn of events.
The chant rippled through the lower levels.No one recycles Cogon.
It didn’t take long for the scrubs to overpower the Pop Cops. A few scrubs were stunned, and little blood was shed on both sides. Cuffed with their own hand-cuffs, the Pop Cops huddled in the middle of the dining room. All the tables had been pushedto the side and scrubs surrounded Cog, slapping him on the back.
Cog organized teams to secure entrances. Every resident of the lower two levels had come to level one for Cog.
Understanding ripped through me as I watched them look to Cog for answers, for plans on what they should do next and for praise.
Broken Man wasn’t their prophet, Cogon was the true prophet of Inside.
Karla made a huge mistake in wanting to parade him through the scrubs as an example. The Pop Cops had grown overconfident and now her lieutenant knelt with the rest.
After a few minutes, I pulled Cog aside.
“Can you believe this?” Cog gestured to scrubs nearby.
I had been surprised, but shouldn’t have been. The signs had been there, I was too wrapped up in my own problems to notice.
“They think I know all the answers.” He shook his head in amazement, then sobered. “We can’t hold out for long. The uppers control everything but the food. All they need to do is send gas through the air shafts or shut off our air. Unless…” He shouted at one of the maintenance crew to install air filters in the ducts. “Now tell me everything about Gateway,” he ordered me.
“Yes, sir.” I dodged his playful swat, then told him how we discovered the location from the files. “I need to get a few supplies to be absolutely sure Gateway is there.”
“I’ll come along,” Cog said.
“You can’t fit through the shaft.”
He laughed. “Trell, you’re still thinking we need to sneak around. Hank,” Cog yelled.
