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park benches down the middle. All stood dark and quiet.
Other than the intruders, nothing stirred.
The maintenance access corridor they wanted was about
a hundred meters down the corridor, a security door
separating it from the public area. It would take them
directly to the surface. Matthew cautiously made his way
down the corridor, the others following close behind.
At the security door, Matthew stopped, the others
spreading out to keep watch as he punched in the access
code. As he typed in the seven-digit code, he held his
breath. He placed his hand on the doorknob and heard it
click as he tried to turn it. They were in. Matthew smiled,
realizing the code probably hadn t been changed in a
hundred years.
Down the corridor and up a flight of stairs, they
reached the surface. Immediately, everyone removed their
goggles because the streetlights still called such despite
the absence of streets rendered them useless. They
crouched in the shadows between a garden wall and a row of
orange trees until their eyes grew accustomed to the light.
All was quiet, the houses of the city s elite dark.
Matthew pointed to the school where Tyler lived. Then he
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pointed to the security checkpoint which stood between them
and the school, two guards on duty, one sitting with his
feet up while the other chatted with his back turned to the
intruders.
Khadijah signaled to Javier who nodded in response.
Then she pulled off her headscarf, quietly slipped out of
her hiding place, and calmly walked toward the checkpoint.
As she passed under a streetlight, the guards spotted her.
Desert clad, golden-brown skin, close cut auburn hair, she
looked like something out of a storybook. Both men moved
toward her as she approached, and Matthew saw Khadijah
smile at them. It had the desired effect. The men smiled at
her, and Matthew saw Khadijah raise the neurological
disruptor. A flash of blue light and the guards lay
unconscious on the ground.
The others rushed from their hiding places, careful to
avoid the light. As Khadijah dragged one of the men into
the shrubbery and Javier hid the second guard, the rest
continued on across to the school without stopping.
Khadijah and Javier rejoined them a moment later at the
school fence. One by one, they climbed over the fence, and
within seconds, they stood in the grassy play area. The
back of the school loomed before them, an ancient brick
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façade with ivy growing up the walls and glass doors
leading inside.
Matthew reached the doors first. He slipped on his
goggles again and peered through the glass pane to see a
classroom. He tried the door handle but found it locked. So
he punched his fist through the glass, reached in, and
unlocked the door. Six of them went in, two remaining
behind to keep watch.
A light coming from the hallway outside the classroom
forced Matthew to remove his goggles again. As he entered
the hallway, he saw the source a small lamp left on as a
night light near the stairs. Matthew headed up the stairs,
Khadijah, Javier, and Banjoko following him, but again, two
stayed behind to keep watch, this time at the base of the
stairs.
On the second floor, there was another hallway.
Matthew checked the first door he came to and opened it.
Looking inside the large room, the light spilling in from
the open door, he found approximately thirty cots, a little
girl asleep in each. As Matthew began to walk down the row
of cots, Banjoko followed him, Khadijah and Javier standing
in the doorway. Passing each cot, Matthew carefully looked
to see if the sleeping girl might be his child. He couldn t
tell. In the darkness, they all looked alike. But then he
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noticed the light falling across a nightstand next to one
of the cots and illuminating a photograph there his wife,
happy and beautiful before her illness. He moved quietly
toward the cot and stared down at the small sleeping figure
of Tyler. He sat down on the cot, the movement stirring
Tyler. She opened her eyes.
Daddy?
Yes, Tyler, it s me, Matthew said taking her into
his arms, holding her close, and not wanting to let her go
ever again. After a moment, he pulled back a bit from her
and looked down at her face.
But Elder Finley said you went to Heaven, Tyler
whispered.
He just thought I did, Matthew replied, I left the
city. But I came back to get you, and I want to take you
with me now.
But it s the middle of the night, Tyler said.
I know, but it was the only way I could get you.
I understand, Tyler said, It s because they won t
let you have me.
Her comprehension of the situation disturbed Matthew.
She was too young to know such things, but soon she would
be free of this world and its rules.
You have to be very quiet, Matthew said.
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Tyler nodded. Matthew pulled the small quilt off the
bed and wrapped Tyler in it. As he did, he noticed the
smell of perfume and realized it came from the quilt. He
held it up to his nose and breathed in.
Smells like Mommy, doesn t it? Tyler said. Matthew
smiled and nodded. She had made it while expecting Tyler.
Matthew stood up with Tyler in his arms. He handed her
to Banjoko, then grabbed the photograph of his wife, and
shoved it into the folds of his clothing. Turning, he saw
Tyler staring at Banjoko, her eyes wide with amazement at
his uncovered face.
This is Banjoko, Matthew said to Tyler. She smiled.
Banjoko. What a funny name.
Tyler. What a funny name, Banjoko smiled as he
handed Tyler back to her father.
Making their way from the dormitory, Matthew saw a
little girl sit straight up in bed. Banjoko stood closest
to her.
You re dreaming, little one, he whispered, Go back
to sleep.
If I m dreaming, how come I have to go back to
sleep? she asked the man towering over her bed.
Because I said so, he replied, his voice even deeper
than normal.
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