When Luz and I reached the water treatment facility, there was the slightest hint of pink glowing on the horizon.
“We’ve got to hurry.”
“I know. It won’t take long,” Luz said. “My dad gave me a tour of this whole place when I was little, and I’ve visited him here plenty of times. Once I asked him what would happen if someone climbed the water tower and poisoned it or something, and he told me there’s no way that would ever happen, that the only place something could get into the water supply was in here.”
She tapped a string of numbers into the keypad beside the building’s rear entrance, and a quiet buzz broke the silence of the early morning.
We both slipped inside, and I followed Luz through corridors, down a couple of stairways and to another door labeled Treatment Room.
“You wait out here,” she whispered. “I’ll go in and do it. If you see someone coming, come in and warn me so we can both hide.”
As if it had just occurred to her, she said, “You know, I guess we could get arrested for this or something but compared to what they’re planning to do to us, that isn’t so scary.”
“True,” I agreed. “Good luck.”
The door closed softly behind her, and I turned around, keeping my ears tuned for any noises to indicate someone approaching.
I assumed there was at least a skeleton staff somewhere in the building, but there had been no guards outside or in any of the corridors. Maybe since we were on a highly secure military base, they felt there was little threat from the inside.
They certainly wouldn’t have expected their docile little teen automatons to suddenly wake up, rebel, and sabotage their infrastructure one morning.
If a guard did show up, I really wasn’t sure what I would do. Luckily, Luz was back within minutes.
“It’s done. Now hopefully the magic potion works.”
“And hopefully we can get back out of here without getting busted,” I said. “Follow me.”
She led us back to the exit where we cracked the door and peeked outside before leaving the building. The sun still hadn’t crested the horizon, but it was getting close. The sky was now a light lavender-gray.
There was a greater chance of someone spotting us now, and they’d no doubt be very curious to know what a couple of students were doing near the base’s utilities area.
We couldn’t afford to be caught. Syd had to be almost in place by now at the rendezvous spot.
We emerged from the building cautiously and started speed-walking toward the East gate. My eyes darted back and forth, expecting to see a guard pop out of nowhere at any moment.
Sure enough, when we were halfway across the courtyard, a jeep with two heavily armed soldiers roared up beside us. The driver slammed on his brakes, sending gravel flying everywhere and making me jump in surprise. I could feel my heart racing as time seemed to slow down.
The driver slid out of the jeep, towering over us.
“What are you girls doing out here?”
His coffee breath reached my nostrils even several feet away. He’d probably been up all night.
While his tone was harsh, there was a hint of humor in his dark eyes.
“Is it a crime to go for a walk?” I asked, attempting an innocent tone. “Our doctor says exercise is important.”
Unlike the young driver, who looked to be in his mid-twenties, the other sol- dier was older and not the least bit friendly. He got out of the jeep and strolled around its front to face us.
He wore a green camouflage uniform and an armored vest. His weapon hung from a strap on his shoulder, his fingers within inches of the trigger.
“No, it isn’t,” he said. “But you kids usually don’t.”
He looked the two of us over-a little too thoroughly for my liking. “What are you doing so far from the residential quarter?” he asked.
“Like she said, we’re getting in shape. What are you doing talking to us?” Luz challenged. “I thought that was against base rules.”
The older soldier’s eyes narrowed as he stared at Luz. I held my breath, praying that she wouldn’t say anything else to provoke him. For a moment, the air between them crackled with tension.
I could feel my palms starting to sweat, my heart hammering in my chest. We were so close to freedom, and now it felt like it was all going to be taken away from us. I wondered if he knew what we were planning, if he could some- how see the rebellion in our eyes.
Then, to my surprise, the soldier chuckled.
“Rules are made to be broken,” he said, a sly smile spreading across his face. “But only by those who know how to handle the consequences.”
I didn’t know what he meant, but I didn’t like the sound of it. My stomach churning with a mixture of fear and frustration. We had come so far, only to be stopped by a couple of soldiers on a morning patrol.
“Look, we’re really sorry if we’re not supposed to be out here,” I said, trying
to sound as convincing as possible. “We just wanted to get some fresh air before the sun comes up and gets too hot.”
The soldier didn’t seem exactly convinced, but he didn’t press the issue. In- stead, he turned to his partner and gestured back towards the jeep.
“Get back in, Private,” he said. “We’ve got better things to do than babysit some kids.”
My heart lifted with relief as the two soldiers climbed back into their jeep and drove off, leaving us standing in the courtyard, our hearts pounding. “That was too close,” I said, my voice shaking.
“You’re telling me.” Luz’s eyes darted around nervously. “We should hurry before they change their minds.”
Resuming our journey across the base, we hugged the shadows of the build- ings and staying as inconspicuous as possible.
Finally we reached the East gate.
Oh, this is not good.
There was an enormous truck parked just inside it and a crowd of base personnel gathered around it, examining a deflated tire. That was not going to be a quick fix.
Our plan to slip out unnoticed was shot. I only hoped Ketta and Jolie had managed to get through before the truck had rolled up and blocked the only known escape route.
“I could go over the fence,” Luz suggested.
I looked at it, filled with dismay. The perimeter fence surrounding the base was ten feet high and topped by razor wire. Climbing it was out of the question.
“Only if you want to get cut to ribbons,” I said. “Maybe you could slip out through the West gate without anyone noticing.”
She shook her head vigorously. “My house is near the West gate. It opens and closes fast, and there are always at least two guards there. Plus, if I left the base there I’d have to walk the entire perimeter to get back to this point and then run the quarter mile to the rendezvous spot. How long do you think the driver will wait before taking off?”
“You’re right. That’s not going to work.”
Tipping my head back, I stared up at the sky, thinking. My eyes followed the thin white trail of a jet as it crossed silently overhead, too high to be heard from this distance.
High. My heart tapped out a rapid new beat.
There was a way to get over the fence without touching it, but Luz was going to need my help.
“How do you feel about climbing trees?” I asked her.
“Um… do I have to?”
“If you want to escape, I think you do. Come on.”
At the northeast corner of the compound, a large southern live oak stood tall against the fence.
Its trunk was thick and strong, its branches perfectly placed for scaling its heights. The higher ones spread out toward the perimeter fence like an inviting bridge, beckoning us to cross over.
Luz stood looking up at it, her eyes wide with fear. “I don’t know. It’s pretty high.”
“You can do it. It’s easy. I used to climb this tree all the time when I was little.”
An idea occurred to me. “You know what? I’ll go first and show you all the best footholds. I can even pull you up if you need me to.”
Luz nodded, and I scrambled up the tree, reaching back to give her a hand whenever she seemed stuck.
Pulling ourselves ever higher, we eventually reached a branch that stretched over the fence and looked thick enough to support Luz’s weight.
“Okay, now all you have to do is drop. You ready?” I asked.
I turned back to check on Luz, and her face was pale, in spite of the exertion. My own face was probably beet red, as it always was during ESBF class.
“You can do this,” I assured her.
Her head wagged in denial, and her quick breaths were loud. “I don’t think so. I’m going to climb back down. You go. I’ll stay and warn the others.”
“No, Luz. You can do it. It’s not that high.”
She only shook her head in response, looking frozen in fear.
I blew out a breath. What now? We could climb back down, go back to the East gate and hope the stalled vehicle had been moved and all the responding personnel cleared out.
That would take time we didn’t have, and it was doubtful they’d managed to tow the heavy vehicle yet.
I peeked down at the ground then turned back to Luz. “I’ll go first, okay? That way you’ll see how to land and that it’s not that bad.”
“How will you get back into the base? You’ll be trapped outside the fence,” she argued, but new hope had entered her eyes.
“No problem. I’ll just go around to the East Gate, hide and wait till it’s clear and sneak back in the same way I snuck out before.”
“Okay…”
She still sounded a bit uncertain, but it was the best plan I could come up with on the fly.
Thankful for the many hours I’d spent climbing trees when I was younger, I sat on the branch and scooted out far enough to eliminate the possibility of any contact with that vicious razor wire topping the border wall as I came down.
I took one more look down at the ground. The branch barely cleared the top of the fence, so the drop couldn’t be any more than eleven feet.
There was a small chance of landing wrong and getting hurt. But then, if Heath was right and his father was coming to get me and my friends, we’d be more than hurt.
It was worth the risk.
My friend was only one short drop from freedom, and she was counting on me to show her the way.
I smiled at her. “See you on the ground in a minute.”
