“I’m so sorry,” a voice whispered behind Flynn’s back. It was Mr. Kowalski, standing at the door, pale faced and wringing his hands. “You should’ve seen him last night, Flynn!” said the old man with a furtive glance over his shoulder. “Your father held his chin up high…,” the Archipelago’s ancient kept his voice low as he approached Flynn. “That takes remarkable strength!” Mr. Kowalski mumbled something under his breath and slowly backed out of the room.
Alone again, Flynn’s helplessness and despair turned into anger. He kicked furiously at the table then grabbed one of the chairs and threw it against the opposite wall. Sweeping boxes from their shelves, Flynn went on a mad rampage… When he was done, the little apartment looked like it had been hit by a tornado. Standing back to inspect the damage, Flynn felt his head begin to clear. Suddenly, Flynn knew what he had to do… He was going to find his father and save him… no matter what!
A flapping sound made Flynn turn his head. A bird had landed on the windowsill, and was tap-tapping its beak against the plastic sheet. Stepping outside, Flynn saw that it was a carrier pigeon, waiting for him. The red ribbon on its leg meant it was one of Madison’s, and there was a rolled up note around its neck.
“Go away!” Flynn cried, trying to shoo the bird away with his hand.
The pigeon took off, circled and landed quickly next to Flynn. Clearly, it wasn’t going to leave before its message had been delivered. What could the girl possibly want from him? He had made it clear that he would never speak to her again… Annoyed, Flynn reached out and took the roll of paper. Madison’s note was brief.
It said: Tony’s on the List.
“They took him! They took my boy!” Mrs. Romero wailed, choking on her tears. Her face was swollen, her eyes red and puffy. She stared blankly at Flynn, then buried her face in her hands and sank back into the shabby mattress.
Flynn had found her like that when he had burst into Tony’s apartment. Doubled over, Mrs. Romero’s voice was hoarse from crying all night long. Her frail shoulders trembled with every sob. He had also found Madison sitting next to the woman. The girl now had a cup of water in her hand. “Here Mrs. Romero, drink this,” Madison said gently.
Tony’s mother lifted her head, looked at the cup for a moment then burst into tears again.
“Mrs. Romero…” Flynn cleared his throat. “I’m sure it’s all some kind of mistake… And I’ll make sure they fix it.”
“My child’s gone!” the woman wailed. “He’s as good as dead now! Nothing matters anymore!”
“He’s not dead, Mrs. Romero…” Flynn started to say.
“Leave me alone!” the woman cried. “It’s all your fault… All that stupid diving, Flynn… you made my Tony sick… and now look what’s happened!”
“Mrs. Romero…” Flynn’s eyes darted to Madison, seeking help.
She shook her head, got up from the bed and came over to him. “Let’s go,” she whispered. “There’s nothing we can do here.”
Flynn nodded and turned to leave. He stopped at the door and glanced back at the poor woman. “I’ll find him, Mrs. Romero… I promise!”
He walked out and rushed down the stairs, followed by Madison. She caught up with him at the docking area and grabbed his shoulder.
“Flynn!”
“Let go!” Flynn jerked his shoulder free from her grasp.
“Wait… where’re you going?”
“To the Van Zandt building… I’ll talk to Duncan Roth. Tony’s my Crew Mate.”
“Don’t be stupid, Flynn! You’ll only make it worse.”
He didn’t answer.
“Listen…” Madison said, “I know what you’re thinking, but… we need to be rational here… we should come up with a plan.”
“We?” Flynn spat, narrowing his eyes. “There’s no we anymore!”
“You know you need me back on your team, Flynn!” Madison pleaded. “Tony’s my friend as much as he’s yours. I can help… you owe me that much!”
“I owe you nothing!” Flynn stuck a finger in her face. “Get that into your pretty head!” He turned and hurried down the stairs.
“Flynn… wait!”
“Go back to you boyfriend, Miss Ray!” he shouted over his shoulder. “Leo Van Zandt needs you more than I do!”
And with those words, Flynn was gone… leaving Madison to stare after him with a look of despair on her face.
Duncan Roth was leaning over his desk, studying the complicated blue-prints of an engine, when there was a knock on his door. He scooped all the pieces of paper and shoved them in the nearest drawer, then turned toward the door and said, “Yes?”
The door opened just a crack and a guard’s head appeared. “May I, sir?”
“Come in, Hopper.”
The guard pushed the door open and stepped in, dragging a boy behind him.
Flynn Perry stumbled, then found his footing and straightened up. It took him a second to scan his surroundings. He was standing in a huge room, smelling of leather and coffee, with big glass windows and an oak desk… Behind the desk sat his new boss, the man everyone called the Rottweiler.
“Found ’im lurking round this floor, sir!” said the guard, wiping the sweat off his brow. “Says he wants to speak with you! I was gonna get ’im arrested, but he showed me the badge… and I figured he mus’ be one of yours, so ‘ere we are.”
“Well done, Hopper. You can step outside.” Duncan Roth waited for the guard to leave then turned his cold, gray eyes on Flynn. “How did you get up here unannounced, Perry?” he finally asked.
Flynn tried to hold the Rottweiler’s stare. “Climbed the outside scaffolds, and then scaled the elevator shaft…,” he said.
“You think you’re good at finding your way around places, don’t you?” Duncan Roth arched an eyebrow.
“I am, sir!”
Duncan Roth studied Flynn’s face. “This is the last time you’ll ever break protocol!” he finally said. “Try to be smart with me again, I’ll strip you of all your privileges and send you to the Waste Crews! Is that clear?”
Flynn nodded.
“Now, why are you here?”
“It’s about Tony Romero, sir, my partner… He’s on the Departure List.”
“I’m aware of that!” said Duncan Roth, his face blank. “And so is your father, I believe.”
“But, there must be some mistake, sir! Tony’s still young, my age… that’s never happened before! Usually…”
“We don’t make mistakes, Perry! You know that!”
“But…”
“Romero’s sick and therefore unable to contribute to the community,” the Rottweiler said, studying his nails. “He’s on the List for the greater good of our city! It’s the law of the land.”
“Sir, we just won the Trials together! Surely, you can do something…”
“The matter’s closed! Don’t make it worse for yourself!” Duncan Roth paused for a second, pointing his finger at Flynn. “There’s someone here in this building… someone very powerful… who’ll be glad to see you join your father and your friend! Is that what you want?”
Flynn stared at Duncan Roth and clenched his fists. He knew that this someone was Leo Van Zandt.
“I strongly suggest,” the man said slowly, “that you forget about your father and Romero and concentrate on your career, young man! You’ve got a bright future ahead of you. And I expect you to be ready for work assignments as of tomorrow…. I’ve already selected a Crew Mate to replace your friend.”
Flynn took a deep breath… He wanted to scream at Duncan Roth.
“You can go now, Perry. Our little discussion is over!”