Catching Butterflies

Three The Return

Three

The ReturnIt was an odd thing to find a concrete wall crossing the road, a solid door in its middle. And yet there it was. It towered in front of us, its length undetermined as it stretched in opposite directions from the entrance until the forest on each side swallowed it. Its hard and unyielding form a stark contrast to the living trees that ran along beside the barrier. Wind rustled the leaves and limbs swayed and creaked. Apart from the branches bumping into it, the gusts had no effect on the obstacle.

The dirt road passed underneath the large and sturdy entry, and I could see no other passage through the barricade. I pushed on the heavy, steel door, the metal cool and rough beneath my hands, but it was as strong as the rest of the rampart.

“What do you s-suppose is behind it?” Beth said.

“Who knows, but whoever built it didn't want just anyone on the other side. Anyway, we can't climb over it.” The smooth concrete offered no footholds, and it was far too tall to scale with no equipment.

A drop of water splashed on my forehead and trickled down my nose. Whether we found a way through or turned back, we needed to decide soon; the weather worsened by the second.

“There's a panel up there.” Beth pointed to a small solar panel sitting on the top of the wall several feet away from the entrance. Below it a camera pointed at us.

“Do you think that camera works?” The thought it might, made my stomach roll.

Beth picked up a large stone from the side of the road. She approached the surveillance system, brought her arm back, and released the rock. It sailed past and hit a tree with a solid knock. Before I could say a thing, Beth scooped up another rock and tried again. This time the projectile connected with a loud crack. “Maybe that will get someone's attention.” She brushed her hands on her pants and smiled.

“And you think that was a good idea? Maybe we don't want attention from the other side.”

My sister seemed to think over what I said and shrugged. “Too late now.” While she sounded indifferent concern flashed in her eyes.

Beth paced while I worked at slowing my pounding heart. After several minutes and no one arriving at the gate, the fear eased. We were both disappointed and relieved.

The solar panel gave me an idea, and I ran my hands along the edge where the concrete wall and the steel door met. “There!” A narrow, metal plate slid open, behind it a black screen, like that on a cell phone and like the one outside the rooms at C.E.C.I.L. I pressed my fingers onto the smooth, tempered surface, remembering the day I found myself unescorted in the white corridor. The overhead lights had flickered, and the cameras were still, their red lights extinguished. My thoughts returned to the present.

“Maybe it's for an eye,” Beth whispered beside me.

I unfastened the harness from my pack and let the straps slide from my shoulders as I recalled the hazy memory of Jasper pressing a card to a scanner. The darkened sky lit up with a blue flash, and my sister began her ritual counting as I rummaged through my green sack. About halfway down, under a large flashlight, was the leather-bound journal, wrapped in the spare orange t-shirt. Inside the front cover was a pocket and inserted into that was Jasper's identification badge. I had found it tucked inside the journal earlier when looking for the portrait I'd drawn at C.E.C.I.L. The picture of Jasper on the white plastic card knotted my stomach.

“Is that Jasper?”

As words would only get caught in my throat, I nodded instead.

A bar code marked the backside of the ID, and I pressed it to the screen. Nothing happened. After wiping it on my t-shirt, I tried again.

My heart skipped. A small, green light in the top corner blinked. Some mechanical instrument whirred, and the door slid back then halted. The space was just wide enough.

“Looks like we're squeezing through,” I said.

Beth unbuckled her backpack and shifted it from her shoulders. I tucked the journal inside my bag and the ID into my pocket. A heavy drop of rain landed on my head and it tickled as it trickled through my hair.

I bent over and retied the green lace. “Put the bags through first and then—” Squeaking metal interrupted me. When I looked at the gate, a blue runner with a pink shoelace disappeared behind the door.

Beth's smiling face poked through from the other side. “Not much of a s-squeeze.”

I shoved my bag through the opening and followed it. A loud rumble in the sky made me jump and Beth yelped as we hurried. The other side looked much like what we left behind, a dirt road sandwiched between trees. Whatever else hid behind the steel door and concrete wall had yet to show itself, but I hoped for shelter from the storm.

“Stop!” Beth called. With her hands resting on her knees she leaned forward; her shoulders pumped with her heavy breaths.

“Why?” Another lone rain drop fell on my arm.

“So tired,” she huffed.

A sudden wave of dizziness came over me, and my body swayed. I stared at the steel entrance well beyond my sister and at the barely visible opening we'd crossed through moments ago. The skin on the back of my neck prickled as I peered at the eerie narrow space. My imagination was on over-drive, and I pictured Cecil climbing through to catch us. “Me too, but we must keep going.”

Beth removed her backpack and let it drop to the ground, her body did the same. She leaned up against the pack and closed her eyes. “No.”

The only way to convince her to keep moving was to join her, arguing made her more stubborn. I strode forward, my feet aching with each step, and joined Beth.

The wind whipped up a small funnel of dirt; it spun across the road and disintegrated as it hit a clump of wildflowers. The scattered dust floated then settled on the ground. With the entertainment over, I focused on my bag and drew it close. My fingers pulled the metal tab on one of the side pockets. The resulting zip broke the silence of the humid air. It's the calm before the storm, my father's voice whispered in my ear.

I dug my hand into the pocket and pulled the lid from a plastic container. “Here, eat these.” A few hard macaroni pieces sprinkled my palm. We'd found the container in a kitchen cupboard, and I packed it inside the pocket before leaving. The food wasn't the tastiest choice, but it was light and edible.

Beth took the raw pasta from my hand and ate one. “These are gross.”

I popped one into my mouth and nodded in agreement. “But it's food—sort of.”

The sky filled with a flash of lightening, and I tilted my head back in time to see the white-hot light streak through the black clouds.

Beth groaned beside me. “Come on,” she said standing up and pulling her pack with her.

The forest looked inviting. I fought every part of my aching body that wanted to leave the path and lie amongst the plants and bushes under the cover of trees. When the clouds burst, I decided that's where we'd go.

The road took a sharp turn to the left, and Beth and I followed with agonising steps. Several paces later, the route curved to the right. As we rounded the corner we halted, and my mouth fell open. Further ahead of us, the forest that had followed along both sides came to a sudden end. In its place, acres of deep green grass spread out on either side of the laneway and where it stopped stood an enormous building.

A loud clap of thunder jolted me from my stupor. “Come on!” I said as I adjusted the pack and willed my heavy feet to move once more. Large rain drops fell.

My eyes narrowed as I focused my thoughts on the concrete building ahead. While the lawns suggested a stately home, the structure looked like an old, abandoned factory. The closer we got the larger and more sprawling it became.

“What is it?” Beth called out above a loud rumble.

I didn't answer; I needed every bit of energy I had to propel me and motivate Beth to keep moving forward to shelter. The air smelled of rain, electricity, and another odour I could not place. I wrinkled my nose as we closed the gap.

On closer inspection, the great structure ahead of us was not old but damaged. As we drew nearer, we could see some destruction, though most of the building remained intact. I sniffed the air again. The odour I could not distinguish before was now unmistakable and the scent of burned wood and wet ashes evoked a memory as voices from the past echoed.

“Don't forget to douse the campfire.” Mom leaned forward and kissed Dad on the cheek. Beth rested against Mom's legs and rubbed at her sleep-filled eyes.

“I won't.” Dad smiled. “Remind me, okay Av?” Dad looked at me. I nodded and yawned.

“I think you should come with us.” The orange glow of the firelight lit up Mom's face and showed me her raised eyebrows.

I shook my head. “No, I'm not tired.”

Mom patted Beth with her free hand. “Okay, but not too late.”

“Night Beth, night Caleb,” I said to my siblings.

Caleb's eyes popped open, and he lifted his head from Mom's shoulder and smiled. “Night Av,” he said, “night B…”

“Av, did you hear me?” Beth used my nickname.

I closed my eyes for a moment and shook the memory away. “Sorry, what did you say?”

Beth's face paled. “It's… It's…” she stammered.

“What?” I placed my hands on her shoulders and stared into her wide, icy gaze.

“It's…,” she started again. She squeezed her eyelids shut for a moment, her lips pressed together. “Cecil!” she cried.

My eyes darted back and forth as I searched the edge of the forest and the path behind her. My heart thumped in my ears. How is it possible, he's dead! My mind yelled through my dizzying thoughts.

“No,” Beth said, stepping out from under my hands still on her shoulders, she took my arm and led me around.

My eyes tracked along her arm, past her pointing finger. Just underneath the roofline that protected the front entrance and above the door were silver toned letters as cold and as hard as its namesake. We had found C.E.C.I.L.