Revolutionary by Elaina H (i like reading .TXT) 📖

Lilly raced down the street towards the nearest soldier. “Officer,” she screamed. She was sure she looked like a crazy sixteen year old girl. “Officer, you must help me find my brother. Please, before my parents get home.” Earnestly, she tugged on his coat jacket, and he looked at her nervously.

            “Ma’am, are you sure you’ve looked everywhere? I remember when I was little I used to hide from my older brother all the time.” The soldier glanced around the area looked for anything suspicious. He began to wonder if this girl was sent as a distraction.

            Lilly glared at him, “You can’t be serious! He’s barely two years old! I swear I only took my eye off him for a moment. You don’t think someone would have taken him, so you?!” Lilly threw her hands over her mouth and gasped. Her parents would declaim her and she’d have to live as an orphan. “Sir, please,” she cried out, “help me.”

            The soldier nodded his head, and radioed for five disposable soldier near 21 Limestone (Lilly’s address). Five minutes later, Lilly lead the soldiers back to her house to start the search there.

            All of them searched for half an hour before one of the smaller soldier’s called out. Lilly ran with a smile on her face, and tears in her eyes. “Oh, you’ve found him!” she sobbed. But when Lilly looked over the soldier’s shoulder she didn’t see her brother.

            Instead she saw a small whole, big enough for a toddler, chipped into the wall, and hidden beneath the vines.

2382 April 21: 1500 hours

            Veronica glared at the soldier in front of her. “Are you asking me to torture a whole entire family?”

            The soldier swallowed hard, “Lieutenant, we’re only asking that you interrogate them. Torture would be a last resort. Besides, there’s a child. We wouldn’t ask you to torture them.”

            Veronica sat staring at the table in front of her. She had just been informed one of her citizens had managed to escape the compound, even if it was a two-year old, her father would not be happy. Tensely, she picked at her finer nails, and worried over The General arrival.

            ‘Maybe he won’t come,’ she hoped. Quickly, she pushed away the thought. Of course he’ll come, the minute he hears of this he’ll come, and scream at me. He might even take away my title this time. Veronica cringed at the thought.

            “How old is the child?” Veronica asked. “Sixteen,” the soldier replied.

            Rolling her eyes, Veronica pinned the soldier with her stare, “Sixteen is hardly a child, soldier. You were probably no older than that when you joined the army, hmm?” she said

            Slowly, the soldier agreed, and motioned for Veronica to open the door to the interrogation room. Veronica rolled her eyes at the skittish soldier, and she walked into the small steel room. "Tell me what's happened." This was not a question, it was a demand. Veronica pulled the chair in front of her out of the way and stepped forward menacingly. The girl with blonde hair and blue eyes, who must have been the “child” the soldier referred to earlier, shuddered.

            Veronica stared at the girl, and the girl didn’t hold her eyes. “You, girl, what is your name?” Veronica asked the question not because she cared, but she was trying to get the girl to talk.

            “Lilly,” she shuddered after she spoke, and nervously looked towards her parents.

            Veronica pulled her platinum hair over her shoulder, and sat down in the chair she had just moved. Veronica never sat during interrogations, but something about this one made her think she’d get further by being nice to the young women. “Why don’t you tell me what happened earlier.” It was a command, not a question, and the girl opened her mouth and proceeded to talk.

            “My little brother, Charlie, he’s only two. I was…” the girl hiccups and her mother glared down at her. The girl’s father rubbed little circles on his wife’s back. “I was,” she continues, “watching Charlie pick up Easter eggs, and he was just running around the yard laughing, as usual. I lain down for two seconds,” Lilly stresses the shortness of the time, “and looked at the sky. When I went to make sure Charlie was still running around, he was gone. Vanished!”

            Veronica clicks her tongue in the silence, and the mother jumps. “How do you know your brother left the compound? He could have been stolen or killed?” These words made Lilly’s mother cry out, and tears poured down her cheeks.

            Lilly nods, “Outside the hole, there were three eggs and his little hat. He must have wandered out. There’s no other explanation because of the eggs.”             Lilly had calmed down, and she had her fingers crossed beneath the table. She prayed the Lieutenant would be able to save her brother.

            When Veronica finally spoke, everyone flinched, “I’m sorry for your loss, we’ll send you condolence money, and we will patch that hole up as soon as possible.” Veronica stood and exited the room.

            She wasn’t going to do anything. That much was clear. The Lieutenant was a coward.

            Lilly stared after the Lieutenant with burning hate. Lilly would have to be the one to save her brother, there was no other option.

            Veronica walked out of the room and sighed heavily. “Send the Pierce’s one thousand dollars as a condolence for their loss, and make sure you send guards out as soon as possible to get that hole patched up.” She almost added something about her father showing up soon, but decided against it.

            She was still hoping that The General hadn’t found out about any of this. There was a slim chance, but she was definitely hoping. There was nothing else she could do.

            Veronica looked up as she heard loud, urgent footfalls running towards her, “Madam Lieutenant, we have been contacted by the General of the West. He wanted to inform you that he has seen small rebel activity, and he plans to have one captured and sent to you within the month.”

            She rolled her eyes, not at the soldier, but at the General. He was an idiot. Of course she expected news by the end of the month, if she hadn’t she would have sent more troops to take care of the problem herself. “Soldier,” she said quickly, “how long before the troops are sent out to the West?”             “Three days, ma’am. We are sending three hundred men, which leaves us with seven hundred army men at the compound. Do you wish to change the leaving date?”

            Veronica tapped her foot against the concrete floors of The Compound. “I’m not sure yet. I need to talk with Derik, but I will send word whether or not you need to dispatch the men earlier.”             The soldier nodded and took his leave. Veronica continued on, now she needed to contact Derik. It might be in their best interest to send the men out earlier.

            If she could just capture one rebel she could torture anything out of them. She was certain in her abilities. All she needed now was a rebel.

            Unfortunately, Veronica had to be patient, and she was never good at being patient.

2382 April 22: 600 hours

            Soldier Thompson stood in perfect formation along with the other two hundred and ninety-nine troops.

            He was nervous. This was his first month as troop, and he’s already been flogged once for being late. Things were not looking up for him.

            The Sergeant already hated him and repeatedly humiliated him in front of the other men.

            He wasn’t the youngest soldier going to the West, that was Soldier Phillip who just turned fifteen, but Soldier Thompson was still young. He had just turned seventeen last week. 

            The Sergeant walked down the lines of men, and yelled at each one for whatever it was he was doing wrong. Thompson became more and more nervous as the Sergeant came closer and closer to him.

            Finally, when he stood in front of Thompson, he was ready to be yelled at, instead he simply shook his head and said, “Perfect formation, Soldier Thompson. Good work.”

            Thompson looked after the Sergeant in surprise. For the first time since he’s become a soldier he was praised. Pride swelled in Soldier Thompson’s chest, and it stayed that way the rest of the day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2382 April 21: 2200 hours

 

            Kyle frowned at his father’s sleeping form.

            Ever since his mother had died, his father hadn’t care very much anymore. Kyle felt that he’d been running this show for the past five years, at least.

            With a sigh, Kyle headed towards his bed and picked up an old, worn book Claire had given him. He’s already read Romeo and Juliet five times, but it was the only reading material he had. Most of the kids in the camp couldn’t even read, he and his sister were some of the lucky ones whose parents were nice enough to teach them.

            He still remembers those nights when his mother would curl up in bed with him and slowly but surely teach him how to read. Those are some of his favorite memories of his mother.

            Kyle rubbed his eyes, trying to push away the memories of his mother that always make him weak. Right now he needs to be strong.

            He already had Carlos, Savannah, Travis, and Warrens agreements, but he was waiting on Claire’s. The chances of her going if she asked her husband, Jared, were slim to none. Ever since she married Jared and they had their little girl Carrie, Claire hadn’t done anything but stay at home and do housework.

            Kyle thought back to his conversation earlier and grimaced. He sure hoped Travis’ mother would let him go. He was almost sure she would, but there was still doubt. Kyle knew Travis was planning on going, but it wasn’t really his decision to make.

            Kyle thought about when they’d be leaving for this mission and decided the sooner the better. He had chosen to leave in three weeks, but the chances of the time moving up were high. Kyle wasn’t one to procrastinate.

            “Kyle!” he heard his father yell. “You back? Is that you?”

            Kyle groaned, “Yea, I’m here. Need something to drink?” His father muttered something and finally a sleepy yes made its way towards Kyle’s ears.

            Alrighty, he thought to himself as he poured some water into a pot and began to boil it over the fire in fire pit. Once the water had boiled, Kyle put it into a glass and let it cool for ten minutes; cold water was only available in the winter when you could set it out long enough for it to get pretty cold. Otherwise, it was warm water.

            “Here you go,” Kyle handed the glass over and watched as his father greedily drank it.

            “Thanks, Kyle,” he mumbled before going back to sleep.

            His father was a smart man, and had tons of strategic ideas floating around in his head, but he rarely put them to use. Lately, he’s only been playing the safe ideas. It had taken everything and then some to convince his father to let the camp raid the West. They’d planted ideas and even had Jonathan influence a couple people.

            Kyle didn’t like the word brainwash; it made the act seem a lot harsher.

            Kyle went back to bed and lay down; he sure hoped Claire would agree to come. Because Kyle knew if she didn’t they wouldn’t make it out alive.                               

2382 April 22: 800 hours

            The next morning Kyle went straight to Claire and Jared’s apartment to see what the verdict was. Also, he went because he knew Claire would be making breakfast.

            When Kyle got to their apartment, the little room with a door, he didn’t even knock. At this point, he figured he could just walk in.

            The moment Kyle entered the house