Ben waited almost a full hour for Isobel to come out of the apartment block where her husband might have lived. He had distracted himself by taking in all Long Island offered. No black market, no controlled neighbourhoods? Who in Waverley would believe him? The factions had lied to them that life outside was impossible. Maybe it was. On first appearance, Long Island may look idyllic, but there was no way to know who controlled what without a little digging.
Ben sat in the alley with his back against the wall and his arms looped around his legs. When Isobel appeared and crossed the road, he jumped to his feet. He met her at the entrance to the alley.
‘I’m guessing he was the right Alex Sinclair? I mean, you were gone a long time.’
Isobel didn’t answer him. Her face was stony and hardened. She looked like she’d been crying. Isobel pulled her scarf down over her face to hide her wet eyes.
‘What happened? What did he say?’
Isobel waved her hand. ‘It wasn’t him.’
‘What do you mean, it wasn’t him? You were in there for almost an hour.’ Ben looked at his watch and sighed. ‘We need to head back now. But don’t worry, we can try again tomorrow. There’s another name on the list not too far from here. I’ll ask Sal to cover—’
‘Fine. It was him. Okay?’
‘But you said—’
‘I know what I said.’ Isobel looked back at the apartment block and brushed her fingers over her eyes. When she turned back around, she was composed.
Ben had no experiences with women, except for his mother. When she used to smile and say she was fine, it was a lie. She’d usually explode soon after and blame him for every crappy thing that had gone wrong in her life.
‘So what did he say?’
‘I don’t want to talk about it.’
‘Look, Isobel, I risked a lot to bring you out here. The least you can do is tell me this wasn’t a wasted journey.’
‘I didn’t ask you to come,’ she said through clenched teeth. Then her expression softened and she looked away. ‘I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.’
‘It’s okay.’ Ben leaned against the wall. They would have to move soon. ‘Was he at least happy to see you? Tell me that much.’
Isobel lifted her eyes to meet his. ‘He’s not the man I married. And there were other things...’
‘Like what?’
She shook her head. ‘Doesn’t matter. It wouldn’t work, anyway.’ She slipped her scarf down and ran a hand over her slight re-growth of hair. ‘To them, I’m devolved and I’ll be nothing more than that. That man is not my husband. That man wants nothing to do with me. The feeling is mutual.’
‘What did he say to you, Isobel?’ His anger at a man he didn’t know surprised him. ‘Let me talk to him. I’ll explain to him about my experiences with Stephen. Then he’ll have to listen—’
Isobel stopped him with a touch to the arm. She put her scarf back on and tied a knot at the base of her neck. It was safer for her to keep it on while outside Waverley. Ben had no clue if an uncontrolled area like Long Island followed the same laws.
‘In his eyes, I’m no longer human. And in some ways, I’m no longer the person I was before my alteration. But a part of me will always be connected to my human self. We have grown apart, and that’s all there is to it.’ She glanced around. ‘I think we should head back to Waverley.’
He could sense there was more to her visit, but Ben dropped the matter. ‘I’m sorry for bringing you out here.’
The overhead street-lamp brightened her yellow eyes. ‘Don’t be. I needed to face this part of my past. I know who I am now and who he is. We are done with each other. It’s time for me to find my own path in this world.’
They walked back to the area where the last vehicle had dropped them off, keeping to the shadows of the buildings where possible. Ben scoured the streets for the next yellow-marked vehicle to come along.
‘Who were you when you were human?’ he said. ‘What did you do for a living?’
Isobel seemed to hesitate. ‘I was a structural engineer.’
Ben stopped walking. ‘And Marcus let you go? I thought you were an empath.’
‘So did he. We heard about the treatment some Indigenes were getting here, so a female, Arianna, taught me how to boost my empath ability. I tricked the humans enough for me to pass their test at the docking station. It’s likely other Indigenes have fooled them too.’
Ben walked on. ‘Do you think the male Indigene, the one with you at the auction, could be more than he let on?’
Isobel nodded.
‘Do you believe you came back to Earth for reasons other than to meet your husband?’
She glanced sideways at him. ‘I know why I am here. But I struggle with the decision I’m left to face.’
‘Are you here to help us?’
‘I’m supposed to.’
‘How?’
‘I don’t know.’
‘But you’re not sure about us?’
‘In the short time I’ve been here, the people of Earth have not been kind to me.’
‘If you can help us, you should.’
‘You must promise never to tell anyone about what I can do. Do you understand? I can’t risk Marcus finding out about me.’
‘Or Pete.’
Isobel sighed. ‘I can handle Pete, and others like him.’
Ben traced a giant ‘X’ across his chest. ‘Hey, I know how to keep secrets. My life is filled with them.’
Isobel rewarded him with a smile.
‘But...’ he added. ‘I trust Albert and I think he should know.’
‘I said nobody. Not Albert. Not even Sal.’ She walked faster and Ben had to jog to catch up. ‘The less people know about my skill, the better. I shouldn’t have told you. I need to find Jenny Waterson. She will know why I’m here.’
She stopped suddenly and shook her head. ‘I hadn’t planned to look for her. I didn’t think Arianna’s teachings would fool Marcus. But they did. Now I’m curious. Nothing more. I have not promised to help, only to speak to this Jenny person.’
‘Can you help us fix the generators? Can you teach Sal and others to be more self-sufficient? That’s what we need. So we’re not reliant on Marcus.’
Isobel’s eyes flitted from the quiet street to the darkened alley. ‘I’m a structural engineer. That means I can analyse and design structures that can support or resist loads. What Sal is looking for is a mechanic.’
‘But you haven’t tried, so you may be able to help.’
‘I meant it, Ben. Tell nobody.’
Her anger surprised him. ‘Sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.’
She sighed. ‘You haven’t. It’s just... I have to be careful. Besides you, I don’t know who I can trust.’
Ben heard a rumbling sound, and turned to see a yellow-marked car approaching; one that would take them back to Waverley. Isobel yanked him back into the shadows. When the vehicle had passed, she used her speed and dexterity to secure their place on the back ledge without being seen. Ten minutes later, they swapped to another yellow-marked vehicle and hopped off near Waverley docking station.
The large imposing gates of Waverley loomed. Ben kept silent to preserve air in his second to last canister of oxygen. If the guards checked his bag, he would tell them about his failure to get the canisters filled, that nobody would help him. The guards loved the stories of misery and misfortune.
Ben pondered the creative ways he could tell Albert about Isobel’s structural engineering past without actually telling him. Isobel was wrong; it was too important a detail to keep hidden. She was too important. How, he wasn’t sure yet. But she’d been coached by someone called Arianna to make sure she didn’t end up in Marcus’ hands.
He would try to make her understand.
Ben glanced up at the giant clock attached to the stone archway above the gates. It was only 7:30pm, but the clock showed just thirty minutes of curfew remaining. The Kings had shortened curfew by two hours. Something must have happened.
His chest tightened as he thought of Albert.
After making it past the guards without attracting any extra attention, they hurried back to the tavern. A few stragglers were out on the quiet street; some carried blankets as they headed to Central Square and most likely the old school. Under this new curfew, Marcus and his associates would probably be around to pick up anyone caught out after hours.
Some of the stragglers flung comments at Isobel as they passed.
He didn’t need to understand Spanish to work out what monstruo meant.