“I hope we see each other again,” I say. “And when we do, I hope you’re so goddamn happy, man. I truly do.”
He meets my gaze, his voice breaking as he says, “Thank you. I ...” He clears his throat, “I’ll try.”
I turn and leave, feeling a fraction lighter. Briar was right. I wanted to leave him a letter, but she insisted I talk to him face to face.
Now I’m ready to go. I shake hands with the farm workers, and I do the same in the garden, Felix drenched with sweat when he hugs me.
I find everyone who’s leaving with me but Olin waiting in the center of camp, people hugging and crying as they say their goodbyes.
Ellison approaches me and takes my hands. “This isn’t goodbye,” she says, tears shining in her eyes. “Be safe and be happy, okay? I love you.”
I swallow past the lump in my throat as I hug her. “I love you, too. You know how to reach me if you need me.”
We worked out a system for the people on the island to light three side-by-side fires on the beach if they need help from us or the ILF. It’ll be picked up by Island Four surveillance, who can send help faster than I’ll be able to get here.
It’s going to be life changing, being able to communicate with people outside the island. We don’t know what we’ll be walking into back on the mainland, but we know it won’t be good. Whitman keeps expanding the boundaries of New America.
It might take a long time to topple his regime, but I believe we can do it. People who are fighting to maintain control will always lose to people who are fighting for each other.
Nova wraps her rock-solid arms around me in a fierce hug. “Make us proud, kid.”
That’s all I get before she turns and leaves.
“She doesn’t like crying,” Ellison explains.
“I get it. Tell her I love her.”
“I will.”
Sam approaches me, shyly offering me a long piece of cordage. I crouch down to his level and take it.
“Are you showing me what you did? This is great work.”
“It’s for you,” Ellison says.
“No way.” I smile at Sam. “Thank you. I’ll think of you guys every time I use it.”
He retreats to Ellison. I tuck the cordage into my pocket, giving Ellison one last nod before I go look for Briar.
She’s wiping tears away when I reach her.
“Let’s go before I change my mind,” she jokes. “This is harder than I thought it would be.”
We decided to say goodbye to everyone in camp, so the five of us—me, Briar, Amira, Pax and Evander—leave through the front entrance. Once the gate is closed, Briar takes a deep breath and looks up at me.
“The hard part’s over,” she says.
We’ve already packed our few supplies into the sub. We have drinking water, food, knives, and a few guns with ammo. All of us brought a change of clothes, too, but we know we’ll be traveling light once we get there. The photo I have of my mom is wrapped up securely in a T-shirt inside my pack.
When we reach the grotto, Gussie’s door is open, Olin waiting inside.
“Wow, this is some high-tech shit,” Pax says, admiring the sub’s sleek design.
“Uh ... what’s the bathroom sitch?” Amira asks.
I arch a brow, amused. “There’s a stool with a privacy curtain you can pull.”
We all get inside. Evander silently goes to his seat and buckles his safety belt.
