The Beyond

Chapter 2

The floor creaked and moaned under the weight of Michael's feet as he cautiously made his way over to the currently locked door. He stared at it as he would a wild animal, unsure of it's intentions. He gave one last glance behind him to make sure that Grace had hidden well enough to not be seen from the door. When he was satisfied, he slowly reached for the old rusted handle of the door and turned the knob. He peered into the inky blackness to see who was banging, but what he saw confused him. He saw only three small plastic bags. His mind already dreaming up the worst scenarios, he slowly reached for a bag to look inside.

"Michael!", his mother shouted from the bottom of the stairs, startling him from his thoughts, "why are you just standing there? Help me with these groceries!"

Michael shook his head and caught himself before he unleashed an uncharacteristically happy grin that would surely have given them both away. The panic seeping from his mind, he jammed his feet into his shoes to begin helping his mother. He took a few quick steps across the floor, tiptoeing to avoid leaving muddy footprints, to where Grace could see him from her lookout spot. He looked up at her and gave her a smile.

"It's just mom. No need to worry," he assured her.

He heard her audible sigh of relief as she let out the breathe she had been holding. Her body relaxed and she began to clamber down and join her brother in helping with the bags.

"I don't ever want to do that again," Michael warned her.

"Neither do I," she squeaked.

"I hope you have learned your lesson," Michael continued as he reopened the front door and grabbed the bags sitting at the top.

"Yes, I promise I have," Grace said, internally grateful The Guardian had chosen to disregard her earlier disobedience. It seemed, for the time being at least, she would have to take the shuttle to the Knowledge Atrium on the other side of town. She had never stepped foot inside of it and had no idea how much information it contained that would make the trip worthwhile but at least it would keep her away from the ever watchful and judgemental eyes of The Guardian.

She marched herself down the steps to take the remaining bags out of her mother's weary hands and saw that one of her mother's knees had been scraped and was bleeding down her leg.

"Mom!" She exclaimed. "What happened to your knee?"

Her mother sighed deeply. "It's nothing Grace. I was carrying too many bags home from The Reservoir and I tripped on the sidewalk. I thought I could do it myself but I ended up dropping a bag. Eggs went everywhere."

Grace giggled at the instant picture in her mind of her poor mother chasing runaway eggs down the street. She caught herself after a few seconds and attempted to control her laughter by slapping a hand up to cover her mouth. The Reservoir was a large warehouse that stored all the goods and supplies for the entire city, completely regulated and monitored so that no one ever took more than they needed. The small greenhouses located around the city didn't generate nearly enough fresh produce for the entire city, so the amount each person was allowed to take home was completely dependant on that week's intake of produce. Since each family and family member had to be registered, their weekly allotment of goods was automatically totalled upon entering the Reservoir. Everything in the city was regulated. Families could not have more than two children. Each individual could not use the shuttles more than three times a week to limit crowding. When it came to work, each individual over 16 was required to subject themselves to being placed in whatever sector the Benefactors deemed appropriate. For her mother, that sector was electricity. For years now, her mother had been sitting in a small, cramped room, constantly alert and monitoring activity along the Wall. Her job was to make sure the electricity stayed on at all times, and to report any suspicious activity. Years upon years of staring at bright screens in a dimly light room had taken their toll on her eyesight, and without her thick rimmed glasses, her mother could barely see her hand in front of her.