Chapter 43: Samantha's Son

                                                  4 years in the past

    Faye was grabbed from behind and Cameron knew she was going to be okay.  He knew she was strong.

    Samantha huffed angrily and ordered two Chasers after them.  She turned to Cameron and said, "Now I have to deal with you."

    She hit him with the Rod and shocked Cameron's body.  He yelled again at the stunning pain.

    "I won't kill you though, you may still be of use," Samantha said almost to herself as she twirled the Rod around in her hands like a baton. "Chasers!  Come take him away."

    "To where Miss?" asked a Chaser as the other two lifted Cameron, whose body had gone limp from the eletric shocks.

    "The prison level in the main tower of course," Samantha said grumpily, giving the Chaser an "are you dumb?" look.

    "Uh, it's all destroyed.  The dragon went crazy and smashed up all the cells."

    "Argh!  Cursed Beasts!  Fine, just take him to my office in the tower and I will interrogate him there once I'm finished here."

    They nodded and Cameron was dragged through the room to a stretcher.  He was placed on it and then carried up to the streets.

    People had gathered to see what had happened and there were news and media everywhere.

    Cameron closed his eyes as the cameras clicked and flashed.  The Chasers yelled at the crowds to clear out as more arrived to clear a path for the injured and Cameron.

    They slowly made their way through the tower and once they arrived Cameron was brought up many levels to the eleventh level.  There he was taken to a large office with a beautiful view of the city.  He was strapped to a chair and left there.

    Cameron took in his surroundings once they had left.  It seemed like it was Samantha's home.  There was a bedroom off to the side and a large desk in front of Cameron.

    Pictures hung on the wall behind the desk and Cameron looked closely at them.

    Most of them were pictures of Beasts killed by Samantha but the only one which was different was the one in the middle.

    This was a picture of Samantha with a young baby.  He had bright red hair like her own and blue eyes.  

    "Samantha had a child?  I wonder where he is." Cameron wondered aloud as the door suddenly slammed open and Samantha walked in.

    "I didn't get the message until after the infiltration!" she yelled at someone behind the door. "If you wanted me here then you should have called me while you were suspicious of a raid!  Or you could try and get some disciplined workers around here!"

    She slammed the door and walked over to her desk.

    Sitting down with a sigh she looked at Cameron and said, "Ah, I forgot 

you were coming.  At least your quiet and not annoying and an actual human.  But even then, people are annoying.  That was the Mayor just now, blaming me for losing all the Beast prisoners.  They didn't even call me in until after the infiltration!  They're idiots, all of them."

    Samantha swiveled her chair around and said straight at Cameron, But you're no idiot.  I must admit I was very impressed with what you did back there.  Even if we are on opposite sides we can understand a good plan."

    "It wasn't a plan, I was just saving my friend because I care about her.  Who was the last person you cared about?" Cameron said angrily.

    "Hah!  Trying to make me feel bad for all I've done.  Well, good luck, Cameron Simon, because I never regret any decision I make."

    "Do you live here?" Cameron asked, changing the subject and trying to

stall for time so he could come up with an escape plan.

    "Sometimes.  Now I will be living here for a while, because New Skielie is stumbling and they need a backbone to protect them and help them back to their feet."

    "Where did you live before you were called back?"

    "I live in another city not far from here called Poliamuk.  But they are strong now, and you can guess who helped them with that."

    "Hmm, is you son at Poliamuk?"

    Samantha's eyes narrowed at Cameron and she said, "My son is dead."

    "Did you kill him?"

    "How dare you accuse me of killing my own son!" Samantha fumed. "I had to let him go, my job demanded it."

    "And your husband?"

    "He died before my son was born.  But he was a stupid fool anyway."

    "Then why did you marry him?"

    "Because I was young and stupid as well.  But working for Anoteros really opened my eyes.  Sadly, his mind wasn't flexible enough to change, so he left.  And then I heard of his death a few days later.  I was pregnant with Peter at that time and didn't bother going to the funeral."

    "Your son's name was Peter?  What happened to him?"

    "I had to give him to an orphanage because it was too much to worry about my job and a child."

    "You chose the government over your own child?"

    "Yes, does that surprise you?  I loved Peter, but I knew it was him or my

place in Anoteros."

    "You are so selfish!" Cameron yelled suddenly. "Do you know what growing up without parents can do to a child?"

    "I'm sure he'll go to foster homes," Samantha said as if she didn't even care.

    "But they can't care about him the same way a Mother could!  I once had a friend whose parents had died and he grew up in foster homes.  They were cruel to him and didn't care what he did so he got into bad things.  And those children are, first of all, heartbroken that their parents didn't want them, and second of all, grow up not caring about others because no one cared about them. Do you actually want Peter to turn out like that?"

    Samantha stared angrily at him for a few seconds before answering, "I 

will be the judge of my actions, not some worthless Beast supporter.  Now, I know what you've been trying to do this whole time talking about my son.  You have been stalling for time.  And idiotic idea and one I figured out immediately."

    Samantha pulled out a small Rod from under her desk and walked toward Cameron. "I will get every ounce of information out of you."

    "Try," Cameron said bravely, though he was actually very scared inside. "I swear I won't tell you anything except that you're a horrible mother."

    Samantha smacked the Rod across Cameron's face, creating a black scar from his ear to his mouth.

    "Then I will make a machine that will read your thoughts and you can't do anything about it."

    Samantha walked back to her desk and sat down.  She dialed a number on her phone and said into it, "I want to speak with the head scientist down there, send him up."

    She out it down and sneered at Cameron. "You may think I made a bad choice concerning my son.  But I never regret my choices, and I won't regret what I'm gonna do to you either."

                        Chapter 44: The Last Three Years

    Year 1 . . .

    Samantha had been spending most of her time planning the new invention with Dr. Hale.

    Cameron was placed in the cell in the lab so he was stuck listening to their plots though he slept most of that time and during night he would always try and plan his escape, if there was any hope for that.

    The days went past and Cameron was again transferred to another cell that was more like a room with a built in bathroom and bedroom.

    "Ah, a prisoner in style," Cameron said as he lay on the surprisingly comfy bed.

    "Yes, this will be your new home until me and Hale finish the machine" Samantha said as she locked his door.

    Cameron now spent his night looking out of the large window over the city and trying to see the forest.  But it was worthless.  He wondered where Faye was and what she was doing.

    It had been two months since his capture and he missed the smell of the forest and all the green plants and stuff.

    But, he did have one advantage to the room.  It was right under the Mayor's office so he could hear all the loud arguments that always seemed to be happening up there.

    One night, now four months since his capture, Cameron was trying to sleep once he heard someone barge into the Mayor's office and say, "We 

just took our last dead Beast out of the Power Cell.  Now we are getting no more power from them."

    "We have no more?" asked the Mayor.

    "No."

    "Then go round some more up.  We can last half a year with just one Beast."

    "There are no more in the forests near us, they seemed to have vanished after the Infiltration."

    "Then we will send out parties deeper into the woods."

    "If we do that then the squad could be ambushed.  We are completely blind once it comes to the forest."

    "Then make some armored vehicles and upgrade the Chasers' weapons

and armor for heaven's sake!"

    "Making upgrades takes power.  And then we will drain the little that we have left!"

    "You're the army supervisor!  You deal with it!"

    "Then what the heck is the point of having a mayor if he doesn't do anything?"

    "I talk to the people and you guys deal with the dirty stuff!"

    "You're right, you're merely a pawn that will be removed at the right time!"

    "You can't talk to me like that!  I'll have you killed in a second!"

    There was a sudden blast and Cameron jumped in his bed.  A thud resounded from the ceiling and Cameron heard the army commander say, "Like I said, you will be replaced, and now you are."

    "He just shot the Mayor," Cameron thought. "But who's gonna take his place?"

                                                .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .

    Year 2 . . .

    Cameron was brought up to a balcony with Samantha to see the new Mayor's speech.  He had been Mayor for a half year now and Cameron guessed it was going well because there weren't as many arguments above his head anymore.

    He walked out into the sun and shaded his face to see up into the Mayor's balcony.  A pale man with slick black hair walked onto the balcony.  His fingers were long and wiry and he held a defiant smirk on his face.

    "Greeting, people of New Skielie, I have called you all here today to be witnesses to the signing of my first law as Mayor.  Now, this law may surprise you all, and it could hurt some of you.  But we do what we must for our great city."

    Cameron wondered what evil law the new Mayor had made up.  The Mayor reached for a piece of paper from his guard and held it high, showing the crowds.

    "Shall I read it?"

    "Yes!" came the resounding reply.

    "Very well.  'I, Mayor Elijah Patron, on this day sign a law protecting all real humans from Beasts.  This law states that every person in New Skielie will be tested to see if they contain the powers of Beasts.  If the test is 

negative, they may go on with their daily lives.  But if it is positive, they will be dealt with.  This law will strengthen and protect our city and keep the power on."

    There were quiet murmurs through the crowd as the Mayor finished.  

    He stood taller and added, "You will be given a phone call once you are to come in to be tested."

    Then he walked off and there were sudden cries from the people.

    "This isn't fair!"

    "How do we know if we're Beasts or not?"

    "I don't wanna die!"

    "Finally we can see everyone for who they truly are."

    "This plan should help with the power situation," Samantha said to the 

guard next to her. "There is a good chance at least half the people here are Beasts, they just don't know it."

                                               .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 

    Year 3 . . .

    The horrific cries Cameron had heard during the testing had kept him awake every single night since the decree.

    He imagined the adults, teenagers, and children being led away to their deaths for something they could not control.  For the first time, he felt really scared.  He hated this new world and he was scared to see what other evil the Mayor would come up with.

    Terrible nightmares haunted him and he stayed in his room most every day.  

    He woke up one day and realized it was October 6th, his birthday.  He would be turning twenty now.  Cameron stared at his face in the mirror.  His hair was a mess because he was the only one who cut it.  It was short but there were tiny strands sticking out everywhere.  He had asked Samantha for a shaver but she said she couldn't let him have anything sharp, until she tried to break out.

    He had argued and asked her what he could do with a razor and she listed some ideas that seemed very strange to Cameron.

    So he used the blunt scissors she had given him to try and trim the beard he was growing.

    As he looked at himself he noted all the ways he'd changed.  His hair had gotten darker and his freckles were less visible because of his lack of sun-

time.  His face was pale and skinny and there were lines under his eyes.

    "Hah," he laughed. "Just like a college boy with too much homework and not enough sleep."

    Those words suddenly popped a question into Cameron's mind. "If I hadn't gone over to Faye's house that day to see her trying to get her phone from over the fence, what would have happened?  Where would I be right now?"

    His mind wandered to the thought of starting college in New Skielie.  His sister, who had to be eight by now, would be in elementary school.  He wished that he could see her again, and wondered what his mother thought of him.

    Had he made the right choice?