Untitled Agenda 21 Sequel (9781476746852) by Glenn Beck Page A

Micah was approaching. No, no, no. “Go back!”
    He shook his head and kept coming.
    â€œGo back, now!”
    â€œElsa needs you,” he said. “She’s crying really, really hard.” The sound of the rushing water was loud; I couldn’t hear the baby’s cries but I believed Micah.
    â€œWe don’t just care about you ,” Paul said. “We care about all of you . Let us help.”
    â€œYou saw us? You saw all of us?” It would have been easy for them to see me, out in the open by the river, but I had chosen that hiding place, certain we could not be seen. I had failed.
    â€œYes. And if we could find you, then soon the searchers will, too. You, the man, and most important, the children,” Paul said.
    â€œYes, the children. They’re the most important among us.” Ingrid said. “Go. Get the crying child. Bring your man. We can see that he is sick. Let us help you. Follow us. We have a safe place where you can all rest.” She made a strange motion: she touched a finger to her forehead, then her chest, then her right shoulder, then the left.
    I waited, expecting to see the woman make the circle sign or recite the Pledge. But it never came.
    Micah tugged on my arm. “Elsa’s crying really, really hard,” he said again, his small face furrowed with worry.
    I stood silently for a moment, thinking. David was indeed sick and we were all weak from hunger. I had no option but to trust these strangers.
    The knife was still pointed at Ingrid and Paul. In one quick motion, I snapped it closed and slipped it into my pocket, then nodded at the couple and turned back toward the rock; Micah followed.
    David was awake now and trying to comfort Elsa. I took her from him and patted her back. “ Shhh. Shhhh .” Elsa’s sobs subsided to a pitiful whimper.
    â€œFollow me,” I told him. Micah helped David stand; he was unsteady on his feet and put his good hand on the rock for support. I saw how dry his lips were, how sunken his eyes had become. Micah picked up one bundle; I picked up the other with my free hand.
    â€œWhere are we going?” David asked. “I can’t walk much farther.”
    My chest tightened. Elsa’s crying, David’s unsteadiness, and my own hunger and fatigue were combining to make me desperate.
    â€œThere’s a man and a woman out there. They saw us.”
    David raised his eyebrows but said nothing.
    â€œI saw them, too,” Micah said. “They’re dirty and old. I never saw anybody so old.” Of course he hadn’t. Old people had no value to the Authorities. Old people were recycled to free up resources for the young and productive.
    â€œI think they’re shadow people,” I said. “I remember when you told me about them, back in the Compound. You said they slipped away before the relocations.”
    â€œAll these years? And they survived?” David’s voice had a croaky quality. He swallowed hard as if to clear his throat. He adjusted the strap of his sling. I could see the raw, red welt where it had rubbed the back of his neck. He was still holding onto the rock, still trying to steady himself.
    â€œThey said they want to help us. They said we could trust them.”
    David looked at me. “Do you?”
    â€œWe have no other choice. We’ll die under this rock if we don’t take a chance.”
    I carried Elsa and dragged one bundle behind me, feeling it catch on the uneven ground. Micah dragged the other one and let David lean on him for support. Together we left the deceptive security of the rock, stepped into the open, and walked toward the shadow people.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN
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    T he old couple silently led the way and we straggled behind, our feet almost too heavy to lift. Before I awkwardly climbed the slope to walk on the span, I dipped my headscarf in the water. Elsa sucked eagerly on the cold, dirty fabric, her cheeks pulling frantically, her eyes