The Cycle

Chapter 2 - Dixie List

I examined the envelope one last time to see if there were any other clues or surprises the foundation left for me. Then I stuffed it in my purse. I peered out my door to see if anyone saw what just happened in my office.

After asking security if anyone checked in by the name of Alkin Hollist and getting a confused expression from each one of them, I came to the conclusion that he worked for my dad. He's from the Justice. The Justice protect the people from knowing what's actually happening in our government: The war within our country. They are sort of like what the FBI used to be before they became corrupt.

I guess you could say they're on the good side. It all depends on perspective.

After finishing all the columns, I would have headed home, but I remembered I couldn't go home. The Foundation didn't ruin the rest of my day at work, but at home they were probably waiting for me. I remembered the number 1 rule my dad taught me to do in this situation. He said to never go backwards and keep moving forward. That included going back to the places I'd been to today.

Where could I go? I had no clue where the Justices were stationed here in New York, so I couldn't go there. I couldn't rent a place or stay at a hotel because knowing how the Foundation operates they were probably tracking  my credit card and debit card. Which also means I couldn't buy anything until I found a safe place. Maybe they didn't know about Abby. With all of Abby's past history they probably skipped over her.

Abby traveled so many different places and changed her name three times. Her real name is Dixie. She didn't explained to me why she traveled so much, but she did mention how it helped her develop her style.

Her apartment was a four mile walk from where I was. It took forever to get to the actual building, and on top of that her apartment was on the fifth floor. By the time I reached her door, I felt like I had just run a marathon.

I knocked on her emerald green door with exhaustion. It took a few minutes for her to answer.

"Hey, what's up? I thought we were meeting at the club at 8:00?"

I walked in quickly past Abby without her invitation and sat down on her blue couch which matched her eccentric personality. My guess was that she just got out of the shower. She was in a an auburn robe with her hair wrapped in a towel and a green face masks on. The mask was probably the one she bought last week at lush when we went shopping.

She closed the door and ran quickly back to the bathroom. "Sorry, I'm still getting ready. Speaking of, shouldn't you be getting ready?"

"Yea, um Abby, there's something you should know."

Not hearing what I said she continued, "You do want to look good for that hot guy at the bar right? I mean, like, what if he asks you out tonight," she peeked her head out the door drying her face with a towel. "I know you don't really know him, but you never know he might ask you out and you just have to be ready. Not that this isn't already a date- ,"

"Abby," I interrupted, "I'm not going."

She gave me a worried look. "Are you ok? Normally your excited for these kinds of things."

"Well, I am going, but I'm not going, and everything is just about to get super complicated. I don't know how to explain this to you."

She came out of the bathroom and was completely dressed with hair and makeup done. I was surprised how quickly she finished. Abby was wearing a sparkling dark blue dress with thin straps. The dress went about two inches above her knees and was tight fitted giving her a slight figure despite her skinny structure. She also wore black ankle booties with a pointy stiletto on the bottom making her three inches taller but still shorter than me. Her red hair was in a slicked back high bun.

She came over and sat down on the couch next to me, "Ok, what's going on?"

I looked at her straight in the eye and started speaking attempting to make this as simple as possible. 

"I'm not who you think I am."

There was an awkward pause. Abby seemed kind of confused and then a bulb seemed to light up in her mind. "I know exactly where this is going."

"No you couldn't possibly understand Abby. It's too complicated and-,"

"Listen, if it's already started we have to get out of here. Did you tell anyone else you were coming to my apartment after work?"

I looked at the ground and then I stood up. "Wait. You knew the whole time? Why didn't you say anything?"

"I couldn't. They asked me not to."

She started looking everywhere and walked to the back room to get some things."Um, we probably have around ten minutes to get out of here. Did you bring your phone?"

I searched in my pocket, "Yeah, it's right..."

When I turned it on, I recognized in the top right corner next to the batterie percentage there was a green light beeping.

"Yeah, we got to go now!" I yelled recognizing we might be too late.

"Give me your phone." Abby snatched the phone out of my hand and ran to the kitchen. She pulled out a hammer.

"No don't, wait!"

She smashed it.

"There, that'll make it harder for them to track us." She said sounding satisfied.

"You could've at least let me get my SIM card out of it!" I said hoping my data could be saved.

"They probably rigged your SIM card too." She ran to pick up her purse."Let's go."

We walked out the door and took the stairs. Once we were safely outside the building we ran.

Abby turned to me yelling over the loud New Yorkers, "I know where the closest hideout is. Follow me!"

We started heading towards the the Empire State Building. I never would have guessed that the Justices would be hiding out in one of the most know places in New York.

We casually walked straight through the front door and made a right to get on the elevator.

Abby reached in her pocket and pulled out a key. The doors closed. She shoved the key into a slot below the elevator buttons and turned it to the right as if she were opening a door.

"Hold on!" The elevator shot down, far down; and at a fast rate too.

I grabbed the handles of the elevator, but wasn't strong enough to stabilize myself and fell.

Abby seemed to be fine. She checked her watch again. "The Foundation should know we have you right about...now."

The elevator came to an abrupt stop. Abby grabbed my arm and pulled me up.

"I'm guessing you ride this elevator a lot," I asked feeling like I could have received a better warning.

"Actually, no. I haven't been on this elevator since 2020. That was when they first stationed me here," she said as we exited out of the elevator.

We walked though a big hallway. I looked out the glass walls and saw a very different, more futuristic looking New York than the one above our heads.

I pointed to what I was looking at, "um, what's this?"

"This is how New York could look once the war is over," she said kind of admiring it.

"Oh, I see," I said.

I looked at Abby as we walked through the door. She seemed so different, now that she was showing her true colors. Before, she was so wild with a bubbly personality. Now she seemed so much more conservative. It's almost like she's a complete stranger. I recognized, that was exactly what she was, a stranger. After all, her real name is Dixie List.