The Dome [O L D]

Chapter 1

Location: Iowa, United States

Subject: Cameron Pien

Date: April 7, 2027

Age of Subject: 9

I sit in my room, alone. My mother is on the phone downstairs, and I hear my name. Frozen, I cup my hand to my ear and listen in on her quiet, one-sided conversation.

"...displaying symptoms of it, yes."

"...don't do this, she can't handle it." I sniff at that one. I'm ten tomorrow. I can handle myself.

I hear my mother smack the hard counter. After a moment, footsteps echo through the hall. My expression relaxes into my usual look of pure boredom. There is a creak as my door swings open, my mother looking frazzled. I flop down onto my covers. "Hey, Mom, what was that phone call about?"

Her face pales and her mouth becomes a thin line. "They're going to take you away."

I blink. Why would anyone take me away? "No questions." my mom says. I nod sulkily.

"Will I see you again?" A tear slides down my cheek.

"No." she says. My bottom lip trembles.

"I can't go! I'm only nine!" Tears fill my eyes and spill onto my cheeks.

She hugs me tightly, and she kisses my forehead. I hug back, sobbing into her shirt. Dark stains drip down her light-colored sweater. "They're coming for you in two hours. Get ready." I attempt to blink back my tears, but I sob even harder. "Why?" I cry.

"I-if I see you again, will you make cookies for me again? Like you did for Christmas?"

"Yes, I will. I promise. I love you. Always remember that." I lick a salty tear off of my lip. My mother pats my head once more, then gets up. She opens my closet and pulls out my suitcase. Her feet pad across the floor as she begins pulling clothes out of my dresser. I press my lips tightly together and stand up. My legs wobble.

She unclasps a silver necklace from around her neck and hooks it around my own neck. "Touch this necklace when bad things happen. Always remember... That..." she says shakily, the end of her sentence trickles away as she falls to the ground, tears falling down her face. I wrap my arms around her shaking form and cry with her.

After our eyes are red and our noses runny, we go into the bathroom and make silly faces in the mirror as we blow our noses and laugh, although nothing seems humorous now. We go back into my dark room and throw open the curtains, giggling.

My gray suitcase still sits, empty, on the floor. My mother smiles at me and unzips the cover. Inside, there are two little pockets. I drag the suitcase to my dresser and open the top drawer. Mom eyes it and says, "Remember when you stood on a pile of books to reach that drawer when you we little?" I smile and she continues, "When you fell, you didn't even cry. You just waited there for me to get you."

I slide three shirts and a few tank tops into my suitcase with two pairs of jeans.

"What about when our dog ate your favorite pair of earrings? You had to hose down his poop!" I say. My mom wrinkles her nose. I grin and stuff a pair of sweatpants into my suitcase along with a sweet-smelling blue candle and a box of matches.

"Well, I remember when you dropped your hat and I had to chase that dog around for twenty minutes! I had to wrestle it out of Shiel's mouth!"

"I remember when Shiel died and I was crying, you let me sit on your lap and drink hot chocolate while we watched a movie." We both exchange a sad look. I slide in five pairs of socks and some assorted undergarments.

She slides a small notebook into a pocket of my suitcase.

"What is it for?" I ask.

"Use it to write letters to me. Even if you can never send them, I'll know you'll miss me. I have one, too, see?" my mother says. She holds up a notebook of her own.

Only half an hour later of good times, there's a knock on the door. My mother tells me to hide. I nod, lip trembling again, and run down the hallway into my mother's room. I hide under a pile of clothes, and, smelling my mother's perfume, dig deep into the pile.

Tears stream down my cheeks, and I choke back sobs. I hear someone storming into the house saying, "Where's the child?"

My eyes go wide as I realize what my mother's doing. "I don't know! I don't know!" I hear my mother's voice say.

"Where is Cameron?" I hear the man say. "Where's the girl?"

He stomps up the stairs and into the room. I hold my breath.

I'm hear him going around the room, checking under everything. He stands near my hiding place. A hard boot kicks me. I squeeze my eyes shut. He knows where I am. I hear him reach down and start picking clothes off the pile. It's no use. Quickly, he peels apart my hiding spot, leaving me helpless. His boot slams into my side once more and I groan in pain.

Then I see my mother. "Mom, no!" I gasp.

I hear a click as the soldier readies his gun. "Woman, you have been charged for harbouring a potential avian. Your punishment: execution."

The trigger is pulled. I scream. Mom screams. Everything is in slow motion. The bullet plunges into my mother's heart. Everything speeds up. Blood flows onto the floor, staining her white carpet deep red. My legs go weak. I fall to my knees.

"Be Good..." her weak voice says. "I love... You... Cameron..." Her eyes shut.

Forever.