The Years After

Chapter 26

        We flew back to the Third Town in complete silence, only the sky wind caressing at the long, black wings of the hover craft.

        "Fifteen minutes to destination, please apply your seat belt." the woman again repeated from the speaker, I tried to put on the seatbelt, since I was still blindfolded. Then as the belt clicked I felt the craft start to descend. Five minutes later the woman said, "You have arrived." I felt a hand go to the back of my head to cut off the knot, since it was tied really tightly, and it was literally biting into my face skin, I couldn't take it off. 

        "Get up." One soldier said, I got up and started to walk towards the open gate, "stay out of trouble kid," the soldier said as I got out of the craft, and he smiled, not a taunting smile, a warm smile. A Leader soldier was giving me advice. I got out of the craft and I was right in front of the doors to the palace. I ringed the bell.

        "Identify yourself." Juan the guard said through the speaker.

        "It's me Juan, Carlos." I told Juan.

        "Oh, hello sir, give me a sec." Juan said and the gate opened. I ran towards the front doors of the palace and opened them.

        "Dad!" I screamed, my dad was sitting on the dark, cold living room. He heard me and immediately beamed up, he was happy that I was finally home. He ran towards me, and hugged me. I felt the love. My father kissed my head and he caressed it, he was crying.

        "Oh son are you okay, what did he do to you?" He was talking about the Leader.

        "Nothing, I'm okay." I assured him, "but he did tell me that he was my uncle." My dad was bewelded and the he looked at me straight in the eye.

        "Yes, he is." He said sadly.

        "Why didn't you tell me?" I asked, a bit hurt.

        "Because, I didn't want you to find out, you were going to hate him more." He said looking at the floor.

        "Find out what?" I asked.

        "Let's sit down." My father started walking to the couch and I followed, "He was your mother's twin brother. He was serious and not very talented, he was a big coward. Your mother was outgoing and very talented and brave. Your grandparent's prized child. As both of them grew up, the hatred inside your uncle grew even more, he then applied for Leadership and was chosen by the board of Government. He was finally powerful and he became the youngest leader at age 21, but he wanted more power, so he enslaved every citizen and made them workers, only the smartest were spared. He then opened the towns to tourism and changed their names."

        "So the cities had names!" I asked shocked.

        "Oh yes! There were six towns named after each of the six main American towns that aided the first people that came to found what are now the towns during their journeys. First was Spokane Valley, Second was Sel Lac Ville, which is french for Salt Lake City, Third was Aspen, Fourth was Saint Foi Ville, which is French for the New Mexican town of Santa Fe, Fifth was Amarillo, in Northern Texas and that is where the Fifth Town is located and Sixth was the desintegrated town of Houston, but Sixth was annexed to Third since it was very small." My father explained.

        "It sounds that they mostly went by mountains and desert." I said.

        "Yes, because they were scared and they wanted a place where you can hide easily in." My father said. "anyways back to our story. He greatly changed the face of the towns, he added businesses, beauty, those soaring, shining skyscrapers. He added tourism and he earned an inmense amount of money, but workers were still pushed to the side in those already tipping houses that leak everywhere on the forest away from the view of the tourists. Workers survived on donations from the tourists, but we were once free. The Leader just wanted power." My father said.

        "So it has been 24 years of suffering for us?" I asked.

        'Yes, and there is something else." My father said a bit nervous.

        "What?" I asked nervously.

        My father stayed quiet for a while, "the accident that your mom had, it is not true." My father said, "your mother disappeared, her body was never found, and the Leader was accused of killing her, because the envy he had got the best of him, but no evidence was found that led to his guilt." My father said sadly. and I felt like I was broken into tiny bits, I was on the floor, then I put myself back together.

        "What!?" I said with the strongest rage ever.

        "No. We don't know if he did it. Without proof, he's innocent." My father said.

        "You are right." I said. It still felt bad and it was an arrow shot of my heart, and I realized I cried at an empty coffin ten years ago. I cry to emptiness. I was completely broken, my life has been a lie. No one ever told me, I guess nothing is perfect, nothing ever was, not in the years before, and definitely not in the years after.