Julia Karr - XVI

Gran brought me out of my thoughts. “See here?” She pointed to a photo. “Ginnie and Alan were perfect for each other.”

The two of them, side by side. My father’s arm was around my mother’s waist. They were looking at each other instead of the camera.

The next page was him and another guy in front of a building under a huge awning. I’d seen this album so many times, but I still didn’t know half of the people in it. “Gran, who’s that?”

“Jonathan. He was Alan’s best friend. The last time I saw him was at the memorial service fifteen years ago. He and his wife, Jasmine… No, that’s not it…” Gran searched the ceiling, like the name might be hiding up there. “Oh yes.” She smiled. “Jade. She’s the one who got your grandfather hooked on candied ginger.” Gran chuckled. “They were there with their baby, who was just a little older than you… cute, very cute. Dark hair and big brown eyes. I can’t remember if it was a boy or a girl. You know, I never did see them again. I believe they eventually went overseas. At least that’s what Ginnie said.”

Funny, Ginnie had never mentioned them to me. “Did they keep in touch with Ginnie?”

“I think so, yes. At least until she started seeing Ed.” Gran frowned. “After that, I don’t know. I think she lost most all of the friends she and Alan had in high school. If it hadn’t been for you, and then Dee, I doubt we would’ve seen her, either.”

“You treat Dee like she’s your real granddaughter,” I said. “Even though Ed’s her father.”

“Of course we do,” Gran said. “She didn’t get to choose him, but we certainly got to choose having her in our lives. We would never have treated you two differently. You’re both our granddaughters, blood or not.”

I snuggled close to Gran. “I love you.”

“I love you, too, dear.” She laid her hands on the album. “Do you want to keep looking? I’m not boring you with all these old pictures, am I?”

“Oh no, Gran, these are great.” Maybe there was more in the book, something that might give me a place to start in my search for my father. I looked back at the photo. I supposed Jonathan, Jade, and their baby were long gone.

I stared closer at the photo, and noticed something else in the background. I took the album from Gran and looked more closely. There was a sign on the building behind them. “Do you know where they are? It says ‘Roost.’”

Gran adjusted her glasses, squinting at the picture. “Oh, that’s Robin’s Roost. They all practically lived there. What a grand hotel it was. It’s where Alan and Ginnie had their wedding reception.” Her eyes got that misty faraway look old people’s do when they’re drifting back in their memories.

“Robin’s Roost? Where was it?”

“It was at Wells and Lincoln. But, the government closed it down after several forays confirmed it as a hotbed of NonCon activities.”

“NonCons? Ginnie was outspoken about the government,” I said. “But she wouldn’t have been involved with NonCons, would she? She never would have put me and Dee in that kind of danger.” I wasn’t sure what my father was capable of doing.

“Oh, no, never. Alan didn’t go for underground activism either. He was candid and publicly vocal with his views, which did eventually get him in a bit of trouble. But nothing underground.”

“I wonder if the building is still there.” I was curious about a place where Ginnie and my father had spent so much time together. Knowing Ginnie, there must have been something really special about it.

“Oh, it’s still there. First it housed a Bureau of Safety and Security office. The location was too public for them.” She sniffed. “Didn’t want people to figure out what they actually do. Several groups tried to have it converted to housing for homeless, but the Governing Council refused. They boarded it up and there it sits, empty and useless.”

“Really? But they always go on about not wasting space and how they provide for homeless. Maybe since it’s old, the building’s not safe.”

“Humph. Hold this.” Gran handed me the album and left the room. When she returned she was carrying a little black machine, no bigger than a box of tissues, which she plugged in and flicked a switch. I’d never seen anything quite like it. And I’d never seen Gran do much of anything with electronics. She rarely even got online on her PAV.

She sat down next to me. “This is my safety net.” She tapped it with her finger. “The GC wouldn’t approve that building as housing for homeless because it wasn’t a rat-infested dump in a bad neighborhood.” Her eyes were flashing and I was startled by the vehemence in her voice. “What the government does approve is substandard housing in dangerous neighborhoods, minimally nutritious food, and menial jobs that barely pay enough to cover the cost of everything. It’s total crap!”

“Gran!” I couldn’t believe she was saying this; what if there were surveillance satellites turned to us? She sounded like Ginnie going off on an antigovernment rant. “Think about…” I looked upward, hoping she’d pick up on my concern.

“Don’t worry. This little box is taking care of any surveillance. Nina, dear, you mustn’t believe everything—maybe not anything—the government says. For several generations the GC has been blatantly brainwashing society through Media messages. Look at your friend Sandy—see what sixteen propaganda has done to her? Why, two years ago she was as sweet and innocent as they come. Now she’s on the verge of becoming a wild sex-teen. The GC wants to keep people in their place—GPS implants, XVIs…”

“But FeLS… isn’t that a good thing? Sandy wants to get in to move up through the tiers.” My own words sounded halfhearted.

“That’s the kind of disinformation they teach you in school, isn’t it?” She sighed. “It’s not true. The government does nothing for the people, it only takes care of itself. Our whole system is designed to keep the GC in control. They run the Media, the Media runs us. It’s been going on for so many years that no one even notices anymore.” Gran closed the photo album and turned off the machine. “Alan noticed.” She took my face in her hands. “You’re so much like him.” Her PAV receiver beeped and we both jumped. “It’s Harriet, I’ll be back in a bit.” She looked over her shoulder at me as she was going out the door. “We’ll talk more later.”

I had never realized how alike Gran and Ginnie were. I picked up the album and flipped through the pages, stopping at the photo of my father and Jonathan. I knew the corner of Lincoln and Wells, but as hard as I tried, I couldn’t visualize the buildings. I made up my mind—tomorrow I’d go find Robin’s Roost. If it had meant so much to both of my parents, maybe there was some kind of feeling I could get from it. Perhaps an intuition, a hint or a nudge in the direction of my father. I knew I was being a little crazy, but without any concrete clues, I didn’t have a choice but to explore every bit of information I found about him.

Pops hobbled in on his crutch. “What’s this doing here?” He tapped the machine.

“Gran got it out. She said it was her safety net.”

He threw back his head and snorted. “It’s my old scrambler.”

“Your what?”

“Scrambler. It scrambles them .” He stuck his crutch in the air and circled it around. Then he leaned over and whispered, “Picked it up on a job and never gave it back.” He patted it like a dog. “Done me a lot of good over the years. You women planning a galactic takeover?” He laughed at himself. Then his eyes started to get that faraway look I’d seen so many times before.

“Gran went to Harriet’s,” I said. “Should we leave this out?”