Vladimir Todorov - Archipelago N.Y. - Flynn

“Damn!” Flynn lowered himself stealthily back into the water, cursing his bad luck… He had taken a huge gamble by coming back to this spot. Tony had warned him to stay away, and he should have listened to him… His friend was right… Flynn had become too cocky and reckless for his own good. But it was too late to do anything about it… He had no choice, but to face the Van Zandt boy.

Grasping onto the tires and ropes which hung on the side of the Seeker , Flynn began to move carefully toward the front. Once there, he pulled out his knife, hesitated for a moment, then reached up and cut the tug rope. Suddenly, free from the weight of the Seeker , Leo’s boat jumped forward; made a wide U-turn and came to a stop, facing the raft. The other boat made the same maneuver, cutting off its engine. Flynn was standing now on the deck of the Seeker with the knife still in his hand.

“Flynn!” Madison cried and jumped up in the Van Zandt boat. The two boys sitting beside her dragged her down.

“So…” Leo Van Zandt slowly rose from his seat. “Our trespasser decided to show his sorry face, after all!” He chuckled, then pushed the throttle and moved his boat forward. Her prow bumped roughly into the Seeker , making Flynn stumble back. Regaining his balance, he glared at Leo, his knuckles white from gripping the knife so hard.

The guards in the second boat rose immediately, cocking their guns, but Leo waved them down. “I told you, I’d be watching you, Perry boy!” said Leo. He then patted the pair of binoculars hanging round his neck. “You think you’re smarter than me? Or just plain stupid?” he asked.

There was no response from Flynn. He was trying not to stare at Leo’s binoculars… the exact same pair Leo had on him when he had nearly drowned at the Pier… So, Leo had recognized him, Flynn thought, and that could only mean more trouble.

“What’s your story this time?” Leo continued. “Fishing again?”

“We were training…” replied Flynn, keeping his voice steady, “…for the Trials.”

“Hah! And you think you’ll make it to the Trials,” Leo scoffed. “After all your illegal activities here? You won’t be allowed to compete, scum boy!” Leo’s smile had disappeared. “I see only one future job for you, Perry! The closest you’ll ever get to scavenging is by picking garbage from the Junk Nets! Or even better… join the Waste Crew on their stinking rafts!”

Flynn tensed at the memory of the Waste Crew. The Junk Nets around the northern part of the Archipelago were there to catch any floating garbage from the ocean’s waters… a slightly better option than the Waste Crew, but a horrible punishment, nevertheless. Flynn holstered his knife, suddenly feeling lightheaded. He wasn’t going to let Leo Van Zandt intimidate him, no matter what! If Tony had been there, he would have been shocked by the words Flynn was about to speak. Shocked and petrified, but Flynn didn’t care… “I definitely won’t be working the Junk Nets, or the Waste Crew!” he said slowly, holding his chin up in sheer defiance of the danger he was in. “I’m one of the best divers in town!”

“Is that so?” Leo raised an eyebrow.

“Yes! I don’t think the Government would want to waste my skills on collecting garbage… that’s what the Greater Good Doctrine states…”

“Enough!” Leo cut him off angrily. “It’s not for you to say who or what the Government needs, scum boy!”

“Well, it’s the truth…” Flynn took a step closer to Leo’s boat. “Ask your father. Ask Duncan Roth.”

The guards immediately raised their weapons, their muzzles pointing at him. There was a long, tense moment of silence. Leo and Flynn stood no more than a few feet apart, not taking their eyes off each other.

“Tell you what, tough guy,” said Leo icily, “I’ll make you an offer… A chance to get yourself out of this mess… and prove what a great diver you are.”

“I’m listening.”

“I want you to go down there, a straight dive, no bell, no extra air, and bring me…”

Leo scratched his chin, thinking. “What do we need, guys?” he asked, turning to look at his posse of friends with a wicked grin on his face.

“Beer!” one of the boys shouted.

“Any liquor stores down below, Perry?” asked Leo. “I believe you know the area well by now.”

Flynn gave a slight nod.

“Well, that’s your challenge, then. Bring up some beer… You do that, and I promise I won’t report you… I’ll forget we met here, and you’ll get your chance to compete in the Trials.”

“Why should I trust you?”

“Why indeed?” Leo drawled. “For starters, you don’t have much of a choice! And because I don’t believe you can do it… So, it’s a pretty safe bet on my side.”

Flynn stared at Leo for a long moment. A hint of a smile appeared on his lips.

“All right, I’ll do it!” he said.

“Flynn! No!” Madison shouted and tried to get up again from her seat. “Are you crazy? You’ll get yourself killed!” She struggled to break free, but the boys held her down.

Leo threw a quick glance at her then turned to Flynn and said, “Deal?”

“Deal,” Flynn replied as he snapped his goggles over his eyes and stepped to the edge of the raft.

“Don’t listen to him!” Madison cried. “It’s not worth it! You hear me…”

Flynn didn’t hear her. He had already gone overboard and was on a dive which Madison knew was impossible to survive.

Leo’s eyes lingered over the ripples that Flynn’s body had left on the surface of the water. There was no mistake, he thought… It was him! Flynn Perry was the boy who had made him look like a fool… It was the same kid who had humiliated him in front of so many people at the Pier. Back then, Leo had vowed to have his revenge… But the boy had simply vanished into the slums on the Lower Side. It had taken a long time for their paths to cross again, to put a name to the face… At first, when Leo had caught the Seeker outside the zone, he had not recognized who Flynn Perry was… But later that day, while lying in his hot bathtub, it had suddenly hit him… That’s why the Perry boy had looked so familiar… Well, Leo had finally found the bastard… And he was extremely pleased with himself.

Peeling his eyes away from the water, Leo Van Zandt now checked his watch. “Let’s see… I say he’ll be up in a minute or two, empty handed. Or he won’t come back at all! Who wants to make a bet?” He turned to his friends, and then his eyes fell on Madison’s horrified face. Leo swept back his blond hair and curled his lip. Here was another reason for him to be so pleased, Leo thought… The girl was such a bonus to finding the elusive Flynn Perry… Leo had expected the Romero boy to be standing watch when he and his mates had swooped on the Seeker . He had not been prepared for an encounter with the gorgeous girl, now sitting in his boat. And Leo had to admit, he was struck by Madison’s beauty from the start… She was what his father would call a ‘fine specimen’… In fact, it was only yesterday that Marcus Van Zandt had spoken to him on a subject related to girls… With Leo’s coming of age just around the corner, it was time for the young Van Zandt to be paired up… It was the Archipelago’s tradition to match boys with girls, so that they could create new family units and ensure the healthy birth of future Archipelago citizens. “We’ll hold our annual Day of Pairing soon,” his father had said, “right after we get the Departure Ceremony out of the way.”

Leo, of course, was well aware that he was the most eligible bachelor in town… There would be no shortage of female candidates, all trying to catch his attention… His father had already compiled a short-list with girls from a variety of respectable Upper Side families… Leo knew them all… And some he knew really well… Little sluts, the whole lot of them, he thought, and not one came close to being so ravishingly beautiful… Yes, this Madison Ray was something else! One thing was certain now… Leo Van Zandt wanted this girl… And he knew he would have her. That was a given.