Eric Walters - The Rule of Three

“I guess that makes sense,” Howie said.

It did. That just didn’t make it any better.

The movie ended and there was a smattering of applause throughout the gym from the several hundred people gathered there. It was an old romantic comedy made long before I was born and it had been shown on a Super 8 projector donated from somebody’s basement. Still, it had been pretty good.

But the gym had gotten so hot it was almost steamy. This confined little space wasn’t meant to hold so many people for this long, stacked so close together. I knew I was sweating. I hoped I wasn’t smelly as well.

“Let’s go out this way,” Lori said.

She took my hand—my sweaty hand—and led me through the crowd and out the side door. It felt good, being hit by a wave of cool, fresh air. It was now near the end of May and we’d had a nice stretch of spring weather.

“What did you think of the movie?” I asked, hoping to start some small talk.

“It was all right. I guess it is the best one around right now.”

“I’m sure it’s the only one.”

Lori laughed.

I watched some kids riding around on their bikes, like it was an ordinary evening.

“So are you going to walk me home now?” she asked.

“Of course.”

She continued to hold my hand—which made it even sweatier—and led me away through the crowd, which had spilled outside.

Todd was off to the side talking to some other people. He smiled, gave me a thumbs-up, and blew me a kiss. He was a big goof, but he was almost as happy about me being with Lori as I was about it. That’s what made him such a good friend. I felt bad that we didn’t seem to be able to spend much time together. He and his father had completely enclosed the neighborhood with their fences but now were going back, making them higher and stronger.

Lori started leading us in the opposite direction from our houses. “Shouldn’t we be going the other way?” I questioned.

“It sounds like you don’t want to spend any more time with me than necessary.”

“I’m okay, you know, with a little more time.”

We left the crowd behind, circled around the school, and were almost alone.

“It’s good to get away,” she said.

“It was crowded in there.”

“Not just that. It was tense. Didn’t you feel it?”

“I guess. People are just anxious about everything. Danny was telling me there have been a lot of fights at school,” I said.

“I think it’s hard for everyone not to feel really hemmed in,” Lori said.

We kept walking. It was a cloudy night and pretty dark out. We were coming up to Burnham. I’d made a point out of not going this way since those people had been killed. I didn’t like to even think about it. I’d stayed up in the north part of the neighborhood, and the only times I’d left were by air. Even then I’d always flown in and out from the north. I’d gone up on a couple more short flights with my mother’s blessing. I hadn’t gone far or long but with each flight she had more faith—in me and in the machine—and I was able to see from up there what a dozen patrols would have trouble viewing from the ground.

“How about if we turn here?” I suggested.

“Let’s keep going along the fence.”

“We can walk around all night if you want.”

“I think my father would have something to say about that,” she said. “Although he does seem to trust you.”

“I’ve been told that I’m very trustworthy. Besides, you certainly are safe. We’re surrounded by armed guards.”

“Will they protect me from you?” she asked in a flirty way.

“I am not that much of a threat,” I said. For some reason, saying this made me aware of the weight of the pistol I was carrying in its holster. I didn’t feel comfortable being without it anymore.

We closed in on the wall and I started to deliberately make more noise with my feet. The last thing I wanted to do was surprise anybody who was on guard. I’d seen what could happen.

Of course the new protocols had been put into place. Nobody except the officer in charge had more than three bullets loaded in their weapons. The guards had more ammunition but it could be loaded only after they were given permission. Herb hoped that would stop what had happened from happening again.

“Those guard towers are really coming along,” Lori said.

“Better security.” The towers poked well above the dark outline of the wall. They were also one of the recommendations. Better sight lines of what was out there meant a better chance to react, or not react.

“Hello!” I called out as we continued toward the wall. A few shadowy figures turned to our direction. One of them was significantly bigger than the others—Howie.

“How are you doing, Adam?” he called out.

“I’m good.”

I’d always liked Howie and I thought he liked me, but now we had a shared bond, a shared secret, and that seemed to make it feel like we were closer.

“You two are just in time.”

“In time for what?” I asked.

“I’ll show you. Come on.”

He walked toward the gate and we trailed behind. The gate was open. “You need to come outside to fully appreciate it.”

I felt myself hesitate. Inside was safe. Outside was dangerous, and that danger could come from our own people.

“This will be the first time I’ve stepped out of the neighborhood since I got here!” Lori said. Holding my hand, she dragged me along and through the gate until we were standing by Howie.

I looked up and down the empty street, grateful that there was nothing I could see. That didn’t stop me from seeing things that weren’t there anymore or imagining other things that could be hidden in the darkness.

“What are we supposed to see?” Lori asked.

“Turn them on!” Howie yelled.

Suddenly we were bathed in light. All along the length of the fence there were strings of bright Christmas lights.

“It’s beautiful!” Lori exclaimed.

I wasn’t amazed as much as I was disturbed. We were outside the fence, standing in the bright lights, perfectly visible, surrounded by darkness that could contain anything, where anyone could see us without being seen.

“This is the first section that’s been hooked up,” Howie said.

“Merry Christmas!” Lori said.

“And Merry Christmas to you, too!” Howie laughed.

“They work well,” I said. “Can we turn them off now?”

“I guess we should,” Howie said. “Turn them off!” he yelled.

There was a slight pause and then we were in darkness. It took a few seconds for my eyes to adjust.

“Let’s get back inside the wall,” I said.

“Can’t we just stay out here for a while?” Lori asked.

“No, we have to get back inside.”

Lori looked at me, a little surprised. My words had come out more forcefully than I had intended.

Howie backed me up. “He’s right. It is safer inside. Nobody is supposed to go in or out without permission.”

We headed in. This time I was the one pulling her along. The gate closed behind us, sealing us inside. I felt myself relax.

“That worked well,” Howie said. “Nobody is going to be sneaking up on us again. If we sense anybody is out there, we just throw on the lights.”

“Wouldn’t it be better to leave them on all the time?” Lori asked.

“They run off car batteries,” Howie explained, “so running them all the time would drain the batteries and then we’d have to use the generators and fuel to repower them. We don’t want to draw that much power.”

“Or draw too much attention,” I added.

Even in the darkness I could see Lori’s questioning expression.

“In a dark world those lights can be seen from a long way away,” I explained.