Young Writers Society

Alicia’s mind started racing, she could feel panic beginning to constrict her chest. Someone had been in her room, they had broken into her house. Her sister was just on the other side of the wall. Immediately, she tore down the hall and stuck her head in to check on Madison. She was asleep already, her breathing deep and even. Alicia checked the latches on the windows in her room before quietly leaving and closing the door.

She then did an inventory of the entire house, bathroom, kitchen, living room, laundry room, checking all the windows and doors. Everything was still locked. Her panic had dulled to a nagging itch, and her curiosity had begun to overpower her worry.

Back in her room, she sat slowly down on the white bedspread. Her eyes never left the computer, as if it was going to start snapping at her. The case was smooth and silver, there were no brand logos or fingerprints or identifying marks of any kind. Alicia spun the laptop to face her and opened the screen.

The machine took a few seconds to boot, and it was all the time Alicia needed to second guess her choice. Someone had broke into her house and left this laptop on her bed. Not only that, it was probably the same someone who had forced the police to let her go without charges. These people had power, and they had already proven they could get to Madison whenever they wanted. In Alicia’s mind, she was the target of a top secret government plot. At this point she wasn’t sure why she was a target, but given a few minutes, she would have come up with a reason.

The laptop booted. The screen was black, with only a blinking cursor in the upper lefthand corner. Alicia waited. Then, just as she was about to reboot the computer, a message appeared.

>> Hello, Alicia. I apologize for all the mystery, but I’m required to contact you through a secure computer. I don’t mean you any harm, and I hope you will consider listening to what I have to say.

Alicia’s heart was in her throat. Her hands were shaking as she reached out to the keyboard and began typing.

Alicia: Who are you? Were you the one who got me released from custody? Why are you contacting me? And why did you give me a laptop? You could have just called.

Alicia sat back, hoping she hadn’t asked too many questions at once. She wasn’t sure what the protocol was when contacted by a faceless, nameless source who leaves laptops in bedrooms. It took a few minutes before the next message popped up on screen.

>>My name is Lindsey Harris. I’m part of a team that carries out covert missions on American soil. We were the ones who got you released, we figured you’d be more likely to talk if you were in a good mood. Our technology expert, Winona, was the one who came up with the laptop. She builds computers in her free time, so we have plenty to spare. We needed to talk to you through communications that couldn’t be monitored. This computer is air gapped, it’s never been connected to the internet. We have the same chat program that allows us to communicate.

Alicia: You still haven’t told me why you went through all this trouble. Why did you contact me?

There was another long pause, long enough for Alicia to realize how hungry she still was. When the next message pinged, she was halfway through the soggiest bowl of cereal she had ever eaten.

Lindsey: We want you to be part of our team. You have certain skills, and I’ve been following your exploits through your police record. We need someone with your expertise on the team.

Alicia: Why me?

Lindsey: Do you want the long answer or the short answer?

Alicia: I’ve got time.

Lindsey: You are a natural at hand to hand combat. Sure, you’ve been fighting for a while, but you have instincts that can’t be taught. You win every fight, and most of the time you walk away unscathed. But you never pick fights for the fun of it, even though you know you could win. You only take pleasure in beating up the scum of the Earth. You’d fit in with our team just fine in that respect. Your grades were a factor too. Perfect student all throughout elementary and middle school, in fact your principal even suggested you skip a grade. However, as soon as you were old enough to get a job, you did. Your grades began to slip, but you kept working. Smart, hardworking, and self sacrificing.

Alicia: Is that all?

Lindsey: Not quite.

Alicia: What else is there?

Lindsey: Your family situation. You are poor, and your sister needs her medication. I know you can be motivated with money.

Alicia: How long have you been watching me?

Lindsey: You’ve been on our short list for about three weeks. We had to make sure you weren’t crazy first. But I got all that in a few hours. The public sector doesn’t have the protection to keep me out of their files.

Alicia felt queasy. It was a sickening feeling, to have someone you’ve never met lay your life out in the open. She hugged a pillow to her chest, rubbing the corner of the pillowcase between her fingers. She sat like that for a long time, thinking about this girl Lindsey and what should happen next. Another message appeared.

Lindsey: You still there?

Alicia: Just trying to figure out what to do.

Lindsey: We are the good guys, Alicia. We protect people. And I know that is what you want to do. You’ve been arrested six times, every one of them was for assault. And if you join, your mother and sister will be taken care of. There’s a new housing development opening a few miles away. They could move in within the month. It’s much safer, and there’s a community pool that your sister could use. Think about it. If you really don’t want to, you don’t have to.

Alicia: Would I be able to see my family?

Lindsey: We go home four time a year for a week. I know it doesn’t sound like much, but it’s not as bad as you think

Alicia: Just give me some time.

Alicia closed the laptop and flopped back on her bed, staring at the ceiling. She could see the water stain that had been constantly growing for the past few months. Their house was falling apart, and they didn’t have the money or skills to fix it. Mold was always growing somewhere or another. The windows and doors were loose, letting in the outside. Madison would love a pool.

Alicia got up and began pacing. For the last three years, she had justified all her actions by telling herself they were what was best for Madison. Working forty hours a week, taking lower classes so she wouldn’t have much homework, even fighting, it was all for Madison. If she really wanted to help her sister, she would take the job. Four weeks is a long time, especially if she got to stay home all day.

But there was also herself to consider. She would be risking her life, putting herself in unknown amounts of danger every day. What would happen if she died? Would the house and the pool all disappear? And did she even want this kind of life? She was able to answer that right away. She did. The feeling of power and freedom and goodness every day, without the fear of being arrested. She was grinning just thinking about it.

Alicia paced until her bare feet ached. The digital clock on her Ikea nightstand said it was just past two in the morning. She moved the laptop from her bed to her desk with reverence, as if it was some powerful cursed object that had to be kept happy. She slipped under the covers and closed her eyes. It took her about four seconds to know that there was no way she was going to sleep tonight. Alicia sighed and rolled over. She had to at least try.

It was a long night of tossing and turning. When her alarm went off at six, Alicia had gotten about twenty minutes of sleep. She looked like death warmed up in a microwave. Her hair was wild and the makeup she had forgotten to take off was smeared down her cheeks. But she knew what she was going to do.

Alicia threw off her covers and got out of bed. Her bare feet padded across the cold wood floors to her desk. She opened the laptop, and waited for the cursor to appear.

Alicia: What happens if I die?

She waited, thinking it would take a while for an answer. It was six in the morning. Alicia expected that she’d get platitudes, the low risk of their missions, the professionalism of the team. It was only two minutes after she’d sent her message that she received a reply.

Lindsey: Your mother will be taken care of for the rest of her life. Your sister will be put through the college of her choice. They will want for nothing.

Alicia: I’ll do it.