Chapter 5.
Leaving London.
3.9.2110. 06.00.
A summer fog, which began at sea, edged its way along the River Thames. At six in
the morning, London was cool and it was still hard to see more than a few meters
ahead. In their separate homes, Alex and Steve got up quietly, left notes on the
kitchen tables for their parents, and then left.
"I've got to go and find Suze," Alex wrote. "Please don't worry about me." "We
know where Suze is," wrote Steve. "And I'm going with Alex. I have to. I'm sorry,
Mom and Dad."
They met each other at the gate that led to the street outside. The guards who
protected the community were having their breakfast inside the guardhouse and
nobody saw them leave.
The boys had decided that they would both go together to find Suze, though Steve
had to work hard at first to persuade Alex that it would be good if he, Steve, carne
along.
"You don't have to come, Steve," Alex had said several times. "It's going to be
very dangerous. Suze is my girlfriend."
"Stop being stupid, Alex," replied Steve. "If you're going, I'm going. I'm your best
friend. You're going to need me."
The truth was that Alex actually wanted Steve with him very much. He was scared
at the idea of crossing London and finding the camp. But he did not want to be
responsible for something bad happening to his friend.
"It's my choice," said Steve. "You're not responsible for me. I'm going with you
and that's that."
The two boys had talked and planned a great deal in the days since Alex found out
that Suze was being held under. Control Order 351. Alex felt like he'd aged thirty
years in just a few days. It seemed a very long time since he'd been in the kitchen
with his mother and Tish talking about his birthday party.
The first thing he'd needed to do was find out where the police had taken Suze. But
this had turned out to be easier than he had expected. Though the neighbourhood
guards were not the friendliest people, they had been more than willing to talk
about the government's latest Control Order.
Alex had pretended to share their enthusiasm for Control Order 351. When he
eventually asked where the foreigners were being taken, the guards told him: Tilbury
Camp.
Now, as the two boys set out into the cold morning, Alex was glad to have Steve
walking beside him. "We start walking east," he said, looking at the rising sun that
was trying to break through the fog. "But we've got a long way to go. What do you
know about Tilbury, Steve?"
"The Romans were at Tilbury hundreds of years ago," said Steve, trying to sound
cheerful.
"That's not helpful, you idiot!" said Alex, smiling. "What else do you know?"
"Queen Elizabeth the First went there and spoke to her soldiers."
"Steve! That was over five hundred years ago. It's not going to help us now, is it?"
"You asked me what I knew," said Steve. "That's all I know. Anyway, you're the one
who's been studying that old book of maps we found in your house. What do you
know?"
"A lot more than you, it seems," said Alex. "Tilbury is a port. It's on the Thames
where the Thames stops being the sea and becomes a river. And it's over forty
kilometers from us here in London."
"Forty kilometers! Can we walk forty kilometers in a day?" asked his friend.
"I don't know," said Alex. "I've never tried to walk that far. Maybe we can do it in a
day and a night. Or in two days. It's a long way. And we don't know what's between
us and Tilbury. The map says the area is surrounded by wetlands that are extremely
difficult to cross. There's also going to be Outsiders and fighting and we have to
keep away from police and soldiers."
"Well, it's a good thing you've got me to keep you company on this adventure,"
said Steve.
"Steve," said Alex, suddenly turning serious. "I don't think this is an adventure. This
is real life. And I'm only just starting to live it."
The words kept coming out. "I've been doing a lot of thinking over the last few days.
It's like this is a war. Not a war like the Great War that destroyed most of the world. A
war between what is right and what is wrong.”
"Why should the government be allowed to control the lives of ordinary people? It's
wrong to divide families and lock people up for no reason at all. The government says
it's to keep us safe, but I don't feel safer with a
government that's willing to force Suze and thousands of people like her to leave
Britain. Do you?" Alex asked almost fiercely.
For a moment, Steve seemed speechless. Then he said: "You're completely right,
Alex. It is a war. And we're finally joining the fight!"
Around them, the fog still moved around in damp clouds, giving them precious
cover from suspicious eyes.