The Tower

He returned to the house and cut up food in little pieces to leave for the children. Gazing out the living room window, he could see teams of policemen with dogs prowling the beach in the distance, and he hoped that his clothes had sunk as he had planned. It was time to move to a less vulnerable position before they discovered a clue and started calling door to door.

Allander noticed the stench as he reached Leah's room, the food he had prepared neatly arrayed on a black tray. The children had desperately needed to go to the bathroom, but with no sign of Allander for several hours and no imminent hope of being freed, they were forced to pee themselves. Robbie had also defecated, and the odor rose from the damp bed and filled the room. Both children were crying freely as Allander tiptoed in and slid the tray across their laps.

"Here's your food. Stop your tiresome weeping. And about this mess, you could've called me and I would have untaped you like before. I'm not barbaric."

He looked at them disdainfully. "Well, you've made your proverbial bed, so lie in it. I'm leaving you here, but when I'm safely away, I'll call and have you delivered to the authorities."

Allander paused for a minute and rubbed his eyes with his fingers. He began to pace around the room, running his fingers through his hair and letting it fall back over his face.

"I'm sorry, my dears, that time doesn't allow me to continue your education. Just remember that your parents-or 'mentors,' whoever they'll be-will try to 'bring you up right,' but they'll have no concept of what that is. They'll raise you to be functional and to imitate them and indulge in petty little successes. Resist them with all your might.

"They won't ready you for the time when reality rears its head. They've worn blinders for so long they've become a part of their heads. Maybe that's what they desired all along-to have their vision restricted, expurgated."

Allander's words rose in excitement. He felt his voice come to him, clear and strong. The children began to cower from his voice, but the direction kept shifting as Allander moved around the room, sometimes even circling behind them. He didn't really address them; he seemed to be thinking aloud.

"God and country will step in to fill the void, offering you laws and equations, rules and punishments to carry you through those lonely, restless nights you spend tossing and turning in bed as the moon slides whispering in your window.

"They're worse than an opiate for the masses. They'll turn you into deaf sheep standing in line as the truth bleats fearfully at the altar. They'll have you standing in line for slaughter." His eyes narrowed. "They'll deafen you to the roar of your inner voice. That's what they do. Soon, you won't even be able to hear yourself."

Robbie choked on a sob and Leah clamped down on his hand. Not now, not here, she was telling him. They had to go unnoticed. She squeezed Robbie's hand, closed her eyes, and pretended she was shrinking away to nothing.

Allander continued, his words taking on the color of a rant. "Your educators will embark with you on a supposed journey for the truth, but they'll deceive you. They'll say things that mean nothing-they always do-and you'll be forced to nod and agree as if they're profound."

Leah held Robbie gently and quieted him as Allander paced and raved. "Sssshhhh," she whispered. "Just don't say anything and the man will go away."

"They'll tell you that when people are moved by the spirit of art or the Good, they are speaking in tongues," Allander continued. "What is it to speak in tongues? It's to babble incessantly, to fill the air with phrases and words that mean nothing, nothing at all. Your educators will think that they've been moved by an intellectual spirit, and they'll speak all the time, but in truth, they'll say nothing."

He paused and his shoulders rose and fell with his deep breaths. His nostrils flared and his eyebrows furrowed with rage.

"Blind, deaf, and dumb!" he shouted, pounding his first into his palm. The children jerked violently.

"They don't want to see or admit that which is difficult. And what happens to you when you're touched by an evil, one of their evils? They get you out of the way, sweep you under the carpet, into the closet, into prison!" His voice broke and he paused before continuing softly. "They repress you."

Allander felt the tears rising, but he fought them back. The children suffered through a long, painful silence as he gazed at the carpet.

Robbie whimpered again, and Allander's eyes snapped up to focus on him. He was suddenly back in their world again. Back where he could hurt them. His jaw shifted forward and his bottom lip stuck out as he clenched his teeth. He started toward the children.

Sensing his movement, Leah shook her head vehemently, warding off the uneasy darkness. Allander saw the line of duct tape around her eyes move back and forth, and halted. It would be too easy.