Generation M Read Online Free PDF Page A

are up there already. At midnight, I will communicate with Abby. I hope she’ll be with Toby. I’ll tell them the fishing is good. They’ll know to meet me at the fish market.”
    Dawson took over. “We’ll leave the Biltmore and head up the west side of the colony. In the Red Zone, I’ll cut the fence and return to the Biltmore.”
    Jonzy spoke up. “If I find Abby and Toby, I will report on the radio at 0600 hours, ‘The eagle has landed.’ If I’m still looking for them, I’ll say, ‘The fish aren’t biting.’”
    “Good,” Dawson said. “Keep all radio transmissions short and confusing. You never know who might be listening in.”
    “Yes, sir. After I meet up with Abby and Toby, we’ll go to Mystic and meet up with her brother, Jordan. Then, we’ll look for your daughter.”
    Dawson felt a sob forming in his chest. “When I get to Atlanta Colony, I’ll convince the scientists to make more pills at the Alpharetta plant.”
    “Piece of cake, Lieutenant.” Jonzy went to give him a high-five and missed his hand by a good six inches.

1.05
EMORY CAMPUS
    With the spirit drill over, Unit 2A was a flurry of activity as the girls straightened up and attended to personal hygiene. The countdown clock showed they had fifty-two minutes before they had to be at the dining hall for their first meal.
    After tucking the sheet under the mattress and smoothing out the blanket, Lisette jumped into her blue uniform and yanked the zipper up high. She tugged at her left sleeve to make it easier to read her colony ID. The numbers 944 were stitched in yellow.
    She grinned when Petty Officer Murphy entered the unit and barked, “Let’s move it, ladies.”
    Everyone loved Murph, who took charge of them every morning while Chandra and Auntie sorted out the mobile lessons. Murph had red hair, freckles, and very pale skin. She’d said she had joined the Navy because she was sensitive to sunlight. “You don’t get any sun on a submarine.”
    Zoe had yet to make her bed, and Murph stopped before her, placing hands on hips. “Is this any time to dilly-dally?”
    Under Murph’s watchful eye, Zoe got to work, while those who had finished their tasks gathered around them.
    With a little smile, Murph tapped her toe. “Doctor Perkins likes us to use big words with Generation M, so this is my big word of the day. Promptitude. I’ll use it in a sentence for you. I wish Zoe would show greater promptitude in the morning. Now, who can tell me what promptitude means?”
    Lisette raised her hand. “Being on time?”
    Murph gave her a big thumbs-up. “Five gold stars for Miss Leigh.”
    Lisette gushed with pride.
    “This is Lisette’s last day at the colony.”
    Everyone turned. Molly was gliding a brush through her long brown hair.
    “I heard Mother talking to Auntie,” Molly said, crinkling her nose. “Mother said Lisette is too stubborn to be a member of Generation M. Doctor Perkins is going to kick her out because she can’t forget about her brother and sister.”
    Lisette shivered in the frigid blast of words.
    Murph cleared her throat and narrowed her eyes at Molly. “It’s not polite to spread rumors.”
    “Sorry,” Molly mumbled.
    Murph clapped. “What’s everyone standing around for? Look alive! Fall in.”
    The girls formed two lines, one for the west wing bathroom and one for the east wing bathroom.
    Murph knelt before Lisette and lowered her voice. “Here’s a special word of the day just for you … perseverant. It means never giving up. Doing what you think is right, and never giving up. Lisette Leigh is perseverant.”
    Still troubled by what Molly said, Lisette took her place in line waiting for the west wing bathroom.
    Zoe whispered in her ear, “If they kick you out, I’ll go with you.”
    Emily said in Lisette’s other ear, “Molly’s just mad that she lost at the duck game.”
    The kind words made her feel much better.
    The line moved and she received her toothbrush, a tube of toothpaste, and a