Extinction (5 page)

“No. I stole the medicine from the rebels who stole
it from the Vandelrizi.” There was a huge difference.

“You did what?” she shrieked and a couple of passerby’s
gave us disapproving looks.

 “We need the medicine. Doesn’t matter how I got
it.” She clasped an elegant hand over her mouth.

“You went to the rebels? Are you completely crazy? They’re
dangerous and …” I didn’t give her a chance to finish.

“I was careful and besides they’re not that
dangerous. He was kind of nice to me.”

“He? Oh, don’t tell me. You’ve got your hormones in
a twist over some boy.” I laughed at her shocked face. She wasn’t far off, my
hormones were running rampant. Me, who hadn’t ever looked twice at any of the
boys in Palasium, was all girly and giggly when it came to a certain rebel.

“I’m just saying that maybe not all of them are that
bad.”

“I swear your mother dropped you on your head. There’s
more than enough talent around here, why do you have to fall for a rebel?” Emily
watched me intensely and I squirmed.

“It’s not like that.” I gave an exasperated sigh. 

Sometimes it felt like I didn’t know her anymore. Emily
was the only friend I had in Palasium my own age. We’ve known each other for
five years. I still remember the day they arrived in Palasium like it was
yesterday.  It was shortly after my mother died. She was a tall gangly girl
with pigtails and a heap of attitude. She knocked me over and took the squashed
sandwich in my hand to give to a stray dog. We had been best friends since. Not
long ago I would’ve asked her to come with me yesterday. Now I barely knew how
to talk to her anymore. Her father died in an accident at the power plant
almost a year ago. Since then she changed; she always hangs out with the
soldiers and harbors this strange fascination for the Vandelrizi.

“The Vandelrizi will have your head on a plate,
Lexie. You can’t do stuff like that. They are good to us.”

“Good?” I nearly choked. “How can you say that? We’re
their slaves! People are dying of hunger and disease.”

“Well, maybe it’s time you accept it. Stop always
trying to change things. Maybe some of us are happy with the way things are.”
She pouted her full lips.

Emily couldn’t mean it. How can anybody be happy to
live like this? 

“I have to go. I promised your mother I’ll help
her.” I didn’t want to argue with Emily. Hopefully she wouldn’t mention the
medicine to her new boyfriend.

     
The
next few hours
I helped Rosa administer the medicine to the ill
slaves through the quarters. I mostly observed the unique way Rosa had with
these people. She was a nurse before the invasion, but she also had this
special intuition and knew exactly what to say to every person to make them
feel better. Not once was she impatient and listened to every complaint as if
it was the first. I looked at the haunted faces of the people around me – the
tired eyes and prominent cheekbones, and still they were thankful for every
little bit they received. It humbled me, but also filled me with rage. How
could Robert let these people suffer like this? I realized again that I wasn’t
doing enough to help them. There must be more I could do – a way to save them
from this terrible place.

“Go home and rest,” Rosa ordered after a while. “We
don’t want you in any more trouble today.”

“You’re tired too,” I noticed the lines of fatigue
at the corners of her eyes. She gave so much of herself to help these people.

“There’s no rest for the wicked,” she said and
laughed loudly. “Get your tush home now.” She gave me a slap on my backside and
shoved me towards the door. I gave her a quick hug.

At the door a frail woman stepped in front of me. Her
blond hair hanged limply on her shoulders. She was so thin her skin stretched
across her cheekbones, her blue eyes too wide for her face. 

“Thank you for what you did for me today,” her voice
was proud and I realized how the soul could stay strong even if the body was
near collapse.

“He shouldn’t have hit you. Are you okay?” I didn’t
know what else to say to her.  No amount of words could rectify the atrocities
they had to endure. 

“Thanks to you I am.” She eyed me nervously. “He
shouldn’t have hit you either,” she said sadly and I remembered the bruise on
my face and touched it self-consciously with my fingertips. “I want you to have
this.”  She held something in her outstretched hand. It was a delicate gold
necklace with a small medallion of Saint Christopher - the patron saint of safe
travels.

“I can’t take this.” 

She took my hand and turned it palm up and dropped
the necklace in it. She closed my fingers and held my hand with both of hers.

“Please, it will protect you.”  I swallowed at the
lump forming in my throat. They had so little and still she gave me such a
precious gift.

“Thank you.” She smiled pleased and gave me a quick
nod before shuffling off, disappearing between the cots. 

Outside I stopped and fastened the chain around my
neck. Maybe I do need a little bit of help, even if it came from a long dead
saint.

      People huddled around
fires
burning in rusty metal drums next to the dilapidated buildings were like
beacons in the dark and the smell of smoke hang thick in the air. It was later
than I realized and I tried to slip through the gate unnoticed. The soldier was
too busy eating his own dinner to notice me. Fortunately the gate wasn’t locked
yet.

It was dark outside and the streets were deserted. The
slaves had a strict curfew, which applied to me too, and were not allowed
wandering about after dark. Soldiers patrolled the streets and I hid in the
shadows whenever I saw one of them coming. I didn’t want a repeat of this
morning, being hauled to my father for breaking his rules. Once a day was
enough.

All of a sudden the pavement beneath my shoes shook
and trembled. An ear-splitting blast reverberated through the city and pressure
built in my ears. Bewildered I searched the darkness around me and saw a wall
of yellow flames licking at the sky. Black smoke spiraled into the air. The
warehouses in the South-side were on fire. My thoughts raced – I should go back
and see if I could help. A second explosion rocked the city and the sheer force
of it made me stagger and I tried to cling to the rough brick wall of the
building next to me. Dust rained down on me. The high-pitched wail of a siren
resonated through the streets. The city wall was breached – we were under
attack. Gunshots rang out in the darkened streets not far away and soldiers
swarmed past me, shouting and yelling, some of them still getting dressed as
they ran. I pressed myself closer to the wall, attempting to blend in with the
shadows.

I had to get off the street, before one of them saw
me. I waited for the last of the soldiers to pass me. I sprinted up the street
towards my house, heading round the back to the kitchen door.

I ran straight into a solid wall and two arms caught
and held me up as the force of the collision hurled me backward.

 “I told you I would see you soon, little one,” a
familiar voice said and my stomach turned upside down.

“Chai! What are you doing here?” I huffed. Dark
shadows fell over his face and I was disappointed that his eyes were obscured
from me.

“Did you miss me?” he asked and pulled me so close
to his chest, I could hear him breathing. He was just as infuriating as I
remembered, but I was happy to see him. I was more than happy, I was
exhilarated. I put my hands on his arms to push myself away. The fingers on my
left hand touched something wet and sticky and I lifted and inspected them in
the faint light streaming from the kitchen windows. My fingertips were covered
in blood and I gasped.

“You’re bleeding!” I pushed him closer to the window
to take a better look. “You’ve been shot!”  I recognized the bullet wound in
his right upper arm immediately, I’ve helped Rosa treat many of them in the
past.

“It’s not as bad as it looks,” he said calmly. “But
I like that you care.” If he wasn’t bleeding I would have slapped him. Of
course I cared that he was shot, though I would never admit it to him.

“Come with me. Someone will see us.” I took his hand
and pulled him with me through the kitchen door. He stiffened when he saw Maria.
She was rhythmically kneading dough on a floured countertop and stared at us
for a moment, her eyes taking in the blood dripping from his arm. Her gaze
moved to our entwined hands and then she refocused on the blob of dough and
continued pummeling it. She reminded me of the statues of the monkeys covering
their ears, eyes and mouth - see no evil, hear no evil and speak no evil. 

“It’s okay, she won’t say anything,” I reassured
Chai and dragged him through the kitchen. I cringed inwardly as we passed
through the living room. I didn’t want to know what he thought of the obvious lavishness
on display. We headed up the stairs and at the top I pointed to the last
bedroom door at the end of the hallway.

“That’s my room. I’ll be there in a sec.” I didn’t wait
for him to answer and rushed inside the nearest room on my right. I snatched a
pair of white trousers and a matching shirt from Robert’s dresser and found a
first aid kit at the back of his cupboard. The pants of the tunic would be too
short and I wasn’t sure if the shirt would fit, but I couldn’t get him out of
the city unnoticed dressed in black combat pants and t-shirt. In the white
tunic he would fit in and maybe no one would notice a tall sexy rebel trying to
escape. 

Chai stood before the window, scanning the street below.
His body was coiled tight and he clutched a gun in one hand. He pivoted toward
me as a floor board creaked underneath my shoe and relaxed when he saw me. He placed
the gun on my nightstand and gave me a lopsided grin.  My heart did a little
flip. I closed the door and locked it behind me.

“Take of your shirt.” I hastily dropped the tunic on
my bed. 

“You don’t waste any time,” he said and I blushed. I
swore my face was a permanent shade of crimson when he was around.

“I can’t dress the wound if you have a shirt on.” I
opened the first aid kit and set it on the antique dressing table next to
window. I took out cotton wool, gauze, a bottle of antiseptic and a bandage and
arranged them on the table. 

“I’d better do what I’m told.” He was mocking me
again. He pulled his shirt over his head and I watched in fascination the muscles
in his chest rippling as he moved. He had a tattoo on his chest - a sun in
bright yellow and red ink covered his heart and a trail of orange flames fell
from the sun trailing down his stomach. I had never seen anything so
breathtakingly beautiful. I swallowed hard.

He leant against the edge of the table and crossed
his legs at the ankles. I took a piece of cotton wool with trembling fingers and
dipped it in the bottle of antiseptic and closed the gap between us. It was unsettling
being so close to his naked chest. He moved and opened his legs trapping me
between his thighs. I hoped he couldn’t hear my thundering heart as I carefully
cleaned the bullet wound. 

“You’re lucky. The bullet went clean through,
missing any arteries.” My voice trembled and I bit my lower lip.

“I told you it wasn’t that bad.” His voice was soft
and velvety. I tilted my head back and stared straight into the warmth depths of
his brown eyes. It was as if he carried the sun in his eyes. My heart fluttered.
He suddenly stiffened and clenched his jaw. His soft eyes turned hard and cold.
My hand hovered above his arm. I was confused at the sudden change in him. 

“What happened to your face?” His voice had a dark
edge to it. With all the excitement of seeing him, I completely forgot about
the bruise on my face where Robert hit me this morning.

“It’s nothing,” I answered awkwardly and grabbed a
bandage from the first aid kit.

“Who did it?” I could feel the waves of rage
emanating from him. He could be really scary.  I never wanted to be on the
receiving end of his anger.

“It’s not important,” I mumbled nervously. I kept my
eyes glued on the bandage as I wrapped it around his arm. He placed his thumb
on my chin and guided my face to his.

“It’s important to me,” he said gently. I could
sense he was trying hard to reign in his anger. “What happened?”

“It’s not that big a deal. One of the soldiers this
morning caught a woman stealing food and he hit her. I interfered and Robert…
and we had a disagreement.” I could see a muscle popping in his jaw.

“Does it happen a lot? These disagreements you have
with your father?”

“He hates me.” It was the first time that I admitted
it out loud to anyone. 

“It doesn’t give him the right to hit you.”

I turned away from him and grabbed the tunic from
the bed. I didn’t want to discuss Robert anymore with him. The little time I
had with Chai was a precious gift I didn’t want to waste talking about my
father.

“Take off your pants,” I ordered and Chai arched an
eyebrow.

“Aren’t we moving too fast now?” He grinned wickedly
at me. I rolled my eyes at him and shoved the tunic in his arms.

“I can’t get you out of the city if you look like a rebel.
If you wear the tunic, I can slip you past the soldiers.” 

“And there I thought you wanted to get me naked.” He
chuckled at my red face.

He straightened leaving the tunic on the table and
undid the buckle of his belt. I swiveled and studied the duvet on my bed. I
heard him laughing softly behind me.

“Tell me about the rebels.”

“What do you want to know?” I heard the edge of caution
in his voice.

“Did you set off the explosions tonight?” I asked. I
stared at the swirling blue and red patterns on the duvet of my bed, trying to
concentrate on anything except his glorious body. I heard the rustling sound of
his pants hitting the floor.

“Yes.  But I wasn’t alone. The others are long gone,
but I had other business to attend to first.” 

“Why did you come to my house?” I held my breath as
I waited for him to answer.

“I had to see you.” I exhaled slowly. I felt all
warm and fuzzy inside. He wanted to see me. “You can turn around now.”

“Do you think the rebels stand a chance against the
Vandelrizi?” I asked as I turned. Chai was wearing the white cotton pants of the
tunic, his chest still bare. As I suspected the pants were too short and he had
to draw the strings very tight for them to fit. They hung low on his slim hips
and I tried not to stare at the taught muscles of his stomach.

“I think as long as there are people willing to
fight, there’s a chance,” he replied.

“You sound like my mother.”

“What happened to your mother?” The dull pain filled
me and I turned my back on him staring out the window. It was no secret that my
mother had died nearly five years ago, but nobody except Robert and me, and the
Vandelrizi knew what happened that day. Until now, I avoided discussing that
awful day with anyone.

“Two years after the invasion she left. She and
Robert were arguing all the time. She couldn’t overlook what he was doing. A
lot of people left with her and I think they joined the group of rebels, but
I’m not sure. After a couple of months she came back to see me and the soldiers
caught her before she could get to me. The Vandelrizi held a trial and she was
convicted of treason. Robert…”  I swallowed hard.  “Robert made her kneel
before him and he executed her.” I clenched my fists at my side so hard I could
feel my nails biting into my palms. “He shot her in the head and made her
twelve year old daughter watch her die.”

Chai moved behind me and his hands skimmed my
shoulders. I watched his reflection in the window. “Lexie, I’m sorry…” He
stopped abruptly and his body went rigid. Then I heard it too. The sound of footsteps
and voices drifted up the stairs. Soldiers were inside the house.

Chai snatched his gun from the nightstand and faced
the door, positioning himself in front of me, as if to protect me. My whole
world came to a standstill, the blood draining from my body. If the soldiers
came through my bedroom door, there was no doubt in my mind that Chai would
shoot and they would kill him. A fear so strong and compelling filled me that I
couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t let him die. Not him. There must be another way. My
mind kicked into overdrive and a plan formed in my head.

I touched his shoulder. “Lie on the bed,” I
whispered earnestly. He glanced questioningly at me over his shoulder. “Please.
You have to trust me.”

He hesitated for a moment and then did as I asked. His
gun was still firmly clasped in his hand as he stretched out on the bed, the
muscles in his body coiled tight. The footsteps were getting closer, heading up
the stairs and I didn’t have a moment to lose. I kicked of my shoes. A knock on
the door echoed through the room and Chai looked like he was about to hurl
himself off the bed and storm the door.

“Miss Miller! Open the door!” yelled a soldier and turned
the doorknob; fortunately I remembered to lock it behind me earlier. The
doorknob rattled and the soldier rapped harder on the door.

“Go away!” I hastily tucked my shirt over my head. Next
was my pants and it landed in a muddled heap on the floor. Chai raised his
eyebrows and his eyes widened. His gaze wandered slowly over my near naked body.
He was so transfixed that I swore he forgot completely about the soldiers
outside the door.

“Miss Miller, you’re father sent us. Open the door
now!” I pulled the elastic band from my hair and my hair tumbled in thick waves
down my back.

“I’m busy.” A slow smile spread across Chai’s face. He
didn’t look in the least perturbed anymore at the commotion at the door. I
blushed and felt extremely vulnerable standing before him in my white full-on
lace underwear.

“Miss Miller, if you don’t open the door, we will
break it down!” 

I impatiently shoved Chai’s clothes under the bed,
climbing onto the mattress and straddled him, avoiding his eyes. I grabbed the
duvet with trembling hands and let it pool around my hips, pulling one corner
up over the bandage on Chai’s arm. My body shielded his face. The soldier
hammered on the door. They would burst in at any moment.