Satan's Forge (Star Sojourner Book 5) (12 page)

Chancey helped Bat to stand and dragged him through the gate.

Sarge gripped my vest and yanked me close. “You can walk out of here,” he said between teeth, “or I can drag you out.” He lifted his fist. “Your choice.”

“All right! Let go.”

He did.

I stared up at Slade. “It's not over,” I called. I picked up a chunk of salt crust and flung it at the window. “You bastard!” It bounced off the stone wall.

“It will be over when ye are dead.” He shook his fist. “Look over ye shoulder, Terran prit. Soon there will be a death squad behind ye.” He slammed the window shut and I heard glass crack. The light went out.

The guards moved their horses toward us.

“C'mon!” Sarge pulled me toward the gate and I almost fell.

“Let go of me.” I swung at his jaw.

He stepped aside and I hit his shoulder.

“Feel better?” he asked.

“I'll feel better when he's dead.”

He let go. “It ain't gonna happen tonight.”

I strode toward the gate. Behind me the slaves shouted and moved forward. Guards held them back with horses and whips.

I stopped and turned. “Your day is coming!” I shouted to the slaves.

I left the compound with the cheers of the people, and the crack of whips, echoing in my ears.

I climbed into the back seat of the cubair where Bat sat, leaning against the side door.

Chancey took the controls and Big Sarge got in next to him.

“How you feeling?” I asked Bat as Chancey lifted the cub into the sky.

“Pretty good for a dead man.” He smiled and reached out a hand to me. I took it. “Thanks, Jules.”

“Aw, shucks. Just returning the favor, Bubba.”

We were a scruffy looking bunch when we returned to the cabin and the campsite. Big Sarge's men, sitting around campfires, stood up to watch as we went by with Chancey and Sarge helping Bat into the cabin.

“Hey, Superstar,” one man called and made a thumbs-up.

I nodded and returned the gesture.

My leather pants and vest were streaked with clay and Bat's blood from when I'd carried him. I had clay and sand in my hair and down my shirt from crawling under the fence. I was hungry and tired, and the energy drain was beginning to tell. I shivered in the cold night air.

Apache John, Priest, and Attila had come back before us in the first cubair and related the details of Bat's rescue. Turned out, one of Sarge's men, Ty, was a former military medic. He went into the cabin to see to Bat.

I stared at the campfire where Apache John, Priest, and Attila sat, and felt myself sway with weariness. “Mind if I join you tags?”

“Sit down.” Apache John said. His tanned skin caught fire reflections and shadows in the night. “
Mi casa es tu casa
. Got some hot brew in the thermos.”

“Yeah? Thanks.” I sat cross-legged and sighed with weariness as fire warmth on my face and hands made me drowsy. Wood burst and snapped and flung cinders. I breathed in the smoky aroma. There is that in a wood fire which harkens back to times so lost in antiquity, nothing remains but a buried memory stirred by the flames of a campfire. I began to doze off.

“Hey!” John extended a cup. “The boys want to hear all about your daring rescue.”

“Maybe tomorrow.” I took the cup and let the pungent taste of Earthbrew roll around in my mouth before swallowing.

Attila grinned. “Chancey tells us they call you Superstar.”

“They call me a lot of things,” I mumbled and rubbed my eyes.

“Jules!” It was Sophia. She ran out of the cabin and sat down beside me. “Jules. Baby, are you all right?” She ran her hand through my hair and clutched my face. “I was so worried about you.”

I saw Apache John slide Priest a look and cover a chuckle with his coffee cup.

Priest's dour expression never faltered, as though all of life were a solemn mass and not to be taken lightly.

I had to smile. “I'm OK, Soph. Just a little tired.”

She brushed the sand and clay from my hair, my shirt. “They say you rescued Bat singlehandedly, and then you were about to go after Boss Slade.” She brushed dirt off my cheek and kissed me there. “You promised me you would be careful!” Her dark eyes glistened with tears in firelight.

I opened my mouth to say something. God, I was tired.

“You call that careful?” she said. “I'd hate to see what you call reckless.” She sat back. “You didn't have supper, did you?”

“I, uh…” I shook my head.

“Jules!” she said, “When are you going to start taking care of yourself?”

“Well, I –”

She brushed off my vest. “Bat said you were ready to fight it out with Boss Slade right in his own tower. What were you thinking?”

“I thought –”

“You'll turn my hair gray, worrying about you.”

Joe strode out of the cabin and came over. “He already turned mine gray,” he told Sophia.

“Thanks for the support, Joe,” I said. “Where's Huff.”

“He's off somewhere in the woods.” He waved toward trees. “Said he wanted to worry about you alone, or something like that. Only you and God know what the hell he's talking about.”

“I'll get you something to eat.” Sophia got up and brushed her grimy hands. “You need a shower.”

“I figured I'd take one after –”

She turned and strode back to the cabin.

Apache John chuckled. “Looks like you can take on anybody,” he told me, “except your lady.”

Attila took a karate stance with stiff hands where he sat, and did a chop in the air with one hand. “Those were your balls I just loped off, Superstar.”

Priest's lips spread into a smile. The deep furrows around his mouth seemed to crack like cement.

I looked around. “Very funny!”

* * *

It must have been mid-afternoon when I awoke, stretched, and yawned. And got a mouthful of fur. Huff had found me during the night and was curled against my side with a foreleg thrown over my chest. His musky smell was pleasant, but I gently lifted his foreleg and slid it off me.

The campfire was ashes. The clouds had closed up like a puzzle and reflected a luminous flat light. The air was humid and my shirt and pants were stuck to my skin.

I heard Big Sarge's booming voice as I rubbed my eyes and stood up. He sat on the picnic table with Joe beside him while some of his men stood, and others sat around him on the ground. I brushed myself off and walked over, scratching my dirty hair.

“Hey, sleeping beauty,” Sarge called as I approached. “I was just about to come over and kiss you awake.” He pursed his lips.

Some of the men chuckled.

“Yeah, yeah,” I said. “Joe.” I nodded to him in greeting. Chancey, standing among the men, waved and I waved back. “What's happening, Sarge?” I asked.

Sarge shifted position. “I was just telling the boys that I contacted an arms merchant from planet North Claudius.”

“Oh, yeah?” I rubbed sand out of my ear.

Sarge nodded. “Tag can supply us with everything we need to close down the mine and fulfill our contract. He's bringing in the medical supplies Bat wanted and ingredients for the sous chefs.”

“When's he due to arrive?” I asked.

“That's a secret.” Sarge sucked a tooth. “So is the location of their landing site. Part of the deal.”

“How you feeling, kid?” Joe asked me.

"I'm OK. How's Bat

“They worked him over pretty good,” Joe said, “but he'll make it.”

I glanced at the cabin and bit my lip. “Guess I'll go see him. Is Sophia home?”

“She's been taking care of him,” Joe told me.

I walked to the cabin and went inside. The room was warm and too stuffy. It smelled of a wood fire, though the fireplace was cold. “Sophia?”

“I'm in the bedroom,” she called.

I went in. Bat lay in one of the two beds. Sophia sat at his side and held a compress to his left cheek.

“Bat.” I smiled, though it wasn't easy. His face was swollen and discolored. He had a bandage around his head. His eyes were black and almost shut. I sat on the other side of his bed. “How you feeling, Bubba?”

“Like I'm lucky to be alive,” he mumbled though puffed lips.

“They couldn't kill a tough southern rebel like you with an axe.”

He reached out a hand and I took it.

“I knew,” he drew in a breath, “there was a reason we rescued you.” He coughed and I saw the pain on his face. “I had hours to live when you came in like Superman.”

“Ah, shucks. Anytime, Bat.” I squeezed his hand.

“You better go and take a shower now.” He smiled. “You're leaving a trail of dirt.”

“Yeah,” I said. “Maybe so.”

I walked around the bed and kissed Sophia on her head, then went into the bathroom and wiped the tears that blurred my vision. I threw my clothes into the vib unit, shaved, even brushed my teeth, and took a long, warm, luxurious shower. By then my clothes were dry and I got into them. As Huff would say “Is it good to feel almost human again?” I chuckled.

“It's your favorite, I hear,” Sophia said as I came into the kitchen and breathed the aroma of a sizzling steak.

“Damn, that looks good.” I sat at the table as she brought dishes of steak, mashed potatoes with butter floating on top, a crisp salad, a chunk of mud pie and a cup of Earthbrew.

“Woman, you've outdone yourself. Thanks, Soph.”

“You think it's enough to fill you up?”

“It's a beginning.” I picked up the fork and knife. “I'll have one of the horses for dessert.”

She laughed and sat across from me. “I don't think you'd like the taste of horsemeat.”

“Oh, no?” I chewed a piece of steak.

“Well, it's a bit sweet and gamey.”

“You're kidding, right?” I said as I swallowed the steak. “You eat horses on New Lithnia?”

She shrugged. “They're cheaper than beef, and more tender.”

I cut another slice of steak. It was tender and juicy, and some of the tastiest meat I could remember eating. “Did you find a new recipe for the sous chef? This is great.”

She leaned forward and smiled. “I have a different cookbook.”

A sudden fear struck me and I put down my knife. “It's…uh…it's not horsemeat?”

She looked away and shook her head. “Finish eating, Babe, you need the nourishment.”

I stared at the steak and suddenly I felt sick without consciously knowing why. Something was tugging at my mind. Something I didn't want to break through. I had a hard time swallowing the piece I was eating. “Sophia?”

She looked back.

“You know I only eat mock meat. Right?”

“I guess you mentioned that.”

I pushed the plate away. My stomach churned. “This is deer meat, isn't it? That little deer you shot in the woods. Isn't it!”

“Where do you think they get mock meat from?”

“They clone the animals for parts, and then they grow only the parts. Don't you know that?”

“I suppose I do. If you can afford it.” She got up and hit the table with a palm. “I can't afford it! That's why I live off the land. I told you that.” She pointed a finger at me. “And you can't use your credcount here.”

“Sophia.” I sat back. “I never lied to you.” I gestured to the plate. “I never tried to trick you, not since that night we met. I thought I could trust you.”

“Of course you can trust me. I'd never break that trust.”

I pushed the plate away so hard the steak slid off. “You just did!” I got up, strode out of the cabin and slammed the door behind me. I went to the empty picnic table and sat on it.

The sky was wringing out a drizzle of rain. I thought of the small deer, the joy of running through the woods, of eating sweet grass, of having a fawn at her side in the spring. And then the agony of a beam weapon breaking her back. And it was all over. I sat with my hands draped over my thighs and stared into the woods. I felt like throwing up.

Sophia came out and sat next to me on the table.

I stared straight ahead. “I feel as though I can't trust you anymore. How do I know what other tricks you'd use on me?”

“It wasn't a trick, Jules. You were exhausted and you hadn't eaten in a day. I wanted to give you the best meal I could.” She reached out a hand to touch my shoulder.

I brushed it away.

“I didn't lie to you,” she said.

“You see a distinction? I don't!” I turned to her. “I'm an astrobiologist, Sophia. I don't kill animals. I study them on different planets.” I got up and started walking. I had to work off the anger and the sick feeling in my stomach.

“Jules!” She followed me.

I stopped and gestured toward Huff, who was still asleep. “What if Huff didn't have language? Would he be fair game?”

I saw tears wet her cheeks. She shook her head. “Of course not.”

“Why not? What separates the animal kingdom from us?”

“That's not fair. I tried to help you.”

“Next time, don't try.” I strode into the woods.

She didn't follow.

Rain fell heavier as I walked along a game trail, not knowing where I was heading. Maybe I'd been too hard on her. We came from different worlds, literally, but even more, different backgrounds. I knew people who had grown up on farms. Their attitudes toward animals was diametrically opposed to mine. There were pets, and there were food animals. And while I made no distinction, they did, from their earliest upbringings.

I leaned against a tree and wiped rainwater from my face. Where the hell was I, anyway? The woods were thick and flat, with no high points to study the surrounding terrain. The sky too, was flat. I've never had a very good sense of direction. I had my comlink, but Boss Slade might be monitoring all calls within miles of Wydemont Creek.

I continued walking and broke through a clearing. There ahead, a house. Fields. Farm machinery. I started toward it, then stopped. No. Boss Slade had bought the residents of Wydemont Creek. They were paid for and packaged in finery. I couldn't take the chance.

I skirted the farm, climbed an escarpment overlooking the barn and corral, and sat under an outcrop, out of the rain. Damn, I was hungry, and thirsty too. But I formed my plan. It was getting close to dusk. When night fell, I'd sneak into the barn, steal a horse, and call our base camp. Let Slade monitor the call if he could. I'd use a code to tell whomever answered that I would be on the pier in Wydemont Creek. Code Word Bug Bag Crusty. Sophia would know where I'd be. They could send a cubair to pick me up and then take a circuitous route back to camp. Well, that was the plan. Implementing it was the more difficult part.

With darkness, warm, yellow lights flicked on in the house. I saw movement behind the open curtains. A family, embraced within those protective walls. I lay on my back and thought of my lost love, Willa. I had tried to steal a horse from her ranch on planet Halcyon, but she caught me and Lisa at it. And then she ended up giving me the horse so we could escape the Dream Czar's men. “Where are you now, Willa?” I whispered. Spirit said she'd reincarnated on a planet humans couldn't visit because of the crushing gravity and the violent climate. As though Great Mind just didn't want us to be together again. I wiped a hand across my wet eyes. It wasn't just rain. Great Mind knew that if I could join her, I might off myself, and he did not condone suicide.

I rolled to my stomach and watched the house. A horse nickered from the barn. I could smell them from up here in the humid air. Not a bad smell. There were two air-and-ground vehicles parked near the front door of the house. I might be able to steal one, but a horse could travel in the woods, and an aircar would be missed sooner.

I climbed down the escarpment, jogged to the barn and went inside. Two draft horses and a young Appaloosa munched hay in their stalls. I took a canteen from the tack room and put on a set of raingear. I filled the canteen at the trough pump and drank my fill.

The Appaloosa was not happy with a nighttime ride. He fought my attempt to saddle him. But finally I won and led him outside. The barn blocked the view from the house. I mounted, unhooked the corral gate and guided him through. I hooked the gate back on and trotted him into the woods. A dog barked, but no one left the house.