by Edward Lake
He closed his eyes for a second and steadily shook his head at me. “I need time to think about this, Sister.” He crossed his arms and walked to the cell door. “I know we don’t have a lot of time, so you’ll have my answer soon.”
Shortly thereafter, Declan and I woke Grandma Petra and explained the dire situation. Like us, she was shaken, even more so when I told her about my plan to switch places with Declan.
“Have you gone mad?” she hissed at me.
The three of us huddled up and whispered with our heads ducked. Grandma and I did most of the talking, quietly arguing with each other. Declan sat in the middle, looking past us and unable to get a word in.
“Enough, you two!” he finally cut in. “Turk and Lydia don’t need to hear any of this.” He checked the corner, where they had been resting, and smiled when he saw them bunched up together, still asleep. He quickly looked back at me and Grandma. “Okay, look. I love you both very much, and I appreciate the concerns each of you has.” He touched his injured shoulder and let out a long sigh. “Zena, you won’t last as long as me, even if you make it out of the camp. Sooner or later, you will get caught.”
I nodded. “More than likely, yes.” I looked back and forth at Grandma and Declan. “But none of us know what’s really going on up there. If this… rebel army is real, maybe they have found a weakness within the Holy Empire. Maybe this is the beginning of the end, and a new regime will rise from this. Perhaps even one that could free us from this horrid cell.” A few tears sank from my eyes again. “Isn’t the unknown worth fighting for?” I reached out to them and gripped their hands. I stared at Grandma, then at Declan. “This could be our chance to fight back.”
Declan took my hand and squeezed hard. Once more, he shook his head at me, then looked down and closed his eyes. “Zena, if you die, I’ll never forgive myself.”
I scooted closer to him. “I probably will die, but this war could be God’s vengeance against the corrupt Saros Empire. I want to be a part of that.” I reached out and touched his face. “But more importantly, I’m doing this to save you.”
Declan looked up and opened his eyes. He reached out with his good arm and gently rubbed the side of my face. “I don’t care about any of that. If this works, this could be the last time we see you.”
I flashed an uneasy smile. “At dawn, they will come for Declan Ezra, and we can’t stop them from taking you.” I moved my hand down and carefully rubbed the scars on his cheek. “I’m Declan Ezra now.”
At the same time, we hugged each other, and I pulled Grandma into us. But unlike Declan and me, she wasn’t all in.
“You can pull me all you want, Zena. I think both of you are crazy. This will never work.”
We separated.
I glared at her, hoping she would see the hurt in my eyes. “So you’re just going to let them come in here and take Declan, damaged shoulder and all?” I shook my head at her. “After all that he’s been through in his life, he deserves better than that.” I trembled in anger, thirsty for the blood of Pastor Saros and all his brainless soldiers. “If I have to die to save him, then that’s what I’ll do.”
Declan moved closer to Grandma and wrapped his good arm around her. “I don’t want to lose Zena, either, but she’s determined—and she’s right. If the rebel army is real, it could be the salvation we have hoped for after all these years of misery.”
Grandma Petra yanked away from Declan and turned her back from us. “Fine, have it your way.” She looked down and rashly swiped away at the ground, flicking dirt at us. “We’ll need to find some thin rocks and sharpen them as best as we can. So start looking.”
Her stubbornness stung me like a hard slap to the face. I glanced at Declan and saw the somber look in his eyes. I wished Grandma would be more supportive, at least for his sake. Still, there was no time for moping.
With great urgency, I went to another spot on the ground and searched for thin rocks. Declan joined in, too, and within a few minutes, we found enough rocks to begin the sharpening process.
10
Zena
Grandma Petra took two long, thin rocks and scraped them together until her hands hurt. She then passed them off to me, and I sharpened the rocks until my hands ached. Declan was next, and we did a rotation for hours until the two rocks were sharp enough to cut with.
Grandma sat down and pointed between her legs. “Get over here, Zena, and take a seat.”
I hurried to her and sat down. Declan went over to the rusty cell bars of our cage and ducked his head low. He eyed the nearby soldiers like a bird stalking its prey, tracking their movements, just as he tracked his opponent’s moves in a death match.
“Clear,” he whispered to Grandma.
She gripped a handful of my hair and roughly sliced into it, inch by inch. I breathed out harshly with every rip and pull. Grandma ignored my grumbles and whimpers. She cut deep and hard—so hard that my head stung.
“Declan, turn your head so that I can see you. I need to make Zena’s hair look just like yours from all angles.”
Declan turned and moved his head into the dim light coming from the hallway. Grandma had me turn around, sit in her lap, and face her. She grabbed my head and bent it up and down and from side to side. Finally, when she found the right angle, she let go and told me to hold still.
I froze and did my best to remain calm. Grandma clenched my hair with one hand, and with the rock in her other hand, she gently and rapidly cut it. The tedious process took all night, yet when Grandma finished with me, she impressed Declan.
“Great work, Grandma. The length, the edges. You did great.” He walked around me, nodding. “Now, can you shave my face with that?”
She gave me a nod. “Yes, and if I couldn’t, this plan wouldn’t work.”
I stood up and stepped away so Declan could take my place on the ground. Facing Grandma, he sat down and took a few deep breaths. I went to the bars and kept an eye on the soldiers. In the background, I listened as Grandma Petra wasted no time and got right to it. She carefully scraped the rock along Declan’s face. I turned my head and checked him. Declan huffed through his nose and sat calmly. Grandma chiseled away at his face until the beard was gone, leaving only a little stubble and some light blood.
Declan brushed away the dirt on his hand and patted his face. “Well, how does it look?”
I set my hand on my chin and narrowed my eyes. “Hmm, you definitely look more like a woman.” I laughed and shook my head at him.
Declan flashed a lighthearted smirk. “That’s okay, because you look worse as a man.”
“Isn’t that the idea? To make me look as ugly as you?”
Grandma laughed. “Oh my, I’m going to miss this.” She took a moment to look us over. “Listening to you two mock each other always brings a smile to my face.”
Right then, my mood flipped, and the realization that I might never see my family again began to sink in. Still, I wasn’t going to let my fears and doubts stop me. Saving Declan meant everything to me.
Turk and Lydia woke up soon after. Once they finished their big yawns and stretching, they noticed Declan’s changed appearance and rushed over to him.
“What happened to you, Declan?” Turk asked, his eyes squinted.
“Yeah, where did all your face hair go?” Lydia added, squinting, too.
He exhaled and crossed his arms. “Zena and I had to change our looks.” He turned his head and stared at me. “She has to leave us in the morning.” He slowly looked back at the little ones. “I need you two to be strong, okay? This is a very dark time for our family.”
It hurt my heart to involve them in any of this. Still, it was necessary. We all had to do our part to make it seem real. Declan needed to be spotted and confronted by the soldier who regularly monitored our cell. At that moment, we’d put our plan in motion. After that, getting to the ship without being noticed would be up to me.
“Turk, Lydia, I can see that both of you are confused by all this,” Grandma said. “
I promise, one day you’ll understand why we did this. But for now, we need you two to play along.” She waited a moment. “Do you understand?”
“Yes, Grandma,” they said as one.
“Okay, now, for Zena to leave, she will have to become Declan. So when I tell you, and only when I tell you, you will call her Declan and you will call Declan Zena.”
Turk snapped at her and yapped, “Wait, this is weird. Why is this—”
“Turk!” Declan grumbled. “In our world, you have to grow up fast. That is what I need from you right now.” He shook his head and unfolded his arms. “Zena is risking her life to save mine. That is all you need to know. Now, please, do as Grandma says.”
Our little brother did not say anything at first. Nor did Lydia. The cell was dead silent for a few seconds longer. Then, finally, Turk looked down and mumbled, “Okay.”
I closed my eyes and sighed. I hope you forgive us someday, little brother. Hearing the sad nature of his voice made my heart thump faster. I went to the corner and lay down to hide my hair and face from the patrolling soldiers.
“So what should we do now?” Turk said.
“For now, pretend like everything is normal,” Declan replied. “At dawn, Zena and I will trade places.”
Right on cue, the soldier peeked in on us and spotted Declan’s new look. “Hey, Ezra, Declan! What in God’s name did you do to your face?”
“I shaved my beard, sir.”
There was a long silence between them. My eyes twitched a bit as my heartbeat quickened with each passing second.
“How, Ezra?”
I heard him grab the sharpened rock off the ground. “With this.” I listened carefully as Declan stood up and tossed the rock through the cell bars.
The soldier snatched it off the ground. “Hmm, not bad considering it was done with a rock.” He laughed. “Even so, this sharpened rock is considered a weapon. Are you sure you weren’t planning an escape tomorrow at the recruitment camp?”
“No, sir.”
Another unnerving silence hung in the air.
The soldier let out a creepy chuckle. “Very well then. But if I find another sharp rock in your cell—or on you—I will turn you in. My captain would surely have me kill you. So next time, think twice before you decide to give yourself a shave.”
Declan took a deep breath. “Understood.”
Once I heard the soldier leave, I turned my body over and checked Declan. The sadness in his eyes was very telling. It was as if the soldiers had finally broken him and he had already lost all hope.
He turned around and faced Grandma.
She quickly scooted over to him. “We’re not done yet.” She had him sit down between her legs again, but this time, she grabbed our cut hair off the ground and made a pile with it on her lap. She braided the strands of hair with Declan’s hair, on and on, until his hair was just as long as mine was before she cut it.
I nodded and smiled after checking her work. “Very nice, Grandma.”
The plan was working—for now. The next step was Declan teaching me how to act more like him, and I needed to teach him how to be more like me.
11
Zena
The cell block calmed in the late-night hours. Most of the other slaves were asleep, and their loud snoring echoed throughout the cell block. I imagined they wondered why we were being drafted. For the moment, that was the only thing on my mind. The Holy Army must really be in trouble if they need us. Why else would they do this?
Declan and I had been up all night, giving each other pointers on how to behave like the other. After a while, we stopped to take a break and relaxed near the cell door.
I looked at him and watched as he stared past the cell bars. “What’s on your mind?”
He smiled. “You.”
I moved closer and rested my head on his arm. “Why is this happening to us?”
He quietly laughed. “Does it matter? We can’t stop it.”
“But the Holy Army, Brother… Why would they do this?”
Declan grumbled and shook his head. “I have no idea, and to be honest, I’m not concerned with their reasons. Nothing they do makes sense to me. All I know is that I’ve failed you—and the family.”
I put my head up and gently touched his arm. “No, you have not. This was my choice.”
My brother looked down at his bad shoulder. “You’re doing this because you think I won’t survive out there.”
I shook my head. “No, I’m doing this because I don’t want you to suffer anymore.” I straightened my posture and put my head up high. “It’s my turn to bleed for the family.”
As I expected, the patrolling soldiers were more active than usual tonight. Instead of strolling around from cell to cell, they marched with their guns out, scanning the halls like madmen and chatting nonstop about the attack.
Grandma Petra, the little ones snuggled under her arms, rested in the corner. Not knowing how much time we had until dawn, I figured Declan and I should get back to working on our new mannerisms.
“Okay, let’s work on walking again.” I stood up and pictured Declan’s walk in my head. I ambled to the wall, then turned around and went back to the cell bars.
Declan waved his hand over me, as if he was trying to erase my walk from his mind. “Okay, do it again. But this time, be more natural. Your hips, your stride, it has to flow. Otherwise, you’ll stand out like a flower on the prison yard.”
First, I straightened myself up.
Declan frowned at me. “You keep doing that.” He blew out a frustrated sigh and stood up. “Stop fixing your posture. I don’t do that when I walk. I just walk and slouch and lean and bend. I don’t care about my posture.” He sauntered from wall to wall a few times. “You see? Just walk, and don’t think about anything.” He stopped and watched me closely.
I shut my eyes for a few seconds, then quickly reopened them. I went right into my walk with confidence. I strolled from wall to wall several times until Declan finally gave me his approval.
“Yes, Zena. That’s it.” He nodded as I went on.
I took a deep breath and set my hands on my hips. “Geez, becoming you is harder than I thought.”
His eyes sunk. He covered his face and looked down. “It’s hitting me, Zena.” He looked up with watery eyes. “This is our final goodbye, isn’t it?”
I walked over to him. “Don’t say that, even if you believe it’s true.” I reached out and touched his face. “Pretend like I’ll only be gone for a few days, okay?”
Declan shoved me and wiped away the tears in his eyes. “Don’t talk to me like I’m Turk or Lydia.”
“Declan?” I put my arms out. “Why are you doing this?” I calmly walked back to him and touched his face again. “I guess I was trying to stay positive.” I glanced at the cell bars and spotted a few soldiers marching in the distance. “Our happiness is all we have.” I looked back at my brother. “I won’t let them take that from us.”
He moved my hand off his face. “You always were the dreamer of the family.” He walked past me and stopped at the wall. He leaned back and looked down at Grandma and the kids. “I wasn’t always asleep when you used to play soldier in the middle of the night. Do you remember doing that?”
I rolled my eyes. “Yes, I do.”
Declan beamed. “I loved seeing you like that. Ambitious, happy, without a care in the world. The way a child should be.”
I wanted to wander away with him and talk all night, yet my fears kept creeping into my head—and fighting with them was becoming more difficult. Regardless, I suppressed them as best as I could. Our moment of truth was drawing near.
“Listen, we don’t have a lot of time. Let’s refocus.” I sighed and loosened up. “What’s next?”
Declan gave me a nod. “Okay. Your voice.” He paced around the cell for a moment, then paused and stared at me. “I want you to say, ‘My name is Declan Ezra.’”
Without thinking, I put some base in my voice and said, “My name is Declan
Ezra.”
“Not bad. I like the flow of it. But my voice sounds a little deeper than that. Try again.”
I concentrated hard and used my muscles to alter my tone. “My name is Declan Ezra.”
Declan nodded quickly. “Yes, just like that. Say it again, over and over, until it feels natural.”
I went on for a long while, repeating the line and imagining myself as my brother. My name is Declan Ezra. I am twenty-six years of age. I am a slave fighter from District Four on the North Star.
Time slipped right through our hands, and before we knew it, the soldiers had started their early-dawn head counts. They were also removing the draftees from their cells and taking them to the prison yard.
Declan quickly undressed and set his clothes on the ground. I took my clothes off and handed them to him. At the same time, he dressed as me and I dressed as him. I packed his shoes with clumps of dirt so I would appear a little taller.
I tore off a long, thick strand of cloth from my new, oversized shirt. With Declan’s help, I wrapped it around my breasts and tied a knot in the back. Luckily for me, I didn’t have large breast like some of the other women. The torn cloth barely did the job of flattening my chest.
Declan sat in the corner and put his head down. “Zena Ezra, twenty years of age,” he said in a feminine voice.
I blurted out a teasing laugh and shook my head at him. “Oh no, that sounds nothing like me. I need you to really soften your tone.”
“Zena, this is not a time for you to be mocking me.”
I stared at him and demonstrated with my voice as I talked. “I’m serious. Your voice is much deeper than mine. You really need to listen to my tone of voice and alter yours as best as you can. Otherwise, this won’t work.”