“They will pay for this Tryn,” I said, my voice barely more than a whisper. “They're all going to pay for this.”
I knelt in the mud alongside my friend and his dead father, my mind a chaotic swirl of thought and emotion. Where was my family? How would I get them back? What could I do to right these wrongs?
I had no answers, but my face burned with anger and hatred. I vowed to myself that I would free my mother and the kids. I vowed that I would make Gravus pay for what he'd done – to my family, to my village, and to Tryn.
I didn't know how I was going to do it, but I would do it.
Chapter Ten
Hatare
My head start hadn't been much, but I'd made the most of it. Rather than travel on foot, I'd decided to liberate a hover bike from my father's garage. He had more than a dozen for his soldiers, he wasn't going to miss one.
I knew though, that he would be able to track the bike, so I knew I couldn't take it too far. Just far enough to allow me to put some distance between me and my father's house. Plus, I figured that if I ditched the bike and doubled back, it might take them a little longer to figure out where I'd gone.
And I'd ended up on the outskirts of Kinray. The place I'd heard talked about in the most derogatory terms by my parents and their friends. It was the villages on the fringes, the place where the people they called scraps lived.
I wandered into what looked like a bustling marketplace. There were what looked like hundreds of people milling about. The smell of cooking meats and other foods saturated the air, as thick as the voices of the vendors hawking their wares.
If there was any place I could lose myself – and anybody pursuing me – it looked like this place.
I adjusted my cloak and pulled the hood down lower over my face. I didn't think I'd be recognized this far out from Kinray, but I wasn't going to take any chances.
“Roasted meats, miss? They're delicious, come try them,” an older man with stark white hair and black eye markings asked me.
He was standing far closer than I was comfortable with, so I took a step back and shook my head.
“N – No,” I said. “No, thank you though.”
“Are you sure? A little thing like you looks like you need to eat something.”
“I'm sure. Thank you.”
I moved quickly past him and blended in with the crowd. I'd been in the marketplace in Kinray and it was nothing like this. It didn't have the hustle and bustle. It didn't have the frenetic energy. The Kinray market was quiet, soft music played, and it had a very staid, subdued atmosphere. But this place – this place seemed alive. And I couldn't help but feel my own excitement and energy rising in response.
My stomach growled, reminding me that it had been a while since I'd last eaten. But I knew I needed to be conservative with my money. I'd taken everything I'd managed to save up on my own, and had liberated some currency from my father's private safe – a safe he didn't think anybody knew about. I had a decent amount of money on me, but I knew I was going to have to make it last.
Besides, the last thing I wanted to do here was pull out a large wad of currency. If I'd been thinking about it, I would have broken it up and hidden it before I ever entered the marketplace. But there was nothing I could do about that now. I would deal with it when I had some time.
My first – and only – priority at the moment was finding somebody with a ship that could get me off-world.
I passed a stall where they were serving a dark liquid in tall glasses. I'd never been allowed to drink at home, but now that I was a free woman, I thought I might indulge. Why not? I rummaged around in my pocket for some coins and came out with a few.
“How much for one of those –” I didn't know what it was called, so I pointed.
The man inside the stall smiled at me. He was large, had skin that carried a pale green hue and hair that was turquoise. He had a kindly face – a grandfatherly type face.
“You old enough to be drinking, young lady?” he asked me.
I leaned closer to him. “Today is my eighteenth birth year,” I said. “So, yes.”
He smiled wide at me and leaned closer, as if understanding I didn't want to be overheard. “Well then, happy birth year to you – what's your name?”
“Vur,” I said. “My name is Vur.”
“Well, happy birth year to you, Vur,” he said.
I smiled. “Thank you. So, how much is a glass of – that?”
He poured a glass – smaller than the ones in front of the men at the bar, I noticed – of the liquid and set it before me. “This here is the finest Ozol you're gonna find in all of Unduth.”
“That sounds – wonderful,” I said. “How much?”
“This one's on the house, young Vur,” he said. “Call it a birth year present.”
I gave him a small smile. “Thank you, sir,” I said. “That's very kind.”
I raised my glass to him and took a drink – and immediately wished I hadn't. It was bitter and burned my throat as it went down. But there was a flavor to it that – once you got past the bitterness and burning – was actually quite delicious. But it took some effort to get past that bitterness.
I lowered the glass and coughed, feeling tears building up as I squeezed my eyes shut.
“First glass, huh?” the man asked.
I nodded, unable to form words at the moment. Eventually, the burning eased and I was able to open my eyes again. The man was looking at me, an amused expression on his face.
He leaned over again and looked around as if to make sure we weren't overheard. “You're from Kinray, aren't you?” he asked.
I felt my heart lurch and my blood run cold. Was I that obvious?
“W – Why would you ask me that?”
He smiled. “Because you don't seem like one of the scraps,” he replied. “You've got manners. And a gentle way about you that's not common.”
“Y – You know those people call you – that name?”
He laughed, a loud, booming sound. “Of course we do,” he said. “We wear it like a badge of honor, truth be told. It reminds us that we're not like them.”
I nodded. “Nor am I.”
“Is that why you're runnin'?” he asked. “Instead of packin' up to go to the Academy? Because you're different?”
I lowered my eyes and felt a sliver of fear stab through me. I was obviously not blending in anywhere near as well as I'd hoped. In fact, I apparently stood out like a bright light in the darkness. My hand trembled and I could feel the fear building up inside of me.
“Hey, don't worry,” the man said. “We don't judge anybody out here. You're safe out here.”
I shook my head. “I fear that I'm not safe.”
He cocked his head. “What do you mean?”
“I mean that I ran away just before my birth year celebration,” I said. “I'm quite sure my father will be sending his guard to find me.”
He nodded and smirked at me. “Yeah, those wealthy folks certainly enjoy their traditions, don't they?”
I nodded and smiled. I couldn't believe I was telling this man – a complete stranger to me – all of this. In the back of my mind, I knew that I was endangering myself, but something told me that I could trust this man. And I trusted my instincts. I believed him when he said that nobody would judge me out here. That I would be safe – at least, as long as my father's guard didn't find me.
But I knew it was only a matter of time before they did.
“I don't subscribe to those traditions,” I said. “I consider it no better than slavery. I won't be forced to live that life or be a proper Unduthian woman.”
His smile was warm and genuine. “It's nice to know we out here aren't the only ones who despise them for their arrogance – and their traditions.”
“Perhaps you can help me with something?”
“If I can, sure.”
“I need to find a way off-world,” I said. “I'm looking for a pilot with a ship that can get me to Optorio.”
He stood up and scratched his chin, thinking about it for a moment. “Yeah, I might know somebody, actually. Of course, I dunno if they're gonna be clearing shuttles to fly out. Not after the bombing today.”
“Bombing?”
He nodded. “Yeah, at the factory. Killed a bunch of government soldiers. Needless to say, the government folk aren't all that thrilled with us scraps at the moment.”
I felt my stomach clench. That threw a wrench into my plans. If I weren't able to get off-world – that night – I feared that I might not get off-world at all. I knew that my time was beginning to dwindle, knew that my father's guards were closing in. It was only a matter of time before they found this marketplace – and found me in it.
“But these guys I know,” he said. “They might be willing to fly you out – off the radar. But it would cost.”
I nodded, feeling a blossom of hope within my breast. “I can pay.”
The man nodded. “Just be sure to bargain with them,” he said. “Whatever you do, don't agree to their first price. Drive a hard bargain and don't get taken.”
I wasn't quite sure how to bargain with them – or with anybody for that matter, but I would try. My resources were limited and I wasn't keen on wasting any of it.
“Thank you,” I said. “Thank you so much.”
He nodded and then I saw him look up, a worried expression on his face.
“What is it?” I asked.
“Your father's guard,” he said. “They wouldn't happen to wear black and red armor, would they?”
I turned and followed his gaze – and felt a fist of ice squeezing my heart. A dozen men in my father's uniform were working their way through the crowd.
“You should go,” he said. “Stay out of sight and be back here in an hour. I'll have the pilots here. Now go.”
I pulled my hood down low and walked away from the booth, heading for one of the ways out of the marketplace. My heart was beating so hard, I feared it was bruising the inside of my chest. I didn't dare look back and expected that any minute, I was going to feel a hand clamp down on my arm.
I was so focused on keeping my eyes on the ground and moving as quickly away from my father's guard as I could, I didn't see the man until I ran smack into him. We collided so hard, that we both went down, landing on our backsides.
I looked up at him with wide eyes and feeling that my hood had slipped, pulled it back up quickly.
“Watch where you're going, huh?” he snapped.
“I – I'm sorry,” I stammered. “I didn't mean to. My fault. I apologize.”
The man got to his feet and then surprisingly, held a hand out to me. I took his hand and let him help me up. I took a moment to sneak a look behind me and felt a jolt of fear as I saw my father's guard getting closer.
I looked up at the man I'd run into. “Please, I need your help,” I said. “I know it's forward, what with us not knowing each other, but I'm in trouble. I need your help.”
He looked at me, his expression hard, for a moment. “Help with what?”
“I need to get out of this marketplace,” I said quickly. “Now.”
He looked up, saw my father's guard closing in and seemed to put two and two together. Without a word, he took my hand, and acting as if we were a couple, led me out of the marketplace. We crossed through his village under the light of two of our three moons. With each step, I kept expecting to hear my name being called or feel one of the guardsmen grab hold of me.
“Keep walking,” the man said. “We're almost clear.”
I did as he said and allowed him to lead me to a small home. It was built with brick and wood, and was quite shabby and rundown looking. But then, it looked much like every other home I saw in the village. He opened the door and ushered me inside, closing and locking it behind us.
I looked around the main room once we got inside and was appalled by the mess. Furniture was broken and debris had been scattered everywhere. A fire burned in the hearth, which was the only source of light. It was shabby, but I was thankful for it.
“Thank you,” I said, heaving a sigh of relief. “You saved me.”
“So, who are you?” he asked.
“I'm – Vur,” I said, repeating my well-practiced lie. “And you are?”
“My name is Byr.”
Chapter Eleven
Byr
I knew she wasn't a scrap the moment I laid eyes on her. She just had that upper class, elitist look about her. She definitely didn't fit in around the village. She had pale blue skin, hair that was a few shades darker, and white eye markings. And she just had that air of wealth and privilege about her that was unmistakable.
“Why are you running?” I asked. “I take it, those were your household's personal guard?”
She nodded and refused to meet my eyes. “Yes,” she said softly. “They were looking for me to bring me back.”
“Why did you run?” I repeated the question.
She sighed. “I – I didn't want to live the way they told me to live,” she said.
I picked up a couple of chairs – that thankfully hadn't been broken – and set them right side up near the hearth. I motioned for her to sit down and she did, still not meeting my eyes. She was a pretty girl and obviously had the refinement of the pampered elite. But the fact that she'd run away was curious to me.
“So, you ran away because what, your life as a little rich girl was too hard?”
Her eyes narrowed and she looked angry. “You wouldn't understand.”
“Try me.”
“You're a man,” she said. “You don't have to worry about your family treating you like a commodity rather than a daughter.”
“Yeah, well, I'm a scrap,” I snapped. “And you don't have to worry about the government sending troops to destroy your home and steal your family.”
She looked around the room as if seeing it for the first time. Her eyes widened slightly and when she looked at me, her expression was kind. Compassionate.
“What happened here?” she asked.
I sighed, not sure how much I should tell her. Despite the fact that she was one of the upper class Unduthians, there was something about her that was – different. She didn't seem like one of them – the ones who sought to keep their boots on the back of our necks. As far as attitudes went, she seemed to have more in common with the scraps than her own kind.
“The government sent troops in,” I finally said. “They rounded some of us up. Accused us of being part of some insurgency. They were going to execute us on the spot. But somebody set off a bomb that allowed us to escape. To retaliate – probably to draw us out – they took our families.”
Her eyes were wide and filled with sympathy for me. “Byr, I'm sorry.”
I fought back my tears. “My mom, little sister and little brother were rounded up,” I said. “Sent to one of those camps.”
She shook her head. “I'm sorry,” she said again.
I wiped at my eyes, refusing to let the tears fall. “I'm going to get them back. I'm not sure how yet, but I'm going to get them back. What about you? What are you going to do?”
“I have to get off-world,” she said. “My father will never stop hunting for me because I've shamed the family so badly. I need to get far away from here.”
“Got a ship?”
She shook her head. “No. But I met a man in the marketplace. He runs an Ozol stall. He said he knew a couple of pilots who might be able to help me.”
I laughed. This girl was going to get taken for a ride. I doubted she'd ever been outside of Kinray, doubted even more that she'd ever had to negotiate with scrap pilots. They would see her coming from ten miles off and would take her for everything she had. I felt bad for her.
“You're going to need some help,” I said, realizing I couldn't throw her out there on her own.
“Help?”
“Negotiating a price,” I replied. “They'll take everything you have if you're an outsider and they think they can take advantage of you.”
&n
bsp; She looked at me with eyes that were wide, fearful – and beautiful. “Can you help me, Byr?”
I nodded. Of course, I can. I have a feeling I know these pilots.”
She reached out and took my hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “Thank you.”
I gave her a small smile as I stared at her hand on top of mine. “You're welcome.”
It was the least I could do. I felt powerless to do anything else at the moment, might as well do something good for somebody.
Chapter Twelve
Hatare
He was a handsome man. I took him to be around my age. He was tall and thick through the shoulders and chest. He had strong arms and a lean body. His skin was a blue that was a couple of shades darker than mine and he had long hair that was black as coal. He had white eye markings, and clear, smooth skin.
What surprised me the most about him though, was how well-spoken he was. How articulate. He sounded very well educated. And I'd always been given to understand that education wasn't a priority out on the fringes. I'd understood that education was virtually non-existent.
But as we walked out of his house, on our way to meet the pilots, I noticed something – books littered the floor. Lots and lots of books.
“You read a lot, it seems,” I commented.
He shrugged. “I refuse to be uneducated,” he said. “And I won't let my siblings be either. We all read. We all learn. It was something my father instilled in us.”
“Where is your father?”
He looked at me and I immediately regretted asking. I could see the pain and grief in his eyes.
“He's dead.”
“I – I'm sorry, Byr.”
“Me too.”
We scanned the marketplace carefully before we stepped inside. There didn't seem to be any sign of my father's guard. The place was still bustling, but it looked clear. We made our way back to the Ozol vendor's stall and he smiled when he saw me.
“Glad to see you made it out of here in time,” he said.
“Thank you,” I replied. “So am I.”
“Byr,” the man boomed. “Good to see you.”
“Thank you, Mok,” he said.
He looked from Byr to me and back again. “You're helping her?”
Rocor (Dragons of Kratak Book 5) Page 56