by KD Knight
I swallowed hard after saying Boothe's name.
He pounded his fist against the table. "Do not place your hat where you can't reach it, little girl. You have no position or authority to question any of the directives given by this panel," he objected.
"The Council is answerable to its community…"
"We are answerable to no one!"
I looked back over at the crowd. Their attention was no longer on me. I looked to the panel, on the faces of the Council Elders was recognition of the grave statements Council Chairman Menkel had just made.
From his mouth finally came the truth. The Council was only concerned with preserving their existence and maintaining their power over the lives of Nephilims and Eshkars. They didn't care about the well-being of the Eshkar community. They didn't care about fairness or justice.
This outburst will travel throughout the community from one disgruntled Eshkar to another. Once they realized that the Chairman and the Council was not on their side, they would lose their power.
I couldn't fight my smile.
"Guard! Get Miss Miller out of my sight," Menkel barked. The guard grabbed my arm and roughly pulled me out of my seat.
"Fit her with a monitor!" The Chairman continued to shout as I was marched from the courtroom. "She will not leave the confines of her home without my express permission. She will check in with the Council on a weekly basis for rehabilitation. Should Miss Miller even think of breaching any of these orders, she will be detained for a period of twelve months at the Prison for Wayward Eshkars." The pounding gavel was the last thing I heard before the court doors closed behind me.
Outside the courtroom, a hail of flashing cameras and shouting reporters met me. The crowd closed around me, pushing their microphones in my face.
“Where did you come from?”
“How are you handling the attention and pressure of being the one destined to take on Aramos?”
“How would you characterize your relationship with Hasani Boothe?”
“How did you feel when you discovered what he truly was?”
"I have always known who Boothe really was. He is a strong, caring person who risked everything to help me. Finding out who his parents are doesn't change any of that." I shouted into the crowd.
Then came the barrage of questions about the nature of my relationship with the abomination named Boothe. The more they referred to Boothe as an abomination, the more the blood pumping through my veins began to heat up.
Thankfully, the guard didn't miss a step as he pulled me through the crowd. Finally, we made it to the armoured vehicle. The guard shackled my shaking hands behind my back and put me to sit on a metal bench in the back of the truck. He drew the door closed, leaving me in darkness.
Then he suddenly reopened it.
"Thank you," he said
"For what?" I looked into his grey eyes.
"For doing what none of us had the courage to do. You exposed the Council for what they are. It's time for people to open their eyes. It took you to do it. Thank you."
"It wasn't my intention to do any of that. I only did what I felt was right."
A faint smile crossed his lips. "Well, if there is anything I can do to help, I'm here."
"Everything they're saying about Boothe, him being an abomination and all, what does that mean?"
He hung his head. A feeling of dread washed over me.
"It's against Council code and Eshkar community tradition for an Eshkar and a Nephilim to...um...to become one," he said. "Any offspring of such a union is considered an abomination and is subject to immediate execution."
My eyes grew wide as they misted over. I swallowed hard before opening my mouth to speak. "What does that really mean?"
"There is a 'kill on spot' order. And there is a significant reward for the Eshkar that carries out the order. He'll be hunted by every Eshkar in the country, maybe the world."
I held my breath. They want to kill Boothe. My hands began to shake. "What's your name?" I asked the guard.
"Urie."
"Urie, I need you to remove my handcuffs and let me go."
"Um…" He hesitated. "I want to, but I can't. I'll lose my job. I could even end up getting charged."
"Fine." I closed my eyes and welcomed the familiar pressure mounting in my chest. "I'll get out myself."
"Um, Miss Miller, um, what are you going to do?"
I pushed my palms against the cool metal seat. The cabin began to shake.
"I'm going to save my friend and kill his father."