“Just looking after my own interests,” Palmer stated quietly, calmly. “Since I can’t get answers from you then I’ll get them anywhere I can.”
Phylicia turned to face Palmer quickly. “Benjamin! You act like you don’t trust me,” she said with a pouting look on her face. “If I felt that you didn’t trust me, I just don’t think I could bear it!” It was then that Palmer felt a sharp point in the area of his left kidney. Phylicia stepped toward him, bathed in superiority. She was glad that the guard had returned when he did and acted to protect her. “You really should be a lot more careful, Benjamin,” she said slowly and so quietly that Palmer barely heard her words.
“We are supposed to be on the same side,” Palmer said through clenched teeth and felt the knife tip press a little harder.
“You will know, what I want you to know, when I want you to know it,” Phylicia said with arrogance. “As a warning, for your own health, I wouldn’t go looking for something that you shouldn’t know.” With that, she made a little wave off sign with her right hand and Palmer felt the knife point pressure lessen. Palmer didn’t bother to look to see who it was. He knew it was one of Phylicia’s guards. He walked away.
Once Palmer was gone, the guard reported that Declan was being escorted out of the pod and that all she had commanded had been done.
“What was your name again?” Phylicia asked sweetly.
“Preston Freeman, ma’am,” the guard answered militarily.
“That was quick thinking, Preston. Thank you for your assistance. I’m sure you’d make an excellent personal guard.” Phylicia saw that the recognition had made Freeman stand taller than he already was with pride. “I want you to stay close enough to assist me again, but not so close as to hear what I say. Can I trust you to be invisible to me and to keep anything heard to yourself?” Phylicia asked the six-foot three, blond guard.
“Yes, ma’am, you can count on me,” he responded.
Phylicia turned and continued her daily stroll around the underside of the transport pod.
“Are they ready?” she asked when she had suddenly stopped at the area used by the wood workers. After seeing Murdock’s proficiency with his spear, she had the wood workers make staffs for all of the guards.
“We have a dozen staffs finished,” the head of the wood-worker shop told her. “We’re working on modifying some to be able to hold a twelve-inch machete, should one be required.” He handed her one of the staffs and she inspected it carefully. It appeared to be a little less than seven feet long, two-inch diameter that had been well smoothed and shaped.
Phylicia turned and tossed it quickly to Freeman, who was in his guard position. He deftly caught it, with one hand, in the middle of the staff. “What do you think, Preston?” she asked the guard.
Freeman inspected it and felt the heft of it. He felt the smoothness and let it slide through his hand before holding it at one end and sighting down the wooden shaft. “It will do, for the shorter guards,” he offered. “I prefer something a little longer, but this should do,” he said as he handed it back to Phylicia and then returned to his position, out of ear-shot.
“Make one for Preston, to his specifications,” Phylicia said to the man who had handed the staff to her. “Have one of your men distribute the rest to the existing guards. Do you have anyone who knows how to use one?” she asked as she tossed the staff back to Preston.
“No, ma’am, we only make them,” the man said with a slight bow and with the proper deference to her position.
With that, she left and was walking toward the, as yet, unfinished meeting hall and motioned for Preston to advance.
“You know how to use that?” she asked quietly once he was closer to her.
“I did have pugil stick training in the military. It isn’t too hard to be used effectively, especially if the other person is unarmed, ma’am,” he answered.
“I ordered one to be made to your specifications, but use that one, for now. In your off hours, I want you to find out who knows the most about using the staff and have them train all of the guards in its use. I don’t want them to look like fools when they try to use them. At some point, some or all of the guards will probably have to defend us against Murdock, and from what I’ve witnessed, he’s quite proficient.”
At the end of the day, Phylicia went to visit Declan again. It filled her with confidence seeing the guards with the new staffs. It always pleased her to have her orders obeyed. After a short, quiet conversation with Doctor Harris, Phylicia entered the recovery room cheerfully.
“How are you, Declan?” she asked with just the right amount of cheer in her voice to show that she was glad he was better.
“Feeling better,” Declan answered warily. “At least I don’t quite feel like I was hit by a truck!” A short pause. “Not quite a truck. Maybe a car,” he said sarcastically.
“Is everyone seeing to your needs?” Phylicia asked full of concern.
“I suppose,” Declan responded suspiciously.
“I’m not trying to take advantage of your condition, but have you given any more thought to what I said?” she asked finally. Declan had been waiting for her to get back to Murdock’s trial.
“As a matter of fact, I have,” he said being rather cold.
“And?”
“Why is it you hid the twelve people on the work crew and the two guards from me?” he asked watching her closely. He could see her blanch.
“Where would you get such an idea?” Phylicia asked as she turned her back on him. “Who would tell you something like that?”
“You did!”
“I don’t recall saying any such thing!” she said as innocently as she could manage.
“I’ve been watching you when you come to visit and your concern for my health. I can tell when you’re lying,” Declan said hotly.
With her back to him, she started working herself up for a good cry. She used tears with her parents and anyone else they would work on and felt that now would be a good time to work on Declan’s sympathies.
“I’ve been the only one who has protected you from Palmer,” she said tearfully. She suddenly turned to face him so that he could see her tears.
“You’re the one that caused it all in the first place! Your crocodile tears mean nothing!” He saw her tears stop suddenly.
“Fine, you’re on your own. Guards,” she yelled and waited for them to enter. “Take this malingerer out of here. Toss him in the stream for all I care,” she ordered.
“He isn’t going anywhere,” Doctor Harris said sternly as the guards were starting to lay hands on Declan. “He’ll be able to leave in two days, not before!”
“He’ll leave now,” Phylicia said approaching Doctor Harris menacingly.
“If you remove him, you better hope you don’t need my services,” Doctor Harris warned. Phylicia could see that she was serious. “Same thing applies if Palmer comes in!”
#
After requesting Annie keep her eyes closed, Murdock levitated the cart, with Annie on it, and himself over the river and downriver a fair distance before allowing her to reopen them. When they had reached the spot where he had intended to spend the night, Murdock got a fire going and Annie prepared some raw venison to cook on the fire. While it cooked, Murdock unloaded the tanned hides he had brought for them to sleep on and cover themselves.
“Tomorrow is going to be an early morning,” Murdock said as he ate.
“What’s your plan?” Annie asked after swallowing the bite she had been chewing.
“If the hunters come to the river to fish for everyone, I’ll send at least one back to get Phylicia to meet me away from the pod for a palaver. If they aren’t there, then we’ll head toward the pod and, if we have to, build a fire in sight of it. I will get their attention one way or another.”
“So, you’re not going to force them to give us Declan?” Annie asked as Murdock chewed.
“I’ll give them a chance to give him to us willingly, if that’s what you’re as
king. However, we aren’t leaving without him!”
“Is there anything that you’re afraid of?” she asked in astonishment.
“I fear the unknown,” Murdock finally responded after some thought. “If someone says they fear nothing, they’re either a fool or lying. Fear is natural and normal. It’s how you deal with the fear, that’s what counts. Courage, or the lack of it, is what you do in the face of fear.”
They finished eating in silence and then prepared to sleep. Annie, being exhausted fell asleep right away.
#
“Is it possible?” Murdock asked Beron telepathically.
“Yes. Will be ready,” the response came.
After a short telepathic conversation with Mei Lee, Murdock fell asleep.
#
“I hope your friends show up soon,” Irene Harris said quietly to Declan after Phylicia and the guards left. “I don’t know how much longer I can put them off.”
“They’re already quite close,” Declan responded confidently.
“How do you know?” the doctor asked.
“That’s what my sister told me,” Declan said more to himself than to the doctor.
“Really? And where is she?” Doctor Harris asked.
“She’s dead,” Declan said calmly.
Wonderful, I’ve jeopardized everything for someone who talks to the dead, or worse, to the voices in his head, Doctor Harris thought as her heart sunk. “Does she talk to you?” she asked.
“All the time,” Declan said matter-of-factly.
Doctor Harris was wishing she had followed her own advice and kept her nose out of things that she didn’t understand.
#
Murdock woke Annie a couple of hours before sunup. As Annie was becoming more mentally aware of her surroundings, she noticed that her current location was not where she went to sleep. They were still by the river, but she could see the outline of the ridge in the gloom of the early morning hours. It was disconcerting, but Annie had resolved that she didn’t have to know everything about Murdock or his ways of accomplishing what he needed to.
“Any sign of the hunters?” she asked as she hunkered down to warm herself and take off the morning chill.
“Not yet,” Murdock responded as he tended the fire and turned the chunks of venison. “They have been doing most of their fishing downriver a hundred feet. We should be able to see them approach long before they get here.”
“And if we don’t?” Annie asked as she drank deeply from her water skin.
“If they don’t show up by the time we’re ready to move on, we’ll head toward the pod,” Murdock responded as he continued to tend the cooking meat.
“Don’t you get tired of just meat?” Annie asked.
“What do you mean?” Murdock raised his eyes to look at her.
“There are other things,” Annie quipped, “like vegetables.”
“It would be nice, but I have only been able to find a few wild onions,” Murdock explained. “If you feel the need, just pull some of that grass and wash it off. I think you’ll find it surprisingly sweet. Just make sure you get grass and not weeds.”
“Very funny,” Annie chided.
“You think I’m teasing?” Murdock asked with some surprise as he handed her a piece of the cooked venison.
Annie didn’t say anything, she just watched Murdock while she decided if he was teasing her or not.
“Have you given any thought as to where you want to live?” Murdock asked. “You are more than welcome to stay with Mei Lee and I, until I get your house built.”
“What would I do to contribute?” Annie asked. “I don’t have the skills to take care of myself and I don’t want to be a burden on you and Mei Lee.”
“I doubt you would be a burden,” Murdock responded. “You could learn to take care of yourself. You have learned a few things already, how to build a fire and where to get water. That’s more than the majority of the others know how to do.”
“There’s also the issue of being alone,” Annie said quietly. “By not returning, I won’t have the chance to maybe meet someone. I’m not saying I’m in the market, but I would like to keep my options open.”
“That could be a problem,” Murdock agreed. “You could always wait until the next transport pod.”
“Five years?” Annie exclaimed. “You want me to wait another five years?”
“Why don’t we table the discussion, for now,” Murdock suggested as he was looking down river and apparently saw something. “We are going to have company soon. You stay here. I want to intercept them before they get to the river.” Murdock took off downriver at a trot.
While he was gone, Annie finished eating and began to break camp. She rolled up the hides they had used to sleep on and made everything in the cart secure. She dumped the remainder of the water from her water skin onto the fire, which made a loud hiss and a big cloud of steam and smoke. She then walked over to the river to refill her water skin. Just as she was finishing, she heard more hiss from the fire. She turned to see Murdock walking toward the river.
“How did it go?” Annie asked as Murdock knelt down to fill his water skin.
“I had to do some convincing, but they saw it my way,” Murdock explained. “I sent them all back to the transport pod and told them to send everyone on their council out to meet me somewhere between the pod and the river.”
“Do you think they’ll comply?” Annie asked.
“They’ll pass on the message, but I doubt the council will show,” Murdock speculated. “I’ll be surprised if they do.”
As they headed toward the transport pod, Annie had remained quiet. She could feel the showdown coming and it made her uncomfortable. Murdock was quiet and was constantly scanning the horizon while he pulled the cart. When he was close enough to see the transport pod in the distance, Murdock stopped.
“Aren’t you concerned about someone trying to come in behind us?” Annie asked as she stood leaning heavily on the cart facing the transport pod. “All they would have to do is circle around and you’d never see them coming.”
“The ones who try, will likely be the lucky ones,” Murdock answered with a smirk. “We have nothing to fear in that event.”
“How will you know they aren’t going to show?” Annie asked. “Did you give them some sort of a time limit?”
“Certainly,” Murdock answered matter-of-factly. “They have until midday.”
Annie looked up at the sky to try to determine how much longer they would have to wait, but didn’t know enough to read the sun’s position.
“About three hours,” Murdock said answering her unasked question. As he stood there, he took off most of the weapons and other equipment he didn’t feel he would need in a confrontation. When he was finished, he stood loose, but ready; constantly scanning the distance for sign of movement.
#
Phylicia had just awakened and was going through her daily routine when Freeman knocked on the bulkhead outside her quarters in the pod. Heather Stevens, who had been assisting her in dressing, answered the knock and then quickly showed the big guard in.
“What is it?” Phylicia asked impatiently.
“Ma’am, Murdock has come,” Preston Freeman exclaimed excitedly after he had bowed. “He wants the entire council to meet him out toward the river!”
Everyone in the room watched with bated breath to see how Phylicia would react.
“I don’t care what he wants,” Phylicia boomed finally. “He can wait out there until hell freezes over!” Phylicia started stomping around the room and everyone knew she was highly agitated.
“He is only going to wait until midday, Ma’am,” Preston stated.
“And then what?” Phylicia asked sarcastically. “Is he going to attack us? One against two hundred? I don’t think he would be that foolish! Have you told Palmer?”
“No, Ma’am. I came straight here to tell you,” Freeman responded.
“Go get Palmer and bring him here. It will give me a chance t
o finish dressing,” Phylicia commanded. She liked giving orders and seeing them carried out. She also liked the subservience of underlings. She didn’t have to wait long for Palmer.
“What are we going to do about this?” Palmer asked excitedly. He seemed to be trembling.
“I’m not going to submit to the whims of a terrorist,” Phylicia said, irritated. “Murdock thinks he can just show up and everyone else is to stop what they’re doing and come when called. He is, sadly, mistaken!”
“So, what’re we going to do?” Palmer asked again.
“I want you and all the guards to go out and deal with Murdock,” Phylicia commanded after very little thought.
“Me?” Palmer squealed. “Why me?”
“Don’t you want to redeem yourself for Murdock humiliating you?” Phylicia asked mockingly. “I would have thought you would, but you don’t have to, if you’re afraid.” She was looking coldly at Palmer when she asked the question and could see him break out in a sweat just from the thought of facing Murdock. “You aren’t afraid of Murdock are you Palmer?” she asked when Palmer didn’t respond.
#
“I’ll take care of it!” Palmer said, gruffly, after he seemed to pull himself together and gather his strength. He was planning as he and Freeman left Phylicia’s presence.
When Palmer and Freeman reached the bottom of the pod’s ramp, Freeman trotted off in search of the guards. It didn’t take long to gather them all together. Palmer had detoured to the woodworker and gotten a staff for himself and was feeling fairly confident. All the guards were armed with a twelve-inch machete and a wooden staff, just as he was. As they marched out to meet Murdock, Palmer had arranged the guards in a line in front of him.
#
Phylicia, Heather Stevens, and Kimberly Grey had emerged from the pod in time to see them all march off. Phylicia was hoping that Murdock would take care of some dirty work for her. She had been trying to figure a way for Palmer to have an accident. Now, it appears, the accident has found him, she thought.
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