Chapter 27
TWENTY-SEVEN
Tai
Bri and I grab the same piece of flatbread and neither one of us lets go.
She scrunches up one side of her face and tries to tug it out of my hand.
I hold even tighter and refuse to give an inch.
We’re both enjoying this battle of wills when Boss slinks into the dining hall.
Bri looks over at him and drops her grasp on the flatbread.
I let go as well, no longer hungry. With one look, he managed to ruin my appetite.
“The goddess is needed in the prayer room,” Boss says and yanks Bri up from her seat.
“I suggest you let go of her right now, or I’d be happy to relieve you of that hand.” I’m on my feet and towering over Boss with Bri standing between us.
“The rain hasn’t returned. You must summon more. Or you no longer serve a purpose to us.”
Bri looks up at me with rage in her eyes. “Sure, I’d be happy to pray,” she says awkwardly and overly sweet. He doesn’t know it yet, but that saccharine voice is dangerous. I follow them down the tunnels to the prayer room, not wanting to let Bri out of my sight.
I was ready to go to blows when he grabbed her arm. But the look in her eye told me I didn’t need to fight this battle for her. She’d get him back in her own way.
The prayer room is empty and dark. Boss shoves Bri down to her knees in the center of the room. His rough treatment of her sends a wave of fury through me, one that threatens to completely take over. The only thing calming me is the hatred in her eyes, and I know that his days are numbered.
“Now pray. And you, Tilak,” he spits, “Leave her in peace so she can fulfill her destiny.”
I plant my feet to the ground and dare any one of these fuckers to try and make me leave. But Bri catches my eye and gives me a quick nod, silent permission to leave. My ear twitches at the dismissal. Every instinct tells me to stay right here.
“Really, I’m okay,” she says.
Reluctantly, I back out of the prayer room and into the hall. I’m about to sit in the alcove facing the door when Boss calls out.
“Follow me,” he says over his shoulder as he walks down a tunnel I’ve yet to see, one I haven’t mapped out yet.
I can’t help myself, and against better judgment I follow.
If he’s with me, he isn’t harassing Bri, and he's the only one I think is a possible threat. We go down another narrow tunnel I’m not familiar with.
This one is older than the rest. The walls are crumbling, like they could collapse at the slightest touch.
He stops abruptly and turns back to me with malice in his eyes.
“I warned you, Tilak, and now you have crossed the line.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?” I roll my eyes. What does he want now?
“I’m talking about you seducing the goddess. I saw how you looked at her at the Wahadi. The scriptures clearly say her pleasure must come from the brethren, not some Tilak scum. Your time has run out.”
I saw this coming.
“Yeah, okay. You got me. I’ll leave.”
I’ve already got a plan. I’ll leave peacefully then sneak back in. I’m confident I can grab Bri and get out without being detected.
“No. You misunderstand, Tilak. It’s time for you to return to the gods.” A swarm of brethren fill the tunnel, blocking me from every side. I might be three feet taller than them, but they outnumber me twenty to one.
I would kill for my blaster right now.
Before they have a chance to organize around me, I shove Boss hard enough to take three brethren down with him. I easily shove my way through to get back to Bri. I should never have left her alone.
Baby Face stands in my way and raises his fists. As if his tiny hands could stop me. I lift him off the ground by the throat. In a futile attempt, he bangs against my bionic arm, begging for freedom. My tight metal grip makes his eyes bulge before I toss him onto the pile of fallen brethren.
Another one swings a wooden broom handle, smacks his brethren in the face with his backswing and brings it hard across my abs.
I yank the stick out of his hands and snap it across my knee, breaking it in two.
He panics and runs in the opposite direction.
The remaining brethren scatter and clear a path for me.
I’m nearly to the end of the tunnel when two brethren jump on my back at the same time.
I reach behind and grab one by the hood of his robe and toss him aside.
The other wrestles my bionic arm down and slaps a cuff on my wrist. A shock knocks me to my knees.
My vision narrows when my other arm is wrenched back and cuffed.
My yell echoes off the stone walls when another shock radiates through me. I grind my teeth together to get through the pain, counting every shallow breath while I wait for it to stop. I deepen my inhales and the current comes to a stop.
“You arrogant Tilak, thinking you can come in here and take what is ours,” Boss says, brushing dust off his robes. He stalks toward me. From this position, he is taller than me. I look up and spit right in his face. He pulls out a blaster and points it right at me.