Chapter 54
FIFTY-FOUR
Bri
“Have you checked this one?” I ask before stepping into another abandoned home. It’s dark inside, and sand has piled up high on every side of the tiny home.
The air around us felt fragile after Tai finally broke down. We stood toe to toe, wrapped up in each other's arms for a while. I felt the shift in him. His muscles loosened, and his breathing evened out. When we finally separated, I knew he had forgiven himself.
Tai pops his head in the door and looks around. “No, not yet.”
I go to the back where a kitchen once stood. He flashes me a quick smile before heading off to look for more supplies. His gait is lighter from finally letting go of the lead weight he’s been carrying on his shoulders.
The cabinets are all empty. I’m worried there isn’t anything else here that will help us get home.
I go to the next house. It’s a half wall and a secluded stone arch. I come to a stop, reconsidering whether it’s even worth going through this one.
“Don’t bother. There’s nothing there,” Tai says, coming up next to me.
A dark shadow crosses overhead, casting everything in an eerie gray. The ship we’ve been hunting for blocks out the sun above us.
“The Boraei are here,” Tai says.
We run to the house with the empty kitchen cabinets and stand on either side of the doorway, our backs against the wall, breathing hard from adrenaline. Tai peeks out every few minutes while I work to slow my breathing.
A radio squelch is the first warning that someone is on the ground and coming in our direction. Tai puts his finger to his lips. I nod, acknowledging his silent instructions.
Heavy feet approach. I can’t tell how many, but it sounds like a lot. A hulking figure with a shiny black helmet and black tactical gear passes the house and continues down the road. I breathe a quiet sigh of relief that they didn’t see us.
A herd of h’axom follows not far behind.
They press tightly together as they run down the narrow roads.
The ground vibrates, and their bellows drown out anything else.
When the last h’axom passes by, one final figure dressed in black brings up the rear, holding a long metal baton with two prongs at the end. It looks like a giant cattle prod.
Daisy!
“I have to go find Daisy,” I whisper-scream and bolt for the opening.
Tai intercepts me and holds me to his chest. “Hold on. We’ll find her. You can’t do anything if they catch you,” he whispers forcefully. I know he’s right.
She’s been a good girl. The thought of her getting shocked by one of those prods makes me sick.
The shadow from the freighter passes, and the sky turns bright again. Tai looks out and confirms no one else is around. He sinks down the wall and sits.
After the fear subsides a bit, it hits my nervous system that our ticket home is within reach and I’m pumped full of adrenaline. “Alright. We found the Boraei. Now we get that freighter and go home,” I say, infusing my voice with all the optimism I have left.
“We are so incredibly, deeply, and irrevocably fucked,” Tai says.
“Why were they herding the h’axom?” I ask, not acknowledging the sentiment I share with Tai.
“They weren’t herding them. They are poachers,” Tai says and looks me dead in the eye. I don’t know how he knows that, but I believe him.
“Poachers?”
“That is a bunch of Yuhlari poachers. This is who is supporting the brethren.”
“What the fuck is a Yuhlari?” I ask, getting irritated that I don’t know what’s going on.
“The most dangerous sort in this galaxy. They control organized crime in this quadrant. They make the brethren look like saints.
Realization dawns on me. “They are killing the h’axom for the gland.”
“And I’m sure they are making a ton of credits doing it,” Tai says.
“Like hell they are. Get ready, we’re blasting our way out,” I tell him, deadly serious, “These poaching fucks aren’t going to get away with this.”
“Now you want to blast our way out?!” He looks across the open expanse between us and the poachers.
“Don’t tell me the great Tai pt’Alquon is afraid of some Yuhlari and a few tiny blasters.”
“I know what you’re doing, and I’m not going to fall for it.”
“We can’t abandon the h’axom. I’ll never be able to live with myself,” I plead with him.
I don’t care if it puts me in danger and breaks my “no blasting” rule. What I do know about the Yuhlari is that they have terrorized the Sabaaki, they needlessly kill h’axom, and they support the dreadful brethren.
Three strikes and you’re out.
“I’m not saying we leave them, but we can be smart about this. There’s no hurry. We watch and wait for the right time. One that doesn’t put us in the middle of a blaster fight.”
He’s right.
I love us working together. Maybe it’s because he likes waving his weapon around, or maybe it’s because he hates the idea of these animals suffering. Either way, he’s on my side and it feels right.
“Let me think. We need a plan,” Tai says. His eyes dart around while he runs through options in his head.
“If you try for one second to tell me to hide back here while you try to be the hero.” I try to get ahead of any potential reasoning he could give to not let me play a part in our escape.
“Don’t you think I’ve learned my lesson by now? We’re doing this together.” He links our hands and I know we can conquer the entire universe.