Page 107 of Freedom Mine
Once he cut out her chip and hid her, he could take off in the opposite direction, lead the guards as far from her as he could. He’d need to get a message to Jace somehow too. Jace could help her, though he wasn’t sure what Jace could do for her, especially if she had no chip. If he cut out her chip, there was no chance of true freedom. That would haunt him the rest of his days. It had to be her decision.
“You have a choice. I can take you to the mines where the drones can’t detect you. But that also means cutting out your chip so the guards can’t track you. You understand what removing your chip means, don’t you? No chance of freedom. Ever. Or you stay here.”
“The mines,” she said, without hesitation.
Hells, what had Garitt done to her to make her so drekking desperate? “I can’t stay with you,” he added, feeling the weight of not being able to do more for her.
It was like Alli all over again. He’d left her, sacrificing himself because it had been the only way he’d known how to protect her. He hoped she didn’t hate him.
“The mines,” the girl repeated.
For all the horror that he’d seen in this girl’s face, she had a strength similar to his Alli. All those hours in the cage had left him plenty of time to think what he’d do if he escaped. He’d considered cutting out his own chip until he’d thought of Alli. She had taught him to never give up, and digging out his own chip and hiding felt like giving up.
Jace, Masher, and Liet had Garitt now. They’d taken him discreetly from his bed, and gotten away unseen. It would be hours before the guards noticed Garitt missing. Then they’d sound the alarm and notify First Lead that Garitt had been taken. Whatever Jace planned to do with Garitt, it would happen soon. Kayo knew he needed to give Jace’s plan a chance to work, but not here where the guards could capture and cage him again.
“You need a name,” he whispered behind him. He could feel her hand against his lower back as she crouched. Silence. Just as before.
He glanced over his shoulder. Green eyes. No, he couldn’t name her. It felt too personal. This girl wasn’t his. She was nothing like Alli, whose blue eyes had spoken to him before she’d opened her mouth. Oh, how he missed her.
He had hoped to spare Alli the trauma of seeing him dragged off in cuffs. He had planned on giving her a task that would have taken her up the mountain first thing that morning, but the officials had arrived earlier than expected. Her last memory of him should have been one of him holding her, kissing her. . . anything but being dragged away as a slave.
The girl tapped his shoulder and pointed toward the stables. Two people were crouching in the shadows of the moonlight, hugging the side of the structure as a guard poked his head in, flashing his lightstick inside the stables. When the guard finally moved on, the two fled the shadows and ran toward his property. Ranth and Alli.
Kayo swayed. The girl behind him steadied him, probably thinking him weak from weeks in the cage. This was fear for Alli, that she’d be caught. What the drekk was Jace thinking by bringing her here? If the guards got hold of her. . . No, he couldn’t think that way. This was part of some plan, it had to be, and he had to trust them, all of them.
For a quick second, he considered calling out to Alli, but that would alert the guards and endanger everyone. And he couldn’t run, not with the damage Garitt had done to his leg.
The touch of that small hand against his back reminded him he had another responsibility he could not abandon. Alli would be fine. She was strong, and the others would watch out for her. The girl behind him had no one.
The two figures disappeared into the darkness. At least they were safe. Alli would be safe. Gods, how he missed her.
Another tap on his shoulder got him to turn around. The woman who’d freed him had seen Kayo’s people. She tried to smile, as if saying she’d understand if he fled without her.
“Don’t worry. I’ll get you out of here. Besides,” he said with a slight smile. “They don’t need me.” That was the truth. Jace, Alli, and the others were doing fine without him. He’d never been more proud of anyone in his life than he was of Alli and his men.
One thing was clear; he couldn’t go home. That would draw attention to Jace and whatever he was doing with Garitt. After he took the girl to the mine, he’d head in the opposite direction, toward town and away from the girl, away from Jace, and away from the love of his life.
* * *
ALLI
“Got him?” Jace asked as Alli lifted Garitt’s arm around her and balanced his weight. Jace eased from under Garitt’s other side, leaving the burden to her. Alli lurched and then steadied herself and Garitt.
“Fabulous,” she said, as Garitt’s head lolled to her shoulder, and a spot of drool spilled onto her dress.
Jace cupped her cheek. He had never touched her in such a familiar manner before. She didn’t even think he had it in him to be warm and fuzzy, but they’d been through a lot in the last two months, and this was the last time they’d see each other. Once she boarded that transport, she’d leave forever, with no way of knowing if the plan worked. She’d have to rely on Jace to carry through with the rest of the plan and get Kayo back. Oh, maybe she could earn enough money in time and return, but that could take years. Jace had only given her enough money for a one-way ticket out of the Empire. She suspected that was by design. Jace knew what Kayo would want.
“Goodbye, Alli,” he said, using her real name for the first time.
“Promise me. You’ll do whatever it takes to get him back.”
“Done.”
She flashed a smile. Garitt, even a semi-conscious Garitt that partially supported his own weight was heavy.
As she turned from Jace, she caught sight of Masher and Liet in the distance and sent another smile their way. She couldn’t manage a wave, but they both nodded just the same. They understood. They’d said their goodbyes earlier, before leaving the landglider.
Still, it felt wrong to leave, mostly because she hadn’t said goodbye to the person who mattered most to her. Kayo. She’d never see him again. She had to push the thought out of her head entirely, or she’d get too emotional and distracted. She still had to get the asshole through two security points.
