Page 5 of Hidden By the Convicts
Maybe the kid had been paying attention after all. “That doesn’t mean we have to be like him or his guards.”
“Why should we take all the risks of hiding her without any of the benefits? It doesn’t matter how big I make this hiding spot, or how well we cover it up. They’ll find her, eventually. Maybe not here, but out there. Or do you plan on keeping her in this hole the entire time?”
“It’s for emergencies. The guards rarely come here, but if they do, she’ll have a place to hide.”
“It’s still a hole in the ground. No different than the cage.”
“The cage is meant to make the prisoner suffer. This is to save her.”
“Save,” Harlis scoffed as he resumed digging. “You talk as if they want to kill her.”
“Tell me, Harlis. How’d you come to be on Narkos? You were a chemist at Argus’ best research facility. Level 2, and I’m guessing that’s because of your impatience. You probably got yourself lowered from a 1 to a 2 for something stupid.”
Harlis rammed his shovel into the dirt hard this time, clearly annoyed. The kid hadn’t told anyone what got him lowered to a Level 4, and Gavin suspected he never would.
“Fine, don’t tell me. My point is whether you were innocent or guilty, you were sentenced and shoved onto that shuttle to Narkos with a speech about working hard and getting to return home at the end of your sentence. They didn’t tell you the reality, did they? And they didn’t give you any control over your future. That woman out there with Bowen isn’t just being punished by losing her job, her worldly goods, and five or more years of her life to working in a prison. She’s being used, Harlis. Raped, abused, you name it. So whatever issues you have here, she has it a lot worse.”
The door swung open and Gavin pivoted, ready to swing the pickax in his hand. Bowen shoved the woman inside. She jumped when he slammed the wooden door closed.
Damn if she wasn’t the prettiest woman Gavin had ever seen in over a decade. The only woman. Fuck, the more he thought about bringing her here, especially with Harlis around, the more he realized it wasn’t one of Bowen’s brightest ideas.
“Took you long enough,” Gavin said. “I was starting to think you ran into a patrol.”
“I headed east toward the fields then looped back over. I didn’t want them spotting four sets of prints leading to our house. Especially hers. Barefoot and smaller.”
Gavin hadn’t thought about that. But Bowen was ex-military, not him. “We’ll be done soon. How much time do you think before they get here?”
“They’ll focus their search on the compound first and then move out in concentric circles. That buys us some time, but not much.”
The woman pulled from Bowen’s hand and rubbed her arm. He’d been holding her too damn tight. The man didn’t know his own strength at times.
“Sorry,” Bowen mumbled to her.
“It’s okay,” she said, though she backed up toward the door when she saw the three beds. They had built a basic house with a living area that included their beds, a kitchen, and in the back a bathroom. They’d spent the credits they had on building materials and it had been adequate. Until now. Gavin had never imagined they’d have a reason for a separate bedroom for a woman.
“I wish we could give you a private room,” Gavin said. “This is all we can offer. We’re hooked up to the water treatment substation so we have potable water for drinking and showering. Help yourself.”
“It’s lovely,” she said with a forced smile.
The woman looked and smelled as if she hadn’t bathed in a month, but Gavin couldn’t stop staring at her. He could imagine the curves beneath that filthy rag she wore.
“The house was intended for two, but we squeezed in an extra bed when we decided Harlis would be a good addition to our unit,” he explained. “We’ll figure out a sleeping rotation.”
“That won’t be hard since we’ll have to post someone on watch every night,” Bowen said as he sent a look at Gavin. They hadn’t talked about this, any of it, but as their unit leader, Bowen ultimately had the final say on whether they’d hide the woman.
“You’re both crazy if you think we can hide her for more than a few days,” Harlis said, climbing out of the pit.
Bowen circled the hole in the floor. “How’d you know, Gavin?” he asked, ignoring Harlis.
“That you’d want to hide her here?” Gavin shrugged. “I figured there was no better place. But the kid’s right. Eventually, the guards will find her.”
“Not if we’re careful. We’ll make them think she ran off into the jungle and died there. Eaten by a kuvak.”
“I’m not sure how we’re going to pull that off, but that’s why you’re the brains of this operation.”
Bowen snorted. At six-three with muscles that rivaled those of any miner, the ex-soldier was the least educated in their unit, but he had a natural talent for leading and getting what he wanted.
“What’s your name, sweetie?” Gavin asked.
