Rebel (The Cat Star Chronicles)

by Cheryl Brooks

  “But Cat is never wrong,” Jack insisted. “I just—”

  She glared at Jack, praying she got the message before anyone else who might be listening figured it out. “Not. Yet.”

  Chapter 32

  Onca eyed the scanner with considerable apprehension. The stones Jack had given him might not be noticed in a physical search, but a scanner could still pick them up.

  The officer stationed at the monitor motioned for him to pass through the device. Resisting the inclination to run through the archway, he sauntered to the other side.

  “All clear.”

  Unable to believe his good fortune, he glanced at the officer for further confirmation and received, of all things, a sly wink.

  Momentarily stunned, he took in the man’s square, ridged jaw and had to swallow a gasp.

  He’s Levitian.

  Jack’s comment about Levitian honesty took on new meaning. Onca had already decided that their enemies probably weren’t Levitian, but did that also mean they were potential allies? Had he ever mentioned to the press or the police that Dalmet was Levitian? He was pretty sure he had, and if so, this man would undoubtedly take his side in a fight. There might even be others like him.

  “Thanks.” He peered at the Levitian’s badge. “Officer Lembic.” The smile Onca gave him was genuine enough, but it wasn’t returned.

  Clearly Lembic saw no point in giving himself away.

  Then again, perhaps any Levitian officers were unaware of the corruption in their midst. If they had known, they might have already blown the whistle or been drummed out of the force. About the best Onca could hope for was that they would tend to be sympathetic to his cause.

  After being issued prison clothing—happily, the pants were larger than those he had on—he was escorted to his cell. A casual hand in his pocket, a wipe of his lips, and the stones were easily hidden between his cheek and gum. They wouldn’t help him escape or offer much in the way of protection, but at least he would always have light and a means of communication with the outside.

  The Terran guard who locked him in his cell was unnecessarily rough about shoving him inside, and a few of the other prisoners jeered. While he did have some privacy—there was a partition in front of the toilet area—there were no walls or doors facing the main corridor, only force fields.

  Guess I’ll have to talk to Jack from the bathroom.

  Any support from the other inmates seemed unlikely since a large percentage were Herps and Racks. He spotted several Davordians, Vessonians, and Terrans—along with a few other species he didn’t even recognize—but no Levitians whatsoever.

  Never realized they were quite so law-abiding.

  His cell boasted only one bunk, a tiny table, and one chair, which meant he’d been spared a cellmate. The mattress was reasonably comfortable, and with nothing better to do, he stretched out on it to take a nap.

  He was awakened a few hours later by the arrival of the evening meal and was about to take a bite of baked fish when a voice from out of nowhere said, “Don’t eat that.”

  Glancing around, he saw no one.

  “Oh, I see,” he said. “Instead of poisoning me, you’re going to scare me into starving myself to death?”

  “Don’t be ridiculous. Hold on.”

  Moments later, Officer Lembic appeared with a tray. “Don’t take food from anyone but me, understand?”

  “How do I know you’re not the one with the poison?”

  “You don’t.”

  “My, how reassuring,” Onca drawled. “And I should trust you because…?”

  “You know why.” Deactivating a slot in the force field, the tall Levitian pushed the tray onto the table. “Give me that one.”

  Considering Onca wasn’t terribly fond of fish, he didn’t have any qualms about trading it for a salami and cheese sandwich and a bag of Twilanan cookies.

  “Pumpkin spice. My favorite. Thanks.”

  “Don’t mention it. Word is you won’t live long enough to go to trial. I’m making it my job to see that you do.”

  “Setting yourself up as my bodyguard?”

  “If I have to.” Leaning down from his superior height, Lembic spoke directly through the slot, keeping his voice low. “I read that article about how you’re still looking for a Levitian girl named Dalmet. I have a cousin by that name.”

  Onca almost choked on a cookie. “The same girl?”

  “No. But she could be.” Lembic clenched his teeth, accentuating the bony ridges of his jaw. “Although I don’t see how that other Dalmet ever wound up on the street in the first place. Seems strange for one of us to be orphaned and homeless. Someone would’ve taken her in. You’re sure she’s Levitian?”

  “I’ve never actually seen her, but Kim said she was. She was the second of Kim’s friends to disappear. We found the other two at the Den.” He took a moment to consider his options before deciding it was worth the risk. “You might ask some of your buddies about that.”

  Lembic’s gaze narrowed. “You think the police force is somehow involved with that abomination?”

  “Think about it,” Onca replied. “Who else would be in a position to make sure I don’t go to trial?”

  Lembic grinned, revealing his sharply pointed teeth. “Can you identify them?”

  “Maybe, but Val would be the best one to ask—you know, the Avian clone? He’s got an uncanny memory and incredible eyesight. He’s probably gone back to the Palace.”

  Lembic nodded. “I’ll speak with him. In the meantime, call me if you need me.” In a seemingly insignificant gesture, he rubbed a fingertip behind his ear, drawing Onca’s attention to a small, beaded earring.

  Onca raised his brow in comprehension. Clearly he wasn’t the only one carrying a Darconian comstone. “I’ll do that.”

  ***

  “I managed to arrange for him to be in a cell by himself,” Anara said. “Which only means they can’t coerce his cellmate into killing him. Unfortunately, it also makes it easier for one of the guards to do it.”

  Kim wasn’t sure whether to scream or throw up. Although she’d felt increasingly queasy ever since Onca went into the police station, at the moment, her frustration level overrode it. “We’ve got to figure out a way to get him out of there.”

  “That’s what we’re doing,” Anara assured her. “I’m trying to find a judge who’ll rescind the order to keep him in protective custody.” Her emphasis on those last two words was indicative of just how poorly protected she believed him to be.

  Captain had let them into Onca’s house without question, and though he had been given several tasks, he had yet to discover any useful information. Jack sent a message to Lerotan asking him to check with his contacts in the slave trade in an attempt to discover the identity of the ringleader. His ship was still almost a day away, but he promised to do some digging. Val was at the Palace, trying to hack into anything that might help them find Dalmet. Jack had told them about the two stones she had given Onca, but made the comment that he would have to use the comstone to contact her, rather than the other way around.

  “No telling who else might be there with him.”

  Kim was within a hairsbreadth of snatching Jack’s comstone and using it herself, just so she could hear his voice. She was back to that desperate, powerless feeling she’d had when her buddies first began disappearing. She needed to act, to do something, but there wasn’t anything for her to do but wait.

  Drifting into Onca’s bedroom, she curled up on the bed. His scent still lingered on the sheets, offering her a little comfort. How long would it be before that aroma was reduced to a memory? Would she still remember his face when he was gone?

  No. She couldn’t allow herself to think that. Never give up hope.

  Not yet, anyway. She wanted him there beside her. Not locked up in a prison cell—a cell he would leave only when he went to trial—or when he died.

  She blinked back tears, staring blankly at the ceiling with its pattern of glowstones. Even if he was
hurt, he would go into the regenerative sleep and heal himself the way Zetithians usually did.

  A sleep that might mimic death—at least, to the uninitiated.

  Or someone they could trust…

  Kim scrambled from the bed and ran into the kitchen where most of the others sat at the table in front of a computer or a comlink. She spoke first to Anara. “If Onca were to get sick or die, what would they do with him?”

  Anara frowned. “He would be taken to the infirmary for treatment. If pronounced dead, he would then be taken to the morgue for examination.”

  “Where’s the infirmary? In the police station?”

  “No. The nearest one is several blocks away. They would have to load him into an ambulance and take him there.”

  “Holy shit,” Jack whispered. “We could hijack it.”

  “Breaking him out of jail would get him in even more trouble,” Anara pointed out.

  The comlink chimed, and Jack answered it.

  Val’s icy glare stared out of the viewscreen. “You’ll never guess who just called me.”

  Jack snorted a laugh. “The chief of police?”

  “Close. An officer by the name of Lembic—a Levitian police officer. Apparently he’s looking out for Onca’s safety and wanted to know which of the officers was at the Den the night of the raid. He seemed…trustworthy. I gave him descriptions. He’s pretty sure he knows who I saw.”

  “Great!” Jack exclaimed. “Think you could call him back? Kim has an idea.”

  ***

  When Lembic brought him his breakfast the next morning, Onca could scarcely believe his pointed ears. “You want me to what?”

  “Keep your voice down,” Lembic urged. “Just take one bite. My cousin’s a doctor. He says a tiny amount won’t kill you. It’ll only make you sleep so deeply everyone will think you’re dead.”

  “Yeah. I’ll probably sleep forever,” Onca said with a snort. “And Jack thinks this is a good idea?”

  “She’s the one who suggested it.”

  Jack had been involved in some pretty wild schemes in her time, but he doubted she would do anything to endanger a Zetithian. For her, the people of Zetith were practically sacred. But he only had Lembic’s word that she was truly the one behind the plan. Retrieving the comstone from his pocket, he tapped it and whispered her name.

  “Hey, bucko,” came Jack’s whispered reply. “Do what Lembic says. We’re waiting to nab you as soon as they haul your sorry carcass out of there.”

  “Yes, but did you have to put the poison in oatmeal? I can’t stand oatmeal.”

  “You’ll never have to eat any of it again,” Jack assured him.

  “The way things are going, I may never eat anything again,” Onca muttered. “Is Kim there with you?”

  “Yeah, she’s here,” Jack replied. “Honest to God, we’ve got this figured out.”

  Onca had all sorts of suspicions, not the least of which was whether Lembic’s cousin knew what the hell he was talking about. “Let me talk to her.”

  “Onca? It’s me, Kim.”

  As if he’d needed for her to tell him that. Her voice was like a balm to his frazzled nerves. “Are you sure you can trust this guy not to kill me?”

  “Absolutely. We talked to his family. He’s related to a doctor on Terra Minor by the name of Vladen. Jack says she knows him. Her son Larry got a message through to Vladen during the night, and he says Lembic is a good man.”

  Onca glanced at Lembic. “Yeah. I thought so too, but that was before he asked me to voluntarily swallow poisoned oatmeal.”

  “Just one spoonful,” Kim said. “We’ll get you out of there. I promise.”

  “I love you, Kim. I want to see you again before I die. I want to see our children before I die.”

  “You will. I’ll be right there with the antidote, and even if you don’t get the antidote, Vladen says you’ll recover on your own.” She chuckled. “He says Zetithians are really hard to kill.”

  “Yeah. Took an asteroid to kill most of us.” He took a deep breath. “All right. I’ll do it. But keep talking to me.”

  “Vladen said it won’t hurt. You’ll just get sleepy and then pass out.”

  Somehow, Onca thought it might hurt a little, considering the fact that he was standing next to the table. “Maybe I’d better sit on my bunk.”

  “Good idea,” Kim said. “No more bumps and bruises if you can help it.”

  Onca carried the bowl over to his bunk and sat down. “Here goes.” Picking up the spoon, he scooped up a small amount and ate it. “Hmm…seems better than usual. What’s the secret—” His vision dimmed and he fell back onto the mattress. The bowl of oatmeal clattered to the floor. “—ingredient?”

  “Brown sugar,” Lembic replied.

  “Tasty.”

  Chapter 33

  “What if someone decides to make sure he’s dead?” Kim sat in Onca’s speeder with Tisana, while Cat and Jack waited in their own vehicle.

  “Lembic said he’d stay with him, along with a couple of others he trusts,” Jack said over the comlink. “They won’t let anyone else touch him.”

  “Wish we were doing this at night,” Cat commented. “The cover of darkness would help considerably.”

  “I’m glad we’re not,” Jack declared. “Hell, we ought to just go and demand the return of his body. We could say it’s against Zetithian beliefs to do an autopsy.”

  Cat cleared his throat. “There is no such belief.”

  “We know that, but they don’t,” Jack insisted. “I—”

  “Shh. Here they come.” Kim’s heart clutched with horror as the police carried a body out on a stretcher, covered head to toe with a sheet. “They must think he’s really dead.”

  “That’s the idea, isn’t it?” Tisana patted her medical bag. “Don’t worry. I’ve got the antidote right here.”

  Regardless of Tisana’s expertise, Kim was still scared stiff. She hadn’t had much experience with Mordrial witches, but this wife of Leo’s seemed to know what she was doing. So far, anyway.

  Shemlak and Draddut were stationed a few blocks away with Leo, the route the ambulance would take having been verified with Lembic. Val circled in the air above them.

  “Val says it’s all clear,” Jack reported. “Should be a piece of cake.”

  “Unless the ambulance driver gets creative,” Tisana muttered. “Most of those guys are really good pilots.”

  “Maybe, but there’s no need to go Code Three with a dead man,” Jack said. “Even if they do, we’ll catch them when they get to the infirmary.”

  The rear doors of the ambulance slid shut and Kim gasped as the oversized speeder took off like a shot, complete with wailing sirens and flashing lights.

  “Guess I was wrong about that,” Jack growled as she took off in pursuit. “We should’ve nabbed them before they left.”

  “We decided it was best not to do that in front of a building full of cops who would like to see us all dead,” Tisana reminded her.

  “Whatever.” Seconds later, Jack’s speeder slid in behind the ambulance just as it made a sharp turn to the right. “Dammit! They’re taking a different route. I’ll head them off.”

  Kim glanced behind her. “Holy shit! There are four police speeders after us!”

  “Slow them down, Tisana!” Jack shouted.

  Tisana looked back for only a second as a massive ball of flame erupted from her eyes. An explosion detonated behind them, flinging the police speeders aside like children’s toys.

  Kim gaped at her companion with newfound respect. “You can shoot fireballs from your eyes?”

  “Sure can,” Tisana said with a grim smile. “Haven’t had to use that particular talent lately, but I haven’t forgotten how.”

  Kim swallowed hard. “Glad you’re on our side.”

  Tisana chuckled. “A common sentiment.”

  “Can you aim one in front of the ambulance? Just close enough to stop them or head them off?”

  “No problem,” Ti
sana said. “Two blocks to the east and they’ll run right into our trap.”

  Tisana launched another volley and the subsequent explosions landed precisely on target. The ambulance veered to the left with Jack’s speeder close behind.

  “Perfect.” Kim looked back over her shoulder. Two police speeders were still following them. “Behind us?”

  Tisana took them out with pinpoint accuracy.

  “You’re really good at that,” Kim said. “I’m impressed.”

  “That was nothing. Try doing it on horseback while galloping through a snowy forest with an army chasing you.”

  “I’d rather not,” Kim said with a shudder.

  Tisana shrugged. “That’s how I learned.”

  As the witch banked the speeder around the next corner, Kim spotted Shemlak and Draddut ahead, standing in the street with pistols drawn. Leo was positioned on the right-hand sidewalk. The ambulance slowed briefly, then picked up even more speed as Leo got off several pulse blasts.

  He must have taken out the pilot because the vehicle slowed again, enabling the two huge Darconians to catch it. Draddut punched out the rear door, extracted the policemen, and tossed them aside. Assuming one of them was Lembic, Kim hoped he didn’t suffer any serious injuries. Leo and Shemlak dragged the unconscious pilot from the cockpit and Leo jumped in to take over the controls. The ambulance sped off in a new direction, with Jack and Tisana’s speeders following in its wake.

  “Is there any rush to give Onca that antidote?” Kim asked. “I mean, should we stop and give it to him now?”

  “No time,” Tisana said, shifting into another turn.

  “But this speeder can be cloaked. We could put Onca inside it and you could give him the antidote.”

  Tisana glanced over her shoulder and shot another round of fireballs. “Just in case anyone is still following us.”

  “Might be best to abandon the ambulance,” Kim suggested. “It’s a pretty big target.”