Devotion

by Harmony Raines

  “Oh my goodness,” was all Reja could say as she stared at herself on the screen.

  Chapter Nine – Okil

  This is madness. Okil knew he was placing all four of them in danger if he went ahead with his plan. No, all five of them. He was so unused to dealing with children he had forgotten about Charlie.

  “Darl.” He called his friend over, talking to him quietly. “I think you know what I’m planning. And I understand if you turn me in.”

  Darl smiled kindly at Okil. “My friend, I am a doctor. My sole purpose is to preserve life, my sole wish,” he said, placing his hand on his heart, “is to leave our world a better place. I think what you are about to do may just accomplish that in some small way. Of course you can count on me.”

  “Then we leave now, we all buckle up and get out of here.”

  Darl smiled at the term Okil used. “There is one thing you haven’t thought about. Tikki and the boy’s tags. If they are being tracked, and we have no reason to think they are, but no reason to be sure they are not, then we must make sure this cannot lead back to Karal.”

  “You mean, remove them?” Okil asked, looking at Tikki and not wishing her any pain.

  “Yes. I have something that will numb the pain, do not worry. Then it is a simple incision.” He patted Okil on the back. “I know what I’m doing, I’m a doctor.”

  “I hope so, Darl. In the same way I hope I know what I am doing.”

  “You are saving a life, Okil. Or two.” He moved away, opening the front of a smooth panel to reveal the emergency first-aid kit. It had everything they might need to treat minor injuries. “I need a knife.”

  Reja reached into her purse and pulled out her hairdressing kit. “I have sharp scissors.”

  “I am going to have to break them,” Darl said, taking them from her.

  “I am not going back to cutting off people’s hair for money. So do what you like with them.” She watched Darl with some fascination as he broke the scissors to create a makeshift knife.

  “I have to remove your tag, Tikki.” He looked down at Charlie and Tikki read his mind.

  “He doesn’t have one,” Tikki said quickly.

  “He doesn’t? I thought all humans had them implanted on birth,” Darl said.

  “They do. But Charlie has already had his removed,” Tikki replied.

  “Do you know why?” Okil asked. This mystery was deeper than he thought.

  “So that he couldn’t be tracked, or found. It has to do with his parents. They are key to why Harri wants him.” She saw Charlie look up at her, read his thought, and said, “It’s all right, Charlie. Okil and Darl only want to help us.”

  “We can deal with that when we get to Karal. I can gather the information we need. Right now, we have to get to you to safety. I think Darl is ready to remove your chip.” He hated the thought of Tikki experiencing pain.

  “And then what?” she asked, her face pale when she saw the scissor blade.

  “I am going to take it away from Earth, and your pursuers.” Then he shared his plan with her, a plan that would buy them time and throw anyone off her trail. “I think it would be best if these people who are looking for you think you are dead.”

  “Dead?” she breathed.

  “Yes. If they have a tracker, they will know you are here. So we need them to think you left. And then something happened and you died.” He hated even thinking of her death; she meant too much to him.

  “The canal,” she suggested. “It’s where Sienna and the other guy ended up. It might be enough for them to think I jumped in. I don’t know.” She shook her head, looking confused. “Forget it, it’s a stupid idea. No one would choose to jump in there.”

  “It’s a brilliant idea,” Okil said, kneeling down in front of her and lifting her hand to his lips. Charlie lifted his head and looked up at him suspiciously. Okil smiled at the little boy. In his face, he saw all the boys that would be born on Karal—born in peace, with no uncertainty about their future—and he resolved to give this child that kind of life.

  “Are you ready, Tikki? We need to get this done quickly.” Darl stood with the sharp scissors in one hand and a small spray bottle in another.

  “Ready,” she said, and Okil helped to part her hair to reveal her neck. Tikki rested her head on his shoulder while Darl used a scanner to locate exactly where the chip was. Then he sprayed the area, letting it dry on her skin. “Reja, why don’t you go and show Charlie the front of the ship. If that’s OK?”

  “Is it safe?” Reja asked. “I don’t want to be responsible for starting an interplanetary war by firing a laser or something.”

  “Yes. Nothing on this cruiser works for anyone but the Karal. Please, Reja; it’s best Charlie doesn’t see this.”

  “Come on, then, young man. Shall we go and look at the controls?” She held her hand out to the boy, who seemed reluctant to leave Tikki. “I have another of those chocolates in my purse.”

  Charlie moved away from Tikki and took Reja’s hand. Darl checked the position of the chip once more and then cut Tikki’s skin. She didn’t cry out, but her hand gripped his so tightly he knew the pain she was experiencing. In the place where they touched, he sent her warm, soothing sensations, giving her his strength, breathing his love into her. She relaxed a little, and thankfully, Darl’s incision was quick and precise.

  “There,” he said holding it up. “Now, Okil, you take this while I seal the wound.”

  Okil kissed Tikki briefly on the cheek. He then rose, heading swiftly out of the cruiser. The cool night air hit him, and he picked up the pace until he was jogging across the airport and heading for the city. As he ran, he was sure he saw movement in the shadows, but he couldn’t be certain. Maybe it was just his imagination—whatever it was, he couldn’t stop—but he could warn Darl.

  “Darl,” he said into his communicator. “Close the ramp.”

  “Is everything OK?” Darl asked worriedly.

  “Just a precaution.”

  And then he ran through the night, slowing when he reached the crowded streets so that he didn’t draw too much attention to himself. He had an idea, not a very pleasant one. But it might buy them some time.

  He headed towards the railway arches. It was a place where the old and the infirm gathered, usually to take their last breath. Every couple of days a body truck would arrive and search the darkness for those who had given up on this life. As he entered the miserable place, the smell became almost unbearable. However, for Okil, out of the death and decay spawned hope.

  There, sure enough, was the body of a woman and a man. They held hands in death, and he hated parting them, but their spirits had gone to a better place. He worked quickly to gouge out the dead woman’s chip, his fingers easily digging into the papery skin of her neck. Then he slipped Tikki’s chip inside the wound, sliding it as far as he could under her skin, hoping it would stay there.

  Crushing the other chip with his boot, he then lifted the woman and carried her to the entrance. It would look too suspicious for him to carry her and then throw her into the canal, so instead he held her upright, his strong arms supporting her. Then he made his way through the streets, keeping to the back alleys as much as possible as he headed to the cesspit they still called a canal.

  Making sure there was no one else around, he let the body slip into the water, watching to make sure she sank to the bottom. It took a few minutes, the thickness of the dirty, diseased water helping to keep her afloat. Then she was gone.

  Sickened by what he had done, he turned towards the airport and tried to work out exactly how they were going to complete the next stage of his plan.

  Chapter Ten – Tikki

  “There, all sealed.” Darl’s voice held a hint of pride.

  Her neck throbbed, but she knew they had to take precautions and removing the tag was a necessity. That didn’t take away the pain and she buried her face in her hands, trying not to cry. Only two weeks ago she had been planning to go to another planet to be with the
man she loved, and see her sister again. It was all so perfect, so simple. Once she became old enough to enter the lottery it had seemed as if her life had come together in such a perfect way. Now it lay in tatters. Worse, other people’s lives were about to be put in jeopardy too. Including Okil’s.

  “Darl, what will happen if your people find out about Charlie?”

  His face was hard to read. The colours skimming his skin, out of control, were not. That bad. Maybe she should put an end to this; with no tag she would be hard to track. Perhaps she should take Charlie and run for it, and allow Okil and Darl to go back to their planet with Reja. She wanted her friend to be safe, which she might no longer be on Earth, because it was very likely that she had become involved in this too. If anyone had been watching her apartment, when they couldn’t locate Tikki, they might question, or torture, Reja for information.

  Darl spoke quietly, his voice as reassuring as any good doctor’s should be. “Tikki, the best thing is if we go to Karal and then try to work out what is happening. It may be that you have to return here, although the Karal don’t usually let people leave once they have touched down on the planet. And I know you may think I am being entirely selfless, but that is not true. From what you have said, my people may be in danger.”

  “You believe what Harri said? You really think they may try to start a war with Karal.”

  He laughed. “Not a war. No. But let’s just say that there are ways they could try to control us. The fact your President is asking for space cruisers, for one. I don’t believe he intends to simply search for new planets. And if he does, he will also need our wormhole technology, which the Hier Council will never share. We cannot let ourselves be exposed to your species.”

  “I never thought I would ever be caught up in something like this.”

  “No? Even though your sister was?”

  “My sister? Elissa?”

  “I wondered if you knew. Now this must stay between us. She doesn’t know what we know. I think for her peace of mind it should stay that way, unless she chooses to tell you. But I think that you need to know all the facts to be able to put the pieces all together.”

  “Know what?”

  “Elissa worked for the resistance. She was in fact responsible for the deaths of two Karalians. Well, that is a little strong. She organised the demonstration against Karalians, but Harri, the man who was at your apartment, used her and planted a bomb.”

  “Oh my goodness,” she whispered. “Why didn’t she tell me?”

  “Because she was scared, ashamed. Guilty. It was why she was brought to Karal.”

  “All this time I never knew.” Tikki shook her head. Did she really know anything, or anyone? All of this stuff had been happening right under her nose, and yet she hadn’t seen it. Her sister, and then Sienna. Secret lives, double lives, and she had been completely in the dark.

  “Do you think that is the reason Charlie was given to me to be looked after? It was not only my friendship with Sienna, but because of Elissa too. Because she walked away from the resistance once she saw who they really were.”

  “There may be some connection. But we may never know.”

  “Unless I ask Elissa?”

  “I don’t think that is a good idea. I am going to persuade Okil that the secret of the boy stays with us.”

  “More secrets, more lies.”

  “I’m afraid so. The less people who know, the better. I trust Elissa, I really do. But her child is growing in her, and I don’t want any of this to jeopardise her or the baby. We will work it out. We have access to the data we need; leave it to me and Okil.”

  “I don’t want anything to happen to you, or Okil. I know you are risking your lives.”

  “Not our lives. There has never been an execution on Karal.”

  “Not even for treason?”

  Darl shook his head. “No. And this is not treason. We are doing this for our planet, for our people.” He smiled at her, and the colour red flew across his skin. “I know how much Okil loves you, Tikki. I am relieved to see you love him in return.”

  “Did you think I was playing him to get to Karal?”

  “It had crossed my mind. I know how much you wanted to come to our planet, to escape Earth. Once your sister was there, the pull was always going to be stronger.”

  She placed her hand on Darl’s, feeling the small static charges across his skin. “I swear I would die for him. I love him more than I can ever say, more than I could ever have imagined.”

  “That is all I need to know.” He went to move away. “I understand now why Okil is so fascinated by your species.”

  “I hope that is a good thing.”

  “Yes. You are so complex, so emotional, and loyal to each other. And now to us.” He smiled at Tikki. “He is lucky to have found you.”

  “Thank you, Darl.”

  Darl glanced down at his communicator. “He’s back.”

  The exit ramp lowered, and Okil came inside, breathless and dirty. “It’s done. Now we need to transmit a message to the lottery saying that we have picked up the winner and will be leaving shortly for Karal.”

  “It doesn’t matter about the interview and everything?”

  “No, no one cares too much. Those that do tend to be more jealous than anything, and with the new daily lottery about to start, it is about mean even less.”

  “Thank goodness for that,” Darl said. “I was not looking forward to it at all.”

  “Then I’ll send the message and request clearance.”

  He went to the front of the ship, and Reja brought Charlie back to sit beside Tikki.

  “How are you feeling?” Reja asked, her eyes constantly wandering back to stare at Darl as he packed everything away ready for their flight.

  “Scared,” Tikki answered honestly.

  “Hey, come on. We’ll get through this.” Reja sat down next to her and hugged her. “We’re in this together.”

  “That’s what worries me, Reja. It’s putting you all in danger.”

  “You didn’t do this. You didn’t ask for it. So let us help you. What’s the worst that can happen?” Reja lifted Charlie into his seat. “I have a soft spot for this young man, you know that.”

  “That’s just it, we don’t know the worst that can happen, do we?” The realisation hit her: she was about to leave behind everything she had ever known. “We are about to travel to an alien planet. And only you are expected.”

  “If you put it like that…” Reja thought for a moment. “Listen, between us we can get through this. Even if they send you back to Earth, at least by then the whole thing may have blown over, and they’ll think you are dead.”

  “So, I will have no home and no friends to go back to.” Tikki normally could look on the bright side of anything, but there didn’t seem to be one this time. It seemed impossible that the Karal would welcome her and Charlie once they found out about him.

  “We need to depart,” Okil said, coming over to them. “Sit in the seats and buckle up. We have a short window of time.”

  “You look worried, Okil?” Tikki watched his face. Something was definitely wrong. “You can leave us here. You don’t have to take us.”

  “It’s not that…” He looked down at Charlie and then back to Tikki. “They are questioning our cargo.”

  “Cargo?”

  “Yes, we have never had a problem before. Never been questioned.”

  “You think they know?”

  He shook his head. “I don’t know. They are waiting for a supervisor. As soon as we get the go-ahead we are leaving. Please be sitting in your seats and ready for take-off. You too, Charlie.” He buckled the young boy’s seat belt, checking it was tight enough.

  As he turned to leave, Tikki said, “I love you, Okil and I know you love me. But if anytime this gets too dangerous, let us out elsewhere. I can’t have you risk the future of your people for us.”

  He bent down and kissed her cheek. “I would risk it all for you, Tikki.”

&nb
sp; Although his words made her feel safer, they also worried her. She was putting an awful lot of strain on him. She only hoped he thought it was worth it and they could get through this whole thing. But right now, it seemed impossible.

  Chapter Eleven – Okil

  “Contact tower, are we cleared for launch?” Okil asked again.

  “Hold position.”

  “This never happens,” Okil said to Darl. “What the hell is going on here?”

  “I think our Earth friends have an agenda,” Darl said bluntly.

  “With the boy? Why?” Okil asked, risking a look back behind them at where the woman he loved was sitting with the child next to her.

  “I don’t know. But I think it was a mistake for us to believe they would just sit still and not do anything.”

  “Do anything?” Okil asked.

  “I know you love humans and Earth. But they are not all good people, and I think that we have ended up in the middle of something that will impact our world.”

  “I agree. What I am unsure of is what to do when we get to Karal.” Okil had thought of their predicament from every angle. There had to be a way to get Charlie on and off the space station and through decon’ without being seen.

  “We have to get there first. Escaping Earth may be our first problem. And I think I should ask if we are planning to blast out of here if they don’t allow us to go.”

  “Yes. I think we are,” Okil said, although it risked a diplomatic nightmare for Karal. It also lessened their chances of getting Tikki and Charlie safely to Karal. If Earth made a complaint to Karal, the cruiser would be stopped at the space station, Okil and Darl would be arrested, and Tikki and Charlie returned to Earth.

  “Cool. I have not been on an adventure since I was six years old and my dad took me to the vast plains of Scremi. He got us lost and I thought we were going to die of thirst.”

  “I’m glad you are enjoying this, Darl,” Okil said testily.