Prisoner

by Kallista Dane

  And Dyllan? He was my first boyfriend, the first male in my life who wasn’t too much in awe of the great Gaius DiMello to pursue his only daughter. I thought I was in love with him—and he with me. But time and experience had a way of putting things in perspective. Looking back, I could see that everything Dyllan did was aimed at impressing my father. Wooing me was a way to get closer to the center of power. He was only there for me when it met his needs.

  With Kaal it was different. He didn’t care what the rebels thought of him. He didn’t have a jealous glint in his eyes when he watched them crowd around me to hear Aria DiMello, symbol of the Insurrection, speak. He cared about Ree, the woman who put up a brave front to protect a shy, lonely little girl inside.

  For the first time in my life I had someone who accepted me without judgement or expectations. I could be myself around him. I’d always respected my father, put him on a pedestal. But I’d finally come to accept that he only acknowledged two emotions—righteous anger and brash confidence. It wasn’t okay to be scared or depressed or sad.

  The alien lying beside me, the one I’d looked down on as a primitive creature, was more in touch with his true self than my father had ever been. He allowed me to grieve my losses and express fear about what would happen to us. I’d spent my life fighting for freedom from oppression by the Federation but Kaal gave me a kind of freedom I never knew I lacked—the freedom to be myself. And I discovered once I began expressing my negative emotions, allowing myself to feel them, I was able to get in touch with positive emotions as well.

  It seemed strange considering the circumstances we were in, but some of the happiest moments of my life were spent in the asteroid prison of Zibaru. In the arms of my lover, I felt joy and contentment. Through his eyes I learned to savor every moment of life. He showed me even in the worst situation we could find reasons to laugh. He taught me to give thanks to our Creator for the simplest of blessings. The plate of gruel before me may have been tasteless but it was warm and filled my belly, just as the smile I got when I chose to lend a helping hand to another prisoner warmed my heart.

  Though his arms were still snug around me, Kaal’s breathing had slowed and I knew he was asleep again. I sighed and nestled into his warmth, feeling contented, when it suddenly hit me.

  I was in love with Kaal.

  I’d been swept away by lust since the moment he first claimed me, hard and rough. I loved his raw mastery, his dark domination. When I had sex with Dyllan I’d always held back a part of myself. Kaal demanded everything from me. He stripped my soul bare, made me confront all my inhibitions. With him I discovered the heady thrill of submission. Giving up control made me feel wild and voluptuous, set me free to revel in every erotic sensation he tore from my body.

  But over time, our relationship had grown to encompass far more than mind-blowing sex. I respected Kaal. He was brave and decent, with a strict moral code. Even in this hellhole of a prison where survival depended on how tough you could appear, he wouldn’t hurt anyone unless they hurt him first or attacked someone he cared about.

  He may have lacked the formal education I’d had but his mind was sharp. Coming from a primitive world meant he was far more attuned to living things than machines. He could connect with creatures from different species, whether animals or sentient beings. He valued life in all its diverse forms. And as we came to know each other, I gave thanks for another blessing—that of having a lover who was also my best friend.

  * * *

  I rarely left the hut. Not because I feared for my own safety but because I knew doing so would needlessly endanger the lives of Kaal and the other rebels. They insisted on guarding me at all times. The only exception I made was to address small gatherings of prisoners from other worlds where I hoped we’d recruit new fighters for the Insurrection. Inmates from different planets tended to band together within the prison walls, living in small enclaves and keeping to themselves as much as possible. Even then I was in disguise all the way to their quarters and back, cloaked in my shapeless gray garment with the hood drawn over my head. Just another faceless convict moving silently through the shadows.

  Most of the time the core of my supporters met in Harald’s hut. So I didn’t think it odd that night when they began arriving one by one. Not until the tiny room was crammed with men, none of whom would meet my eyes.

  “What’s going on?” I took in the faces around me. “And where’s Harald?”

  “Starn has him locked up,” Eldon said. “He’s trying to lure you out of hiding. You’re becoming a threat to him. Stirring up trouble. Encouraging prisoners who’d given up hope to dream of one day being free again.”

  “How does locking Harald up take away the threat I present? Does Starn plan to kill me to keep us from planning an escape?” I glanced around the shanty. “Where does he think we’d go?”

  “He wants to make an example of Harald. Show the others what happens when they listen to your treasonous words. He’s...” Eldon’s voice faltered. “He’s going to hold another assembly tomorrow. He’ll drag Harald onto the platform and demand that he denounce you as a fraud and a liar. If Harald refuses, he’ll torture him until he breaks. Starn is hoping you’ll show up in the crowd and try to stop him. When you do, he’ll have his guards seize you. You’ll be locked away in solitary confinement, where he’ll take you in every way until he tires of you, then give you to his guards. You probably won’t survive more than a day or two.”

  Kaal broke in angrily. “Show me where Starn is keeping Harald. I’ll go. Now. I’ll set him free.”

  Eldon shook his head. “I believe if anyone could do it, you’re the one, brother. But it wouldn’t do any good. He’ll just take another of us. And another, until he lures her out of hiding. You’re not the face of the Insurrection. Aria is.”

  “If you don’t try to save Harald from certain torture,” Eldon said, addressing me again, “Starn will brand you a coward and a fake. He’ll tell the rebels it’s proof you can’t be trusted to stand up for them. If you lose too many followers, it’s only a matter of time before the other criminals overpower those of us who are left to guard you. They’ve all been dreaming of fuck—ah, that is, having their way with you ever since they saw you on the platform with Kaal the day you arrived. They’ll battle over you. Each night you’ll go to the winner. For as long as you last.” Eldon shrugged. “He’s got you in a box. Either way, your threat to Starn will be gone.”

  “Oh, gods, no.” I clenched my fists and held back a wail. Though I hadn’t known him long, the old man had been a friend and an ally. It seemed everyone who dared to get close to me put themselves in danger.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Ree

  Of course I went. I had to.

  Kaal tried to stop me. Pleaded, then threatened to spank me harder than he did on the platform.

  I gave him a sad smile. “I’m sure you would. You live by a code of honor. It’s one of the things I love about you. But so do I. I won’t abandon my friend, a man who believes in the Cause. A man who risked his life for me when I was still a stranger. I couldn’t live with myself if I did.”

  In the end, he agreed, but only if I promised to stay in the back of the crowd.

  Together with a carefully chosen handful of rebels, he and Eldon came up with a plan. They knew Starn would expect Kaal to be by my side, protecting me. So one of the other men would stand next to him, hunching over to make himself look short and pulling up the hood on his gray cloak to hide his face. I’d stay in the back of the crowd with two others guarding me. Kaal made certain they were the youngest and strongest volunteers.

  Several other rebels would start a fight in the crowd and while everyone’s attention was diverted, Kaal and his team planned to storm the platform, rescue Harald, and spirit him away.

  I’d been in strategy sessions before with my father and his lieutenants often enough to spot the gaping holes in their plan. I tried to bring up my objections tactfully.

  “Don’t be ridiculous.
That will never work. You’ll all be killed.”

  From the dark look Kaal shot me, I realized tact wasn’t my strong suit.

  Eldon shrugged. “True. Some of us might be. But it wouldn’t be much of a loss. This...” He waved a hand around the rough stone walls of the shanty. “This ain’t livin’.”

  “It doesn’t solve the threat of Starn seizing another man and torturing him, but it buys us time to figure out what we’re going to do in the future,” Kaal said. He started to go on, then stopped.

  He didn’t need to continue. I knew what he’d been about to say. It was what we were all thinking. We can’t just stand by and let Starn get away with this. We have to do something.

  * * *

  Crammed shoulder to shoulder in the clearing that doubled as an assembly area, the inhabitants of Zibaru jostled for a spot closest to the action. Work in the mines had been halted so everyone could attend. Guards lined the platform facing the spectators, all brandishing the black wands they used to control unruly prisoners.

  Flanked by Thomas and Brynn, I took my place in the back of the crowd. Unlike many of the others who’d been on the asteroid so long they’d wasted away from meager rations and long hours of backbreaking labor in the mines, they were young, still relatively strong and fit.

  All three of us wore gray cloaks covering us head to toe, with the hoods pulled down to hide our faces as much as possible. Before we left the shanty, I’d rubbed my hands in the thick layer of gray dust that covered every inch of the asteroid, a byproduct of the mining operation that ran twenty-four/seven. With its treasure trove of rare minerals, Zibaru wasn’t just a prison. It was a highly profitable business enterprise for the Federation, especially with the condemned providing free labor. I smeared the dust on my face, so my complexion would match the dull gray tone of those who’d been trapped in this hellhole much longer.

  We’d just taken our places in the back of the crowd when the line of guards parted. Starn strode to the center of the platform. To my astonishment, he was greeted with cheers.

  Thomas saw the expression on my face. “They’re not cheering for him,” he explained in a low voice. “Anything that breaks up our mind-numbing day to day existence here is a treat, and the possibility of witnessing blood and gore adds an entertainment factor we seldom get in one of Starn’s compulsory assemblies.”

  I thought back to the spectacle I must have presented up on that platform. Not blood and gore. Something even better. Starn gave them a live sex show, an erotic thrill they could jack off to for months. A naked female paddled and fucked. First crying out in pain, then in ecstasy. I felt myself flush and hoped I’d rubbed enough filth on my face to hide it. These animals had seen enough red cheeks of mine.

  “We’re here today because some of you have been deceived. Sucked in by a grifter. A con artist who tells you what you want to hear. She’s already seduced you with her faked screams of passion here on this platform. Now she’s selling another fantasy, one even more tempting. But she’s a liar.”

  He called to the guards. “Bring out the prisoner.”

  Two guards appeared at the top of the steps, half carrying, half dragging Harald between them. I gasped. Though he was well beyond middle age, Harald gave off the aura of someone who prided himself on staying mentally and physically fit. But he’d aged twenty years in the short time he’d been locked up. He looked frail and painfully thin, unable to stand alone. His eyes were dull and unfocused, his head lolled to one side. Even from this distance I could see his limbs twitching. They’d obviously used the wand on him while they had him locked away, probably many times from the looks of him.

  They brought him to the center of the platform and stopped in front of Starn.

  He took Harald’s face in his hands. “Hello, 4520,” he said, his voice warm and gentle. “I can see you’re in a great deal of pain. I’m sorry to see you suffering like this. But you can end it. Right now.” Starn waved a hand at the mob. “Tell them what you told me. Tell them you’re here because of Prisoner 9371. Known in her past life as Aria DiMello. She pretended to be just like her father, promising she’d lead you and all your friends in a revolt. Free you from Zibaru.”

  He tuned to the crowd and his voice rose. “But she’s a fraud! She can’t help you escape. She’s trapped here just like you are. She’s using you—all of you—to make her life easier. You’ve been protecting her. Hiding her away. Starving yourselves to share your food with her since no one gets rations if they don’t show up for work.”

  Was it true? My heart sank. I’d been so caught up in trying to take my father’s place as leader of the rebel forces I never stopped to wonder why they all had to report to the mines every day and I didn’t. Starn had found the perfect way to keep his prisoners in line. No work, no food. Our friends had been giving part of their meager rations to Kaal and me so we could stay hidden. Otherwise we’d have starved to death by now—or I’d have been seized by one of the gangs of criminals when we went into the mines and Kaal was forced to leave my side and work in a different area.

  “Tell them, 4520. Tell them she’s a fraud.”

  Harald muttered something unintelligible. Starn moved in closer. “What’s that? I didn’t hear you.”

  The old man lifted his head and his eyes focused on the warden. We were too far away to hear his response but it was easy to read his lips. “Go fuck yourself,” he said.

  The warden backhanded him, then motioned to one of the guards. They stepped away, leaving him tottering, and then one of them pointed his wand at the back of Harald’s neck. He let out a high-pitched wail and crumpled to the ground.

  Beside me, Brynn muttered a curse. “They’ve got that damn thing set to full power. I don’t know how much more the old man can take.”

  Starn stepped over his body without even glancing down.

  “Aria DiMello! You can prove me wrong and save your friend any more pain. I know you’re out there. Come forward and give yourself up. Show these men you’ll stand up for them like you said you would. Protect this prisoner—the way he’s been protecting you.”

  I started forward but Thomas and Brynn had been prepared for just such a move. They grabbed my wrists, one on each side of me, and held me in place. No one was paying any attention to us and even if someone had been, their hands pinning my arms at my sides were hidden by the long sleeves of my robe. Once I got over the shock of seeing Harald tortured before my eyes, I quit struggling to get loose. I realized I didn’t dare call attention to the three of us. It was bad enough to see my friend in horrible pain because of me. Although I didn’t care about my own safety, revealing myself to Starn would have put two more innocent lives in danger.

  Starn scanned the crowd. “I don’t see her coming, 4520. I told you. She’s abandoned you to save herself.” He stretched out his arms. “Just like she’ll abandon all of you! You can’t trust her. She’s not going to free anybody. No one is going to save you. The Insurrection is dead. It died with that traitor Gaius DiMello.”

  Behind him, Harald dragged himself to his knees, then tottered to his feet. The crowd shouted its approval. Everyone loves an underdog.

  Starn turned around to see what had caused the uproar. He seemed taken aback to see Harald upright again. “Are you ready to denounce her? You can end this right now. Admit it’s all been a hoax and the Insurrection is over. Then take me to where you’ve hidden her.”

  Swaying on his feet, Harald gave a single shake of his head. “Never,” he gasped.

  “Haven’t you had enough, old man? Very well, then.” Starn shrugged and motioned to the guard on his right. The one who’d used his wand before.

  The guard lifted his arm but before he could activate the device, Harald lurched forward. Grabbing the wand out of the guard’s hand, he lifted it high in the air, his fist clenched around it. “Long live the Insurrection!” he shouted, his voice strong and clear.

  Then he opened his mouth, jammed the wand down his throat, and pressed the button.

&nbs
p; Chapter Nineteen

  Ree

  My scream was drowned out by the din around me.

  His body contorted, then collapsed. Though it continued to twitch, the smoke rising from it told us what we saw were muscular contractions caused by the powerful electrical current still pouring through his body. Harald was dead.

  I was transported back to that horrible day when I watched my father and my lover murdered in front of my eyes. Now another person I cared about had been taken from me. Even worse, this one died to protect me. Just like Andreu. Blinded by rage, I forgot about the need to stay hidden. Forgot my concerns about giving up the identities of my bodyguards. I fought them, desperately trying to free myself and rush to Harald’s side.

  “Stop it,” Thomas muttered, pulling me back against his body. “He’s gone, Ree. You can’t help him.”

  “Let me go!” I struggled, but his arms around my waist held me like a vise.

  Brynn stepped in front of us to hide what was happening from those nearby. “Don’t be a fool,” he hissed. “The man gave his life for you. For the Cause. Are you going to waste his sacrifice by letting them take you now? If you do, Starn wins.”

  His harsh words hit me like a bucket of cold water. Cut off my frenzied emotional response.

  They were right. Harald was gone. Dashing up to the platform wouldn’t help him. But it would deliver me into Starn’s hands. He’d use me to crush any thoughts of rebellion among the prisoners. Make sure I died a more horrible public death than Harald did. And with that, he’d destroy all hope among the rebels that one day our Cause would prevail.

  * * *

  “We have to escape. All of us.”

  Kaal sat with his back against the stone wall, watching me pace back and forth in the cramped hut while I raged.

  “No one has ever escaped from Zibaru,” he observed.

  I turned my fury on him. “Don’t tell me it can’t be done!”