Chapter Twenty
2381 Words
Chapter Twenty
“… two thrashers were captured and brought to the big house, over.”
Robyn looked up as Uriah walked into the room then spoke into the ear set, “Four bullfrogs should return to the swamp for feeding, over and out.”
She pulled the ear set out and slowly stood, “So, that was why you weren’t out there?”
“I’m sorry, Father, I wanted, but this happened.”
Uriah smiled, “What’s going on?”
Before she could answer, Al walked into the room, “We got a message from Garcia.”
Al looked at Uriah then at Robyn, “It is okay to read it in front of him, Al.”
Taking a deep breath, Al read, “Thank you for the warning of the coming attack, I will try to get away when possible. One of your ships was captured at the base in South Dakota. The male crewmembers have been killed and the female crewmembers have become property of the king. The captain is being interrogated at this point. Awaiting instructions for action to take.”
“At the risk of making a confusing statement, now we have to worry whether he knows that we know or if it will be business as usual.”
“Well, no part of his message seems out of the ordinary,” Al replied looking over the data pad.
Uriah glanced at each woman then asked, “So what are you going to do, Robyn?”
“It is a hard decision. Even if I were to forget for the time being that she disobeyed a direct order, how am I to be certain that she is still alive and risk more lives?”
Al twirled a pencil from the desk between her thumb and fingers, “There is another reason we should go after her.”
“What is that?” Robyn inquired looking at Al.
“Now bare in mind she doesn’t know about this reason and we made sure not to reveal it unless the time came that we may need to…”
“Time is important here,” Robyn interrupted.
Taking a deep breath, Al looked back and forth between Uriah and Robyn as she answered, “She is King Hayden Roham’s daughter.”
Robyn stared into Al’s eyes to see if she was lying and when she read the honesty in her eyes, she asked, “What about Jack and Liberty?”
“I will explain if you just give me a little patience.” As soon as Robyn nodded, Al took another deep breath and began, “Liberty was born in Winslow, but her parents did not want her to grow up in the White House. They said that they would hide her in the mine when the time came. They came to me to make final preparations for her transfer, but they didn’t make it back to her. They were in an accident on the way back to get her. Both of them were killed. I don’t know how it happened, but it seemed that the government knew about their deaths before we did. Liberty was taken by the time we got there to get her. She became the property of the king.”
“So, Annie is her child, but Jack is not her real father,” Robyn stated sitting back and crossing her arms.
“Liberty couldn’t have children. The king did not want an over abundance of children.”
“Scared that they would do to him, what he did to his father?” Uriah inquired sitting in another chair.
“Possibly, but he fixed it so the women could not have children.”
“I thought you said that Jack and Liberty had a son.”
“They were orphaned because of the king, and they took him in. Now if you would stop interrupting me so I could finish.”
“I’m sorry,” Robyn stated smiling slightly.
“The king did want an heir, however, and there were a select few that he wanted to have children. The only other thing he feared was that they would have girls. He made a rule that if any of his women were to have girls, he would kill the child. Liberty made friends with a woman who was the favorite of the king’s. The friend became pregnant. Liberty discovered a way to escape and was going to take it, but her friend made her promise to wait until the baby was born. The friend didn’t want her child killed no matter what it was, and asked Liberty to wait and if it was a girl to take it with her. The baby came and it was a girl, Liberty ran with her and the friend told Roham that she killed the baby herself.”
“So, who is Annie’s mother?”
“Now before I tell you, I want you to realize that this was awhile ago and we don’t know what happened to her. It is unknown what he would have done to her for bearing a girl...”
“What is her name?”
“Her chances of surviving this long…”
“Her name, Al,” Robyn demanded.
“Cassia Amerow.”
“Aunt Cassia?”
Uriah shook his head, “I thought Annie looked like Amaris. Amaris and Cassia always looked alike all through childhood.”
“If the king were to discover who she is… I don’t know what he would do.”
“This keeps getting better and better,” Robyn muttered. “This country depending on one family in one way or another.”
“In the past, that happened quit frequently.”
“But both sides expecting something from one family, it is like a dream, a very bad dream.”
“Well, it is what is happening and it is the truth, and it is up to you to decide what you are going to do about it.”
“All right, we will go and get her and the rest of the crew. Let’s go find Owen.”
XXXX
“No, I am not letting you go to the palace.”
“It is the only way. The crew members that are still alive are in the king’s… harem, and I am the only one who can get to them.”
“How do you figure that?”
“Because of this,” she replied revealing the brand on her left shoulder.
Owen ran his fingers across the burn and looked at the side of his wife’s face, “There has to be a different way.”
“I wish there was, but they will not allow anyone into that area unless they have this mark. I am the only one who can get in there and find these women.”
“Don’t you realize,” he stated turning her to face him, “You go in there and you will be unarmed. You cannot carry a weapon with you.”
“I can take care of myself without a weapon.”
“I know, but…”
“This is the only way. I want to get those women out of there and I have to go.”
Owen slid his fingers down her cheek, “I’m coming with you.”
“No, you can’t.”
“Why not?”
“They know what you look like. They have never seen my face there is no record of what I look like because I am a woman. They only no my name. They will spot you immediately.”
Staring into here eyes, Owen nodded, “Okay, how do you want to do this?”
“Well, we need someone disguised as a guard to escort me to the… harem, is that what he calls it?”
“More or less.”
“Well, they leave me at the harem, and while I find the women, they will get Annie out of her cell. As soon as she is clear, they come back for me and the others.”
“So, you need to have a way to get into the palace and the holding areas below.”
“Yes. Do we want them to go in the same way as before?”
“Well, Roham is very arrogant and extremely proud, good qualities for a dictator, but not a good leader,” Owen stated stepping over to the table in the dining area and sitting down. As she sat across from him, he took a paper and pen from the table, “With all the technology that the world has obtained, we still use paper.”
“Like Al said, ‘It is easier to destroy and less traceable’.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Owen nodded as he began to write on the paper. “Roham’s personality traits are going to help us, in the fact that he won’t change anything, he won’t put on more guards or change security measure. If he did, people would wonder and…”
“Question his capabilities.”
“Exactly,” Owen replied looking up from the paper. “Now the man who will lead you to the harem, will have an important part. He will notify the others when you are secure.”
“I was thinking of Minead to handle that task.”
“Good choice, he’s got a good crew. They can handle getting into the holding area below especially with him on the inside,” Owen agreed as he turned back to the paper.
“How are we to get inside?”
“The same way we got out the first day we met.”
“You don’t think they would have taken that room over for something else?” Robyn inquired trying to figure out what he was writing on the paper.
Owen shook his head, “I requested that room because it had not been used for years. I wouldn’t be surprised if my stuff was still in there. Maybe damaged, but they won’t remove it just yet. It would be a low priority. I think everyone could get in through that way, stay in that room until Minead returns from ushering you to the harem. There should be plenty of places to hide in the remote chance that someone comes to the room. Do you still have that jacket and hat I gave you?”
“I believe so.”
“All I need is the hat. Are you going to allow your sister to go since she is a part of Minead’s crew?”
Robyn looked at the door and then back at Owen, “I forgot about that. I don’t know.”
“It is something you have to decide, but she can’t be seen in the remote possibility your mother has access to cameras or they can figure it out from looks. She doesn’t look exactly like your mother, but enough to think she was related.”
“I don’t think she is ready for this anyway.”
Owen looked up at his wife and smiled, “I don’t know if she will like that.”
“She hasn’t been as trained as some and we have to act quickly. I want to be back as soon as possible to prepare for the coming battle. While I am gone I want you to continue that.”
Nodding, Owen looked back at his paper, “Thankfully your face is to stay hidden so your mother will not see you. Your whole body is covered like normal, but there is one difference.”
“What is that?”
“There is a hole cut in your shirt to show the brand.”
Robyn nodded, “You are going to have to coach Minead on how to act, and where to go exactly.”
Owen showed her the diagram he was drawing on the paper, “Yep.”
Shaking her head and smiling then her mouth slowly straightened as she replied, “I’m scared.”
He took her hands in his and caressed them gently with his thumbs, “I may not like admitting this, but you can handle yourself and you are coming back to me.”
Robyn laughed, “You know I am the one who is supposed to say that.”
“Well, I just wanted to make sure it was said.” He pulled her onto his lap. Robyn wrapped her arms around him and laid her head on his shoulder as he continued, “It scares me to see you go, even though I know this is something that has to be done, but…”
“It doesn’t make it any easier.”
“Exactly,” he replied wrapping his arms tighter around her. “These aren’t the best circumstances to have a marriage, but I love you and I always want to be with you. I will do anything to make that happen.”
“Me too. I think I’m also scared to think that I will be in charge of the lives of billions of people. Their lives will depend on me. People have already died because of me and more will follow.”
“No, they died because they were fighting for their rights, for something they believed in. The people who follow will do the same. I want you to realize something. All these people under your command are here by choice. They know what is at risk and they are willing to take that chance.”
“We will win this war and we will get our world back.”
“That’s what we have to believe and have faith in.”
- Writer
