Fighting For Your Rights

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Thirteen

Robyn rushed into the infirmary with a mix of excitement, fear, and trepidation. She spotted the cot that held her grandmother and rushed to her side. She held in the gasp at her beaten form. “Grandma?”

Mariah slowly rolled her head to face the voice, “Robyn, you made it. I was so worried that you would be captured before you got here.”

“I’m safe, Grandma.”

“I wanted to make sure you got to my people and not waste all the training.”

“Why me?”

Mariah took a deep breath and ignored the pain as she stated, “You have the strength, the courage, the intelligence and the spirit… to rule.”

“Doesn’t that position belong to Al?”

“Alo…hilani does not… know what you have stored… inside of you. She was ap-p-pointed as a temporary leader… and she knows it. I am the only one who… can appoint the next leader of the revolu…tionaries.”

“What if I say I don’t want it?”

Mariah took her granddaughter’s hand, “My dear… R-R-Robyn, you have that choice, but… I know you, you will… take this position.”

“Why?”

“Because you are… the only person capable of… t-t-taking it.”

“She’s right,” a voice stated from the doorway.

Robyn turned and looked at Al, “Don’t you think you deserve this position?”

“No,” Al replied walking into the room. “My abilities pale in comparison to what you are capable of. Just in a simple conversation with you, I can tell that you were made for this position. This is your true calling.”

Robyn looked at her Grandma, “You had to leave because you wanted a family. I have started my own family and…”

“What?”

“I married Owen and I want a chance to have a family with him.”

“Congra…at-t-tulations, I knew you would… marry, but that isn’t why… I left.”

“It isn’t?” Al inquired sitting on the other side of the bed.

“No, I left… because of the w-w-witness. Your father, Al… knew the true reason… I left, but I made h-h-h-him promise to keep it a secret… that was why I never appointed… anyone. I planned on… r-r-returning, but I fell in love.”

“Why didn’t you choose my mother to lead?”

“I tried, but she r-r-refused to learn. She was too… scared of getting in tr-tr-trouble. Amaris became a child… of the system. That was the thing… I didn’t like about… your grandfather, he followed the system and f-f-forced his children to do the same.” Mariah took a few deep breaths, “I’m t-t-tired ladies.”

“You aren’t going to die in your sleep, are you Grandma?” Robyn sat on the bed beside her Grandma, “I had someone tell Mom that you were back.”

“Good, I want to… say good-bye,” Mariah replied trying to ignore the pain with every breath and word.

“Good-bye? You just got here.”

“Oh Robyn… don’t try to con-n-nvince me that I am going… to survive. I gave you your… medical training. I am old and with the treat…ment I was given, I won’t make it much longer. I am glad you had them go and get your… family and me so I had a ch…chance to talk to you. Robyn, I have taught you about h-h-history, medicine… math, literature and p-p-politics, and your father taught you of military… tactics, weaponry, defense. You are… going to need this… knowledge because…”

“So, Dad knew that I was next in line to lead?”

“Yes… your father knew the tr-tr-truth.”

“Was I supposed to take on protecting him as well since he is the witness?”

“You are an intell…igent woman, Robyn… You have far s-s-surpassed me. That is why… you are the next in line… to lead.” Mariah looked at Robyn, “There are two… ways I would want to… die. Fighting for what… I believe in and in my sleep. This way… I would get to do both.”

“Do I at least get a chance to say good-bye?” Amaris inquired as she walked into the room.

As she walked towards her mother, Robyn and Al stood to go, “Al I want you… to help Robyn until she gets… the hang of it. Robyn, I b-b-believe in you, I wouldn’t have… given you this task if I didn’t think th-th-that you could handle it.”

Robyn kissed her grandma on the top of her head, “I love you, Grandma.”

“I will always be… a part of you. You take care of that h-h-husband of yours.”

Smiling and trying to hold back the tears, Al pulled Robyn into her arms and led her out of the room.

Amaris sat on the bed and took her mother’s hand, “You’ve had a good run.”

Mariah looked at the tears forming under her daughter’s eyes and opened her arms wide. Amaris fell into her arms, “It will be… alright, Baby.”

“I’m sorry I wasn’t strong enough for you, Mother.”

“My d-d-darling, you were… the strongest of my ch-ch-children,” Mariah replied forcing each word out of her mouth.

“I don’t want you to leave.”

“I will… always be with you.”

“But I want to see you.”

“Just close… your eyes, D-d-darling.” Mariah took in a breath closing her eyes tightly from the pain then exhaled one last time.

Amaris’s tears flowed stronger as she felt her mother go limp, “Mother you can’t go. I love you, Mother.”

XXXX

Robyn placed her hand on the scanner and the door slid open, Al led the pallbearers into the mausoleum and opened the last small door on the third row down. Sliding the tray out of the enclosure, Al nodded and the pallbearers laid Director Masda’s body on the tray. The pallbearers left the tomb and Robyn walked up to her Grandma’s wrapped body. Robyn laid a silver necklace with a small cross on her chest, and Amaris stepped into the tomb. Looking up at her mother, Robyn kissed her fingers and placed them on the cloth covering Mariah’s lips. She walked up to her mother and looked into her bloodshot eyes. Without saying a word, Robyn slid her arms around her and hugged her tightly.

Amaris took a deep breath, “This has been a sad, hard, and a very weird day, Director.”

“Please don’t.”

Pulling away, Amaris smiled, “I am proud that you…”

“Are you mad that you weren’t appointed?”

“I am not mad at you. Your Grandma tried to teach me and I now know she wanted to appoint me, but I refused to learn. I was afraid. I know you are the person for this job. I’m not mad at you, I’m mad at myself. You have more strength then I could ever dream of having.”

Robyn looked at her mother and kissed her on the cheek, “Thank you, Mom. I’ll leave you alone.”

Nodding, Amaris walked to the tray that held her mother’s body. Al looked at Amaris, “I’m sorry for your loss. Your mother was a mother and grandma to hundreds and will be greatly missed.”

Amaris waited until Robyn was out of sight, “Will she make it?”

Al looked down at Mariah’s wrapped body and then back at Amaris, “I trust in your mother’s decision and from what I have seen so far, she will be the one to rally the people and start the world over.”

“Yes, but how is she going to convince the people to go from one ruler to the next?” Amaris inquired looking at her mother.

“Faith and the fact that she will not be a supreme ruler like King Roham. It is to become a democracy again. Your daughter will just be the person to lead the way. I will leave you to be with your mother.”

Al left and Amaris looked down at the wrapped body. “‘He that believeth in me shall not perish, but have everlasting life’.” Amaris slid the tray back into the compartment and closed the door. As she heard the compartment seal, Amaris turned back to the door and saw Uriah in the doorway.

Walking through the door, Uriah grabbed her arm. “Talk to me, Amaris.”

She snapped her head towards her husband, “Why should I even consider communicating with you? My whole life has been a lie and a good part of it is because of you. My husband, the only man I loved and the one man I thought I could trust.”

As she tried to pull out of his grip, Uriah pulled her to him, “I love you, Amaris, you have to believe that.”

Amaris looked straight into his eyes, “And how am I supposed to believe that. For all I know you married me out of convenience to give yourself a better cover. Let me go,” she stated pulling out of his arm and continuing down the hallway.

“Amaris, please listen to me,” Uriah replied chasing after her.

An arm grabbed Uriah, and he turned to look at the person attached to it. Robyn looked up at her father’s face, “Let her go, Dad. She has nowhere to go. You need to earn her trust again, if you want her badly enough.”

“How did I ever get such a wise daughter?”

“I was taught by the best.”

He hugged her tightly then turned and went down the opposite hallway.

Robyn walked back into the tomb and ran her fingers across her Grandma’s name inscribed on the door, “I am betting you knew this was going to happen and had no idea how to handle it. I pray that Dad does because I don’t think he could handle losing her.”

XXXX

Amaris continued to run down halls turning at every corner and looking over her shoulder. She turned one more corner and looked behind her. Turning around, she ran right into Jack. Amaris fell to the ground, “I’m sorry, Mrs. Star,” Jack replied as he offered his hand to help her up.

Slapping it away, Amaris stood to her feet by herself. “I can do it myself thank you.”

“I would have figured you to be a little shyer towards men.”

“You should get to know a person before you make those assumptions. I made that mistake, it isn’t an easy thing to live with.” Amaris walked around him and started down the hall.

“Your mother had nothing but your life in mind. She stayed behind in the capitol because she wanted to protect you. She was willing to sacrifice her life in order to spare all of you.”

“No. She wanted to sacrifice her life to save Uriah, the witness. That was her priority and to groom Robyn to be the next director.”

“Your mother love…”

“Don’t start with me. I know she loved me, but she still lied to me along with my husband.”

“She had no choice.”

“You are a follower of hers through and through. She can do no wrong in your eyes. Is that what we are to be led to? Is that what will be considered of my daughter? You want to convince the people that you are the right way to go and that the king we have is worse, how about trying to convince me first?”

“You have to have faith and believe in this cause.”

“You all have to do better than that,” Amaris stated then walked away.

Jack quickly ran in front of her, “Who are you mad at? What do we need to convince you of?”

Looking at him and then behind her, she replied, “You take your pick for each question. I don’t know what or who to believe in anymore.”

“What about your daughter?”

Amaris took a deep breath, “I would like to believe in my daughter… but she was trained by my mother and… my husband.”

“And you cannot believe them?”

“Tell me how I am to believe them when they have done nothing but lied to me and kept secrets from me. That is no marriage and no family.”

“Family keeps secrets in hopes to protect the ones they love. It is a way of life.”

“It is a way to destroy it.”

“A husband’s duty is to provide safety in the home, ‘but if any provide not for his own, and especially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel’.”

“Do not quote the Bible to me,” Amaris stated looking at his surprised face. “I may have refused to being taught, but it doesn’t mean I didn’t listen to my mother. Why am I talking to you? You have known the truth your whole life, you don’t know what I am going through.”

“Your daughter was lied to as well, and…”

“Another reason why she was chosen because she forgives so easily?”

“Is that what this is about? You are mad because you were not chosen?”

“No, I am mad because I was not told why my mother wanted to teach me and that prevented me from being chosen. Forget it, I don’t want to waste my time or breathe with you anymore.”

Jack began to walk the way he had started then stopped, “You best be careful with the way your train of thought is going because it may endanger the revolutionaries and your daughter. I don’t want your daughter’s first act as director to be to try and figure out what to do with her mother. You need to grow-up and except the fact that life isn’t always what it seems.” Before she could say anything to him, Jack rounded the corner and walked down the hall.

With an infuriated inhale of breath, Amaris turned on her heals and continued the way she had started.