Page 26 of My Wild Pet

Leaning against the cold bars of my cage, I close my eyes as she begins describing a sunlit mountain trail, squirrels darting through the underbrush, and the small red notebook she used for writing down her thoughts. There’s a musical quality to her voice, a soft lull that carries me far from this metallic prison, back to a world of fresh air and open skies. I feel such a connection to this stranger…

“Gabriel?” She speaks my name quietly, snapping me out of the daydream.

I blink, focusing on her blurred reflection in the water jug again. “I’m here. Désolé, it’s just... been a long time since I’ve spoken English. Most of the other pets speak Spanish.”

“And French?”

“Not so much French. But you have replaced a French woman. Her name was Fifi.”

“What happened to her?”

“My English isn’t good enough to explain,” I lie, unwilling to share the truth yet. Briar has already heard enough horror stories for one night.

“Do you speak the grey men’s language?”

“Imperial. Yes. You’ll learn it too. It’s not so hard, after you get the basics, but getting the foundation laid is brutal, unfortunately.”

“Why wouldIwant to learn their language? Are we pets or are we people? On Earth we don’t train our pets to talk unless they’re parrots.”

“We have to learn their language to compete and to survive in the world of human pet competitions,” I reply simply. “Follow the rules, Briar. That’s all you can do. There are worse things for a human to be in the galaxy than being Aefre’s show pet.”

“Are you trying to convince me or yourself?”

“Always myself,” I admit.

She falls silent again, and I take the opportunity to redirect the conversation. “Tell me, have you ever been to Paris?”

“Once. It was beautiful. Just a few months ago Paris hosted the summer Olympics. They held some swimming competitions in the Seine.”

I let out a groan of disgust. “La Seine? Quelle horreur. Those poor swimmers! Or is it clean now?”

She laughs lightly, it sounds enchanting amidst the darkness. “I don’t think so. Some of the swimmers threatened to sue.”

“Bien sûr,” I reply, grinning despite myself.

I watch Briar try to find my face in the reflection of her water jug. She’s still new to all this—still thinks there’s a logical explanation for why we’re locked away like exotic animals.

“Gabriel,” she asks quietly, “what’s beyond this part of the ship? Is Aefre the captain? How many humans are trapped here?”

I let out a slow breath, glancing at the corridor to make sure we’re not overheard. “Aefre is just the trainer who owns the ship. There’s a whole crew on the other side with a captain. I’ve heard him talking to Aefre many times over communications. Aefre keeps us ‘show pets’ separate from the main crew. There are seven pets on this side now, including you. I don’t know how many other human pets are on the other side, if any. There’s a corridor—a literal boundary line—that divides their world from ours. I’ve crossed it a few times, but…” I trail off, memories of failed escape attempts surging back. “The other side isn’t much different—but there are Imperials everywhere, acting like they own the stars, giving orders, and talking about far-off planets. They’ve got smaller ships in the hangar, but stealing one isn’t easy.”

“You tried?”

“Oui. More than once. I was caught each time and punished—badly. Eventually, they programmed the computer to lock me out of every security system. They think humans are stupid, or maybe they just prefer to keep us that way by beating us down. They never expected me to figure out their codes or remember the passphrases to move freely around the ship after teaching me their language.”

“That’s good to know.”

“They’re going to watch you closely, you know. You’re the seventh human pet. In Imperial culture, that number means luck. They’ll treat you like some kind of omen.” My gaze drops to the metal floor, remembering how they fussed over ‘lucky’ pets in the past. “But none of that changes the way they see you or us when it comes down to it. To them, we’re ornaments—a spectacle to show off. They don’t recognize our sentience. To them, we’re just subpar Imperials. A couple steps below them in the evolutionary chain.”

“Has anyone ever escaped and made it back to Earth?” she asks.

I hesitate. The truth bitter on my tongue. “Peut-être… maybe. But not Earth. I’ve heard rumors about safe havens for humans in the galaxy, far from the Empire. But, rumors are the only currency we have in a place like this.”

Briar doesn’t reply and I let the silence pour in between us. I have no doubt her mind is spinning with all of this.

I hear faint footsteps in the corridor, growing louder. Les garçons.

“We can’t talk anymore now. They’re returning,” I say softly, barely above a whisper. “But I’ll take every beating they give me for your name— and never doubt that it’s worth it to me.”

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