Page 65 of Relyn
Charlette picked up a plate and another object on the table. She began hurling objects at Patches one after the other. Patches apparently was not one to bluff. He unholstered his blaster and shot her, point blank in the stomach. She fell over, a startled look on her face.
“Who the fuck let you out?” Patches said, not even pausing to see if Charlette was dead or not. He was staring at Marly’s face in the window of the door opposite.
“Shit,” Nora said, scrambling with the panel. Marly and Theresa had apparently already sealed their side of the room. Patches banged on the window and pointed his blaster at it.
“Open this damn door right now. I’ll kill the lot of you, just like I did her,” Patches said.
Marly’s face disappeared from the window and Nora crossed the last wire. Patches must have heard the whir of the fans switching directions because he crossed over to their door. When he realized it was also locked, he tapped on it with his blaster.
“Oh come on now. She’s not really dead. She needs medical attention. Open the door and we’ll take her to the med bay,” he said, his voice suddenly becoming sweet as molasses.
Nora exchanged looks with Denise. Neither one was tempted to open the door.
“Open the,” he paused to take a long breath. “I will kill you all. I swear.”
They heard him hit the ground. The original plan was to go in and tie him up after he was unconscious. Nora was beginning to have second thoughts.
“Leave him,” Denise said. “That’s fucking justice for you.”
The two circled back around, past Boot’s room where they could still hear him steadily snoring.
“Ten to one Patches is faking it to get us to open the door,” Denise said. There was excitement in her voice as if she finally believed that their plan was going to work.
“My years as a high school teacher tell me that you are right,” Nora said.
They rounded the corner to find the women pouring out of the center courtyard. “The compound is ours!” Theresa shouted.“But Alana and the rest of the guards will be returning. Go find whatever weapons and tools you can and when you hear the ship, go to your appointed places.”
“And don’t open the door for Patches,” Nora said. “He killed Charlette.”
“Who?” Pila asked.
“The Bitch. Apparently, she had a name,” Denise said.
“Ding dong the Bitch is dead!” a woman shouted from the back. A nervous laughter spread, but it was tense. No one wanted to be the one to jinx them by celebrating too soon. They still had to get control of the ship and the other guards. Hopefully, with the power of surprise on their side, it would be bloodless.
It was another simple plan… wait for Alana and the guards to head into the courtyard as they always did after a visit, and surprise them from behind. The women with the weapons would tackle anyone left on the ship.
But just in case things went pear shaped, Nora was now working on the back up plan. She and Denise headed to the coms center. Now that they were free to set off any accidental alarms, Denise could fumble her way through the system and contact any Mahdfel in the area.
A few minutes later and Denise nodded, ready for a transmission.
“Hello? Anyone out there? Can anyone hear me? I need help.”
A smooth woman’s voice came on the line. “I can hear you. What do you need help with?”
Denise mouthed a name but she didn’t need to. Nora already recognized the voice. It was Alana.
“I’ve been kidnapped!” Nora exclaimed. “I got out, but they’re going to find me again. You’ve got to come get me, quick.”
“Where are you?”
“I don’t know, someone on a planet that doesn’t have much of an atmosphere.”
“Are you alone?” Alana asked calmly.
“No, there are over a dozen other women here. They’ve all been kidnapped, but they were too scared to come out when we found the door unlocked,” Nora said. “Please help us.”
“Don’t worry. We’re on our way. Just go back to the courtyard and we’ll be there to rescue you in a few hours.”
