The Defiant
Chapter Forty Eight

“They killed them all?” said Four weakly.

“He said it was because we disobeyed our orders,” I explained hollowly.

“This is all my fault,” Three whispered. “I convinced you to change course. None of this would have happened it I hadn’t listened to Cassian. Now the Aerzhu have Halliday back anyway, and our families… our families are dead.”

“It’s not your fault. We all agreed. We all decided that this was the right thing to do. And it was. If it weren’t for Eight, Halliday would be in jail right now, and the Aerzhu would be down a peg. We were doing the right thing, and it’s not our fault the Aerzhu took them. It’s no one’s fault but Halliday’s,” Two said vehemently.

Three fell silent.

Four spoke next, her voice sounding quavery, like she was about to cry, but still determined. “We’re going to get them. They will not get away with doing this to us.”

“What are we going to do?” Five asked wearily. “In case you didn’t notice, we are in prison.”

“Well, we’ll just have to break out somehow, of course,” Four said matter-of-factly, her voice regaining some of its old sharpness.

“If it’s so easy, why don’t you come up with a plan?” Five snapped.

“Maybe you should. After all, it was so simple for you and Eight to come up with a plan to take over the ship,” Four said snidely.

“Shut up. Eight manipulated me just as much as she manipulated the rest of you!”

“I doubt you needed much convincing. You were already thinking about helping the Aerzhu, and all she had to do was flash you one charming little smile—”

“I WAS IN LOVE WITH HER!” Five bellowed. “And she betrayed me! She made me think it was the right thing to do, and she turned me against you, and I thought it was right, but I was wrong. Wouldn’t you do anything for the people that you love?”

“Yeah,” Four said, her wrath diffusing. She almost sounded sad, probably thinking of her family. “I would.”

“Then stop holding it over me. I made a mistake. The Aerzhu are evil. They kidnap children and murder their families for their own ends. I realize what I did was wrong. I did it because I loved her. I loved her, and she was working for them the whole time. How do you think that feels?”

“I’m sorry,” Four said softly. I did a double take. I had never heard Four apologize.

“If you two’re done with your heart-to-heart, I believe we were discussing escap—” Two began, but I shushed him, hearing the sound of boot heels coming toward us. Eight.

I shrank back into my cell, trying to replace a defensible position in case the guards came again, but Eight wasn’t here for me.

She approached Five’s cell door, furtively glancing back and forth, acting suspicious. Who was she hiding from? I stepped quietly back to my cell door and pressed my ear to the bars, straining to hear as Eight began to whisper to Five.

“I’m so sorry. I didn’t think they would throw you in here.”

“I have nothing to say to you.”

“Really, they told me they would let you go, because you helped me! I wouldn’t have done it if I knew they would—”

“Come on, Eight. Who do you think you’re fooling? You used me to accomplish your purpose, then tossed me aside. We both know you wouldn’t have passed up your chance at revenge even if they’d promised you they would torture me,” Five said, trying to sound strong, but there was raw pain behind his words.

“I...I never wanted this. I thought I did—I thought if I hurt someone else, I might forget what I went through, or something.” She laughed sadly. “It was dumb, and I never predicted you. I never thought I would… fall in love with you. And now it’s too late. If they even suspect that I’m questioning the cause, they’ll kill me.”

“And are you? Questioning the cause?”

“No. Yes? I don’t know. What they want is right. But this… it’s not right. I believe in their cause, but—” she took a deep breath. “I’m not sure I believe in them.”

I inhaled sharply. Was Eight saying what I thought she was saying?

“Eight, I loved you.” Eight noticed the past tense as well, and I heard her take a step back. “And you betrayed my trust. I can’t trust you anymore. How do I know this isn’t some elaborate act to make me believe you so you can betray us later?”

“I’m not that good an actress. I never lied about how I felt, but I know you can’t believe that, and I know you can’t trust me,” she sniffed, then continued in an even lower voice, and I had to strain to hear. “And why would I manipulate you now?”

“You have nothing to gain from me. But maybe you just want to wrap me around your finger again. I won’t be your trophy, so you can just leave.”

“I’m sorry this happened, Five,” Eight murmured. I heard the sound of a chaste kiss on the cheek, and then she left, passing my cell on her way out. She didn’t glare or smirk, just looked at me, meeting my gaze with tears swimming in her eyes, and slunk away, watching furtively over her shoulder for an observer to her clandestine visit.

Once the sound of Eight’s clicking heels had receded into silence, Five sighed loudly.

“I guess you were all listening, huh?”

Four and I ’fessed up, but we were the only ones close enough to have picked up the words.

Five laughed shakily. “Hard to replace privacy in a prison. I guess that’s kind of the idea. I just can’t believe her! How can she come around, after everything, and just expect me to forgive her? Unbelievable.”

“Have you considered forgiving her?” Two asked.

“What?” I asked, stunned. “Two, do you remember what she did to us? What she did to the universe? She unleashed that—that monster on the world!”

“She’s miserable. And holding onto anger forever isn’t going to help Five.”

“Maybe it won’t help me, but I’m still pretty damned angry,” Five retorted.

“And do you feel better?” Two asked. Five didn’t answer. “Thought so.”

“If you really want to make him feel better, may I suggest we discuss escape? I dunno about you guys, but I don’t want to spend the rest of my life in this manky cell,” Four said.

“Manky?” I asked, laughing.

“Aye. D’ya have a problem?”

“Nope. I’m fine.”

“Escape?” Four prompted irritatedly.

“Why are you so impatient about this? How do you expect us to get out of here? Chisel a tunnel in the wall with a boot heel?” Three asks sarcastically.

“I was thinking more along the lines of ambushing the guards when they come in next.”

“And why should they do that?” I asked. “They’ve already returned our memories, and there’s no other reason they would come to us.”

“You could ask to see Halliday agai—”

“No. I am not going back to see that psycho. And even if I agreed, that plan would only get them to unlock my door.”

“Wouldja quit shutting my plans down with logic?”

So we made no plans. And we might never have gotten out of there were it not for what happened later that night.