Bloody Choices by Julie Steimle (sneezy the snowman read aloud .txt) 📕

She stomped away from him but nearly ran into Ka’rren’s friend who had waved over another man to seize Malay. She started to scream the second they laid hands on her to forcibly drag her along.

“Let go of me! I’m not going back!” She kicked at her father’s friend, biting at his hand. “Even if you lock me up I’ll get out! I’ll break out and tell them where you all are!”

The other man cursed, lifting his gun.

Jafarr hopped forward, grabbing it out of his hand. He shook his head at Ka’rren’s friend as he said to the pair of them, “No. We’re not P.M.s. We don’t work that way.”

“Then what are we supposed to do?” Ka’rren’s friend asked peevishly. He still glared at Malay, slapping her once for biting him.

Jafarr grabbed the man’s wrist, clenching tight. “Not this.”

He then pulled Malay from their grips, taking a gentler yet firm hold on her as he drew her away. “Malay?”

She looked up at him as if she would spit in his face.

“If we let you go out into the city, would you consider going to the Surface Patrol? The alea in charge of the orphan program is a really good—”

Malay shoved him off. “I go back to the undercity and nowhere else.”

Jafarr closed his eyes. “But Alea Arden is a decent undercity man. He would keep the P.M.s off you and your brothers—”

“The undercity and nowhere else,” Malay said again.

Lifting his head with pain, he said as he gazed at her, “But we can’t protect you in the undercity. If we leave you there, you will be left on your own.”

“I don’t care,” she said.

Jafarr frowned. “We will have to make all the information you know about the rebellion obsolete, Malay, so you will have nothing to tell them.”

She did not budge.

“And the P.M.s won’t just torture you either,” Jafarr added. “They’ll torture Kem and Skiinas. You have to think about them.”

Her glare was fixed. So was her mind.

Closing his eyes once more, Jafarr turned away from her to Ka’rren’s friend. “I need you to go ahead to the hideaway. Find Skiinas and Kem.”

“You aren’t seriously letting her just go?” the man said, staring at Jafarr as if he had let his sentiments cloud any sanity he had left.

Casting Malay a look under his arm Jafarr whispered, “I’m going to take them to a safe place to wait in while we close off all the old routes that she would know.”

“I don’t know that many anyway,” Malay muttered.

However, Jafarr ignored it and whispered lower. “We should evacuate our current hideaways also.”

“To where?” the man hissed back, glaring past Jafarr’s shoulder at Malay. “We have no other evacuation plan except the one Ka’rren had in place. We don’t have any other hideaways in operation right now. If she gets out there in the mental state that she is in, we’re all dead.”

Jafarr shook his head. “Not true. I had proposed a different organizational plan to Ka’rren a while ago. I had drafted up maps and everything. Go find Alzdar or Mr. Demmon. They’ll know where they are.”

“Not Orrlar?” the man asked Jafarr wryly, taking a step back from him towards the open hatchway. Everyone else had gone except for his partner who was still eying Malay as if he would beat her head in. 

Rolling his eyes, Jafarr said, “As much as I respect Orrlar’s experience and leadership, he’s just barely more open to new ideas than Ka’rren.” But he felt sorry for saying so. Right away he added, “He and Eergvin had a look at it. We were going to talk about it with Ka’rren before this whole thing happened.”

Glancing back at Malay one more time, Ka’rren’s old friend said to Jafarr, “Ok. I’ll go inform the others of what happened. But what are you going to do with her in the mean time?”

Jafarr gestured to Malay to come forward. She just clenched her teeth in a glare at him. “If she wants to see her brothers again, and not have them taken to the Surface Patrol against her will, then she will be quiet as we arrange her new living situation back in the undercity.”

Malay stomped towards the hatchway. “Fine. But I’m not staying in the hideaways with the others.”

Nodding, Jafarr replied, “No. You’ll stay at my home.” He didn’t even look back when he said to Ka’rren’s friend, “You’ll bring Kem and Skiinas there, won’t you?”

Ka’rren’s friend nodded. He then went down into the hatch. Jafarr closed it without climbing in, locking his side. He then led out with one hand to Malay to guide her towards his old undercity home. She kept out of arms-reach, yet walked with him. 

“Well, Jafarr,” Malay said as he guided her alone into the undercity where he and his group had set up an obscure apartment for her and her brothers. “You at last got to be leader of the rebellion. Congratulations.”

Jafarr blinked at her, and for that matter so did those with him though they shrugged, keeping watch for P.M.s on the street. It wasn’t like Jafarr had aspired to become the rebellion leader. It just happened—even after Orrlar was found and Eergvin had joined to help the wounded at the new headquarters. Both men had been deferring to him ever since, so impressed with how Jafarr had quickly organized the exodus, and more at how others were hopping at his orders.

“You’ll need this.” He handed Malay her bag. There were enough clothes and food creds in them to start them off right. His eyes flickered to Kem and Skiinas who both had bulging eyes, begging Malay wordlessly for her to reconsider. But she was firm, stone cold firm.

“We’ll come back for you when this is all over—if you want,” Jafarr said, still glancing at the boys.

Malay tossed her hair once, taking a step back from him. “The rebellion is dead. It doesn’t matter what happens now.”

“I know that’s not true,” Jafarr replied mournfully.

“Oh,” she gave a snort. “That’s right. You’re that so-called Leader-of-Many. A prophet.”

“I’m not a prophet,” he quickly said, looking over towards the transit hall. “But I know what I know…and, Malay, just come back with us. You can reconsider—”

“No.” Her voice had bite.

Jafarr nodded and slowly stepped back.

Malay lifted her chin again with another snort. “Huh. Some leader. I guess it is fitting then that the rebellion should fall down with you at the head.”

“It won’t fall,” Jafarr said, but it was more like a mutter.

She didn’t listen. “You can go find that so-called chosen Tarrn you are always talking about.”

Jafarr looked away, already gesturing for Skiinas and Kem to take care when crossing the road. He whispered to them, “Take care of her. You two have to be the eyes and ears of your family now.”

Skiinas nodded. So did Kem, though he looked up at his sister who practically snarled at Jafarr with a shove.

“I bet that perfect blonde flymite you dream about all the time with your holier-than-thou conversations with Zeldar Tarrn is the one you’ve been waiting for. Go get her.” Malay stepped between him and her brothers.

Jafarr stepped back. “That’s enough, Malay. You said your piece.”

“Jaff, we have to go. Eergvin says P.M.s are heading down here for their routine check,” a one of the men with him said.

Nodding, Jafarr turned to go.

“Should I give that P.M. that shot your father my regards?” Malay called after him one last time. Skiinas and Kem had already crossed the street to the building they would now call home.

Halting, Jafarr lifted his chin and turned with a dark look in his eye, “His name is Dural Korad. You can give him my regards—as I’m sure you will meet him soon.”

He walked back into the maintenance doorway, trying not to look back. The others with him followed. Jafarr only hoped Malay would play dumb to save herself. Even if she played up her anger for the P.M.s, it would not do well for her. There was only so much the new young leader of the rebellion could do to keep his new followers from striking back—especially when he wasn’t looking. Jafarr took in another breath and climbed back into the panel they had left open, allowing the others to seal it up after him.

Publication Date: 03-25-2018

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