Through a Slave's Eyes, Alice Arbuthnot [world of reading txt] 📗

their captives no one knows to look for slaves. We are going a.s.a.p. but the details are still sketchy. What we do know is there are going to be three ships leaving for Selder within the next two weeks and we need to be on one. We will let you know soon where and when you need to meet us, but the party can’t be too big. There’ll be a two day ship leaving from Namay to Gringe on the sixteenth. From Gringe we go to Selder, and from Selder to home. Write back a date, the eighteenth, twentieth, or twenty-second. Write back soon, this is freedom.
Your Friend,
Chase Warner”
“What’s it say,” Selein asked, but I couldn’t respond. An escape? How? “I’ll tell you later,” I finally say. “Why later?” she asks. “I’ll tell you later,” I repeat. “O-kay?” she says. Selder? That’s Ky’s planet, but that’s so far away. Another solar system. But it’s my ticket home, if I could get there. Then I remembered something, Who do I take?
CHAPTER XI

“Escape,” Andrew said thoughtfully late that night at the lake, “who all knows?” “Just you and me,” I explain, “I didn’t want a rumor started.” “Madam Welch said that they planned that party for next Friday, that’s the sixteenth right?” It was, I nodded. “That’s perfect if—,” he said, half to himself, “he didn’t say the time yet did he?” “No” “Well, if it’s while the parties on, we can slip out then, or after when they’re all drunk,” he had a mischievous glint in his eye. “Okay, well if all that works out,” I said, “we still have one large problem.” He stared at me, “Who do we bring? The letter said a small party,” I explained. “Well, me and you, obviously,” he began. “Selein,” I added, “Jenny,” he said, “Anyone else?” “Ky” I said staring at the ground. “Ky? Why Ky?” he asked. I needed an excuse, “He’s from Selder, no one knows it better than him,” that sounded good.
“Five’s still a small party right?” he asked me, “Did Chase say how many they’re bringing?” “Letter didn’t say, just the dates the ships leave and a vague plan.” “Okay, it takes a four days to receive a letter back,” he said doing math in his head, “and we have eleven days before the sixteenth, so—two letters. One for us and one for them, if we send tonight and they the day they get it.” I ruffle his hair, “For not being in school for a year I’m surprised you even remember that much.”
“Freedom,” he sighed longingly, “to think, back home, a nice bed, Mom—“ his voice faltered, neither of us knew if Mom was still alive, or Alva. The youngest child we saw in the cart on the way here was ten, at least, and Alva’s only five. Or he was last year, at the kidnapping. What good is a five year old slave, especially without his mother? And maybe they did take Mom too, but then why the gunfire? Why’d she scream? “We’d get to see Dad,” our father was in the Kolean Air force, we hadn’t seen him for months before the Ladoes came. “Yeah,” he said forcing a smile, “and Neomi and Jason and—“ he cut off again before saying Alva. “He may be alive,” I told him, “You know how he’d always go to someone’s house last minute, maybe he did that day.” “Maybe,” he said, not looking convinced.

That night I had another dream. Neomi and me were playing in the backyard underneath the full moons Gonar and Harah. We were waving our metal rods around and lasing the Asurda Bond, Physical Light, onto them. “Don’t go too far,” Mom called from her chair on the back porch with Dad, she smiled at us as she rubbed her swollen belly.
The bushes beside us started rustling and me and Neomi stepped forward with our now light-lased rods extended to investigate. “Boo!” Andrew yelled, jumping out of the bushes at us. I rolled my eyes , “Ha-ha, very funny, but I don’t scare easily,” I said crossing my ten year old arms and turning around, colliding with someone, face to chest. I screamed and fell down, Neomi screamed because I did and the guy screamed because we were. “Why are we screaming?” he yelled in a loud voice, it was Jason. “Ha!” Andrew called from the bushes, “You do scare!” Neomi started laughing and so did Jason, and when Andrew joined in I felt obligated to.
Jason helped me up, “Mom sent me out to tell you there’s ice cream inside,” he said jutting a thumb back at the house, “unless ya’ll want to play in bushes some more…” “Humph” Andrew said. Jason walked over and lifted the seven year old out with ease. “Race ya,” I said taking off before there was an answer.
Jason pulled ahead and Neomi and me were neck and neck as the light clicked on, on the porch. “No fair!” Andrew called from behind. I could see Mom and Dad inside, Dad was stooped over kissing Mom’s swollen belly that would soon be Alva. When I got to the screen door the dream started fading, “I won,” Jason bragged. “Humph,” I said crossing my arms, “you always win.” He laughed as he slid the sliding door open for Andrew who came running in last. The last thing I saw was Dad smiling at us asking, “Strawberry or chocolate?” though he already knew the answer. Both.

CHAPTER XII

“Chase said what!?” she whispered loudly while we stood in our room, “How did they find this? What if it’s a trap? Oh my word what is Steaven thinking, letting him go through with this!?” “Calm down,” I tell her, “it’ll work out fine. I sent a letter to Chase last night, he’ll send one back in due time. The train leaves in ten days, that is the night of the party. We can sneak out then and by the time they notice, we’ll be long gone.” She takes that in for a moment, “This actually may work… but how are we getting the train tickets?” I think for a moment, “Well, I guess we get some money from here.” “Stealing’s a lot harder than running away,” she noted. “No one said it would be easy,” I reply, “but we’ll see what we can do.” “May I see the note?” she asks me. “Sorry, me and Andrew burned it and buried the ashes yesterday,” I say apologetically. “Why?” “So no one could find it.”

A few days later I found Ky at the fountain in the morning. “Where have you been?” I ask him as he hugs me. “Mr. Witch sent me away for a few days into town,” he explains, “What’s wrong?” I tell him about the escape plan, “Our group then leaves from Gringe and we go to Selder,” I say wrapping it up. “Selder?” he asks, “The people on Selder are against slavery, but I do not think our military would be strong enough to do anything about it.” “Whose would?” I ask him, still breathing in the faint smell of horse on him. “At Selder we’ll contact Coz, they have a larger military, and they’ll be able to send some of it to troops to Gringe, that’s where the slave market is, and they’ll destroy it there.” I look up at him and smile, “The train leaves next Friday, the ride costs nine drooners, and there are five of us going. We have to find that money somehow.” He holds me a little tighter, “If you distract Mrs. Welch, I’ll get the money.”
Fifteen minutes later I’m talking with Madam Welch in the tea room about the party. I know that upstairs Ky’s looking for money in their room. “Now Georgia,” she goes on, “I’d like you to stay in the kitchen during the party.” “May I ask why, Madam?” I ask. “Oh Darling, we only need around twenty of you girls as waitresses and you just look awful in the outfit,” she explained sipping her tea. I scrunch my eyebrows, “Pardon me, Madam.” “Oh don’t be hurt Darling, the other girls are just much prettier than you, it’s only a fact,” she said waving me off. I really want to slap this woman

, “Where am I to work then?” I ask through gritted teeth. “In the kitchen, of course, now come here and help me with this list.”
I glance over her head and see Ky coming down the stairs, he smiles at me then goes down the other way that leads to the other hallway. “Yes, Madam,” I say taking a seat across from her.

That night I meet Andrew, Selein, and Ky at the lake to talk about the plan, “Has anyone told Jenny yet?” Andrew asks. No one says anything. “I haven’t gotten to talk with her alone,” Selein says after a few moments. “Well we need to let her know, and soon. We leave in a week,” Andrew says.
“I have forty-five drooners for the tickets,” Ky said presenting the coins, “do not worry they’re not straight from their wallets or bags, just off the floor and under the bed and such.” “Good,” Andrew says, “keep it in the stables for safe keeping.”
“I checked the server’s list this afternoon,” I say, “Selein, Jenny, and I are scheduled for the kitchen.” “Why the kitchen? I’d think she’d have you serve, not that I’m complaining,” Andrew says. “Apparently we’re ‘not pretty enough’,” I explain. “That’s balderdash,” Ky says. We all look at him, he shrugs his shoulders, “Just saying.”
“Anyway,” Andrew continues, “I’m working in the kitchen and Ky’s—“ he looks at Ky, “Do you know what you’re doing?” “I believe I’m opening the gates at the beginning and closing them at the end,” he answers, “There’s not much for a stable boy to do at a party where the drivers drop their rich owners off and leave.” “Well then you just sneak away after opening them,” Andrew says, “and that reminds me, we have a letter.” He pulls out a sealed envelope and hands it to me, “It’s to