Chapter Ten

JESSE

I didn't know if anyone occupied the house or not, but it was my best chance. It was where Porter usually stayed while in the area. I was sure he had a hangover, and he couldn't have gone far. Porter said he was leaving, but didn't go into specifics about where he was going. If he was still in the vicinity, there was a good chance he was staying here for the night.

I hoped he was there. I needed his help if I was going to save Annalee.

"Porter!" I yelled as loud as I could. "Open up!"

There was no answer or movement from inside. Nothing. If I couldn't find him, I would have to try and break Annalee out by myself. I had some skills, but I doubted I could do everything alone.

I heard a small sound and followed it around the house to a window. I peeked in and saw Porter and a beautiful young woman in the middle of a moment of passion.

Immediately I averted my eyes from the sight of their tangled bodies which were barely hidden by the sheets. I didn't need to see that. I couldn't hide from the sounds of their fucking. They were too loud to ignore as they both reached their climax at almost the same moment. It was impressive, even for Porter. It deserved applause.

I walked back around to the entrance. Porter had definitely not heard me yelling at him. After a few minutes, I began calling out to Porter again. I leaned against the door, waiting for something to happen.

Without warning, it opened, and I fell inside to see the lovely young girl standing in her shift. I shook my head. Of course the beautiful girl would be opening Porter's door for him. He was too lazy to do it himself.

"Where is he?" I said, dispensing with the pleasantries. I needed his help immediately. Night was falling, and Annalee's execution was in two days. The sooner we could get her out of the Bureau of Purity's grasp, the better. If they brought her to Willford, we would have to deal with heavy security. The best opportunity to free her was right now.

"He's not here."

"Yes," I said, interrupting her and staring her down. "He is."

Apparently my gaze was not intimidating this girl at all. She wasn't afraid of me. "He said to tell whoever it was to go away."

"The bastard," I muttered. The woman was shocked at my choice of language, but he knew my voice as well as his own. I was sure he could hear me yelling.

When I threw the door open, Porter was sitting up in bed, looking sour.

"I wanted to have her for the third time, Jesse. Couldn't you have waited a while? Or not shown up at all."

I didn't waste any words.

"Annalee's been taken by the Bureau of Purity. I need your help."

Porter sprang out of bed in an instant, holding the sheet up to cover himself.

"How did this happen?"

I shook my head. "She smuggled in some tech, Porter. I didn't know anything about it, and I couldn't do anything to help her."

"It's not a mistake?"

"I saw everything happen in front of my eyes," I said. All the ramifications of Annalee's actions suddenly struck me. Before I had only been concerned with the thought of losing Annalee. When I wanted to get Porter's help, I could only think about finding him. Now my mind had nothing to occupy itself. His question brought everything to the front of my brain.

I would be badly affected by all of this because she was my wife. Not only would I lose my Annalee, but I might also lose my home. Much depended on the Bureau of Purity investigation and whether they thought, as her husband, I had been helping her to conceal her items.

If I sat back silently and let her die, they would probably find me innocent because we had only been husband and wife for a short time. But that path would abandon Annalee.

On the flip side, not abandoning Annalee meant we would be assisting a criminal, someone charged with the worst crime imaginable on Yordbrook. Once we helped her, we would no longer be considered innocent in the eyes of the Bureau of Purity.

In fact, we would be on their shit list forever. We would have to go on the run or possibly leave the planet. As a side note, they would seize the farm.

All my dreams shattered in an instant. I felt a thick darkness come over me as I realized it was over. All the work...all the striving...everything my father wanted was now gone.

But my father would never let me abandon Annalee if I could prevent her death. I wouldn't let myself abandon her.

When I remembered her, I saw in my mind's eye how she looked when I made love to her this morning. I knew I had to see her again, even if it was only to chastise her for being foolish and risking her life.

"Jesse? You still there?" Porter said. He put his hand on my shoulder. "We'll get her back. Don't worry."

"Sure. Now that I know you'll help, I'm not worried about that anymore." I sighed. "This is really the end, Porter. We have to turn our backs on our lives this time. There's no coming back."

He nodded, his face looking different without its usual cheerfulness.

"We knew it would come to this eventually. You can't do what we do and expect to live a normal life."

"No," I said, feeling sad. "I guess not. But that didn't stop me from hoping I could have everything."

"That's impossible. Everyone has to choose a side. It's time for you to decide." I stared at him, not wanting to admit that he was right. "Since you think Annalee is worth risking everything, it looks like you've made your decision already."

I nodded. And in my heart, I felt an ache as I let go of the dream of running my father's farm and turned my face toward an uncertain future.

"I have what we need," he said.

"We have to get her away from them before they get to the populated areas where they will have more assistance. Heaven help us if we have to deal with the security at Willford."

"That's right. We'll have the greatest chance of success if we grab her tonight."

A few minutes later, Porter was kissing his latest conquest goodbye. She stared at us as we strode into the gathering darkness.

We crawled through the bushes on our stomachs to avoid a guard standing watch outside the building. I assumed there was also someone on alert on the inside of the building, but I doubted they would be paying attention unless their partner sounded an alarm.

Although we had carefully wrapped the contents of Porter's backpack, it still made noise. Porter glanced at me and nodded at the guard. Now that we were closer, we could see their setup. Annalee was in a storeroom inside the inn. There was one guard outside and another man positioned in the building.

The exterior guard wielded a crossbow. The Bureau had a reputation for carefully training its men. We didn't want to get his attention. He could easily shoot both of us from this distance.

"Are you ready?" Porter whispered, making sure to avoid speaking too loudly. The wind was blowing in the guard's direction, and we weren't sure how easily they could hear our conversation.

We had already decided what to do. Porter wanted confirmation.

"We move ahead with the original plan," I said. "I'll meet you inside."

"Aye, aye, captain," he whispered. His words sounded brave, but I could see he was worried from his body language.

"What's on your mind, Porter," I said, putting my hand out to stop him before he crawled away. I needed him to focus on the task at hand, not distracted by random thoughts.

"Nothing," he said, looking away from me. I didn't say anything. "Okay, it's something. We've done this before, but it was never someone we cared about."

"We?" I asked wryly.

"She and I got to be friends while we traveled," he said innocently.

There was truth in his face, but there was something he wasn't saying. "I guess you've known her longer than I have," I said, hating that it was true.

He nodded. "It makes a difference," he said. "I don't want to screw this up."

"We haven't made a mistake so far," I said confidently. Internally, his nervousness was infecting me. If the Bureau agents guarding Annalee suspected we were trying to break her out, they would kill her immediately, and us soon after.

The Bureau was given a lot of flexibility when it came to dealing with enemies of the state. The law required them to give Annalee time before her execution, but there were ways around the minor technicalities. They could say she was resisting or attempting to escape when they shot her. No one would question their decisions.

I hoped we could get Annalee out. Porter and I had helped many people escape before, and we knew a bit about evading Bureau men. Porter had briefly worked for the Bureau of Purity. He knew how they thought and their protocols. It was useful knowledge in a situation like this.

We looked at each other briefly, then touched our fists to our foreheads. Porter held my gaze for a moment before he turned away and silently crawled off.

Unbidden, an image of Annalee came into my mind. She had kissed me tenderly in the moonlight as we lay close together and passed into slumber. I told myself I would get the opportunity to hold her like that again.

I wasn't sure how I had come to care about her so much in such a short time. I certainly didn't believe in love at first sight. It must be because I had married her. We took marriage very seriously on Yordbrook. There was no such thing as divorce here. When I made my vows, I meant them.

That was why I was here, right? To protect her?

I could almost convince myself that my only reason for being here was the vow.

I slowly counted to a hundred and finally set to work. I pulled a hollow reed from my pocket and placed a dart inside it. Porter and I had spent hours perfecting the art of hitting a target with this instrument. By this point, I could do it with my eyes closed. I crawled forward until I knew there was no way I could miss.

I knew I needed to hit him in the neck. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly, focusing on the spot I wanted the tiny dart to strike. The projectile went flying straight at the man.

He jumped and swatted at his neck, thinking that a bug bit him. Then he rubbed at the spot. He would experience minor pain similar to an insect sting. I couldn't see it from my location, but I was sure the projectile had fallen on the ground where no one would ever find it.

He mindlessly massaged his neck some more, and I knew the dart had vanished, leaving no trace of what had knocked him out. A moment later, he slumped down and lay still in the grass. One down, one to go.

I went over to him and checked his pulse. It was regular, so he was still alive. As I was checking out the Bureau agent, I heard it.

Tap, tap, tap-ta, tap-ta, tap.

Was it Annalee?

I leaned over to the wall. Tap, tap, tap-ta, tap-ta, tap. I was excited to hear someone, hopefully, Annalee, tap it back to me again.

I crept inside and held still, listening for any noises. The biggest problem in old places like this was inadvertent creaks in the floors. I eased down the hall, creeping as slowly as I could and testing my weight before each step.

In this part of the hallway, a Bureau agent was guarding a prisoner. He was fast asleep, even snoring slightly. I felt cocky, but as it turned out, I was overconfident. When I took a step, the floor groaned and gave away my position.

The snoring stopped, and the guard's eyes opened. I retreated into the shadows, hoping he would not notice me. He looked for the source of the noise but didn't see me. I carefully prepared the blow tube, quietly lifting it to my lips. I got lucky. He started checking in the opposite direction. I had a chance if I moved before he turned around.

I stepped out, aimed, and blew. The dart hit the side of his neck as I stepped back. I was already hidden again when I heard his body fall to the floor. The drug-tipped dart would affect his short-term memory. When he woke up, he wouldn't remember a thing.

Porter appeared and helped me lift a heavy bar across the prisoner's door. When I pulled on the handle, it opened easily.

It was Annalee. My heart soared when I saw her, but not before I noticed her eyes light up with relief. She was glad to see me.

Reunions would have to wait until we were safely away. Porter had taken care of the other people who were awake at the inn to avoid witnesses. If anyone discovered us now, there would be a bounty on all our heads.

I dragged the guard inside the cell, dumped him on the ground, and barred the door again. We moved quickly out of the inn. Porter had tied up the other guard, who was still snoring soundly. I grabbed Annalee's hand, and we all ran quietly into the night.

Annalee wasn't in shape for an extended run. When we came to a clearing, Porter said we could take a break. I put my lips on hers immediately as she pressed herself against me. I let myself linger before we finally broke off the kiss, which was quickly becoming inappropriate for anywhere except the bedroom.

"You came to get me," she said.

"Didn't you think I would?"

She shrugged, looking uncomfortable. "I didn't know. Nobody in the crowd seemed like they would help me, including you."

"Plenty of us would help you if we could. I had the opportunity, so here we are."

"What do we do now?"

"I hope we get the chance to lay low and sneak out of here." I trailed off, looking around as my ears heard something coming from the woods. "Be quiet," I said, forcing her to crouch.

We hid behind some bushes and watched someone come into the clearing. Another Bureau man. They had an endless supply of these guys. I didn't know where he came from, and it didn't matter. Perhaps he had arrived to help the men escort Annalee to the capital. The only thing that mattered was evading him.

He would spot us sooner or later. We needed the element of surprise.

"It's time to go," I whispered, taking her hand. I jumped up, pulling her with me and we ran into the forest.

A voice rang out after us. "Stop. All of you are under arrest. If you continue resisting, I will shoot to kill."

I spotted Porter running ahead of us. I knew he had something that would help us escape. He would come back and get us when he retrieved it. Annalee and I took a different direction to confuse our pursuer.

"You're going to have to run. Pull your skirts up to your hips." She was struggling with her dress.

She didn't answer me, but I saw her pull her skirts up, exposing her shapely legs. She ran for all she was worth. We came to a stream and jumped over it, never slowing for an instant.

The Bureau agent behind us had stopped shouting. We could hear his feet pounding behind us. His body crashed through the underbrush. Porter was nowhere in sight. We kept moving as quickly as we could, but I could tell that Annalee was lagging. It must be harder for a woman to run with all the clothing. I pulled her into a zig-zag pattern to make it more difficult for anyone to catch up with us.

I knew she wouldn't make it much longer.

Finally, I saw something over the treetops. It was the glint of moonlight on a type of metal that had not come from Yordbrook. I knew it was tracking us, so I pulled Annalee under cover, trying to conceal us.

The machine overhead disappeared, and I cursed internally, not wanting to waste any more breath on speech. Annalee had started holding her side. She was bent over and starting to stagger. I felt myself beginning to slow down.

He was going to catch us.

I looked back over my shoulder but couldn't see him. Had he lost our trail or taken a wrong turn?

Because I was looking behind me, I wasn't paying much attention as we burst out of the forest and into a small clearing. Unable to stop my momentum, I smashed straight into the hull of a sleek, shiny state-of-the-art hovercraft, like few people on Yordbrook had ever seen. Annalee gasped and looked around, thinking she might be executed merely for seeing the object.

When it finally opened for us, Annalee didn't move. I roughly pulled her inside with me. As the door closed, she turned to me.

"What the fuck is going on here, Jesse? And who's piloting this thing?" I could tell she had a suspicion.

The man at the helm was busy cloaking our vehicle and maneuvering it off the ground. He answered Annalee without looking up.

"It's me," Porter said, his fingers flying across the console. "And now that we've left the Bureau behind us, we need to get the hell out of here."

Annalee looked at me and started tearing off her dress.

"What are you doing? I'm sure you're glad to see me, but this certainly isn't the proper time."

"Don't start," she said, unbuttoning her dress as fast as she could but studiously avoiding a glance in my direction. "Don't act like you care about me."

"Of course I care about you," I said. I didn't understand why she was upset and struggled to control the anger rising inside me. "I risked my life for you and abandoned my life-long dream of inheriting my father's farm."

She stopped undressing for a moment. "I'm sorry," she said. Emotionlessly, she added, "Thank you, Jesse. The problem is that you let me think you were just as traditional as everyone else on Yordbrook. Apparently you two have no issues using modern technology." Annalee's face looked thoughtful. "In fact, if I had to guess now, I'd say you were part of the Underground."

It had felt wrong to deceive her, but I didn't have a choice. I couldn't have told her about my involvement before now. Many lives depended on compartmentalizing knowledge about the Underground.

"It's more than that," Porter said when I didn't answer immediately. "We're part of the Underground's leadership."