Deserter-Epilogue
Rain knew the bullet had entered her stomach and she watched James step away
from her. It was going to end like this, then. Shot in the stomach because she
had actually cared about someone. Everyone was right; caring did get you killed.
She tried to laugh and blood spurted from her lips instead, leaving a coppery
taste in her mouth. She cried out, still clutching her stomach. “Oh, crap.
This sucks,” she said finally and felt James tangle his hand in her hair and
begin to pull her across the dirt.
She dimly saw Ven and Brand sprawled on the ground. She’d never see them
again. She’d never see Riddick again. Tears welled in her eyes and slid down
her cheeks, creating wet paths through the dirt on her face to drip off her
chin.
“Damn you, Ranger,” she whispered. He shook her head and she cried out in
pain. “I’m sorry,” she murmured, speaking to everyone she’d hurt. And
she meant it. She was sorry for letting the Ranger hurt Brand and Ven. Sorry for
all the things she’d done. She was sorry and it didn’t matter any more,
because the edges of her vision were beginning to go dark and the pain in her
stomach and in her scalp were fading. It reminded her of one of those old
cartoons you see on holovision, where when it’s over everything goes black
from the edges until its all black. And so it ended for Rain.
The edges went black and faded in until everything disappeared, and then she
died.
~~~
Ven awoke next to Brand. The room was brightly lit and she closed her eyes
quickly against it. She tried to move and found she was tied down and her bonds
held when she pulled at them. She muttered a curse beneath her breath.
Brand twitched next to her. “I’m awake,” he mumbled.
“Where’s Rain?” Ven demanded.
“Dead, I think,” he answered so quietly even Ven’s ears had a hard time
picking it up. She could feel his sorrow and it was echoed in her.
“Damn it,” she breathed. “Where are we?”
“The Ranger’s ship. We go into cryo-sleep in a twenty minutes. Are you
okay?” Brand asked.
“Yeah, my head hurts though. You?” Ven cracked a lid to see that Brand had
been crying. A tear slipped down her cheek.
“Fine. Same headache though. Pistol whipped us both, the bastard.” Brand
took a gulping breath. “And he killed Rain. I really liked her.”
“Yeah, kiddo. Me, too. Do you know where we’re going?”
“Crip-Ornay, Ven. We’re going home.”
~~~
She’d been grabbed in that damn bar. Asking questions didn’t seem to be
getting her anywhere. It did seem to get her in trouble though. Quickly.
“Lady, you fucked with the wrong guy. Now you’re comin’ with us, and you
ain’t gonna like it,” the burley man standing over her said. She sneered at
him.
“Big deal?”
A punch in the stomach and Gyn felt the air leave her in a whoosh. She groaned.
“Kris Jacobs is a buddy of ours. You shouldn’t of fucked with him, ‘cause
now we’re gonna fuck with you. And you’re gonna get fucked up.”
“Like that word, do you?” she snarled sarcastically. “Half-wit.”
A kick in the ribs. “Bring the whip, Dan!” the man ordered another ape
standing near the door watching. “Immediately, if not sooner.”
Gyn sneered in defiance. Either she had to escape or she was going to die. She
hated only having two choices.
~~~
Riddick was two and a half weeks from Gyn Wolf’s last known location. He was
going to find her and then he could stop running.
~~~
The End
***
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