“Working.”
“Mother!” Ben yelped. “What are you doing?”
“Kendi and Sejal aren’t on board, Ben,” Ara explained. “Let the guard look. Tell Jack to spread some chocolate and kesh around if he thinks it’ll help. I just wanted to stall.”
“Acknowledged. Vidya Dasa is on the line. Keep it short, Mother. I’ll have to terminate the connection once the guard reaches the bridge, assuming your file scramble doesn’t do it first.”
Ara ran a lead from her earpiece to a speaker set into the wall for just this purpose. “Ms. Dasa?” Ara said.
“Where’s my son?” Vidya demanded without preamble.
“I’m here, Mom,” Sejal said. “Can you hear me? I’m all right.”
“Release him now,” Vidya snapped. “Harm one hair and you will pay.”
“Ms. Dasa, we’re trying to help,” Ara said as calmly as she could. She could already imagine the black-booted feet of the guard tromping through her ship, turning the rooms upside-down, flinging possessions to the floor. “There isn’t time for long explanations. Your son is in trouble with the Unity. So is my appren-so is Brother Kendi.”
Out of the corner of her eye, Ara saw Kendi’s expression darken. Her verbal slip hadn’t been lost on him.
“We need to get Sejal-and you-to safety,” Ara concluded. “Can you meet us somewhere?”
“Mom, it’s okay,” Sejal interjected. “Kendi helped me out of a tough spot. I trust him.”
Pause.
“Where are you?” Vidya asked.
“I’d rather not say on this channel,” Ara said.
“Then how can we arrange a meeting?”
“Mom,” Sejal put in, “meet us at the monster building. You remember where that is?”
Another pause. “I remember. I’ll be there in fifteen-”
“Guard’s coming,” Ben cut in. “Good luck.”
The com line went dead.
“Monster building?” Kendi asked.
Sejal grinned. “It’s an office not far from here. They built it when I was little. Mom and I were walking past when they sprayed it up, and I thought it looked like a monster coming up out of the ground. We always called it the monster building after that.”
“Then let’s go,” Ara said, disconnecting the lead. “But first put these on.”
She handed Sejal and Kendi each a brown robe. After they put them on, Harenn sprayed some of the cloth with disinfectants to discolor the fabric while Ara tore holes. Then she held up sets of shackles. Each set was made of one large collar and four smaller ones.
“This one’s for the neck,” she told Sejal, indicating the large collar. “The others are for wrists and ankles.”
“I know how they work,” Sejal said. “What are they for?”
“No one looks twice at poor, bedraggled slaves,” Kendi said in a bitter voice. “Come on.”
Sejal swiftly donned the shackles. Kendi put his on more slowly. Ara clipped the master unit-a box the size of a fist-prominently to her belt.
“It isn’t activated,” she said. “But stay close.”
Ara braced herself for a smart remark from Kendi, but he said nothing. The lack was surprisingly jarring. Hiding her consternation, she slid open the door and greeted Pitr. He raised an eyebrow at Kendi and Sejal’s changed appearance but said nothing. They set off through the port, Kendi and Sejal walking humbly to the rear, heads low beneath their ragged hoods. Ara’s heart jumped every time she saw a guard, but they ignored the little group as they processed to the exit.
“Now where?” Ara murmured.
Following Sejal’s quiet directions, they proceeded up the crowded street. Ground cars honked, flit cars swooshed, and starships rumbled. The heavy air smelled of sweat and fuel. A pair of Unity guards stood silent watch by the door, and Ara casually turned her face away from them. Her back felt exposed, and she had to force herself to walk at a normal pace.
The monster building looked much like all the other buildings around it-tall, gray, and blocky. Vidya, tight- faced, was standing near the main entrance. It took her a moment to recognize Sejal. She started forward, apparently intending to grab her son, then aborted the motion, opting instead to wait for the group to approach.
“A small courtyard is in back of the building,” Vidya told them. “It remains empty at this time of day.”
Ara nodded and followed Vidya around the office building to the rear, where a little cobblestoned area occupied space between the buildings. Little sunlight reached the place, and a tired-looking tree drooped over a wooden bench. Food containers littered the stones. Kendi and Sejal started to take the bench until Pitr caught Kendi’s arm.
“Slaves sit on the ground,” he said gruffly.
Kendi’s eyes went icy, but he nodded and sat. Sejal joined him. Vidya stiffly took the bench between Ara and Pitr.
“Are you all right, Sejal?” she said. “What have you done to yourself?”
“I’m fine, Mom. It’s a disguise.”
Ara blinked. Sejal’s manner had changed. Gone was the tough street kid she had met in the tiny restroom. His posture was less belligerent, his voice quieter. Even his word choice was different. Was the street persona a mask? A personality he had created while working the streets? Or was the street kid the real Sejal and this one the fabrication?
“Why is the Unity looking for you?” Vidya asked. “What did you do, Sejal?”
A red flush crept up Sejal’s face.
“He’s Silent,” Kendi said quickly.
“He is not Silent,” Vidya snarled.
“Yes I am, Mom,” Sejal said. “Kendi showed me. He proved it.”
“Impossible!”
“Mom-”
“Ms. Dasa,” Ara asked in a soft voice, “your son has a very powerful form of Silence. He already has abilities I’ve never even seen before. Why are you so sure he isn’t Silent?”
Vidya glared at Ara. Her jaw worked back and forth for a long moment.
“I know about the other children,” Ara said, voice still soft.
“What other-” Pitr began, but Ara raised a hand and hushed him.
“Ms. Dasa-Vidya,”Ara continued, “I know about your contract with Silent Acquisitions. I know about your other babies, and I know your husband disappeared.”
“Prasad,” Vidya whispered. Her brown face had paled.
“Who’s Prasad?” Sejal asked from the stony ground.
“He’s your father,” Ara said.
Vidya’s face abruptly twisted into a mask of rage. “How dare you? How dare you come into my life like this? After I have worked so hard to make everything safe? How dare you tell us these horrible things?”
“You’re not denying them,” Ara pointed out. “Vidya, we don’t have a lot of time. It boils down to this: the Unity guard is looking to arrest your son. We can take him-and you-off-planet to escape. We need you to decide.”
“The Unity guard doesn’t arrest the Silent,” Vidya snapped. “Slavers do. Why is the guard looking for him?”
“He is a prostitute,” Harenn said bluntly.
Vidya’s mouth fell open. Her expression said Harenn’s remark had been worse than a slap. After a moment, she whirled on Sejal.
“Is this true?” she demanded.
“Mom, I-”
Vidya reached down and grabbed him by the shoulders. “How can you do such a thing?” she cried. “When I
