She took a step back when the man approached her and sensed the focused gazes of all the militia around her. None of them were in mechs, of course, so she didn't feel she was in any real danger, but Robert7 had no armor between him and any bullets that might be fired, either deliberately or accidentally.
And with him injured on her back, there was no way they could move to all fours and race away. It would force him from her back, which defeated the entire purpose of their escape.
"Don't make this any more difficult than it needs to be," the man said and scowled at her, while some of the militia grasped their weapons a little tighter and tensed as if to ready themselves for action.
Some who guarded the improvised stockade began to move behind her, likely intending to drag the man off her back before she could protest.
"What's happening here?"
They all turned as Mayor Jones walked down the street toward them. His clothes looked a little grubby and ragged and were stained with gray dust, likely from having helped to clear rubble. His beard, face, and hands were similarly affected by the work, yet he still looked fresh and a small, friendly smile played across his handsome features.
"We were merely trying to take this prisoner off Jessica13's hands, sir," the commander stated. He made an effort to wipe the scowl from his face to present a cool, calm exterior. "I'm sure someone with a mech has better things to do than to ferry prisoners to and from the stockade. Considerable work is required to get Auburn up and running again like you said."
"Indeed, I did, and indeed there is." Mayor Jones patted the man heartily on the shoulder and turned to look at her. "Why can't you hand your prisoner to them?"
Jessica13 didn't want to seem like she was avoiding the work since, as the man said, there was a daunting amount to do. "This prisoner is severely injured and needs immediate medical attention. I wanted to find someone who could provide it."
"That attention would as easily be provided while he's in the stockade with the other prisoners."
"But not as quickly, I don't think."
The mayor nodded. "Well, suit yourself. Far be it from me to order any of the Knights Mechanica around, and I'm sure you have put a great deal of thought into your reasoning. Carry on, men, and let Jessica13 go about her business."
The commander turned and glared incredulously at him. "But sir—"
"There’s nothing to add, Shem. Go about your work and let her go about hers. There’s nothing more to it than that."
Shem looked like he intended to say something more and perhaps question Mayor Jones' judgment, but his mouth snapped shut and gestured for the militia and prisoners to move down the road.
Jones strolled over to where she still stood. "I think you might find doctors out to the west section. That's where most of our skilled hands have helped the injured. Likely as not they won't be able to help someone who’s desperately wounded, but they shall certainly try."
"I hope so." Jessica13 wasn't sure what to say to that.
He nodded and patted the side of her mech briskly. "I'll join the militiamen and women to make sure they tend to their duties as well as possible. Carry on."
The man swung on his heel, proceeded down the road toward the prisoners, and increased his pace to reach the commander. Jessica13, Mini, and Robert7 moved in the opposite direction and toward the area where Jones had directed them.
"Why…"
Jessica13 craned her head to hear what her passenger was saying. "Why what?"
"Well…why didn't you turn me over to the others?"
She shrugged but realized he couldn't see her do it. "Like I said, you need immediate attention and that's not likely to happen while in the stockade…"
Her voice trailed off when gunfire cracked loudly behind them. She turned but tried not to move too quickly with Robert7 on her back.
"Is the town under attack again?"
Mini showed a few audio repeats of the gunfire. "Those were small arms, not the kind carried by mechs. Unless FEMA has sent unarmored troops to attack us, I don't think so."
Something cold sank into her stomach and she strode back the way they'd come. The shooting had originated from where the militia had guided the prisoners. At the edge of the town, she located their tracks heading out into a couple of the unsown fields. The farmers probably hadn't managed to get to the area yet.
Even so, with the obvious trail leading into the open and out of the town, she couldn't see anyone—no militia and no prisoners. And it wasn't like they had vanished in the minutes between the gunfire and her arrival.
Her chest tightened when the tracks led to where a large hole had been dug, with the mounds of dirt still piled beside it.
"I would suggest you don’t look closer."
Jessica13 ignored the AI's warning and stepped forward. Shells ejected from the weapons the militia had carried still lay in the dirt, possibly to be collected later by those who were supposed to come and refill the hole that had been left.
Unfortunately, she couldn't ignore the bodies that were in the pit.
There were more than the dozen or so she had seen herded by the militia, and if she hadn't heard the gunshots, she would have assumed they had died in the fighting and were being buried outside the town.
But the wounds were fresh and it looked like more than only the group she had seen had been guided to the hole and executed.
Even a dozen was too many.
Something hot and angry roiled in her stomach and she gagged and fought the need to throw up. There was nothing worse than having to clean that from her cockpit.
"Oh…fuck…" she whispered.
Chapter Forty-Seven
The Excalibur was good for a number of things.
The size advantage made sure of that. Virtually nothing could
