STAR WARS: ADVENTURES OF BUCK RYDUR - BOOK 1 PART 1 FREEDOM'S PRICE

Chapter Three (cont)

I woke with a start, and blinked my eyes furiously, trying to remember where I was. Oh yes--I'd run away. My new friend Robyn and I had jumped ship in the Allenteen system two days ago, snuck aboard this spice freighter, and were now on our way to Coruscant. I sat up and glanced around, but it was hard to see. There wasn't much light back here. Yawning, I turned to shake Robyn awake and ask him what he'd get us for breakfast today. Suddenly I froze. Something was very wrong. What . . .Then I heard it; voices. And they were getting closer.

"Robyn! Robyn, wake up!"

The boy rolled over and moaned, "Quiet, Bucky. Doncha know it's bad luck to wake a sleepin' man?"

"It'll be bad luck if the sleeping man gets caught!" I hissed.

Robyn bolted upright, instantly wide awake, and listened intently. "Engines aren't running. We've already landed." He scrambled to his feet. "Come on, hurry!"

He pushed the lid off the nearest cargo bin and jumped inside, up to his waist in fine orange powder. I clamored in after him, nose flaring and eyes watering. He pulled the lid down over us just as the door on the far side of the hold opened. It was space black inside the crate, but I could hear everything going on outside. A couple men came in and started walking around, talking.

" . . .Ideal place for stowaways," one was saying. "Been a lot of 'em lately."

"Blasted beggars," another man muttered. "How do they get in without being spotted anyway?"

"Check all the cargo," a third man spoke. "See if anything's been tampered with."

We were going to be found! "We got to get out of here!" I whispered frantically.

"Easy, Bucky," Robyn murmured in my ear. "We'll get out. Just gotta wait for the right moment. Sit tight until I say so."

The men were counting the crates and boxes to make sure none were missing. "I can't breathe," I gasped, feeling suffocated by the spicy air.

"Shh!"

There was a loud creak and hissing sound--someone was opening the crate next to us! I shifted my legs under me, ready to spring and run. But by doing that, I stirred up the powder we sat in, causing spice to fill our eyes and mouths. I couldn't help a muffled cough, my tongue and throat burning.

"Easy," Robyn murmured, and I felt his hand on my shoulder. "Not yet." Footsteps stopped directly in front of our crate. "Steady . . ." The top of our hiding place creaked. "And . . ." The lid opened, and a bright light nearly blinded me. At the same instant Robyn ordered "Go!"

We vaulted out of the crate, showering spice on the man who'd opened it and knocking him down. By the time he and the others had recovered, we were across the hold and out the door.

"Hey! Get those kids!"

We were already out of sight, tearing down the corridor. I stuck close to Robyn's heels. He never got lost, making his way through the maze of passages without hesitation.

"Are we almost out?" I panted.

"Almost," he called back. "Faster, mate; they'll have alerted security by now!"

Heart thundering in my chest, I followed him until we caught sight of the gangplank. Relief coursed through me. We're going to make it! Then Robyn stopped so abruptly, I crashed into him, causing him to stumble forward a bit. That's when I saw the stormtroopers standing at the bottom of the ramp, examining passengers as they exited the ship. We turned and saw the guys from the cargo hold making their way toward us.

"Aw, kest," Robyn swore.

I panicked. "We're trapped!"

"Not for long. Let's haul jets."

We ran down the ramp, mingling with the passengers. Just before we reached the security check, Robyn reached out and slapped the backside of a woman in front of us. She spun around angrily. Robyn pointed to a completely oblivious young man beside us.

The woman's face flared red as she glared at the man. "How dare you!"

He glanced at her, surprised. "Uh, what?"

The woman responded by punching him squarely in the jaw. He staggered backward into a burly Rodian, who shoved him into someone else, who pushed him back. Before I knew what was happening, everyone was pushing and shoving each other, shouting and cursing. Robyn and I had no problem creeping away while security tried to get things under control. We hit the hangar deck running. Once outside the spaceport, Robyn hailed an airspeeder taxi, we jumped in, and it sped us away.

I fell back in my seat. "That was scary."

"You were pretty sharp back there, mate," Robyn said with approval. "All you need is a bit of practice, and you'll be streetwise in no time."

***end of chapter***