Conflagration

Brother Azariah

The next day, Sister Judith arrived early in the morning to bring them their breakfast. Far from the fare they'd previously enjoyed at the old midwife's table, this morning Sister Judith served them each a bowl of plain oatmeal with only a little cream and no coffee. Sister Judith barely made eye contact with the two captives as she examined the scrapes and minor scratches from the previous night's scuffle.

The Fourther nurse only sad "You'll live." to Lyssa. When she got to Erin, however, she said: "I expect this kind of behavior from that one over there, but I thought you were better than this." It actually hurt Erin to hear the betrayal in the older woman's voice. "Still, it was for the best that we stopped you. Stealing is still a sin."

"We weren't stealing. The hardpointer belongs to our company."

"Not the plane, the payment."

"What? Wait... Do you mean the lady? You think we were trying to steal your drugs? We were just trying to escape."

Sister Judith looked Erin straight in the eye for the first time. Her voice was earnest as she spoke next. "Tell me honest now, is that the truth? You weren't just trying to make yourselves rich? You really were just trying to escape? 'Cause escape I can understand, even forgive. But stealing I can't abide."

Well, isn't that ironic? You and your ilk stole our plane and took our freedom, but you can't abide stealing? "Honest, we just want to get home. We don't want your drugs. Where did you hear that?"

"That's what the whole town's sayin'."

"Hah!" Lyssa said from the other side of the shed. "Fuckin' Fourthers are all the same. Don't know shit about shit so they make shit up." Lyssa punctuated her disgust by spitting into the dirt.

* * *

Under armed guard and with their legs shackled, the prisoners were allowed, one at a time, to go to the camp shower tent to bathe. When they came to get Erin, she wasn't about to get undressed in front of the leering pirates. She just poured a basin of water cleaned herself as best as she could without removing a single article of clothing. By the time she was done, much of her Noémie pilot's uniform was damp, but she felt marginally cleaner. On the way back to the shed, she was stopped by Brother Azariah. Great, she thought. The very last thing I want today is to deal with this idiot.

"Sirs," Brother Azariah said to the two pirates escorting Erin back to the makeshift jail, "would you allow me to have a word with miss?"

"Whatever, bro. Just stay close where we can see you."

"Thank you, good sirs."

Erin contemplated her shackled ankles as Brother Azariah led her out of earshot of the two guards. She wanted to run away from whatever conversation he was about to make her endure, but she doubted she would get far. Maybe she would get shot trying to escape? No, that was probably too much to hope for. Besides, the pirates would hurt Lyssa if she did. Even mad as she was at her former friend, Erin couldn't bring that kind of cruelty down on her.

"Erin," Brother Azariah finally said when they'd put a little distance between themselves and her guards, "I'm really sorry."

What is this fool talking about? "That's fine, just please leave me alone."

"Please, don't be mad at me. I didn't know it would be as bad as this. I had to do it for the good of the whole town."

This got Erin's interest. "Fine, explain yourself."

"It's...just...when I heard what you and that terrible woman mechanic were planning to do, I couldn't let it happen. If you took all our crop, we wouldn't be able to pay Third Law. I had to tell Father Elijah."