Islands of Hope

Chapter 52

Imka breathed in slowly, her entire body shaking. She was unsure how long she could keep this up. They just seemed to move from one battle to another; no break, no time to muster any strength. Imka looked back at Solomon. Yeah, he was hurt, but at least he could rest, at least he did not have the threat of immediate death hanging over him. She tried to hold in the scowl, but it took over her face. She hated him, but something tied them together, something made her do his bidding. At least she would be free if she did not make it through this. Bullets spraying in every direction, hitting every surface, brought her back to the battle. An explosion. A scream. Someone plummeting from the roof. Imka looked to her right. Part of the roof wall had disappeared, whoever had been there now laying in the rubble on the street below. Some Princips soldiers had rotated their barrels, moving to explosive shots. Enough of the defenders were dead to allow Princips larger numbers to contain two attacks; one set of covering fire, and those aiming more carefully to take out chunks of the defensive wall.

Imka waited, it was only a matter of time. She stared at Solomon, blessed she would be free of him, but too scared to die. Yet, as the seconds ticked away, no second explosion came.

Imka looked down the wall. The others stood, staring into the street, guns pointed at the same spot. Imka peeked over the wall. A Princips soldier stood in the open, hands raised, gun flung to the floor. He shouted something, but Imka's ears still rang and, over the distance, she could not make out what he said. It looked, however, like he was surrendering. Imka joined the others in standing, watching the soldier's lips move, but unable to read them. Her own team smiled and nodded, something was happening, had they won the fight? Were Princips giving up and handing the slum over to them?

From behind the soldier appeared a group of his friends, guns still in hands. Imka would not stand by and let Princips spring a trap. She pushed all her energy into her arms, raising the rifle once more. The shot flew across the gap, hitting the surrenderer in the midriff and knocking him to the floor. All eyes turned to Imka. The atmosphere changed, like a lighting strike on a sunny day, like the earth suddenly shook on a lazy Sunday afternoon, like someone powerful walking into a room where a secret was being discussed. That one action, that one discovery, that feels like it can change the course of history. Imka realised too late she had not sprung a trap, that the battle had indeed ended. But now she lay on her back, pain in her stomach and chest. The heat of the bullets pulling her from this world. As everything went hazy, she saw Solomon's beaten face appear above her. The concern etched in lines of blood was all she needed to know that her life had not been in vain. Yes, in many ways she was his slave, but under the tough exterior he cared for her, and that was enough. She smiled, and the world turned black.

~

Kira trudged forward, bottom lip quivering, tears held in by her screwed-up face. She followed Eliana as if she was her mother, dragging the teenager out on an afternoon shopping trip. Sadness turned to disgust as they walked back to the crossroads, to the site of their last fracas. The bodies of Princips soldiers now held more meaning; not only had Eliana taken out rebellion fighters, she allowed her own people to be killed as well.

"Hurry up," Eliana said, "we need to get out of here before any bombing runs start."

"How could you?"

"We're not still talking about that, are we?"

"What about these guys, your own people? You watched them die."

A wry smile played across Eliana's face, "sometimes sacrifices need to be made during war."

"It would have been better if it was you."

"Then shoot me, you could have killed me at any point."

"I'm not like you."

"I think you are, if you had to kill those people you didn't need, then you would. But you need me, I am the pathway to your mother."