Kayla
"Kepr," my owner says when he walks through the door.
Finally, a real chance to stretch my legs and hopefully see Lugh. I run down hallways, but when we go through the pet park gate, Tarak does not unclip my leash and he keeps me at his side. Is this his way of him telling me that he is upset with me for getting injured?
Tarak sits down at a bench near Lugh and his owner, Andromeda, only now taking off my ball gag and unclipping my leash.
Lugh scuttles close to me. "What happened?" He cocks his head and gazes at my arm. He curls his hands into fists. "Did your scourge–"
"No, Tarak would never hurt me..." I start to tell Lugh everything, from how many of the supplies on the Hydra have numbers that can be tracked, the programs I wrote, and how I had to get medical supply boxes.
He leans closer. "Did it work?"
I gaze at his owner, Andromeda. Her eyes are on my lips. The back of my neck prickles and I can't shake the feeling she is eavesdropping or might overhear us.
I've been burning to share what I've discovered. "Come on," I say, crawling underneath a nearby bench. Lugh crawls underneath to join me.
I love our secret hideaway underneath the bench. Not only are we hidden away from prying eyes, but at the front and the back of this spot underneath the bench are metal grates, which means that even if they wanted, scourges would have a tough time getting at us, not that Tarak would hurt me.
I grip Lugh's hand, eager to finally share what I've learned. "So far, my program has identified two candidate locations where these unapproved medical procedures might occur, rooms 510 and 2054. I've also set up a program to send out alerts to Tarak when medical products are sent to any rooms not designated for medical purposes, but so far, he just ignores them. I don't think he understands the significance of them, but maybe with time he will."
"Can you send these alerts to Andromeda, too?"
I peer out through the metal grates at Andromeda and still, she stares at where we are.
I cup my hands and whisper into Lugh's ear. "Can your owner be trusted?"
"She's kind to me and I think if she knew that a human pet might be in trouble, she would try to help. Send it to her, please."
We are pets; we need all the help we can get, so...
"Show me how to contact her?"
In the dirt, Lugh writes the symbols for where to send his master messages. I repeatedly trace the symbols, hoping that they'll stay in my mind.
Tarak slams his tail into the floor, making loud thwacks, several times in a row.
I stop tracing the symbols. "Something is going on out there."
We peer out through the grates.
Loviatar sits on a nearby bench, accompanied by his human pets. My attention goes to the woman. A bruise still marks her face and like before, she stays relatively still.
Lugh sticks his hand out through the grates and calls to the humans to join us. Adam is nonresponsive, but the woman slightly turns her head toward us.
"We're human, like you. Join us," I call, extending my outstretched hand.
It starts with her eyes, darting toward our fingers. Then about 15 minutes later, she creeps an inch closer. It might take forever for her to reach us at this rate, but the chain connecting her to the bench is long and we can be patient.
It takes an hour or so and maybe she is an arm-length closer. Then after an even longer wait, she crawls inside our hideaway.
Truly meeting another human does something to me and several emotions flicker through me—sadness that Loviatar made her feel like this, happiness that yet another human is with us, and maybe hope? I also can't hold back. I open my arms. She leans toward me to accept the hug, but I can't help noticing her slight tremble. I am deliberate and careful, patting her on the back. Lugh holds out his hand, which she grips.
"What is your name?" I ask.
She glances through the metal grates in the direction of her owner.
"It's alright, we're safe under here. Plus, there are rules and regulations protecting pets."
Her eyes go wide. "Pets?"
She must have said Thoth to be taken as a pet, so she must have some concept of the word. Maybe she did not fully understand the word when she said it? Had I? She might be traumatized from what she underwent, so I tap my collar and softly repeat the word pet.
"That means scourges are not supposed to hurt us," I say. Something feels wrong to me about making these reassurances. Sure, I've read these rules, but it's obvious by her bruises that her scourge owner isn't following the rules.
"What's your name?" I ask and when she stays silent, I tap my chest. "I'm Kayla."
Lugh thumps his chest. "Lugh."
Her eyes flicker between the two of us and after what feels like minutes, she whispers, "Ava."
I smile at her. "Welcome aboard the Hydra, Av–"
Suddenly, Loviatar's large fingers poke between the grates. Ava shrieks and I hit Loviatar's fingers, as does Lugh. Loviatar roars, but he removes his hands.
I think we are free of Loviatar, except–
She gasps, gripping her collar.
Lugh holds onto her, trying to keep Ava with us. She doesn't move but her face becomes pink, and I knock Lugh's hands away.
"Let her go," I scream.
Loviatar stretches his arm into our hideaway spot and pulls Ava out.
"We need to help her, come on," says Lugh.
I follow. Ava is still gasping and Loviatar holds her chain tight.
Someone needs to help Ava. Andromeda is not on her bench. That leaves Tarak.
"Help her," I yell at Tarak, but he is not going to understand my words. I go to where my owner sits on the bench and push at him, pointing at Ava, hoping my intent is obvious. Get off the bench. Do something.
Tarak just clenches his fists.
Someone needs to do something. Andromeda is not around, and my owner won't help, which means... I gulp. The humans it is, then.
I will make that bully let go of Ava, so I crouch and run straight at the arm of that nasty scourge.
An arm catches me from around the waist, lifting me. It's my owner Tarak and he's yelling at me. I fight to get loose, but he presses my face to the floor. Tarak's knee is on my back, and I can't get up and he's putting that ball gag into my mouth, followed by my leash, and then he lifts me, holding me in his arms like a baby.
He strides away, but when we arrive at the gate, I grip Tarak's neck tightly. I need to know whether Ava is okay.
Tarak firmly grips me and holds me in his arms and turns.
I see Andromeda running toward Ava, accompanied by another scourge, although he is dressed in a way that makes me think of a boy scout or... Would they have rangers here? That scourge yells at Loviatar and other scourges surround him.
It takes a while for the crowd around Loviatar to disperse, but eventually, I nearly cry when I finally see Ava. She no longer looks restrained, and her feet are on the floor. Only then does Tarak turn and carry me out of the park, the gate shutting behind us.
When we get home, Tarak takes me straight into the warm welcoming water of the bath.
I had briefly lost hope in Tarak caring about humans today: why didn't he help when I pointed out Ava's condition? There is no doubt, though, that Tarak cares for me. He suds soap and applies it to my skin. rinses me off, and then... Tarak does it over again, his eyes skittering over every inch of my skin. Something inside me feels warm when I realize that Tarak is obsessed with my well-being. I let him do what he needs to and stay limp in his arms as he washes me yet again. I find myself thinking about how I am lucky that Tarak is my owner. After all, what if I had ended up as the pet of a scourge like Loviatar? I shudder, thinking about those pictures I've seen of Adam, and what might happen to Ava. I'm also reminded that I need to figure this out soon because who knows how long Ava has been with an unpredictable scourge owner.
Tarak takes me straight from the bath to the bed, and he pulls me into a tight embrace. I now recognize this behavior, too. Holding me is important to him.
Tonight, it's different, though, because I cling to him as much as he clings to me. I will never let him go.