The Price of Freedom

Bethany sat alone in the small room she now shared with Jess.

Two cycles.

It had been two full cycles since he’d brought her there, and she still had no idea what was happening to the other women. She’d asked, of course. But Jess seemed reluctant to answer. It hardly seemed like a good sign.

For her part, she refused to tell him what had really happened to her father. Even though she had decided to confess to the murder before the revolt, she found herself strangely reluctant to take responsibility now. She was even less inclined to tell him the truth about Moriah. She had no idea what the future held for the woman; regardless, a charge of murder wouldn’t help. She knew how quickly the women could turn on their own. Jess had refused to let her return to the barracks because he was afraid that the women there might hurt her if they got the chance. They were convinced that she had had a part in the revolt. As much as she hated to admit it, it was probably a wise choice. The hatred in their eyes had been undeniable.

Of course, she wasn’t completely alone. Jess spent every night with her. He spent time with her during the day, too. At least he did when he could. He and his fellow former slaves seemed to be extremely busy. Jess was tight-lipped about that, too. In fact, he hardly spoke to her at all. What he did do was touch her body again and again. There was something about him that seemed to take away her will. Time and again she promised herself she wouldn’t consent to sex with him unless he gave her some answers, but as soon as he entered their room, she lost all thought of denying him. It would be denying herself, too.

It wasn’t until the end of her second cycle in the room that she got her first glimpse of what the future might hold for her. There was a knock at the door, so she scrambled to her feet, calling out, "Jess?"

"It’s Moriah. Will you let me in?"

Bethany unlocked her side of the door immediately. She could hear Moriah working the other lock from the other side at the same time. What must her friend think of all this? she wondered.

The door opened, and Moriah stepped in. It took all Bethany had not to burst into tears at the sight of her. She hadn’t realized how alone and isolated she’d felt until that moment. They flew into each other’s arms, only to jump apart when a man cleared his throat uncomfortably.

"I’ll leave you two alone for a while," he said. "I’ll be back in an hour or so."

"That sounds good," Moriah said, blushing. "I don’t want to be away from the baby too long."

"What’s been happening?" Bethany asked as soon as he was gone. "Who is he? Has he hurt you?"

"I don’t even know where to begin," Moriah said softly, shaking her head. "Everything has changed. I can’t even understand what’s happening, and we’re all having to make decisions."

"Decisions?"

Moriah gave a strange laugh, and shook her head again.

"Well, the station is destroyed, I think you already know that," she said. "The mining complex and greenhouse are intact, but the rest of it won’t ever be livable again. The men are dead and now we had to figure out what to do with our lives."

Bethany stared at her blankly.

"I don’t understand," she said finally. "Jess hasn’t discussed this with me."

"I thought he might not have," Moriah replied softly. "He just whisked you away and we didn’t know if you were even alive. They think you were in on the plot, that you betrayed us. Or at least, some of them do…" she added, voice trailing off. Moriah looked away from Bethany quickly.

"What about you?" Bethany asked tightly. "Do you think that?"

"I think that we would be dead by now if the elders had discovered your father’s body," Moriah said softly. "And I think that my daughter and I have more hope for our future than we’ve ever had before.

You did what you had to do."

"I didn’t betray you," Bethany said tightly. "I didn’t know about the escape. They used me, but I wasn’t part of it. I wouldn’t have done that."

"Not even after the way you’ve been treated?" Moriah asked softly.

"No," Bethany said. "Not even then."

An awkward silence fell between the two women. Finally, Moriah spoke.

"They’re giving us a choice," she said. "The slaves are planning to leave, and they’re going to send us away from here. They said that if they leave us here we’ll die. We have to decide what we want to do."

"Have they hurt you?" Bethany asked again. "Have they, well, you know…?"

"No, nothing like that," Moriah said quickly. "Some of them have wanted to, but Logan won’t let them.

Not all of them are like that, Bethany. Some of them are actually quite nice."

"Have any of them been ‘nice’ to you?" Bethany asked. Moriah looked away.

"I see," Bethany said quietly. "Was that him, the man who brought you?"

"His name is Kresn," she replied softly. "And he hasn’t tried to force me to do anything. But he has convinced me I have a choice about how I want to live. You see," she continued earnestly, "there are going to be four ships leaving here. One of them will take women and children to Karos, to the Temple.

The Pilgrims there will help them. The slaves are even sending a load of ore with them to help pay for their expenses when they arrive."

"That seems awfully generous," Bethany said, confused. "Are you sure it isn’t a trick?"

"What do they have to gain by tricking us?" Moriah said with a harsh laugh. "Our lives are already in their hands. We don’t have any choice but to cooperate with them. They don’t have to treat us this kindly."

"Maybe they want you to like them," Bethany replied. "Maybe this kindness is just a way to convince you to have sex with them."

"It’s possible," Moriah said softly. "But I can tell you that in the last month I’ve been forced to have sex more than once by a ‘decent’ Pilgrim man. I like Kresn’s approach better. So what if he’s being nice to me so I’ll sleep with him? It’s better than being blackmailed."

"So you are sleeping with him?" Bethany asked.

"No," Moriah replied. A strange look came over her face, and she hesitated before continuing. "No, I’m not. He wants me to, but I don’t think I’m ready for that. He hasn’t tried to make me do anything I don’t want to do. He’s not like some of the others."

"Give him time," Bethany said darkly. "You can’t trust men."

"I think I might give him some time," Moriah said, her face wistful. "We don’t have to go to Karos. Some of us have decided we don’t want to be Pilgrims any more."