I roar with anger. The red hot kicks in an I’m back in the ght, ful strength. I throw Epona o a me. I git her on the ground in a leg an arm twist. She moans. I twist harder. Then even harder.
Quit! she yel s. Quit!
Epona’s first loss. She glares hate at me as they take her from the Cage.
I look at the front row. The girl an her friends is gone.
Damn her. She nearly made me lose my fight.
I’m in my transport cage on the back of the mulecart, bein driven back through Hopetown to the cel block. Two armed guards sit up front an, like always, crowds surround the cart. Everyone wants to see the Angel of Death close up. The brave ones reach in through the bars an try to touch me so’s they can brag to their friends later. I snap my teeth at ’em an they shrink away, shriekin with excitement.
The warrior girl pushes through til she’s close beside the cage. She’s about my height. She’s got golden skin with tiny freckles sprinkled al over. She’s huddled inside her cloak, but I can see she’s got curly hair the color of dark copper an eyes green as forest moss. She’s the most beautiful girl I ever seen.
You nearly made me lose that fight, I says.
I’m sorry you didn’t, she says. That’s my girl you beat.
Epona? I says. Whaddya mean, yer girl? Who are you?
I’m Maev, she says, walkin alongside. We’re the Free Hawks.
I look closer at who’s walkin beside the cart. Three tough-lookin girls, the ones who was sit in beside her in the Colosseum.
Look around, says Maev.
I scan the crowd through the bars of my cage. Another girl in a robe. She moves it slightly so I can see the crossbow at her side. So they’re smart enough to smuggle weapons past the Gate guards of Hopetown. As I look over the crowd, another girl nods at me.
So Epona’s a Free Hawk too, I says.
She is, says Maev. An we’re gonna git her out a here.
My heart skips a beat. How? I says.
I’m workin on it, she says. Security’s pret y tight here. But in the meantime, I’d appreciate it if you didn’t git my fighter kil ed.
The Free Hawks is fighters, I says.
The Free Hawks is fighters, I says.
Warriors, she says, like you. An occasional highway robbers.
An you don’t want Epona to lose, I says.
That’s right, she says.
Wel I don’t wanna lose eether, I says. Losers go down to the gauntlet.
That’s true, says Maev.
Maybe we can help each other, I says.
My thoughts ezzackly, she says.
Our eyes meet. How do I know I can trust you? I says.
She gives the nod to two girls standin next to one of the armed street guards. They move in on him. Suddenly a surprised look crosses his face. He starts to slump to the ground. They catch him an drag him back into a dark doorway. They step out agin an disappear into the crowd.
You bet er not try that too often, I says. Where’re you stayin?
We’re holed up in the northeast sector, she says. There’s a empty shanty in a place cal ed Spanish Al ey.
I’l git word to you, I says. I’l send my sister. Her name’s Emmi.
I’l be waitin, she says.
Then she’s gone.
I ain’t seen Emmi fer a good few days now. Not since Helen told me about Lugh. Not since I spoke to Maev.
Every mornin, when the water carriers show up jest before dawn, I peer through the gloom of the cel block to see if she’s with ’em. I started to ask one of ’em, a skinny lit le boy with scared eyes, if he’d seen her, but he ran of the moment I opened my mouth to talk.
I’m startin to git worried. I need to see her. Make sure she’s al right. An I need to talk to her about Lugh. About Maev an the Free Hawks.
About my plan.
The cel block door opens. The weak light of dawn trickles in. The guards light the wal torches as the water carriers shu e in an start emptyin their buckets into the troughs.
This time Emmi’s with ’em. I let out my breath in relief as she makes her way over to my cel , carryin her heavy bucket careful y so’s it don’t slop too much.
Nobody’s lookin our way. I go over to the trough, kneel down an start scoopin up water, splashin it over my face, neck an hands while she pours it out slowly from her bucket.
Where you bin al this time? I was git in worried, I says.
I couldn’t git away, says Emmi. Miz Pinch had bad toothache the past few days. She warn’t sleepin like usual. It’s back to normal now.
Are y’al right?
I’m fine. You look awful.
I ain’t bin sleepin much eether, I says. Listen, Em, I found out where they took Lugh. It’s a place cal ed Freedom Fields. An I met somebody who’s gonna help us git out a here.
Her eyes widen. Real y? Who?
Her name’s Maev, I says. I’m gonna need you to git a message to her.
Okay, she says. Where do I find her?
She’s stayin in a empty shanty in Spanish Al ey, I says. Northeast sector. D’you know it?
Yeah, I think so, she says.
Good, I says. Al right, here’s what you need to—
Hey! Hey you! Girl! A guard’s lookin our way, frownin.
I bet er go, says Emmi.
Come back tomorrow fer the message, I says, it’s important.
I’l be here. Oh! she says. I nearly fergot!
She pul s somethin out a her pocket an hands it to me. A smooth pink stone. My heartstone that Miz Pinch stole from me.
She flashes me a big grin. I took it when she warn’t lookin, she says.
Thanks, Em, I says. I shove it down inside my vest, next to my heart.
Girl! What’s takin so long over there? The guard starts to head over to us.
See you tomorrow, Saba. Emmi picks up her bucket, ducks her head down an scut les past the guard an out a the door.
The cel block guards lead me, chained at wrist an ankle, into the female ghters’ exercise yard. Everybody’s here, they always are fer the evenin session.
I need to speak to Epona. Tel her about my plan. I take a quick look around. There she is, with a group of girls.
The Angel of Death don’t talk to nobody. That’s how I like it. So I cain’t jest walk over to her, it ’ud draw too much at ention. I’l hafta be careful about how I do this.
She looks my way an I catch her eye. Jerk my head a lit le bit, to tel her to come over, I wanna talk. Her eyes widen, but she gives me a nod. She’s smart. She’l wait fer the right moment.
I stand while the guards unchain me so’s I can move about. The male ghters is in the exercise yard next to ours. Now they start up like they always do when they see me. They come crowdin up to the chainlink fence, makin kissin noises an cal in out, Help! It’s the Angel of Death! Save me!
I used to glare at ’em, but it set ’em of even more. Now I jest ignore ’em.
There’s one, though, who don’t come to the fence. He leans in the corner of the men’s yard, one leg crossed over th’other, cleanin his fingernails with a bit of twig like he ain’t got a care in the world.
I ain’t seen him before. He ain’t bat ered up like the rest of ’em, so he must be new. He ain’t even had his head shaved yet.
Jest then, like he feels me watchin him, he stops what he’s doin. He lifts his head. Our eyes meet. He tosses the twig away, saunters up to
Jest then, like he feels me watchin him, he stops what he’s doin. He lifts his head. Our eyes meet. He tosses the twig away, saunters up to the fence an hooks his hands into the chainlink.