Way of No Return (Champions of the Crystal Book 8)

Chapter 10: Contact

"Any word?" Sabrina asked as Stecklan entered the house.

"No. Just that idiot misusing the emergency frequency to look for his sister," Stecklan grumbled, sitting at the table and setting his datapad down. "I got some new pictures of Dansestari though."

"Too depressing," Sabrina sighed.

Kendara said, "Still the same idiot? Really? I'd've thought they would have caught him by now and shut him up. What kind of name is Bart anyway?"

Sabrina's head jerked up. "What did you say?"

"Bart," Kendara said, puzzled. "Why? Do you know it?"

"Last name?" Sabrina demanded, setting down her knife and the vegetable she'd been chopping.

"I don't remember," Kendara admitted, looking at Stecklan, who shook his head.

"Simpson? Was it Simpson?"

"Maybe. I think it started with an S," Stecklan said. "Do you know him?"

"It's from an Earth vid. It's Scotty!" Sabrina said, pressing a hand against her mouth to hold in a sob of joy.

Stecklan frowned. "It wasn't his voice. I'd know that."

"Of course not," Sabrina said. "I said his name over the com before we left, remember? He won't be able to use it safely in case they identify his voice. I need the message. Word for word, the whole thing."

Stecklan grabbed his pad and began searching. "I must have erased it. I'll go get it again from the datalink."

"Hurry!" Sabrina urged, her hands balling into fists in frustration.

Stecklan left at a run, and Kendara squeezed Sabrina's shoulder comfortingly. "At least we know he is alive," she said.

"Yes. And on an official channel, so he's probably not freelancing," Sabrina said. "He might even be with Baldaran. This could be what we've been waiting for. If he's looking for his sister, it means he's trying to get in touch with me. He wouldn't do that without a good reason."

"You're sure he's not just trying to confirm you're alive?" Kendara asked.

"Yes," Sabrina said. "He knows responding to any message could betray my location if we're not careful. He'd never do that unless it was worth the risk." She got up and began to pace, rubbing at her belly as the baby kicked.

"I'll go tell the others," Kendara volunteered, anxious for something to do. "Don't leave the house."

"I know," Sabrina complained as her bodyguard left.

A few minutes later, there was a knock at the door, too soft and tentative to be any of their makeshift family. Sabrina hesitated, then opened it, making sure her darkened hair fell across part of her face. "Yes?"

A little girl with a large basket stood there, looking uncertain. "These are old enough to leave their mother. Ma said you should take first pick 'cause of the baby. Do you want one?"

Sabrina reached into the basket and stroked one of the tiny kittens. It was hard to tell how many there were, since they were all tangled up in an adorable furry heap. "They're beautiful! How much do you want for one?"

"Ma said you need one 'cause of the baby and not to charge you," the girl said.

"Your Ma is very kind," Sabrina said. "Do you have a favorite? I wouldn't want to take the one you liked best."

"I get to keep him, so he's back at the house," the girl said, smiling for the first time. "But the white one's very nice. She's playful but snuggly."

"Then I'll take that one. Thank your Ma, please, and thank you very much for coming up all this way. Are you selling the others?"