Critical Path (The Critical Series Book2) (17 page)

Aimee said, “If you want them so much, I will allow you to fight for them in the arena. You versus Charlie or Baliska.”

If she had any noble blood, she would fight him in the arena. Her suggestion proved her low breeding.

Augustus snapped his fingers and pointed at Charlie. “Take him back to the ludus. He’s my property, and I claim him back.”

His two guards moved forward, either side of Augustus, their sickles raised.

“This is your final warning,” Aimee said. “How dare you come in here with armed men and threaten my authority, especially after your little stunt earlier.”

“You threaten authority by dismissing tradition and respect. Do the right thing and make me an offer for your new ally. Until then, he remains under my control.”

Both Jacksons picked up pieces of cutlery from the table and hunched in anticipation. Baliska reached for his thigh.

“Grab him,” Augustus said.

His men slowly approached Charlie.

“Baliska, now,” Aimee said.

Baliska drew his sword from his thigh and leapt forward, raising the blade. Augustus fumbled under his robe for his dagger while backing away.

Doctore lifted his sickle to meet the blow. The weapons clanked against each other. Baliska reacted first, taking another quick swing before Augustus’ man could raise his weapon. The sword buried deep into the side of his neck and he fell sideways.

Doctore briefly gurgled and twitched while a dark red pool quickly formed around his top half.

One of the ludus guards staggered back and looked at Augustus with a blood-freckled face and fear in his eyes. “What now?”

Baliska advanced.

Augustus pushed the guard forward and fell back. His heel caught the bottom of his own robe and he lost his balance. He gasped for air after his back slammed against the stone surface.

The dagger slipped from his hand and skidded away.

The guard cowered behind his sickle as Baliska hacked at his leg. He screamed, dropped his weapon, and crumpled to the floor, clutching his calf. The alien strode over to him, held up its sword with both hands, and thrust it down into his chest, killing him instantly.

“Enough,” Aimee shouted. Baliska returned to his position behind her.

Augustus scrambled to his feet and repositioned his mask. He edged in the direction of the entrance. “I never meant for this to happen. The weapons were just for show. I gave my men strict orders not to use their weapons. This wasn’t my fault.”

“Baliska, take Augustus to the courtyard cells,” Aimee said. “I’m sick of hearing his bullshit.”

Augustus stood up straight. No matter what happened, he vowed to keep his dignity. “There’s no need for this. Think of what I’ve done for Unity. I protected it. I’ve provided entertainment. What has Charlie Jackson ever done?”

Aimee encouraged Baliska forward with a casual wave of her hand. “He’s going to do more than you ever could. You’ll appear in the arena tomorrow against three croatoan harvester drivers. They came in fresh today.”

The alien bounded over and grabbed Augustus by the shoulder. He briefly struggled against the revolting beast until a glove clamped around his other shoulder, holding him firmly in a vice-like grip.

“If you aimed to humiliate me, it’s worked,” Augustus said, still hoping he could talk his way out of it. “Can we put an end to this silliness?”

“Do you mind if I walk with them to the cells?” Charlie said. “I’ve got a bit of unfinished business with him.”

“Be my guest,” Aimee said.

Baliska ripped Augustus off his feet and dragged him out of the room. He couldn’t believe how they treated him. The oldest surviving member of the human race, a former emperor, no less!

If he got out of this in one piece, Aimee, the Jacksons and Baliska would end up in several pieces and tossed into the garbage dump behind his ludus.

As his feet scraped along the stone, one of his sandals fell off.

Charlie, strutting close behind, picked it up and smiled down at him. “What was it you said? Did you really think you’d get the better of me?”

Augustus attempted to spit through the mouth hole in his mask. “They’ll see you for exactly what you are, and I’ll be waiting. Birds will peck out—”

Aimee and Denver left her chamber and followed along the corridor.

Baliska dragged him into the courtyard.

The croatoans on the rampart looked down and clicked with excitement. A man opened a door to one of Aimee’s cells. Baliska shoved Augustus toward it.

“Wait,” Charlie said. “Put him on his knees.”

The creature forced him down. He winced after his knees buckled and slammed against the cobbles. Charlie approached in front of him and held out his sandal. “Here’s your sandal back.”

For a terrible moment, Augustus thought the bastard would inflict the humiliation on him that he carried out during their first meeting in Unity. He slipped the sandal around his foot, nodded and said through gritted teeth, “Thank you, I suppose.”

“I haven’t finished yet,” Charlie said. He dropped to one knee and started unlacing his boot.

Augustus looked at Aimee. “You can’t let him do this. You can’t.”

She raised an eyebrow and flapped a paper fan in front of her face.

Charlie took off his boot. A gut-wrenching odor attacked Augustus’ nostrils, like sickly sweet garbage, coming from the fetid sock. He tried to recoil away, but Baliska wedged his body against his back.

Charlie stood and turned to Aimee. “May I?”

“Be my guest,” she said.

He grinned and raised his boot. “Hold him steady.”

“Please, you can’t do this to me. I—”

Jackson swiped his boot across Augustus’ jaw. A bolt of pain spread across his face, but more worryingly, his mask split down the middle. He could no longer see as the eyepieces dropped to either side.

Charlie ripped the mask away and inspected it. His bastard son stood behind him, watching with indifference. Charlie threw it against the cobbles and stamped his other boot on it, smashing it to pieces.

Augustus lowered his head. A tear of anger and frustration hung from his eye and dropped to the cobblestone ground. The humiliation was complete. He let out a deep breath. “Take me to the cell. I’ve had enough.”

“Raise your head,” Aimee said.

Augustus groaned. “Don’t you think I’ve had enough degradation for one day? You can have more fun watching me in the arena tomorrow.”

Aimee lifted his chin with two fingers. “I give every citizen of Unity a second chance. You still might have your uses yet.”

“I can’t believe you’re—” Charlie started to say.

Aimee raised her hand, stopping him in his tracks. “You play by my rules. You’ll be under house arrest at your ludus for the foreseeable future until I decide what role you’re to play—if any. In the meantime, one more screw-up, one bad report, anything, and I’ll have you executed. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” Augustus said, feeling relief wash over him. “I’m sorry for any misunderstanding.”

“Have the guards escort him to his ludus,” she said to Baliska.

The extraterrestrial oaf released his grip.

Augustus rolled his shoulders and went to cover his face with his hands, but stopped. He didn’t want to show any signs of weakness, now he had another chance. He defiantly gazed around the courtyard. Nobody reacted.

“Take Charlie and Denver to Augustus’ cabin on the third step. That’s their new home. I want a permanent watch on their door,” Aimee said to a guard.

“We don’t need one,” Charlie Jackson said.

“It’s not just for your benefit. I need to know if you run. There’s too much at stake.”

“We don’t run,” the bastard son said.

“Be ready for our meeting tomorrow,” Aimee said. “We’ve a lot to go through.”

The main gate swung open and the Jacksons left with the guard. Jackson senior glanced back at Augustus as he walked away. His time would come.

Taking his cabin just rubbed salt into his wounds. Charlie Jackson sleeping in his bed, eating his supplies. “I’d put two guards outside. You can’t trust them.”

Aimee spun to face him. “I didn’t ask for your opinion. Your new home is the ludus, and you’re lucky I’m even giving you that. Get out of my sight.”

She flounced away like a peacock. Baliska followed without question, transformed from hunter to pathetic lapdog in the space of a day.

Augustus wondered about the meeting tomorrow. He needed to know exactly what the Jacksons and Aimee were planning.

Once he knew, he could act accordingly.

For the moment, he had a house arrest to circumvent.

CHAPTER TWENTY

Gregor scowled at the two croatoan and three human guards who had led him, Layla, Khan and Maria through the town to an open square in front of what he assumed was the head honcho’s residence.

The shackles on his wrist and ankles bit into his skin.

Ignoring the moans of the others, he squinted in the afternoon light and noticed a scuffle outside the large building in front of him.

“What’s going on?” Gregor said to a female human guard by his side.

“Unity business,” she said. “That’s Aimee. She runs the place. I’m sure she’ll be here to deal with you lot shortly.”

“And what’s that mean?” Layla said, shuffling forward until a grizzled-looking croatoan stepped in her way and placed his hand on her shoulder to prevent her from leaving the group.

Gregor thought about trying to escape, but the guards had them surrounded and had taken their weapons.

They’d even taken his concealed combat knife.

No real option now but to just wait for an opportunity. In the meantime, he scanned the community, noting how it seemed to have gone back to medieval times.

Within the twisting and turning run of brick and stone dwellings, he saw blacksmiths, carpenters, and even a seamstress making and adapting clothes for human and alien alike.

Farmers tilled the steps surrounding the place, gathering root as well as more familiar vegetables. They even had their own farm—with actual cows and sheep as opposed to human cattle.

He had to give them at least some credit for coexisting like this and making a new life for themselves away from the croatoans’ influence on the root farms to the south.

Still, the thought of working and living with the aliens in such a collaborative way made his skin crawl. Although not as much as the sight of Augustus.

At first he couldn’t believe it was him.

Up the steps and out the front of the building, he saw him led away by a couple of guards. He was holding his deformed face as if he had been struck.

They caught each other’s gaze. Augustus pointed to Gregor and said something to the other group of people just out of Gregor’s view.

“They’re coming now,” a guard said.

“Who?” Layla asked.

“Aimee. She’ll deal with this situation.”

“What the hell is he doing here?” Gregor asked, lifting both of his arms and pointing his shackled hands toward Augustus.

“He’s a council member,” the woman guard said.

Gregor couldn’t believe it. He must have only been in this place for a few weeks, having been in one of the escape pods, and already he was involved in running the damn place.

Although given the look on his mangled face, it seemed there was some difference of opinion going on.

Despite that, a woman, backed up by a large croatoan who looked familiar, joined Augustus and came down the steps to stand in front of the group.

She certainly had a noble, or perhaps royal, air to her with the way she stood with her head up and shoulders back.

Augustus still looked like a self-important prick as always, although without his mask his usual air of authority was somewhat diminished.

Sneering, Augustus addressed Gregor first. “I should have known you’d come sniffing around at some point. You always were a little rat.”

Gregor spat at his feet. “At least I don’t look like I’ve been chewed by one.” Turning to Aimee, he added, “You do know who and what this freak is, right? You should have had him killed when your force butchered the other aliens.”

Augustus just smiled and ignored the taunt, turning his attentions to Layla. “Nice to see you survived, Layla. We could use someone with your skills here.”

“Go to hell,” Layla retorted.

“Please,” Aimee said, holding her hands up, “there’s no need for hostility here.”

“Then why treat us like prisoners,” Maria added as Khan just looked on with his passive but focused expression.

“You’re not prisoners,” Aimee said. “But we had to take careful measures. We guard our safety and privacy here at Unity greatly. Which brings me to today’s business.”

“Before you start,” Layla said, “I want to know if you found anyone else, a young man, tall—”

“Don’t worry,” Augustus said, cutting her off. “Your precious Denver—and Charlie—are quite safe, though perhaps not for much longer.”

“Enough,” Aimee said. The huge familiar alien stepped closer to Augustus, cutting him off and making him shrink away with a leery eye on his guard.

Then it came to Gregor. He remembered where he had seen the alien before. “You’re the freak that attacked us in the town hall,” he said, pointing to the alien. “We thought you were dead. Charlie said he’d killed you.”

“His name is Baliska,” Augustus said. “And no, clearly, your little hero Charlie failed, just as he failed killing me.”

“Yeah, shame that,” Gregor said.

“Okay,” Aimee said, raising her voice. “Enough. Here’s the deal. You’re welcome to stay, but if so, you need to work. If you leave and we find you snooping around again, the penalty will be death.”

“You can’t trust him,” Augustus said, indicating Gregor. “He and this group were the ones who helped Charlie Jackson to do what he did. You can’t just let them go. I won’t allow it.”

“Oh, won’t you?” Aimee said with a laugh. “You’re under arrest, or did you forget that already?”

Augustus ignored her and said, “Execution. Snuff out the threat now.”

Aimee seemed to think on this idea for a moment. “Get on your knees and swear allegiance to Unity and you’ll be able to make the choice of working with us or leaving and never coming back,” she said to the group.