New Release: LISTEN CAREFULLY. Young Defenders Book 2: Tress's Story

 

Tress decided she would ask E'bett. As the five of them stepped out of the tunnel of vines, she opened her mouth and planned what she wanted to say. Then she heard a low, growling voice, coming from the far side of the open area.

"Stupid Nanny Ship. What idiot decided it was okay to send families into space? Waste of a good ship. Waste of training. What good does a ship do if it can't go into a tricky situation, because it has stupid little useless helpless kids on board?"

Tress stumbled, startled by how angry that voice sounded. She looked around, trying to find that person. It was odd, but she couldn't tell if the voice was a man or a woman. It was just angry. It put a bad smell in the air. Like something was burning. And a little rotten.

"Look at them. Nasty little snots. Arrogant little spoiled brats," the voice continued. "Think they're better than everybody else because their mommy and daddy are officers. Somebody ought to --"

Footsteps coming from the pathway behind them echoed a little and the angry speaker stopped. Tress shivered and moved closer to E'bett. She didn't want to get close to that angry person. She hoped the angry speaker didn't see them, but she had the awful feeling the spoiled brats that person talked about were her and her friends.

"Found them. Should I take them now?" One of the O'goali men stepped out of the shadows of the vine tunnel and a slow smile stretched his mouth as he looked at E'bett and the four girls.

Tress looked past him, but nobody else stepped out of the shadows. Who was he talking to?

"You're a teacher, aren't you?" the man said.

That was odd -- his was the angry voice she had heard, yet somehow it had changed. It sounded flat and a few notes lower now. It had echoed a little before.

"Yes. I am the mestra assigned to the Defender," E'bett said. She twitched both hands, using the signal M'kar had taught the children for when they were off the ship on expeditions. It meant to gather together and get behind their leader. "Are you looking for information?" 

She glanced once over each shoulder, making eye contact with the girls as they lined up, two-by-two, behind her. Tress and Dafna held hands.