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“BAKING BREAD IS YOUR big plan?” Boy tossed a glass jar over the side of Independence. It must have hit its mark because the sound of a loud hollow thump was immediately followed by an equally loud string of profanities.
Rat waited until he could be heard above the swearing before saying, “I think it’s a great plan. I heard one of them say they hadn’t eaten in three days. I bet anything that they’d be willing to trade the women for some food.”
Rat, Molly and Boy peered over the side of the airship, out toward the four women who were still huddled together near the water’s edge. The poor ladies looked miserable, all but one seeming too defeated even to try to escape.
Rat was in mid-turn when she looked up and smiled. Too surprised to do anything else, he smiled back. A wave of relief washed over him. That smile, he reckoned, upped the odds of his crazy scheme working. It told him that at least one of them still had some gumption left. They were going to need as much as they could get, and maybe even a few lucky breaks thrown in for good measure, if he was to stand any chance of saving them.
Energized, Rat told Molly, “Go into the galley and whip us up a few loaves of bread. For the first time in history, we’re going to win a war using wheat instead of bullets.”
Boy backed away from the railing. “I’ll go and gather some more glass jars.”
“You don’t think this is going to work, do you?” and Rat followed Boy to the hatch.
The robot turned to face him. “I think you’ll die trying, which is noble but in the end futile; you’ll still be dead and I will have failed.”
Rat placed a hand on top of Boy’s head. “Why do you think my death will mean you’ve failed?”
“Because I came on this trip to keep you safe. If I can’t do that, then I will have failed you and I will have failed Harmony. She loves you like a brother, so that makes you part of the family—my family. I live to make certain nothing bad ever happens to my family. That’s why I exist.”
Rat swallowed past a lump. “Then I won’t die.”
“Damn straight.” Boy opened the hatch and headed down into the belly of the airship.
Since Molly was busy in the galley and Boy was gathering ammunition, Rat went to the helm and checked the water level and air pressure. He wanted to get Independence in the air and out of the valley as soon as he had the four women safely aboard.
When he saw that everything was running smoothly, Rat headed down to check on the hidden hatch in the hull, to make certain that it couldn’t be used if someone happened to find it.
He ran into Boy coming up the stairs.
“You came to help?”
Rat slipped pass him and called over his shoulder, “Don’t sound so surprised. I’m going to check the outer hatch first, though. I’ll grab some jars on my way back up.”
He stopped halfway down and turned. “Maybe I’ll look around first and see if we have something with a little more weight than those jars. Didn’t Griffin store some plow heads in the stern section? I bet those would create a bruise or two.”
Rat stopped and looked astern when a loud banging rang through the hull. He waved at Boy to head on up. “Go and lift Independence out of reach. I don’t know why I didn’t think of it earlier.”
“We should just leave. These men will never settle for a couple of loaves of bread in exchange for those women. I know you want to help them but we’re sorely undermanned to accomplish such a thing.”
“Just trust me. I understand these types of people.”
“And what kind of people are they?”
Rat leaned on the stairway railing and looked down at the bins of grain and jars. It was never easy going back to his childhood, but he had to admit it had made him who he was. It had also taught him a thing or two about how far some people will go to win. Fortunately, it had also taught him how to outsmart the bullies and the cruelest of men.
The he looked up the stairs at the one individual he now tried to emulate. “They rely on brute strength and threats to get what they want. So we’ll use our brains while not forgetting our compassion.”
Boy nodded. “You’re a good man, Rat, but one day that driving need you have to be a better man than your father is going to get you killed—or worse.”
“Or worse?”
Boy carried on to the top of the stairs, his words floating down to Rat as the robot disappeared from sight. “There’s always worse.”