CHAPTER EIGHT

IMPRISONED

Urko's eyes widened as he realized that the whip intended for the stubborn female was wrapped around the forearm of an equally stubborn, but distinctly more familiar male. Before he had a chance to react, the handle of the whip left his hand. Burke unwound it from around his wrist, and threw it aside, into the bushes. But by that time, there were already a half-dozen guns trained on him. Running was not an option.

Finally, Chief Urko found his voice. "Well, well..., Burke, what a pleasant surprise."

The human glared back at him, flicking a brief glance toward the sobbing female on the ground. "Yeah, save it, Urko," he shot. "As I recall, we didn't exactly leave each other on speaking terms..."

"Oh, but I'm very happy to see you..." Urko corrected. He gestured to the two of them, and two of the gorillas beside him dismounted. "Arrest them both." He looked to the others in his garrison. "And search this area thoroughly for the other two."

"They aren't here," Pete shot. He knew it was hopeless. It was also instinctive. "We got separated a few days ago."

"You lie," Urko answered. "All humans lie and you especially."

Pete glared at him, his voice measured and dripping ice as he answered. "Can you think of another reason we'd be so damned close to the city after four days?" he pointed out. "We had to find them before we could keep going!"

"Search the area!" Urko ordered again.

Pete clenched his jaw, but remained silent as his arms were twisted painfully behind him. He tried to move with them, to let himself be led, but it didn't really help.

"Let me go!" The girl had recovered from her shock, and was yelling again. A quick look out of the corner of his eye, and Pete saw tears streaming down her face. A thick red welt ran over her shoulder, too close for comfort to her neck. Urko could have seriously injured her if his blow had been a little further to the left. "Let me go or I'll scream!"

The guard pinned her arms back. She screamed. Pete watched silently, face set in stone as one of the guards reached back and brought his fist toward her, full-force at her stomach. She doubled over, immediately silent, and the guard behind her jerked her back up, forcing her to walk in spite of the fact that she couldn't stand upright. Pete didn't comment. Though he wouldn't have done it himself... she seriously deserved that...

He walked behind her, making every attempt to stay on his feet as the guard behind him shoved him forward. He was well aware of the fact that he was in way over his head, but there was precious little he could do about it. They would search the area, and hopefully they would not find Alan and Galen. At any rate, he and the girl were on their way to Central City.

A few thoughts lingered in his mind with that consideration. First, there were the memories of his last trip to Central City, and the torture he had endured. That thought made his stomach churn. Those few days had been a living hell... But also in his mind was the fact that at the end of that torture, he'd ultimately been handed over to Urko. Although he had been too mentally and physically unstable to be fully functional, he'd been vaguely aware of the fact that he was at Urko's mercy when he'd been taken to that medical center. At that point, it hadn't really mattered to him. After so many days, and no hope in sight, he could have cared less if he lived or died. He hadn't fought it. At least, not until he'd heard Galen's voice...

"Now human!"

He glanced over his shoulder as the guard shoved the girl toward him. It was only a few moments later that she was tied beside Pete, with her wrists in front of her. The rope around her hands was attached to a larger one that ran into the hand of a gorilla on a horse. He heard her sob half-heartedly, and felt a very small twinge of sympathy for her.

She dropped to her knees, and Pete's eyes went wide. He knew full well that they wouldn't hesitate to drag her behind the horse. If she died in the process... well, that would be sad. He glanced at the gorilla holding the leash, and then briefly at Urko before reaching down, grabbing her arm, and yanking her back to her feet. It took a lot more coordination than usual since his hands were bound at the wrist. "Get up!" he hissed at her.

She sobbed, and wobbled a bit, unsteady on her feet. "Look at me!" he whispered harshly.

She looked up, eyes clouded with tears. He could read the hurt and confusion and pain written all over her face, and his sympathy grew. It was instinctive; he couldn't help it. "Look, if you fall, they will drag you," he warned her. "If Urko can find a way to make it look like an accident, he'd be more than happy to have you dead. So don't fall. Do you understand me?"

She nodded, wide, terrified eyes still blinking back tears. "Move out!" Pete looked away from her as the command was given, knowing that she was on her own now. There was absolutely nothing he could do for her if she did fall. At this point, her life was dependent upon the strength of her legs...

She didn't fall. She didn't make a sound, either. She needed all her breath to keep running. Particularly since the gorillas weren't going particularly slow. The horses weren't running, but Pete and Christine had to keep a moderate-paced jog to keep up with them.

It was amazing what the human body could do when it faced death. Suddenly, the prospect of being dragged through the wilderness on the end of a rope had become very real to her. Suddenly she realized that she was nearer to death than she had ever been before, and the awareness of just how crucial it was that she continue running gave her adrenaline-fueled strength that she'd never felt before. She was exhausted; there was no doubt about that. She had never run so far in her life, and didn't understand how she had managed this time. But as the outline of the rock-hewn buildings came into sight, her faith soared. She'd made it. Somehow... she'd made it.

She fell on her hands and knees in the cell, gasping air. Her shoulder screamed in pain from the welt of the whip. Her side was sending shooting pain through her entire body. Her lungs hurt. Her legs hurt. Cramps were setting in, and she didn't think she could walk another step. Even her arms gave out, and she fell face-down on the floor of the cell, gasping. She heard another door slam. Her eyes slid closed. So tired...

Silence descended. She was left only with the sound of her breathing, and the distant clanking of the keys. The guards were talking. She couldn't understand what they were saying. She didn't really care. She felt herself slipping away, into darkness...

"Christine?"

Her eyes snapped open. It was dark. How long had she slept? She pushed herself up, and cringed at the immediate pain. Very slowly, she turned, and sat up slowly, gingerly touching the painful area on her shoulder. "Ow..."

"You okay?"

She blinked into the darkness, trying to bring her eyes into focus. But it was too dark to see even shadows. "I... I think so..." Her muscles still hurt, and she didn't think she could move very much. She didn't try.

A hand on her unhurt shoulder nearly made her scream in surprise. She whirled, and nearly fell over backwards. "Omigod!"

"You sure?"

Pete. She knew the voice now. She scrambled back, and cringed in pain as her back hit the wall. "No, I'm not okay!" Suddenly, the prospect of being locked in a dark cell, alone with a strange man, was all too frightening.

Pete pulled his hand back and sighed, dropping it into his lap again and leaning against the wall across from her, looking once again out the window. If she was going to snap at him, he wasn't going to even try. Why was he even here if she was still going to be so damned stupid...?

There was a long silence, only the sound of the guards outside and her whimpering and quiet cursing as she checked herself over for wounds. He watched her out of the corner of his eye, but didn't turn his head. There wasn't much to see in the darkness anyways.

Finally she settled, pulling her knees up to her chest, and hunching over. Her quiet sniffling warned him that she was probably crying. "Am I going to die here?" she finally asked. Her voice was quiet, and cracked. She was definitely crying. But somehow, he couldn't bring himself to feel a hell of a lot of sympathy.

"Probably," he answered coolly, keeping his eyes on the dark window.

"Thanks for the reassurance!"

"You're welcome."

He didn't know that she'd die here. Actually, she probably wouldn't die here. She'd get the privilege of meeting Zaius and the High Council first. Himself, on the other hand...

It was only a matter of time before Urko realized that there was technically no reason he had to keep him alive. Any unfortunate "accident" - like a bullet to the head, for instance - would be perfectly excusable. Pete had already been examined, and found hopeless. Zaius had had his fun. Now it was up to Urko what happened to Peter J. Burke.

"What are you doing here, anyways?"

The sound of her voice snapped him out of his trance, and he glanced at her. "That's a very good question, now that you mention it..." He glanced down at his hands, then back up at the sky. "I guess the answer would be that my friend's got a do-or-die mission to get home and-" he half-laughed, cynically "-yer the only one who he thinks can get him home. So I'm here 'cause I promised him I'd take care of you."

"Thanks for your concern," she shot back, her voice cryptic, "but I'll be just fine."

Pete laughed, just slightly, and shook his head. "You know..." He didn't finish. At least, he didn't finish out loud. Inside, he couldn't help but wonder what the hell Alan hoped to gain from this girl... when she seemed to be seriously lacking in the intelligence department.

He listened as she cried, softly, head on her knees. "I just want to go home," she whimpered. "It wasn't supposed to be like this..."

"Yeah, well, join the club, Blondie." Pete's voice was cold. It was incredibly hard to be sympathetic when he was getting a total lack of appreciation for the fact that he'd put his very life on the line for her.

"What's the supposed to mean?" she asked quietly. For once, she wasn't demanding. Her voice was small and meek, quivering. Still, it did nothing for him.

"We crash landed here just like you did, remember?" he answered emotionlessly. "And that, I might add, is the reason why we're fugitives and why I'll probably be facing a firing squad in the morning. 'Cause Urko was out here looking for you. I'm just an added bonus."

He let that thought go as he felt her eyes on him. He could go on, but it was pointless. If she didn't get the idea by now, she wasn't going to get it. But from the lingering, stunned silence, apparently she had gotten the picture. "Oh... I hadn't realized... I..."

Pete dropped his head into his hands and bit back the hundred insulting remarks that immediately came to mind. "You might have realized if you'd listened to one single word I'd said when I talked to you the first time..."

"Well, if you hadn't been so damned insulting, maybe I would have listened!" she huffed.

He turned and glared at her. "Look," he shot firmly, "from the moment we heard you were here, my life's been on the line tryin' to help you. And then you go and do shit like screaming for help while we're gettin' you out, and walking up to Urko. I don't even want to hear it from you."

"Well, Mister Burke," she answered with pseudo control, "if you were actually helping me, I wouldn't have had to scream for help, now would I?"

"And if Urko was actually your dear and good friend, he wouldn't have taken a bullwhip to you, either." He paused, just briefly. "You think it's gonna be any better when you get to the High Council? When they decide you'll make a nice test subject for experimental brain surgery? After they make a public spectacle of you?" He glared at the window again, "Doesn't get any better than this around here, Christine. And the apes aren't your friends."

"I think I get that now, asshole!"

Pete threw up his hands. His patience was running out. "Then why in the hell don't you get this? I put my life on the line to help you! Twice over! You don't think I knew there was a very good chance he'd just shoot me point blank when I got between you two? And you're still talking to me like I'm the enemy here! Get it through your thick head already!"

She was quiet for a long moment, considering his words. Then finally, she answered. "Thank you for that," she said simply.

He growled just slightly, under his breath, and got up off the floor to pace a few steps. Her eyes followed him, and she found herself chewing at her bottom lip. "Pete...?"

He ended up at the window, but it was too high to really see out. Grabbing the bars, he pulled himself up and looked out, then dropped back down and paced some more. "Pete, what's wrong?"

He turned to look at her, and she stiffened. She couldn't see his expression, but she didn't imagine it was a terribly pleased one. He stared at her for a long moment, and then started pacing again. She could sense his tension from where she was seated. Was he serious about the firing squad?

The thought made her shiver, and she hugged herself tighter. He wasn't serious. He couldn't be serious. But she had a feeling he was. "Pete...?" A shuddering sigh passed her lips. "I... I'm scared..."

He paused in his pacing and glanced at her. Just faintly, he could see the outline of her features in the moonlight. Yeah... she looked scared. He watched her for a moment, but then looked away. He didn't know what to tell her. After a long moment, he took a deep breath. "At least your life still has some value," he tried to reassure her. "Zaius will want to question you."

"What about you?" she asked quietly, unsurely.

"I've already been handed over to Urko," he mumbled. "As far as legalities are concerned... I belong to him right now. You're considered property of the High Council until they release you to him."

"What does that mean?" she asked. He didn't answer. A growing sense of dread was forming in the pit of her stomach. "What do you mean... you belong to him?"

Still he was quiet. He turned, and leaned back against the wall, still standing as he raised his hand and chewed on his thumbnail. She shifted uncomfortably. He was nervous. Him. The one who had seemed so damned untouchable...

"Pete?"

He dropped his hand, and gave a big sigh. "Last time it meant four days of torture and a scheduled brain surgery," he answered flatly. She swallowed hard. "And if it'd been up to Urko, he'da skipped right to the brain surgery and Galen and Alan woulda never gotten there in time."

"Oh." For a long moment, she wasn't sure what more to say. Experimental brain surgery. The prospect of death occurred to her again. But no..., they couldn't do that to her. Could they? Surely they couldn't... Her father would raise holy hell if they even thought about it! But suddenly she realized... her father would have to find her first. And if what Pete said was true...

"Do you... think you could rescue me again?"

Pete stared at her. For a long moment, he just stared. Then, a brief, not-quite-cynical laugh escaped him. But it was all the answer she got. "Well?" she asked, more intensely. "I wanna go home."

He shook his head as he looked away. "Girl..." He sighed deeply. "There are probably thirty armed guards around this jail and Urko himself right out there." He gestured to the door. "If Alan and Galen are stupid enough to try and rescue you - and me - a second time, they're not gonna do it here."

"How are we gonna get out then?" she demanded.

"We're not."

The seriousness of his tone sent a chill through her. "What do you mean, we're not?"

He gave her an almost-sympathetic look, and was quiet for a long moment before gesturing slightly to the straw mat. "You'd best get some rest. You're gonna be doing a lot more running in the next few days."

She looked at the mat, but she was unable to move toward it. Her legs felt like jelly. The thought of doing more running tomorrow didn't help in the least. "What if I can't?" she asked quietly.

"Then they'll kill you."

Helplessness washed over her like a tidal wave, and took the breath right out of her lungs. For a long moment, she stared at him, then again at the mat. "What... about you?" she finally managed.

He shifted slightly, and turned to look again out the window, eyes drifting over the stars. "I'll be fine," he answered.

He watched out of the corner of his eye as she crawled over to the mat and turned her back to him. Another faint, sad smile formed on his lips, and then he raised his hand again, chewing on his thumbnail as his eyes went back to the sky.