She Bleeds for Us: The Galactic Consortium 3

Chapter 57

Gabriel watched the policeman enter the mosque. He kept his hand on his gun but didn't draw it.

"Guys like you, just want to watch the world burn," he said to one of the men in black.

It was Binti that answered. "Got to burn the rot out to heal. Everyone knows that. And this government is rotten to the core."

"Don't waste your breath," Tamba snarled. "He's a cop. They're all the same. Thugs."

"I'm no thug," the cop replied through his teeth. "And you guys are ones to talk, want a revolution? Want to storm the palace? I ought to let you go. Get yourself killed and for what? But you'd bring a kid into this. That's low."

"They didn't bring me into this," Gabriel insisted. "Like I told you before about the consortium. Ain't nobody making me do this. I'm fighting for myself, for my future." He was angry. Angry enough to not even be scared by the gun at the man's waist. Well mostly not afraid.

"Is that what they told you?" The cop said.

"No! In fact they all say the same thing as you, even my grandma and she's the blind witch!" He froze. He hadn't meant to tell his secret. He looked around at the cop and the men. All their eyes were wide for a moment as they digested this.

"She's real," Binti said.

"Yeah and she said the same thing, Little Gabbies too small. He can't do it, it's too dangerous. Believe I know it's dangerous. They sent Lee instead. 'Let an adult be the one.' Now he's in jail. But I knew I could get across the line. I did, and do, all the way to border and back."

"Smuggling, that's one thing," the cop said. "I'm mad about that, too, mind. Putting a kid in danger. But this? Revolution? More like civil war. None of you got any idea how bad that can be."

"Don't I?" Gabriel protested. Tears stung at his eyes suddenly. "Don't I? Mama's gone. Uncle Issa drinks too much. Grandma barely makes enough for herself let alone for me. But I know something else, too. We got to keep hoping and we got to keep trying. And if we are given a chance to do something more, we got take it."

The cop was starting to look uncertain. He looked at Tamba, a long calculating look.

Tamba shrugged. "Smuggling, heck give the kid a microphone. We'd a had the revolution months ago."

Binti stood and approached the cop. "You're right. We shouldn't be putting a kid in danger. I know that. We all know that. But what should we be doing? Protecting him. That's what a good cop does, ain't it? Protect people?"

The cop nodded, "yeah, I am here to serve and protect."

"And will putting the boy in jail protect him?"

The cop saw the trap, he looked uncertain. There was no way out of it. He shook his head. "No, it won't. I'll try to get him back home, is that what you want to hear?"

"No!" Gabriel protested.

"How will that help?" Binti continued. "Put him out of harm's way for today. But there's a thousand days to come and a thousand other boys out there in the same situation. We got to have a change."

One of the black masks stood, he was older than the others. He looked to be a hundred, withered and dark. He moved stiffly. "For what it's worth, I do know the war was like. Was there. Took a bullet for a comrade. That's what you do, to protect your comrades, you step into the gap.

"Look, man we don't want a civil war. We don't want to storm that palace or kill Burundi or anything like that. We just want to make a change. We get in the palace and make some noise, get the military wound up. Once there's a threat of violence against civilians, these others will intervene."

"Get the military wound up? Do you have any idea what that means?" The cop said.

"I do," Tamba insisted. "I'm a patriot, what ever you think. I'll take a bullet if it makes the consortium intervene, move Burundi and his type out of power. Bring real democratic change to this country."

"This is crazy, you all know that, crazy. I can't believe..." the cop trailed off. He took a long look at Gabriel and finished, "I'm thinking about it. Just give me a sec. Jesus! I didn't sign up for any of this you know. Being a thug for Burundi or being a revolutionary. I just wanted to be a good cop, make my father proud."