I look into the mirror on the outside of the car and watch as the man with the weapon bounds down the road after us. His face is contorted with anger and determination as he sprints after us. I would feel relief since he can’t possibly hope to catch up to us on foot, but he does not appear to be alone. Two other humans, a burly man and a slender woman, race out of the field and leap into a parked vehicle. I see the car’s headlights light up as the car starts.
We race along the town’s main street, which is thankfully empty of pedestrians at this time of night.
As we turn the corner that will lead out of town at breakneck speed, I spot Koko standing on the sidewalk. Our eyes meet and hold as she stares back at me. It is almost as if time freezes for that moment. I can see steady determination and some other unnamed emotion dancing in her eyes. I cannot discern what it is, but it seems like a mixture of approval, apprehension, and – is that happiness? She appears unaffected by the chaos unfolding on the street before her. Leelee takes the sharp turn, causing me to slide across my seat, and I lose sight of the enigmatic female.
I turn my gaze back to the road behind us as I hear tires screeching and a loud horn blaring. Koko is standing in the middle of the road with bright headlights highlighting her. She raises an apologetic hand to the car honking its horn at her. The car starts to veer around her, the man at the steering wheel yelling at her, when a truck pulls in front of the vehicle, blocking their path. I spot Anton, the owner of the hardware store, behind the wheel. He starts berating the people chasing us, refusing to move.
“Koko and Anton just bought us a small head start,” I inform Leelee.
Leelee has left the headlights off on the car and the tight swerving curves of the road seem almost dangerous as we speed home in the dark. However, Leelee takes them with ease.
Still breathing hard from our sprint, Leelee manages to talk between gasps of air. “Ravok,” she pants, trying to regain her normal breath, “I’ll… drop… you off… at the edge of the… woods.” Her shaken hazel eyes meet mine, filled with determination.
“Then you can get to the cabin through the woods, and I’ll drive off. I’ll keep them distracted,” she explains, gesturing vaguely towards the road ahead, “We are less than a mile away from home. While I distract them, you get the ship out of the garage and hide it in the woods. Find somewhere safe to stash it.”
She glances at the road behind us, which is thankfully dark and empty.
“Then, if I can I’ll ditch these guys. Meet me at the gazebo down by the lake in the morning,” she whispers, her gaze cutting to mine for a second before returning to the darkened road before us.
“If I can’t shake them off, I want you to find my Aunt Zizi. I’ll give you my phone and get you the coordinates for her house. She’ll help you. Just tell her I sent you.”
“Leelee.”
“Then we’ll find a way to finish fixing your ship. Whatever happens, we’ll make sure those assholes don’t find you.”
“Leelee.” Something in my tone must get through to her because she falls silent. “My ship is operational. It’s already fixed.”
“Wait. What?” She glances over at me, confusion reflecting in her gaze.
“My ship has been fully operational for the last few days,” I confess. “I should have left when I had the chance, but I wanted to spend more time with you. I’m sorry that my selfishness has put you in danger.”
“I’m not,” Leelee states firmly. “I’m not sorry. These extra days have meant more to me than you can imagine. I’m glad we had this time together. I regret nothing. The danger… it was worth it. Well, it will be once we get you out of here.”
Relief washes over me, but before I can react, she adds, “Okay, if the ship is functional, that changes things. Instead of you running off into the woods, I’ll take you directly to your ship, and you can escape.”
At her words, I can only silently stare at her, my heart thundering inside my chest. A sense of certainty fills me up. Once I leave this planet, I will never see my Leelee again.
Something breaks inside of me now that I am face-to-face with this bleak reality. It is all happening too fast. I need a minute to adjust. A small part of me had been in denial until this moment.
As Leelee turns the car onto the long, rutted drive to the cabin, I glance back towards the road behind us, searching for any sign of our pursuers. “Leelee, there’s nobody behind us,” I inform her. “But that doesn’t mean they’re not coming.”
The vehicle jolts and bounces as she drives it along the dark path back to the cabin. I continually scan the area behind us but do not see any signs of pursuit. We are far from safe, but we are also not in immediate danger.
The cabin, warmly lit from the inside, appears like a beacon in the dark. I see a silhouette of Mango in the window and my heart breaks even more.
Leelee drives off the path and around the cabin, skidding to a halt near the garage.
We tumble out of the vehicle, scrambling towards the garage. Our eyes lock, the fiery spirit in her gaze makes my love for her burn brighter in my soul.
“You start the ship and I’ll get the garage door open,” Leelee calls out to me.
I summon my nanites mentally and instruct them to connect with the ship, initiating the startup sequence. I feel the resonance in my veins as they spring into action. My cybernetics link to the vessel and begin the startup sequence.
Leelee fumbles with the keys to open the small access door to the garage before finally sliding the key into the slot and getting the door unlocked. She flips on the light as I command my ship’s access hatch to drop open. Then Leelee presses the button to open the large bay door. Entering my vessel, I sprint to the cockpit, sliding into the captain’s chair. My fingers fly over the glowing interface, coaxing the engines back to life. The hum of the dormant reactors sparks to life.
As the ship begins to shudder, I press the button initiating the hover sequence. The familiar weightlessness lifts me from my seat until the artificial gravity kicks on. I monitor the console’s readout, ensuring the ship is ready for launch.
With a satisfied nod, I slip out of the cockpit and jump from the hatch to the garage floor below. The spaceship now sits suspended above the ground, kicking up dust into the garage.
Leelee is standing in the open bay door, scanning the area for our pursuers. She is illuminated by the bright glow of the headlights of her still-running car. She looks like a spirit out of ancient Cryzorian mythology. A living goddess.
Giving the darkness outside one last look, Leelee rushes over to me to help me guide the ship out of the garage. Following my instructions, we find an empty space far enough away from the cabin that it won’t be damaged when I take off.
Leelee’s beautiful face, full of fear and worry, makes my chest ache.
“Okay, once you get in the ship, I’ll take the car and head back to town. I’ll distract them until you are gone.”
Leelee turns as if ready to head back to her vehicle. Without direction from my mind, my hands snap out and grasp her hands, stopping her mid-flight. As she pivots back to face me, confusion in her eyes, I draw her into a firm hug, my body dwarfing hers, encasing her in my arms.
I pull back to take one last look at the woman I love.
Our faces inches apart, I can’t resist tasting her, and so I capture her lips with mine – a gentle, reassuring kiss. With this goodbye kiss I try to convey all of my feelings, all of my love. As I pull away, I seek the deep pools of her gaze. I memorize the features of her face – something I want to etch into the recesses of my memory.
“Leelee, you are my heart. One I didn’t even think I had. I love you. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me. You are better than I deserve, but I will cherish you always. I love you and will continue loving you until my last breath.”
Leelee’s eyes fill with tears which spill over her cheeks as she blinks up at me.
She opens her mouth and I hold my breath, hoping, and also fearing, to hear the words back. But instead of speaking, a blast of noise fills the air, and she jerks in my arms. She stares up at me, her face a mask of shock and pain. And then I see the red stain of blood spreading across her chest.
