Page 7 of Taken to Kor

“What’s that?”

“Just say the word in Meero with meaning, followed by the commandTak.”

“Tak?”

“Ontte.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means immediately.”

“Severennu tak.” A visceral, jarring sort of silence emanates from the other end of the communicator so suddenly it makes my stomach plummet. “Rhork?” I try after a beat of that silence. “Rhork,” I say again. I’m sitting up, pacing my little cell now. Back and forth. Panic building. “Rhork! Rhork.” No. No no no Nono. I sent him away. I don’t know how to get him back. I don’t know how. I don’t know… “Severennu tak. Severennu tak,” I shout a little louder when it doesn’t work the first time. But I’m telling it to be silent. What’s the opposite of silent? Loud? Speak? I shout both words in Meero. Then I remember. “Teoranka tak.”

“Back so soon, Deena?”

The breath I exhale shakes my whole body. Tears wet my eyelashes. I lean my forehead against the glass partition separating me from the world. From everything. Everything but the one thing I get to keep, because it’s the only thing Mathilda hasn’t taken from me. And I almost lost it.

“Deena?” Is that concern? No. I’m not stupid enough to believe he’d worry about me. I’ve only known him a few solars. A dozen. Holy crud. Not a dozen. More like eighty. Maybe a hundred. Have I really been down here that long? My chin starts to do this annoying trembling thing that makes me feel like I’m two feet tall.

“Deena!” He barks so loud I jump and that jumping makes me bang my head.

“Ow. Yeah. I mean ontte.” I rub my forehead with the heel of my hand, which makes the bump already rising there hurt worse.

“You don’t sound…well.”

I laugh but it’s a sticky laugh, full of saliva and snot. I sniff. “I’m fine. All good. No biggie.” Not like my heart is about to launch out of my chest on a rocket ship with no fuel and no destination.

“You do not sound well.”

“You already said that.”

“And you did…”

“I just think I’m going to take another break now.”

“Deena,” he growls.

“Which one was the command to turn…turn it back on?” My voice strangles on the word. He hears it. He has to.

“Deena…”

“Was it teoranka or heverenoya?” The words for speak and loud, respectively.

Silence.

“Which…which one, Rhork?” I rub my face roughly.

“Teoranka,” he finally says.

“Thank…thank you.”

“Deena…”

“Severennu tak.” The communication between us empties out, like a jug turned over. Spilled, maybe.

I jerkily start to hum to myself, but it’s only so I don’t blurt out the command to end the silence…

Silence. I wait with my lungs in my mouth for his answer.Everythingdepends on it. Everything. “I lied.”