[科幻]宿主- 第60部分

　“And　that’s　only　half　the　problem。”　Jared　looked　at　me　again；　a　vein　in　his　forehead　pulsed。　“Where　do　

we　keep　it？　It’s　not　like　we　have　a　cell　block。”

　Jeb　smiled　down　at　me。　“You’re　not　going　to　give　us　any　trouble；　now；　are　you？”

　I　stared　at　him　mutely。

　“Jeb；”　Jared　muttered；　upset。

　“Oh；　don’t　worry　about　her。　First　of　all；　we’ll　keep　an　eye　on　her。　Secondly；　she’d　never　be　able　to　find　
her　way　out　of　here—she’d　wander　around　lost　until　she　ran　into　somebody。　Which　leads　us　to　number　
three：　she’s　not　that　stupid。”　He　raised　one　thick　white　eyebrow　at　me。　“You’re　not　going　to　go　looking　
for　Kyle　or　the　rest　of　them；　are　you？　I　don’t　think　any　of　them　are　very　fond　of　you。”　

　

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“I　wish　you　wouldn’t　talk　to　it　like　that；”　Jared　muttered。　
“I　was　raised　in　a　politer　time；　kid。　I　can’t　help　myself。”　Jeb　put　one　hand　on　Jared’s　arm；　patting　lightly。　


“Look；　you’ve　had　a　full　night。　Let　me　take　the　next　watch　here。　Get　some　sleep。”　
Jared　seemed　about　to　object；　but　then　he　looked　at　me　again　and　his　expression　hardened。　
“Whatever　you　want；　Jeb。　And…　I　don’t—I　won’t　accept　responsibility　for　this　thing。　Kill　it　if　you　think　


that’s　best。”　
I　flinched。　
Jared　scowled　at　my　reaction；　then　turned　his　back　abruptly　and　walked　the　same　way　the　others　had　


gone。　Jeb　watched　him　go。　While　he　was　distracted；　I　crept　back　into　my　hole。


　I　heard　Jeb　settle　slowly　to　the　ground　beside　the　opening。　He　sighed　and　stretched；　popping　a　few　
joints。　After　a　few　minutes；　he　started　whistling　quietly。　It　was　a　cheery　tune。　
I　curled　myself　around　my　bent　knees；　pressing　my　back　into　the　farthest　recess　of　the　little　cell。　Tremors　

started　at　the　small　of　my　back　and　ran　up　and　down　my　spine。　My　hands　shook；　and　my　teeth　chattered　

softly　together；　despite　the　soggy　heat。　
“Might　as　well　lie　down　and　get　some　sleep；”　Jeb　said；　whether　to　me　or　to　himself；　I　wasn’t　sure。　
“Tomorrow’s　bound　to　be　a　tough　one。”

　The　shivers　passed　after　a　time—maybe　half　an　hour。　When　they　were　gone；　I　felt　exhausted。　I　decided　
to　take　Jeb’s　advice。　Though　the　floor　felt　even　more　unfortable　than　before；　I　was　unconscious　in　
seconds。

　The　smell　of　food　woke　me。　This　time　Iwas　groggy　and　disoriented　when　I　opened　my　eyes。　An　

instinctive　sense　of　panic　had　my　hands　trembling　again　before　I　was　fully　conscious。　
The　same　tray　sat　on　the　ground　beside　me；　identical　offerings　on　it。　I　could　both　see　and　hear　Jeb。　He　
sat　in　front　of　the　cave　in　profile；　looking　straight　ahead　down　the　long　round　corridor　and　whistling　softly。

　Driven　by　my　fierce　thirst；　I　sat　up　and　grabbed　the　open　bottle　of　water。　
“Morning；”　Jeb　said；　nodding　in　my　direction。　
I　froze；　my　hand　on　the　bottle；　until　he　turned　his　head　and　started　whistling　again。　
Only　now；　not　quite　so　desperately　thirsty　as　before；　did　I　notice　the　odd；　unpleasant　aftertaste　to　the　


water。　It　matched　the　acrid　taste　of　the　air；　but　it　was　slightly　stronger。　The　tang　lingered　in　my　mouth；　


inescapable。　
I　ate　quickly；　this　time　saving　the　soup　for　last。　My　stomach　reacted　more　happily　today；　accepting　the　
food　with　better　grace。　It　barely　gurgled。

　My　body　had　other　needs；　though；　now　that　the　loudest　ones　had　been　sated。　I　looked　around　my　dark；　

　

　I　rocked　back　and　forth；　debating。　My　hips　ached　from　curving　to　the　bowled　shape　of　the　cave。

　“Ahem；”　Jeb　said。

　He　was　looking　at　me　again；　his　face　a　deeper　color　under　the　white　hair　than　usual。

　“You’ve　been　stuck　in　here　for　a　while；”　he　said。　“You　need　to…　get　out？”

　I　nodded。

　“Don’t　mind　a　walk　myself。”　His　voice　was　cheerful。　He　sprang　to　his　feet　with　surprising　agility。

　I　crawled　to　the　edge　of　my　hole；　staring　out　at　him　cautiously。

　“I’ll　show　you　our　little　washroom；”　he　continued。　“Now；　you　should　know　that　we’re　going　to　have　to　
go　through…　kind　of　the　main　plaza；　so　to　speak。　Don’t　worry。　I　think　everyone　will　have　gotten　the　
message　by　now。”　Unconsciously；　he　stroked　the　length　of　his　gun。

　I　tried　to　swallow。　My　bladder　was　so　full　it　was　a　constant　pain；　impossible　to　ignore。　But　to　parade　
right　through　the　middle　of　the　hive　of　angry　killers？　Couldn’t　he　just　bring　me　a　bucket？

　He　measured　the　panic　in　my　eyes—watched　the　way　I　automatically　shrank　back　farther　into　the　
hole—and　his　lips　pursed　in　speculation。　Then　he　turned　and　started　walking　down　the　dark　hall。　“Follow　
me；”　he　called　back；　not　looking　to　see　if　I　obeyed。

　I　had　one　vivid　flash　of　Kyle　finding　me　here　alone；　and　was　after　Jeb　before　a　second　passed；　
scrambling　awkwardly　through　the　opening　and　then　hobbling　along　on　my　stiff　legs　as　fast　as　I　could　to　
catch　up。　It　felt　both　horrible　and　wonderful　to　stand　straight　again—the　pain　was　sharp；　but　the　relief　
was　greater。

　I　was　close　behind　him　when　we　reached　the　end　of　the　hall；　darkness　loomed　through　the　tall　broken　
oval　of　the　exit。　I　hesitated；　looking　back　at　the　small　lamp　he’d　left　on　the　floor。　It　was　the　only　light　in　
the　dark　cave。　Was　I　supposed　to　bring　it？

　He　heard　me　stop　and　turned　to　peer　at　me　over　his　shoulder。　I　nodded　toward　the　light；　then　looked　
back　at　him。

　“Leave　it。　I　know　my　way。”　He　held　out　his　free　hand　to　me。　“I’ll　guide　you。”

　I　stared　at　the　hand　for　a　long　moment；　and　then；　feeling　the　urgency　in　my　bladder；　I　slowly　put　my　hand　
on　his　palm；　barely　touching　it—the　way　I　would　have　touched　a　snake　if　for　some　reason　I　was　ever　
forced　to。

　Jeb　led　me　through　the　blackness　with　sure；　quick　steps。　The　long　tunnel　was　followed　by　a　series　of　
bewildering　twists　in　opposing　directions。　As　we　rounded　yet　another　sharp　V　in　the　path；　I　knew　I　was　
hopelessly　turned　around。　I　was　sure　this　was　on　purpose；　and　the　reason　Jeb　had　left　the　lamp　behind。　
He　wouldn’t　want　me　knowing　too　much　about　how　to　find　my　way　out　of　this　labyrinth。　

　

　We　turned　another　corner；　and　the　first　light　reached　us。　Ahead；　a　tall；　narrow　crevice　glowed　with　light　
from　another　room。　This　light　was　not　artificial　like　the　little　lamp　by　my　cave。　It　was　too　white；　too　pure。

　We　couldn’t　move　through　the　narrow　fracture　in　the　rock　side　by　side。　Jeb　went　first；　towing　me　close　
behind。　Once　through—and　able　to　see　again—I　pulled　my　hand　out　of　Jeb’s　light　grip。　He　didn’t　react　in　
any　way　except　to　put　his　newly　freed　hand　back　on　the　gun。

　We　were　in　a　short　tunnel；　and　a　brighter　light　shone　through　a　rough　arched　doorway。　The　walls　were　
the　same　holey　purple　rock。

　I　could　hear　voices　now。　They　were　low；　less　urgent　than　the　last　time　I’d　heard　the　babble　of　a　human　
crowd。　No　one　was　expecting　us　today。　I　could　only　imagine　what　the　response　would　be　to　my　
appearance　with　Jeb。　My　palms　were　cold　and　wet；　my　breath　came　in　shallow　gasps。　I　leaned　as　close　
as　I　could　to　Jeb　without　actually　touching　him。

　“Easy；”　he　murmured；　not　turning。　“They’re　more　afraid　of　you　than　you　are　of　them。”

　I　doubted　that。　And　even　if　there　were　any　way　that　it　could　be　true；　fear　turned　into　hatred　and　violence　
in　the　human　heart。

　“I　won’t　let　anybody　hurt　you；”　Jeb　mumbled　as　he　reached　the　archway。　“Anyway；　might　as　well　get　
used　to　this。”

　I　wanted　to　ask　what　that　meant；　but　he　stepped　through　into　the　next　room。　I　crept　in　after　him；　half　a　
step　behind；　keeping　myself　hidden　by　his　body　as　much　as　possible。　The　only　thing　harder　than　moving　
myself　forward　into　that　room　was　the　thought　of　falling　behind　Jeb　and　being　caught　alone　here。

　Sudden　silence　greeted　our　entrance。

　We　were　in　the　gigantic；　bright　cavern　again；　the　one　they’d　first　brought　me　to。　How　long　ago　was　that？　
I　had　no　idea。　The　ceiling　was　still　too　bright　for　me　to　make　out　exactly　how　it　was　lit。　I　hadn’t　noticed　
before；　but　the　walls　were　not　unbroken—dozens　of　irregular　gaps　opened　to　adjoining　tunnels。　Some　of　
the　openings　were　huge；　others　barely　large　enough　for　a　man　to　fit　through　stooped　over；　some　were　
natural　crevices；　others　were；　if　not　man…made；　at　least　enhanced　by　someone’s　hands。

　Several　people　stared　at　us　from　the　recesses　of　those　crevices；　frozen　in　the　act　of　ing　or　going。　
More　people　were　out　in　the　open；　their　bodies　caught　in　the　middle　of　whatever　movement　our　entrance　
had　interrupted。　One　woman　was　bent　in　half；　reaching　for　her　shoelaces。　A　man’s　motionless　arms　hung　
in　the　air；　raised　to　illustrate　some　point　he’d　been　making　to　his　panions。　Another　man　wobbled；　
caught　off　balance　in　a　sudden　stop。　His　foot　came　down　hard　as　he　struggled　to　keep　steady；　the　thud　of　
its　fall　was　the　only　sound　in　the　vast　space。　It　echoed　through　the　room。

　It　was　fundamentally　wrong　for　me　to　feel　grateful　to　that　hideous　weapon　in　Jeb’s　hands…　but　I　did。　I　
knew　that　without　it　we　would　probably　have　been　attacked。　These　humans　would　not　stop　themselves　
from　hurting　Jeb　if　it　meant　they　could　get　to　me。　Though　we　might　be　attacked　despite　the　gun。　Jeb　could　

　

　The　picture　in　my　head　had　turned　so　grisly　that　I　couldn’t　bear　it。　I　t