Jak fixed him with a glare, his ruby-red eyes burning into the pinker orbs of the albino facing him.
“Say it before, say it now—last time. These people my friends, we stand and fall together. Fuck you.”
The African-American albino stood and shook his head sadly. “My Lord, they really have you under their thumb, do they not? I offer you freedom, and you are so scared that you yet stand in thrall.”
Jak glanced around at Ryan. His expression was impenetrable, but the very fact that he had turned meant that he wanted a sign. And the one-eyed man knew exactly why—even as the island albino had spoken, the same thought had flashed through Ryan’s mind. They were treating Jak as one of their own— that much had been obvious the night before. But to be offered freedom would mean a man on the outside of the jail, a chance to work for escape, and perhaps even an opportunity to find what had happened to Mildred.
“You are free to go if you want,” Ryan said slowly, trying to implore Jak to read the hidden meaning in his words. “You no longer have to pretend, and you are no longer our slave.”
As he spoke, Ryan stared at Jak very closely, and was relieved when he saw the briefest of understanding nods before the albino said, “Okay, you free me now. I join brothers.”
The island albino gave Ryan a suspicious look, as though he couldn’t trust whitelanders to be so magnanimous. Ryan shrugged.
“We’re not in a position to argue, right?” he said.
The island albino didn’t answer, although his still-hostile glare was more than eloquent enough. Without speaking, he rose to his feet in one graceful motion. “Come with us,” he said to Jak, holding out his hand. Even though it was unnecessary, Jak grasped it and allowed the man to assist him in rising from the floor.
The sec chief, who they could now plainly see was holding his H&K across his body, raised it in salutation.
“I would suppose that you are not as stubborn and stupe as you at first appeared. We shall see. Perhaps you will be set to work as our forefathers were. Perhaps we have learned from their errors and are more charitable. We shall see.”
He covered them while the island albino led Jak out of the jail. Once they were clear, he backed out, closing the door behind him. They heard the lock click as they were secured once more.
“Well?” J.B. asked.
“Just wait,” Ryan replied. “It’s all that we can do. If Jak can do anything, he will. In the meantime, I figure we should try to get some more rest, hope our injuries heal up before we get some action.”
JAK RESISTED THE TEMPTATION to look back over his shoulder as he was led away from the jail. Despite being about a foot taller than the wiry hunter, the island albino put his arm around Jak’s shoulders.
“You don’t know how good it is to have another albino in the ville,” he said in a confidential tone. “The brothers and sisters are good people, but there is always the sense that I am different from them. And so I am, in a sense. But to have someone else who lacks all color, rather than being white or black, is good. It gives someone to share identity with.”
“Not thought of it that way,” Jak answered. “Where the fuck are we?”
The island albino threw back his head and laughed. “My friend, you do not bandy words. I shall tell you.”
As they walked to the living quarters of the albino, he told Jak about the history of the island and also of the way in which the people worked, either farming, hunting or mining and scavenging for fuels. By the time he had finished, they had reached the albino’s adobe homestead where he led Jak into a one room hut with two beds on opposite sides of the room, one of which had a table beside it piled high with books and papers. Beside the other bed was a Spartan arrangement of belongings, most of a practical nature.