Twisted Justice: An Oz Garrett Novel by Paul Rix

Author:Paul Rix [Rix, Paul]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: P&J Books
Published: 2022-03-10T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 35

Oz spent the following day recuperating and talking with Rosa, getting to understand her better and gradually opening up parts of himself that he rarely shared with close friends, let alone casual acquaintances. He found her easy to talk to and noticed that her attitude slowly softened as she got to know him better.

His injuries were healing well, although far slower than he would have liked. He could not blame Rosa for that. She had performed a miracle by merely saving his life with the sparse medical resources at her disposal. There were limits to what she could do, and he simply had to be patient.

Despite the pain subsiding, the toughest part was physical movement. The tiniest amount of stretching would cause him to wince as the stitches holding his wounds together threatened to break under the strain. An escape attempt was still out of the question and would be for several more days.

Yet Garrett was overly aware that time was a factor for him. Each hour, he wondered what Zaen had planned for him and how soon the court would be convened.

“Maybe Zaen thinks you’re already dead and has moved on to his next act of vengeance,” Rosa suggested on the morning of the second day since his attack.

Oz shook his head. “The warden hasn’t informed him of my attack.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because he has not sent any instructors to retrieve my body. I saw the hatred in his eyes. If he had any suspicion I had been killed, he would want proof.”

Rosa frowned, idly scratching the back of her head in thought for several moments. “Would he order us all killed if he thought you were dead?”

“It’s a possibility. He’s been plotting his revenge for a long time. The trial is a demonstration of his power over me. Without it, he has nothing but anger and frustration, which he will want to vent in any direction he can.”

“But the people here have done nothing wrong. They’re already paying a high enough price by being here.”

“That won’t matter. You were right; if I die or escape and Zaen doesn’t get what he wants, I fear he would wipe out this entire camp.”

“That’s crazy. How can a civilized society allow people like Zaen to flourish?”

“It’s as you told me. Centuries of domination and crushing the will of the population. The Brotherhood have had their power for so long that most of the people do not know there is an alternative.”

The conversation was interrupted by an anxious Sylwester hurrying along the tunnel, bringing a flask of water.

“You’re looking much better,” he said to Garrett, who nodded in return.

“Do you have any news today?” Rosa asked.

Sylwester handed her the flask while standing over the pair of them. “The instructors are asking questions about Oz. I heard them ask several people if they had seen him. Of course, no one could confirm or deny his presence.”

“How did the instructors react?”

“They weren’t happy. They said they expect to see him in the kitchen tonight, on the pretense that Oz should not be shirking his work duties.

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