He stomped off. Meanwhile the remaining guards handed out buckets and rags, and the prisoners slowly shuffled off with slumped shoulders to begin cleaning the fence.
The Space Brigade turned to look at one another.
Nicola put a finger over her lips and they crept away from the camp.
"I have never seen such evil!" said Henry Sweet.
"We've got to rescue all those poor prisoners!" said Katie. "Not just the Gorgioskios!"
"That's what Dad says, too," said Shimlara.
"What do you mean?" said Nicola with surprise.
"I spoke to him telepathically," said Shimlara.
"Ah," said Nicola. She'd quite forgotten that Shimlara would be able to read her father's mind once he was in her sight.
"He was pretty happy to hear we're here," said Shimlara. "He was thinking so fast, I could barely understand him! He purposely got himself put in solitary confinement so that we could all talk to him. He said to go around to the back righthand corner of the camp."
"What else did he say?" asked Nicola.
Shimlara looked at Henry.
"He said the only way to ensure we didn't end up captured, too, was to help Henry Sweet and his people win the war against Volcomania."
Henry paled. "Goodness me."
CHAPTER 27
"Pssst! Dad? Are you there?"
Shimlara stood with her hands on her hips at the far corner of the prison camp fence.
"He said the solitary confinement cell was underground.
It's built into a wall of rock just outside the perimeter of the camp," she said to the others. "I'm just not sure where--what's that?"
They all stopped to listen. A tiny, faraway voice seemed to be coming from beneath their feet.
"Under here!"
Tyler fell to his knees near the barbed-wire fence. He cleared away some dirt with the palm of his hand to reveal a small iron grille in the ground. Georgio was peering up at them, his dark eyes flashing with excitement. He was sitting with his knees squashed close to his chest in a small, dark underground cell.
"Look at all your lovely, dear faces! Nicola! Sean! Tyler! Katie! Greta! I've never been so happy to see you all!" he cried. "When I heard Shimlara's voice in my head I nearly jumped out of my skin. Oh, and you've got Henry Sweet with you! Hello, Mr. Sweet! It's a pleasure to see you again. How is the war progressing? We don't get to hear much here, obviously. I'm sorry, I'm talking so much, but solitary confinement does seem to mess with my mind, and I've only been here five minutes. Last time they put me in here for a day! When I came out I spoke for two hours straight without taking a breath! Drove your mother crazy! I never realized how important human interaction was to me!"
"Dad," said Shimlara.
"And of course, I get so bored, and you know how I can't stand to be bored! I try to set myself little mental challenges, but to be honest--"
"Dad! " said Shimlara.
"Sorry," said Georgio humbly. "How are you, honey?"
"I'm fine," said Shimlara. "Are you all right? Are Mom and Squid okay?"
Her voice cracked. She was obviously trying not to cry. Nicola tried to imagine how she would feel seeing her dad locked away in a tiny prison cell.
"Oh, yes, yes, we're all fine. It's not exactly a dream vacation but . . . " His words drifted away.