Secrets and Sins Part 2: Finding Mary

Chapter 25

~Beatrice~

Beatrice winced, gritting her teeth as the van hit yet another pothole with a thud. The vibration caused a jolt of pain to shoot across her abdomen.

Still better than teleporting…

"Lilith!" Ava growled, immediately noticing Beatrice's discomfort.

"Sorry! This road has more potholes than actual road." The winged woman replied from the driver's seat.

Beatrice had no idea when the winged woman had learnt to drive, but she was definitely what the sister warrior would call an 'aggressive' driver and was more than a little bit prone to road rage. Ava had already threatened to tell Mother Superior after Lilith insisted on tailgating an older man who had cut them off at an intersection.

It was a relief to be out of the city and on the quiet back roads where the winged woman couldn't get into as much trouble, even if it was a bumpy ride.

"It's okay Lilith." Beatrice grimaced, trying to intervene before they could really start arguing, she was tired of the constant bickering between the two.

Ava grumbled under her breath, glaring at the back of the former sister warrior’s head.

"I'm okay darling." She murmured to Ava reaching for the younger woman's hand, her girlfriend had been extra attentive and protective since they had been reunited.

Golden ringed eyes turned to the sister warrior, the Halo bearer interlaced their fingers, squeezing gently.

"Maybe you should have stayed back in Valencia…" Ava started, Beatrice could just see her worried expression in the shadows cast by the dusky light outside the van windows.

"No!" The younger woman flinched a little at the sharpness.
"Sorry…but no Ava. I want to be there when you go…and when you come back, alright?"

Ava smiled softly, "I get it Bea."

"Good." Beatrice carefully moved closer to her girlfriend, pressing into her side and humming contentedly when Ava delicately slid an arm around her, the Halo bearer mindful of Beatrice's injury.

Silence fell over the van, all three women lost in their own thoughts. Beatrice was trying desperately to think about anything other than Ava’s imminent departure. Anytime she dwelled on it, her chest would become tight and her breathing quick, Beatrice was terrified Ava was walking, or teleporting, into a trap.

Snuggling in closer to her girlfriend, the sister warrior sighed when she felt the arm around her tighten slightly. She dragged herself away from those thoughts, it was no use worrying about it right now. Instead, Beatrice wanted to make the most of their last couple of hours before the mission.

She idly wondered if that's why Ava had brushed off the ill feelings about the bug-out plan they had kept from her. Maybe the younger woman had wanted to skip the inevitable argument that would've come from Beatrice withholding the truth. Perhaps Ava just wanted this time to be unmarred by drama, tears pricked at her eyes at the thought.

I don’t deserve her.

"I love you, Ava." As always it seemed too insignificant to describe what she felt for the other woman.

The Halo bearer just smiled, turning to press a feather-light kiss to Beatrice’s forehead.

~Ava~

"Comfortable?" Camilla asked, adjusting the buckles that strapped a small knife to her thigh.

Standing in the armory, the nun had been fitting her out with weapons. The Halo bearer was decked out in her usual battle suit, even though there was no need for the heat resistant vent for the now under her control Halo. Ava had several blades of various sizes hidden across her body, but one still hadn’t been added to her stash.

Ava flexed her leg, “It’s fine…No sword?" She asked, curious that the Cruciform sword was still lying sheathed on the table instead of where it usually hung tethered to her hip or slung across her shoulder.

Camilla gave her an odd look, “Um, Mother Superior just wanted the knives.” She muttered awkwardly; Ava’s eyes narrowed.

“Oh my God, if she's seriously scared I’m going to lose it again…Oh.” Ava abruptly realized the reason for the older nun’s caution.

She doesn’t want to risk it falling into the wrong hands…she isn’t sure if I'm coming back…

The Halo bearer recognized how dangerous this mission was going to be, even if she managed to accurately teleport to the Brotherhood’s lair, discovering where it was located without being found out and then teleporting all the way back here was going to be a challenge. Especially, being unsure about how much the cult actually knew about her strengths and weaknesses.