Love, Against All Odds

IV - Chapter 9

Becca restoked the fire in Kal's tent while Kal laced the tent's flap after Dorlon left. For over an hour, they worked out an early plan to take down Alpha Prime once Fio Gurret arrived in Rauoa. Dorlon expected the fio to arrive within three to four days; then the blockade would start. The blockade would take at least two or three days to set up, depending on the weather. At the center of it all, Becca would become the prized valuable that Alpha Prime would be fooled into taking. In the meantime, they needed a volunteer to join Becca on the mission.

With a sigh, Becca sat on a stool but watched her lover kneel and finish lacing the bottom, at least most of it. Kaden had slipped out shortly after Dorlon. With the lower portion left untied, Kaden could slip through and join them. Not that Becca expected the locke to return right away. Kardos's snowy landscape was favored by lockes. But food was scarce this time of year, and Kaden would take longer to kill a worthy meal.

Kal removed her jacket after sealing the tent flap. Once placing it down, she returned to the center where Becca waited for her.

'Do you ever carry a handgun?' Becca asked, twisting her head upward when her lover went behind her.

Bending forward, Kal began massaging Becca's strained shoulders and worked the muscles loose. 'I have brought one with me. I will start to carry it.'

A soft groan escaped Becca as the massage chased away her worries, for now. 'Thank you for taking me to that meeting.'

'The X-ray glasses were a good idea.' Kal increased her grip and forced a knot from Becca's shoulder muscle. 'You held your tongue the entire time.' Amusement played on her features, but a hint of pride colored her tone.

Becca straightened up and smiled to herself but grumbled after thinking back on the meeting. 'I wanted to punch that asshole after what he said about you and Dorlon.' The meeting continued replaying in her mind and triggered one particular memory. Trying to keep her voice even, she asked, 'Do you know Tarsiss?' The quietness grew and prompted Becca to rise from the stool. 'Who is he?' Kal's neutral expression was too forced and worried Becca even more. 'Freen, how do you know him? I felt your reaction to him when you first saw him.'

Kal pursed her lips, and the barest of emotions reflected in her eyes. She parted her lips but nothing was forthcoming at first, and her eyelashes fluttered a few times. Something inside her was at war again, jerking and pulling on the connection between her and Becca. She steadied herself with a deep breath and said, 'Tarsiss was the Alpha who attacked me as a child.'

For once, Becca caught herself growling. Now it made sense why Kal's sharp emotions sliced into her when they first saw the High Alpha. Freen had surged to life inside of Kal, fighting a losing battle to the god spirit. But Kal had been better prepared to control herself when Tarsiss gloated and taunted Kal. A dark piece of Becca wished that Kal had run Tarsiss through.

'He remembered you,' Becca murmured, dazed by the truth. 'He was the one that figured out Fairlee is your sister.' Heat coursed through her veins and burned her cheeks, then red spots dotted her vision. 'I'm going to kill that piece of shit,' she snarled, but her rage was cut short by Kal pressing their bodies together. The fire in her veins dipped lower, pooling between her legs.