Disorder Appearing

Chapter 8-"That bastard."

I wish I could have witnessed what took place shortly after I blacked out, but honestly the next thing I remember is waking up in the back of the Jeep and coming face to face with Titus right on top of me.

"Do not move." He says gently as he pulls the needle through my skin. He's patching me up. Well, at least he's good for something.

"I am sorry I did not come faster. Finding you was not the easiest when you cannot smell anything other than cat. I am so sorry I did not realize the danger you were in." He whispers as he moves close to examine his work.

"What the heck happened?" I mumble. My mouth aches, my nose aches, my arms ache, my head feels like I went into the ring with Rhonda Rousey. My whole body is killing me.

"You went up against a Cayman, and you lived to tell the story. A remarkable feat in itself."

"Oh yeah, I feel like a real champ."

"No, you do not understand. The Cayman Tribe are genetically engineered perfected soldiers. They are breed specifically to do nothing but kill. They are in a way, more deadly than even the Draconians."

"What did he want with you?" I whisper. Life still isn't making much sense, and this headache really isn't helping matters.

"He was most likely sent to dispose of me, more betrayal from those I once called my friends."

"Lovely. He mentioned that he could smell someone not from here, but I thought my biggest job was to mask your smell."

"That is your job. Cayman have an innate sense of smell. He did not know if I was with you, but he did know that someone was with you that did not belong with you."

"I see."

"You should really stay still. It makes it difficult to patch you up when you move." He smiles, and then leans in right beside my cheek. I can't feel the needle, but it really doesn't make me feel too calm to see a needle out of the corner of my eye.

"What did you do to him?"

"I took care of him. You should have heard the despicable things he wanted to do to you."

"Are there more of them?"

"Not that are going to come after us. Cayman work alone, there is some type of code I have never understood about them that insist that the one who starts an assignment must finish it, or a family member. But it takes a considerably long time for a family member to come of age to start tracking us, so we will be safe."

"So, what now? They're onto us, if he could find us isn't it only a matter of time until the other guys show?" My eyes are starting to droop, and I realize just how tired I really am.

Titus moves towards my neck holding the needle with precision, I really don't feel it weave in and out of my skin, but at this point I'm sure it wouldn't hurt nearly as bad as actually getting cut. He explains that the mission has been compromised but that we cannot for any reason quit now. Tali has told him that she knows she's in danger, and that scares Titus to death. He's so worried about her, but at the same time he's equally worried about me. Apparently that knife is a big deal. The knife is designed to burn as it cuts to try and prolong the torture procedure, but there's also a high risk of infection associated with the knife. I don't understand the details behind why there's an infection problem, but he's nervous about it, and something tells me that if he's nervous I should be doubly nervous.