A Partisan's Fight - COMPLETED!

Chapter Twenty-One

Things had moved quickly after the handshake with the general. Markus didn't have much to gather and Aldrik didn't have much to say. They moved onto their next mission. It was the next step to complete the mission she felt was the destiny that she hadn't had before. She had a purpose now.

Tracking Roland down hadn't been as difficult as they'd expected. He hadn't made it too far.

"I want to face him alone. I want to see where he stands." Mina didn't look back at Aldrik. She could feel him close to her.

"Are you sure?" His words took her by surprise. She had been waiting for an immediate argument or reprimand, not just a simple question.

Nodding her head, she moved out of the clearing toward the man she had thought she loved. To the man that still held pieces of her heart. To the man that left her confused on if she should be broken or given a reason to fight harder. To the man... that had betrayed her.

She slowed her hurried pace down as she neared him. "Rolly?" Her eyes were laced with tears. Finally he was there. Finally he was standing in front of her, turning to face her. This moment was supposed to be joyous, surreal. Instead, instead it was confusing and edgy.

"Mina?" He stared at her in disbelief. He reached out to touch her shoulder, but pulled back quickly. "What are you doing here? How did you save me from a firing squad?"

Her eyes shifted back and forth between his. She blinked back the overwhelming tears, steeling herself to mask the emotion. She'd expected him to at the very least hug her, but not even a kiss was exchanged. She hid her disappointment and focused on the hand she'd been dealt. "I made a deal."

He took a step back, placing a bit more distance between them. Ready to calculate every word she spoke. "What deal? What could you possibly have to offer?"

Mina remained silent for a long moment. She wasn't sure where she wanted the conversation to go. The next question surprised her. "Did you know?"

He sighed. "Did I know what?"

"Did you know about the camps? About the people being rounded up by our people and treated inhumanely? Did you know, Rolly?" She didn't dare blink, barely even dared to breathe as she waited for his response. His next words would seal his fate, or, at the very least, begin to seal that fate. Life or death was being held in the palm of her hands. An option that shouldn't be given to anyone. It was a far cry from being a gift.

He looked up at the sky, muttering something under his breath. Refocusing on her, he allowed himself to speak. "Of course I knew about the camps, Mina. I am a soldier. I trained at one."

"And you were okay with it?" Her brows knitted together, her words stark and harsh.

"Yes, Mina, I was okay with it. Those people are not us. They are not of pure bloodlines. They are mutts. Minuscule to us. How did you know about them? I specifically instructed your family not to tell you about them..." He paused, his jaw tightening. He shook his head as realization filled him. "You are not here alone, are you?"

Mina dropped her gaze to the ground, her own jaw tightening. Of course he told her family not to tell her about any of it. He probably paid them for their silence. The thought was sickening.

"Aldrik, get your sorry excuse for a being out here. Now!" Roland didn't move his gaze from Mina. His eyes were condemning. He looked angry enough to hit her, but didn't budge his hand.

"Roland." Aldrik came out of the brush with his dog and Markus. He crossed his arms over his chest.

Roland marched up to him; spite filled his eyes. He pointed his index finger at him. "Did you tell her about the camps? Did you bring her there?"