A Partisan's Fight - COMPLETED!

Chapter Twenty-Four

She didn't know how much longer they had marched through the cold, winter tundra. She'd tripped over too many bodies, tank tracks, and iced up mud puddles to know. Weeks of trying to stay alive had been harsh. She'd been excited to feel the baby's first few movements and quick to share it with her companions. However, she hadn't felt the baby move in days, and the thought that something had happened was stressing her out more than she cared to share with anyone.

"You okay?" Markus sat across from a fire, warming up his hands. He had waited until Aldrik had walked away to ask her.

Mina glanced up at him. She refocused on a rabbit she was preparing for them. It wasn't much food. It'd barely stop their bellies from growling, but anything was better than nothing at this point. She ignored looking at her protruding wrist bones from the lack of nutrition. "I did not think you cared how I was."

Swallowing hard, Markus looked away for a moment before pulling his gaze back to her. He watched her long, thin fingers work the fur away from the meat. He hadn't thought about how she could answer him. He wasn't sure how he wanted to respond.

"I care about our mission. It won't be a success if you're not healthy for it." Inwardly he groaned at his response. Now he just sounded like he didn't care about her welfare.

"Mmm." She nodded her understanding. Her exhaustion was obvious, but she didn't let it show in her actions. "I am doing fine. You do not have to worry about the mission."

He waited a long while before saying anything more. Thoughts were mulling around his brain. Questions that he wasn't sure he had a right to ask or really wanted to know the answers to.

Mina peeked up at him. She wasn't one for subtlety. Boldness was what got her questions answered. "If you have another question ask me it. Do not hold back."

Markus cleared his throat. "How is the baby?" He'd hit a sore spot. He could see the emotion welling up behind her eyes, but she swallowed it up quickly. He almost questioned if he'd seen the emotion before the steely brashness returned.

"The baby will not affect the mission." She cleared her throat, continuing in preparing their dinner.

His mouth opened to question her more thoroughly, but he bit back his question as Aldrik returned. He didn't want the woman's friend questioning her more than he all ready was. It wasn't right that she had to be worrying about a war while being pregnant. It wasn't a worry that she should have had to bear.

He watched Mina glance up at Aldrik before handing him her cleaned bunny. "It just needs to be rinsed off in the stream."

Getting up, Markus reached for the rabbit. "I'll do it."

Both companions stared at him as if his words were completely foreign to them. Perhaps they were. He had spoken in English after all, but both seemed to speak it fluently enough.

"It's time I pulled my weight around here." He shrugged off their uncertainty, gripping the rabbit until Aldrik released it with a shrug and a nod of approval. He couldn't help noticing Mina giving Aldrik a look of uncertainty and mistrust. He ignored it. He needed some space away from the pair anyway.

"If you try to leave, I will make you pay." Mina's voice carried behind him.

Knowing she couldn't see it, a smile slipped on his lips before disappearing. He was growing fond of her threats. It wasn't like he had anything else interesting to keep him from growing bored. Her spiciness kept him on his toes. Perhaps it wasn't really her attitude that kept him on his toes, but the knowledge that Aldrik would back up any threat she had to throw his way.

Cautiously, he knelt down by the flowing water. If there hadn't been any movement he was sure the stream would be frozen right now. He let the frigid water flow over his hand and in between his fingers. It was cold, yet refreshing. He set the dinner down on the rocks and filled the palms of his hands with the water. He flipped it up over his face, rubbing away the dirt and grime of not being able to bathe. He didn't know how to describe the feeling. It just felt good. His fingers found their way into his hair. He shoved the overgrown shag of a hairdo back and out of his face.

"Feels good, doesn't it?" Aldrik knelt down near him, filling up a canteen of water.

"It feels more than good. It's a slice of heaven." Markus grabbed the rabbit once again, continuing to wash the flesh free of fur and dirt. He decided to ignore his feelings earlier of not questioning the man about Mina. "She hasn't talked about the baby in days."

Aldrik's jaw tightened. He swallowed hard. "I have noticed."

"What does it mean?" Markus looked up at the man that could only be a few years older than him. He wasn't sure yet if the age difference made him any wiser than him however.

The canteen had finished filling. Aldrik screwed the cap back on, staring at the water moving. "I pray it's nothing."

"And if it is something?" Markus only asked with concern for the woman's stability. If she lost the baby how would it affect her with this mission? She was the one that had suggested all of this. She had to have a plan. They wouldn't know it if she went off the deep-end. Things could get ugly rather quickly.

"She would not let it affect her. She would bounce back." Aldrik said confidently, but even that confidence seemed to have a weakness stringing through it.

"It's her baby, Aldrik. Can a woman really bounce back as easily as you make it sound? She'd be losing a part of herself." He stared at him for a clearer answer. His words held truth to them.

Sighing, Aldrik finally looked at him. "You better hope she would bounce back sanely. The man that gave her that baby didn't give her a choice in how he gave it to her. She took away his manhood in retaliation. I have no desire to scare you, but you killed her father. Do you really think she would just let you walk away if she had another reminder of a piece of her stolen away?"

Markus's gaze fell away. He had no idea of her past feats. It made sense that her threats held some sort of impact, but he had no clue that she was capable of the violence that she'd insinuated. He should have assumed though after her confrontation with her unfaithful fiancé.

"Again, I do not want to scare you, but she is not one to take lightly. If you make her angry enough, she will end you without batting an eyelash." Aldrik stood up with his canteen. He nodded toward the camp. "I will give you a few minutes to think about that. I am going back to her. Hurry it up. I want to put the fire out before it gets dark. We don't need to draw anymore attention to us."

"I'll be right up." Markus did little to hide being slightly flustered with all the thoughts thrown at him. He didn't want to see this other side of Mina. It sounded like a dark, scary nightmare. Perhaps he needed to tread a little more lightly with her than he had anticipated. Or expected.