“This is his first and last chance. If he even toes the line after this, I want him killed!” Ursula said.
“If we are done discussing trivial matters, we have two more important things to discuss,” Brian said. “They have already found us once; they can find us again. We need to come up with a plan, and we need to come up with it now.”
“Just facing ten of them led to such losses,” Bradley said. “We can’t take them on a face to face battle.”
“No, we can’t. We need reinforcement and we need help,” Helen said. “No matter how I think of it, I can’t find any other way.”
“There is no way to get out of the valley,” Brian said.
“They have cut off all possible routes out of here. They have trapped us, and it won’t be long before they find us.”
“We can reuse the strategy that you used to get me out,” Carlos said, walking in. Saira walked in with him, following him closely.
“Explain?” Helen said, looking up.
“We make multiple squads,” Carlos said. “Each squad goes to one of the blocked roads. This will serve as a distraction allowing Kai to slip by unnoticed.”
“He is too injured,” Lilly said.
“He managed to fight in the battle and run around to find Elisabeth,” Helen said.
“Yes, that was for a short duration. This will be hours of running at full speed. His body can’t handle that,” Lilly protested.
“Why not one of us?” Helen said. “Why does it have to be the bear? One of us can sneak by as well.”
“In that case, why not me?” Lilly said. “I can do it.”
“It will be almost two days' journey,” Brian said. “Panther won’t like the attack on his men. He will send out the entire army to track us down. He will have us all slaughtered before you can even reach the nearest bear clan for help.”
“We need some other way,” Carlos said. “We can rely on long-range attacks and some strategic defense system which should buy us some time.”
“Regardless, this will not be easy,” Saira said. “We also have some untrained villagers and even a few children. We can’t put them at risk.”
“There has to be something we can do,” Helen said. “We are running out of time.”
“We can evacuate,” Lilly suggested. “Distract them using Carlos’s plan and then we evacuate. Use long-range attacks to minimize losses.”
Brian was quiet. He crossed his arms across his chest and stared into the distance. “When I started this resistance, I did it because I wanted to take our land back. I did it because I wanted the avenge all the people they have cruelly massacred. To run away, without fighting back.”
“We are not running away. We are just going to get some help,” Helen said.
“Evacuating such a large number of people has too many risks,” Carlos said. “I am afraid that’s not an option.”
“You have all given me a lot to think about,” Brian said. “I think we all need to get some sleep and rest before we make any decisions.”
Lilly sighed to herself as the meeting ended. How had things gotten so fucked up?
Chapter 12
Elisabeth cooed as Kai held her on his lap. She had shifted back into a human as soon as he reached the small room they called the hospital. He didn’t know how he felt about all the crazy things that Lilly just told him. He had been a father all this time and he never knew it?
This beautiful angel was all his and he never knew? He felt shocked and astonished; he had never even imagined anything like this. He had never felt so confused in his life. On one hand, he felt happy that he had found Lilly again and that he had a beautiful little daughter. On the other hand, the sudden responsibility of being a father was jarring. He almost felt like running away from it all.
Kai couldn’t deny how protective he felt about the baby and Lilly. He wanted to keep them safe and secure at all times, but he also couldn’t deny how fazed out he felt. It was all too much and too sudden. Just a few days ago his only concern was to finish a mission for Jake and then return home so he could resume his normal life. And now, not only had he met the woman he had loved for so long, but he also found out that he was a father.
He looked down at the baby, who was struggling to get out of his arms. Kai couldn’t accept all this even though he knew it was the truth.
He let the baby down who struggled to get up before starting to walk around. After all, what did he know about being a father? This baby felt foreign and awkward. He didn’t know anything about looking after her or how to change her or even feed her. He had never even held a baby before this.
