“She will wake up hungry so remember to give her some food. She eats bananas or anything that’s not spicy or too hard,” Lilly said. “She might need a diaper change, in which case just ask Gilly for some clean cloth.”
“Okay,” Kai said, already looking uncomfortable. Lilly cast him one last look before making her way toward the conference room. As she had suspected, she was already late. The meeting had started, and she burst in during the middle of it.
“What happened?” she asked.
“Our spies just sent their report,” Brian said. “Apparently, Panther has found out where we are. He plans on finishing the entire resistance in one attack. He is preparing his army even as we speak. They plan on attacking at dawn one week from now. That’s all the time we have!”
“Damn it,” Bradley said, slamming his hand on the table. “We are screwed.”
“I know that you wanted to stay here and take our land back, Brian,” Helen said. “But you need to realize that the lives of innocent women and children are in your hands. These lives are more important than land or revenge. We need to evacuate.”
“We can’t just leave-” Brian protested.
“Helen is right.” Lilly interrupted him. “Saving the lives of the people that are under our care is more important.”
Brian sat down, grabbing his head between his hands. Silence prevailed as everyone looked at him, waiting for his orders.
“Alright,” he said, his voice shaking. “We will evacuate. I will draw up a plan.”
Lilly felt a pang for sympathy for him because she knew how important it was for him to get their village back. This must be devastating for him, to have given up what he fought for all these years.
He gave one last nod before walking away, leaving everyone feeling disheartened and worried.
Chapter 14
Lilly walked out of there feeling lost and tired. Her heart wept for Brian because she entirely stood behind his cause. If only they had more soldiers or if their opponents were humans instead of shifters, things might have been a lot different.
She stood there for a moment, trying to collect her thoughts. She spotted Kai standing nearby, Elisabeth clasped tightly in his arms. She smiled, watching him struggle as he tried to comfort the crying baby. Then, she walked over and quietly took the baby from his arms. The relief on his face was unmistakable.
“Thank God you are here,” Kai said. “I couldn’t get her to stop crying.”
“You seem to have something against resting. You do realize that your leg needs time to heal? You can’t keep using it like this,” Lilly said, shushing the baby.
“Gilly said that it’s healing,” Kai said.
“Well, thank you for helping me,” Lilly said. “I will go home and look after her then.”
“Lilly, wait,” Kai whispered. “Can we talk?”
“Kai. Don’t. I still have a lot to figure out,” Lilly whispered back. “Even if you never left me, I am a married woman. I need time to think.”
She turned around quickly, trying to hide her tears. She quickly walked away, even as Kai kept calling her name.
***
The camp was restless as the news of the imminent attack spread through the ranks. Lilly sat outside her shack, with a bottle of beer in her hand. They had their last haul of supplies two weeks ago, where they managed to break into one of their supply wagons and steal food and drinks. There were only a few bottles left and the uncertain future and the thick atmosphere had everyone drinking.
Elisabeth was in Gilly’s care right now, as she also had a daughter who Elisabeth enjoyed playing with. She could almost imagine the two of them sitting with Gilly and having warm cakes.
Lilly wanted to relax her body and mind as she was feeling tired after running here and there and her mental stress was more than the physical stress. She had been in this abusive relationship all these years, thinking Kai never loved her. “I was so wrong,” She thinks taking another sip of beer. She wanted him badly. Her body craved for his touch and she wanted to relax in is muscular arms and sleep in his embrace for months.
“Why he is so hot? Does he even know I want to kiss his lips every time I am around him?”She kept on thinking about those beautiful nights she had spent with him.
She took another swing of her beer, only to realize that she was all finished. Perhaps this was for the good because she was clearly starting to get drunk. If she wasn’t careful, she would end up just like Kevin. She frowned as she suddenly remembered that she hadn’t seen him since he disappeared from the hospital. He had never been gone for so long before. There was nowhere he could have gone. She had assumed he was gambling, but she had already checked the few soldiers that gambled in the camp and no one had seen him.
“Someone looks very thoughtful and worried.” Kai’s husky voice entered Lilly’s ears and butterflies fluttered in her stomach just by hearing his voice. She could tell alcohol had started showing its effects.
She looked up to see him and he was smiling at her. His eyes glittered in the moonlight, and she couldn’t deny how attractive and charming he looked. His hair had grown longer and locks of his hair flopped sexily on his forehead. Stubble had covered his sharp jaw and cheeks and made him look more intense and attractive. He limped over to her and sat next to her, setting his crutch to the side.
