“I will.”
Shar approached Kaia before entering the bunker. “Please be careful. I don't think I could handle it if something happened to you.”
“I will be, baby. But I'm not letting him get to you. You're my priority.”
“Don't worry, kitten, we've got Kaia's back,” Baz said as he and Rafe approached.
“Kitten?”
“Mmhmm, I've noticed when you're happy you tend to purr.” He hugged her. “We'll keep our girl safe. Go, get inside whereyouwill be safe.”
“Baz is right, we'll keep Kaia safe,” Rafe said, kissing her temple.
They all knew his illness was taking its toll on him, sapping his energy and strength, so Kaia and Baz would be helping to keephimsafe as well.
“I want all of you to be safe and come back to me,” Shar told them.
“We will,” they all promised and she entered the bunker with the rest who wouldn't be fighting.
“Let's do this. Let's show Silas he chose the wrong fucking option,” Kaia said as she turned away from the bunker.
Rafe
He felt like shit, and it couldn't have happened at a worse time. Just when he needed to be at the top of his game. But he refused to go into the bunker and let Kaia fight without him. No fucking way would he let her down like that. Instead, he took a double dose of the pills Doc had given him, ignoring the warning of the crash it would cause after they wore off, and pushed the weariness down.
As the sun began it's descent across the sky, the dust kicked up from so many vehicles headed their way could be seen. The scouts had radioed in that Silas passed them without picking up any further men, which was good, and so far there was no sign of an attack from a different direction.
“Look alive everyone, here they come,” Baz yelled, his voice echoing across the compound.
Rafe moved to Kaia’s side. “We've got this, babe.”
“I know. But people are going to die.”
“That blood is on Silas’ hands, not yours. You gave him the chance to just walk away and he didn't.”
“I know. That doesn’t mean I have to like it,” she replied.
He wrapped his arms around her and held her for a moment. “I know, babe. I know.”
When Silas reached their compound and stopped a good distance away, Kaia called out to him. “It's not too late to stop the bloodshed before it starts.”
“Send out the woman and we'll leave,” Silas bellowed.
“Not fucking happening!” Kaia replied.
“Then this blood is on your hands!”
“No, it's on your’s for not walking away in the first place,” Kaia said as the first shot rang out.
Gunfire filled the air, and then the wall was hit with an explosive that took a chunk out of it, allowing their attackers in. That's when things turned to hand-to-hand combat. It was as if Keona, the Goddess of Chaos, was reigning over things given the insanity of the fight. Kaia, Rafe, and Baz joined the fray, fighting as a unit as much as possible.
Rafe could feel the effects of the pills wearing off and he gritted his teeth. He needed to push through.
Kaia
Once the fighting was at close range, she'd switched to her daggers. She dodged and weaved around attackers, looking for Silas. She wanted to take the bastard out. Sheneededto take him out. In her haste to find him, she got separated from Rafe and Baz but she wasn't worried about them. She knew they would stick together, and they'd find her when they could.
“What's a little thing like you going to do with those pig stickers?” the burly guy in front of her asked when she brandished her daggers.
