“I’m so sorry, Kaia. Maybe I can talk to him, find out what’s going on?”
“I don’t want to put you in that position. I just have to accept that it looks like I’m destined to lose both of the men I love. I just wish if he was going to leave he’d go on and get it over with, you know? The waiting is killing me.” She shook her head. “Anyway, enough about me. Before we get back, there are some things we need to discuss. There’ve been a few changes since you went away. The first is to the defenses. We’ve increased the number of men on the walls keeping watchout for trouble. A month after your incarceration, we had a sneak attack by reavers. They were let in by a traitor.” Reavers were mutated Xarians who roamed the Badlands in packs.
Aimee gasped. “Oh my Goddess. Who?”
Kaia glanced over as she responded. “Tanner.” Tanner was a young man Aimee had been involved with at the time. Instead of tears, which she’d expected, she only saw anger in the younger woman’s eyes. “What? Please tell me he’s dead!”
“Oh, believe me, he is. I saw to it personally. We lost a few members of our community thanks to him, so I took great pleasure in ending his life. We have tighter patrols on the walls as a result. We still have two buildings in the process of being repaired; the infirmary and the mess hall. Getting supplies has been a bitch and a half, but we’re almost done, thank Uhneas.” Uhneas was the Xiarian Goddess of Work.
“Oh, damn, it’s been almost a year and you’re still rebuilding?”
“We had five buildings that were totally destroyed in the attack. It’s been a nightmare getting all the supplies to rebuild everything. Homes were more important because people needed a roof over their heads.”
“Oh, yeah, I can see that. I’m glad that fucker is dead. I’m sorry I ever even dated him,” Aimee grumbled.
“I don’t know what you ever even saw in him,” Tuck growled from the backseat. “He never appreciated you or treated you right.”
Kaia arched a brow and looked back at him. Well, that was interesting. Tuck was clearly paying closer attention to Aimee than even Kaia had realized.
“What do you mean?” Aimee asked, turning in her seat enough to see Tuck,
“He never took your opinion into account. He always just dismissed it as if it didn’t matter. He just didn’t take you seriously.”
“Huh. I never really thought about that, but you’re right, he didn’t,” Aimee said.
“Yeah, well, you’ve never had good taste in guys, Aimee. First there was Gabe, when you were twelve. He was a real asshole to you. Then Michael at fifteen. He definitely couldn’t win any boyfriend awards. And then Tanner. You need to make better choices,” Kaia said.
“Well, it’s not like I have a whole lot of those now, do I?” Aimee countered. There were only so many single men in the compound she found attractive.
A growl came from the backseat and both women glanced at Tuck.
“What?” Aimee asked.
“Maybe you just keep looking in the wrong places,” he said.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing,” he growled as they reached the gates of the compound.
Aimee turned back around, looking confused, and whistled. “Wow, I see what you mean about the defenses changing. That’s a lot of fire power. Where’d you get the big guns?” she asked, motioning to the weapons mounted above and beside the front gates.
“Called in a few favors. You know me, I’ve got friends in high places, girl,” Kaia replied with a cheeky grin.
Aimee laughed. “Goddess it’s good to be home. I’ve missed this place this last year. I promise, no more getting into so much trouble the Syndicate arrests me.” She shuddered. “One stint in there was one too many.”
“You have no idea how happy I am to hear that,” Kaia replied.
“Rafe!” Aimee suddenly shrieked out and dashed across the compound.
Kaia turned to watch as her lover caught the younger woman when she flung herself into his open arms, swung her up, and spun her around. There was a genuine smile on his face and it broke her heart to see it. It was the first time he’d smiled in weeks. She strode across the grounds toward them and caught the end of Aimee’s sentence.
“...going on with you and Kaia?”
“Goddess damn it, Aimee, I told you to stay out of it.”
“I know, but I love you guys, and I hate to see you hurting,” Aimee said in defense.
“It’s nothing for you to concern yourself with,” Rafe replied.
