
CHAPTER 19
Cassidy sat alone at the table in the main entrance. Dawn should have been cresting the horizon, but instead the room was dim, the sky filled with dark, angry looking clouds. Outside, the wind was picking up, the leaves of the compounds trees and shrubs whipping around in the building gray of the morning.
She frowned into her glass of water. What she wouldn’t give for a good, strong, coffee. It was one of the things she missed the most about Earth. She’d actually made a case, when the Livarians had delivered those that wished to go home back through the portal, to bring some coffee plants here. Draven had squashed the idea though, worried that the plant might somehow be invasive. He was right, of course, but that didn’t help the cravings.
Movement out of the corner of her eye had her turning toward the right hallway. Tor emerged clutching the light tool, a concerned look on his face. His green eyes latched onto hers, but he didn’t school away the expression.
“What is it?” Cassidy’s stomach sank. “Is Becky okay?”
“About the same actually. She got some good rest last night,” he paused, and seemed to be considering her. “I am worried about this storm,” he ventured at last. “The tech team is warning that it might knock out the energy field. If it does the building could be vulnerable.”
Memories of the winged, flying predator flashed through her mind and Cassidy paled. “From predators?”
Tor shook his head, much to her relief. “Not during the storm anyway. I’m more concerned about debris. Some of our worse storms are enough to flatten smaller buildings.”
A bright flash punctuated his words, followed by the distant rumble of thunder.
Here she’d been sitting around worrying about her plants. New anxiety crept in and she eyed the building storm warily.
“You’ve been informed?” Gorth emerged from the left hallway, light tool in his hands. Tor held up his own light tool.
For a moment there was an impasse, a sort of silence while the two sized each other up.
“What equipment is the most sensitive?” Gorth broke the silence. “We should move it into a room without windows, at the least.”
Cassidy didn’t miss the flash of surprise that crossed Tor’s face, but the medic nodded in thanks and soon the two Livarians were busy preparing for the storm.
Tor hadn’t been kidding about the storm. The wind had gone from blustering to howling, rain pelted against the windows with enough force that even Becky had been driven out of her room. She sat, across from Cassidy and next to Gorth and Emily, looking pale and frightened, but otherwise no worse than the last time Cassidy had seen her.
The table had been moved away from the front windows, against the back wall and the four of them sat now, a hand of cards in front of them. Cassidy was glad she’d thought of the request when the supplies for the day were being delivered. Along with enough food and emergency water, she’d suspected they would need a distraction or two from the storm’s severity.
“Now, every heart is worth one point,” Emily was explaining. Gorth nodded, looking at his hand again, a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips. “Points are bad. You want to get rid of them.” The smile fell and Gorth’s eyebrows puckered.
Cassidy only listened halfheartedly, her attention wandering between the rain pouring down outside and worry about Tor, who’d slipped into the lab as soon as the preparations had been complete and hadn’t emerged yet. It was important, the work, she understood that, but she didn’t think she’d ever seen him take a true break, or relax in any way. It couldn’t be good, and if he worked himself to death they would all be in trouble.
“...right Cass?”
Cassidy blinked at Emily. “Oh...sorry I didn’t catch that.”
Emily rolled her eyes. “The queen of spades. That’s the card to watch out for.”
“Yeah, for sure. She’ll get you every time,” Cassidy agreed.
“It’s best just to avoid her altogether,” Becky added forcefully, laying down a card in the center. It was one of the first things she had said since emerging from her room and her tone suggested she wasn’t happy about it.
A little confused Cassidy opened her mouth to speak.
“Maybe I don’t want to avoid her,” Gorth said casually.
“You would be stupid not to. She’ll take you down with her,” Becky practically growled.
“That’s my choice then, isn’t it. Maybe I think she’s worth it, even if she doesn’t.”
“We aren’t talking about hearts anymore are we?” Emily muttered, casting Cassidy a ‘help me’ glance. Cassidy watched the interaction. Obviously something had happened between the two and they were playing it out now. It was a little like a car wreck on the side of the road. She should look away...
“It isn’t about worth,” Becky slapped her hands down and stood up, Gorth stood as well, towering above her, his dark eyes intense on her face. “It’s about using the brain in that massive head of yours cutting your losses.”
“Not going to happen, Becks, not even for a second.”
Becky growled. Actually growled.
And then Gorth did it; he leaned in, farther and farther, giving her time to flee, if that’s what she really wanted. Becky stood, frozen, probably a little disoriented by the turn the argument had taken, and a small flash of something vulnerable passed through her eyes. Gorth seen it too, and his arms enveloped her, lips crashing down onto hers. It took a fraction of a second before Becky melted against him, kissing back furiously.
“Wow,” Emily huffed beside her.
But Cassidy wasn’t really paying attention anymore because something had caught her attention from the left hallway. Tor entered the room and halted at the scene before him.
Cassidy cringed internally. Poor Tor, he really really had never stood a chance.
She didn’t know what she expected his reaction to be, but it certainly wasn’t what came next. He blinked once at the couple, still making out obliviously next to the table, and then his eye’s found hers and he strode toward her. He didn’t look devastated, or even disturbed about the occurrence. It was then that she noticed he carried a syringe and long narrow tube.
“We’ve got an answer,” he told them.
I'm loving this story, even though it's torture to wait a week for each chapter! Great work, Lacey!