FOUR – TANNER

 

Vala’s note was the final strike in the battle against the Day Stalkers.

After all of the training, all of the caring we showed her, breaking down walls, reprogramming and reaching out to her, she still left.

The day of the attack, she stopped being angry at me for whatever it was she was mad about. I liked her, I told her that. Before anything further could transpire between us, the battle began.

Both of us were too busy fighting.

I saved her life. Marie was gone, Vala was in the throat grip of the top Sybaris chick, and I saved her.

Vala was devastated. I understood that. She wanted to be alone. I understood that, too.

She said nothing about leaving.

I discovered that she was gone just after the first light of the day, and she had left a message for Davis. Without reading the letter or knowing what it said, like a fool I sought after her, chasing her down, begging her not to go.

She just rode away as if nothing I said even mattered.

This was a girl who fled for her life, ran to us, wanted to be a part of our side, and then went back. My mind raced with thoughts that she had used us, that she came to us, found our weaknesses, led the battle our way, then after finding out for the Sybaris how to take us down, she left under the guise of self-sacrifice.

I didn’t buy it.

Davis scolded me with his typical, “oh, you’re nuts, you’re just pissed because she left.”

“Why don’t you care?” I asked him.

“I do. She left for a reason.”

“No kidding. Do you buy it?”

Davis locked a stare on me. A serious one. “Yes. She had good reason to go. And I think... I think with Mindy gone, this is our best option.”

Mindy was supposed to be our link, our connection so Vala could do her projection thing, find Mindy, find the City of the Ancients, and plan an attack. Then Mindy was killed and Davis found it logical for Vala to replace her.

Should we trust her? I asked that of Davis.

“Do we have a choice?” he replied.

Yeah, yeah, we did.

I was so filled with anger about her leaving, I could only choose to let it go.

We were still reeling from the loss of life and she just up and left.

The battle was us against the Sybaris, and no longer did it include Vala the Magic Mare.

Until I was positive otherwise, I wasn’t even factoring her into the equation when it came to counting on her to fight.