Chapter 49

Freyja expected more of a fight. She didn't even get to use the catnip toys as a distraction. She hadn't planned on taking out the Tiger's worm with the first shot, but its mind vanished from the Link entirely. Odin trembled behind, clinging to her waist with both arms wrapped around her midsection as she pulled a U-turn on the road.

Good shot, Boss, Lawrence said.

He cut off the lights and siren, just as planned. They'd worked to draw the Tiger out like a laser pointer, distracting it enough to allow her to line up the Barrett from the Armory. Keeping control of the bike with one hand while firing had been tricky, so she decided to make a third hand to manage the weapon if she needed to shoot anything else.

Thanks. Gonna clean up the mess, she replied.

Sprinkles scampered down the road from the burning farm houses toward the downed Tiger just as Freyja rolled up to it. She didn't stop, but did slow enough to reach down with her left arm, shifting it so as to scoop up the corpse and funnel its body into herself, much to the annoyance of the small cat. She absorbed it completely, unlike the weapons. It wasn't the same as eating a real meal with her mouth but she still felt better after doing it.

I was gonna eat that! Sprinkles protested.

Did you kill it? she asked.

No.

Then you don't get to eat it, she replied.

Freyja circled the young cat slowly after shifting her arm back to normal, allowing him to hop on to Odin's back. The small light colored kitten crawled up and onto his head. He dug his claws into the dark gray hair and scalp, which finally got Odin to stop trembling out of terror and shock.

You okay, Buddy? she asked.

Odin squeezed her a little tighter. I was not expecting you to do any of that.

Freyja accelerated to catch up with the rest of the convoy. She hadn't planned on using the .50 Barrett sniper rifle from the onset of the evacuation. The idea had only dawned on her after taking in the guns. Odin had his hands full with the kittens, so she'd shared the idea with Lawrence before leaving Kait's property. The man's bike was still in the farmhouse with the engine partially dismantled. Having him drive the cop car as a diversion and using the gun with the longest range made sense.

Temporarily storing weapons felt...a little odd. Like holding rocks in her mouth she could spit out at anytime. The trickiest part had been figuring out how to load them while they were stored. Like tying a cherry stem into a knot using her tongue. The math didn't make sense, but she was able to do it by instinct. How much of that she'd picked up from Odin remained to be seen. Probably all of it. Still, his being surprised by her actions made her wonder if he'd be able to pull off the same maneuver. She'd also been able to find the keys to Page's bike in the mess of information, along with their corpse. The latter hadn't been the best thing to discover. Sherlock had devoured them, and yet Freyja was able to access the body. She was pretty sure she could spit out at the dead biker but not the wormy cat if needed. There were no signs of Sherlock's body as far as she could tell. Freyja resolved to ask Odin later if any of that was normal or not.

Maybe Sherlock had spat out Page at the last moment?

Or, maybe Freyja had dissolved the cat and preserved Page?

The sensation of someone just over her shoulder through the Link continued, like three minds beyond her own were riding the bike with her. Two people giving her a firm hug from behind, Odin and a ghost, as the sky began to lighten from the rising sun.

We'll be making a pit stop in a minute, Freyja said wide across the Link so everyone could hear. Last stop before we head to Carrie's ranch in Spring Brook.

The Tiger's not following us anymore? Gee asked.

Nope, but we've got to keep an eye out for more, Freyja replied.

Does Carrie know where to stop? Damien asked.

Snow and Lucky are riding with her, they've got the location, Freyja said.

Why don't we have the location? Gee asked.

Freyja sent everyone in the Link the requisite info again so they'd know which truck stop to pull over at. If it's occupied we're continuing on to the next empty one.

Affirmative, Hemi said.

The other Linked cats acknowledged the information along with the Linked Humans. Odin continued to hug Freyja tightly the whole way to the deserted Diamond Back's gas station. The building was large, with covered gas pumps, allowing them all room enough to park in the early morning light. Freyja gently coaxed Odin to remove his hands so she could dismount Page's bike. Sprinkles continued to cling to his head like a fuzzy hat, flicking his tail excitedly while watching everyone in the area.

"Why exactly are we stopping?" Damien asked.

Freyja approached where all the Humans had gathered under the main awning. "Pit stop. Grab whatever you need, use the bathroom. Then, Carrie's taking point to lead us to her place."

"I..." Kait began. She hadn't joined the others and was instead sitting on the ground next to the van's front tire. Grief poured off her in sheets. "My home...it's gone..."

Letting her collapse in on herself was only going to disrupt everyone else in the Link. Freyja thought a moment, allowing everything else around her to slow while she did so. To her surprise Odin seemed to notice, glancing over at her more quickly than anyone else was moving. He only moved his eyes, which probably saved him from flinging Sprinkles off his head. They didn't have time to waste grieving. Not yet. There would be time for that once everyone was safe. She slowed back down and marched over to Kait, bending down to pick her up by the shoulders and lift her into a standing position.

"You're alive," Freyja said firmly. She turned the woman so she could see the van a little better. Some of the cats inside meowed loudly. "They're alive." She sat Kait back down and stepped back, turning to face everyone else, speaking louder than before, "Tomorrow is for mourning. Today is for survival. Now, get in there, grab yourself some novelty shirts and jerky. We leave for Carrie's in thirty minutes."

Everyone broke like football players on the field, hurrying to the building in front of them. Kait hung back, her eyes more hard than before. Her grief had been replaced with anger. She grabbed Freyja's shoulder, spinning her back to face her.

"You don't fucking get it, do you? You cost me everything I had. My home! My cats! My fucking life! It's all gone thanks to you. The only belongings I have left are photos of my parents in my fucking wallet!" Kait roared.

Freyja stared at her coldly. "And how many times have you lost it all?"

"What?"

"How many times have you been without a home? Without family?"

Freyja stepped forward, closing what little gap there was between them. This close, she couldn't help but feel like she was looking into some sort of fun house mirror. Kait wasn't that dissimilar to her. They could have been sisters in another life. They had almost the same shade of red hair, similar green eyes, almost the same height even. Close in age too.

"Back off! You don't know what it's like to lose everything!"

Freyja chose not to be kind, sending Kait a dense packet of memories. The Old Man hitting her mother. Secret movie nights with Gee and their Mom and her friend 'Uncle Reed' when the Old Man thought they were out of town when she was little. He had the brightest red hair and always told funny jokes. The last time she saw her mother. News that the brakes on her car had failed. The funeral. The Old Man never having enough food in the house for them, vanishing for days on end. Gee desperately whisking Freyja away to safety. Bouncing around from churches to temples to other non-profits and run down motels for shelter until Gee was able to get them a shitty little apartment.

Kait's uppercut to Freyja's jaw knocked her back into the hood of the cop car. The woman screamed.

"DON'T YOU FUCKING SHOW ME MADE UP SHIT ABOUT MY OWN DAD YOU FUCKING MONSTER!"

Freyja stared at her in shock.

The Old Man wasn't her father, and given the similarities between them likely wasn't Kait's dad either. The only other men in the memories she'd sent were Gee and their mom's old friend Reed. He'd been a veteran of some sort. Freyja never learned what branch of the military he'd served in or even the man's last name. She only knew her Mom had known him for years and the Old Man never liked him. He was like a secret Uncle. There until he wasn't.

She slid off the dented hood of the car, eyes fixed on the fuming Kait. It fit so many cliches that she'd written off the idea that Reed could've been her father, but it made sense. They both inherited the man's striking hair and eyes.

"Oh shit, you know," Odin said softly.

Freyja marched forward as Kait prepared another punch. She caught the woman's fist mid-swing, pulled her close, and embraced her in a bear hug. She couldn't hold back her own tears this time, flooding the Link with her emotions. After so many years of losing everything and everyone but her brother she'd finally found someone.

"You're my sister," Freyja breathed.

You may have noticed today's episode is a day late! It wasn't going to be BUT I got the chance to be one of the Hosts for the Inkies!

No, that doesn't mean I have an alien brainworm in the head. It would certainly explain a few things...

What it means is I get to help announce that starting today, June 18th through July 2nd, you can Nominate you favorite series here on Tapas!

https://www.creators.tapas.io/the-inkies 

Get out there and nominate your faves!

You can even nominate Outside Cats for best new community series 2025!
- Sarah "Neila" Elkins