Unholy Player

Meanwhile, while Adyr was off scaring a man into shitting himself and interrogating him about the Cannibal’s whereabouts, a five-man STF unit sat around a small fire, some distance from the settlement, staring at a young blonde girl with startled expressions.

"So you’re telling me a man wearing the same uniform as us dropped you off here... and then just left?" Kara asked, her brown eyes narrowing as she looked at the girl sitting calmly across from her, holding two water bottles like they were treasure.

"Yes. Brother said there are other big brothers and sisters here, and they can give me good food," Zelda replied. Her sharp eyes scanned the area, but when she didn’t find anything that resembled food, she pouted.

Kara watched her for a moment, then pulled a canned dessert from her supply bag. She opened it and handed it to the girl. "This brother—do you know his name?"

Zelda accepted the dessert with a bright expression and nodded. "Yes. He said his name is Adyr."

Just as Kara had suspected. Her description matched him exactly, but she still couldn’t figure out why Adyr had left the girl here. The team had only been out on a routine sweep. When they returned, she was just sitting there, waiting for them.

"Do you have a family?" Kara asked, trying to get a clearer picture.

The girl flinched, nodded at first, then quickly shook her head. "I had a father, but big brother said he went somewhere far away."

"Far away? Where?" Derek asked from where he was sitting.

"I don’t know. It’s good he’s gone," Zelda said, not looking up as she ate the dessert with steady spoonfuls. Her face looked genuinely content.

Kara and the others didn’t press the question. They didn’t need to be Adyr to notice the bruises on her arms.