Betrayal - Book 3 of Guardians Saga - EDITED

CH 3.1 Troublemaker

A/N: Please listen to the music while you read this to help you understand the chapter.

***

The afternoon sun cast long shadows across the living room, where Cale sat cross-legged on the frayed afghan draped over the couch, reading a book. Rile was beside him, his gangly legs hanging off the armrest and his tablet cradled in his lap.

Alex opened the door of their apartment and stepped inside with a purposeful stride. She wore a black t-shirt and loose-fitting shorts, each hand grasping a wooden staff that had been hung from the wall.

"Cale," she said, "training room. Now."

Rile's eyes lit up, and he leapt to his feet. "This should be interesting," he said, anticipation coloring his voice.

Cale closed his book - an old, leather-bound tome - and set it aside. "What's this about?" he asked.

"You. You're making me nervous," Alex said as she tossed him the staff and stepped into the brothers' training room. She moved gracefully across the tiled floor, her smart phone playing "Troublemaker" in the background.

Rile leaned against one wall and watched them silently, arms folded across his chest.

Alex launched her attack at Cale, their staffs a blur of wood clacking against each other.

"I did exactly what to provoke this?" Cale asked through clenched teeth, struggling to keep up with her wild moves.

"You care. That makes me nervous. This is what I do when I'm nervous," she replied as she tried to sweep his feet off the floor.

Cale quickly lifted his staff, blocking her attack and sending sparks flying. "You're like a sister to me," he said.

"I'm not your sister. I'm an alien freak on the fast track to destruction," Alex spat back as she lunged at him again. He only partially deflected her blow, and the staff dug into his side painfully. She blasted him, then swept his feet out from under him. He fell hard onto the ground.

"Save your caring for your future clan. Don't waste it on me," Alex said with cold finality as she dropped the staff onto Cale's chest.

"That's cheating," Rile said.

"I'm a cheater and a liar," Alex replied. Cale struggled to sit up, "Stay down," Alex warned. "Learn your lesson."

Cale's foot whipped across her ankles and this time it was Alex who went down hard.

"Gonna stop going easy on her?" Rile asked with a sly grin.

Alex scrambled backward, her eyes blazing as she cried out and launched a stream of power at Cale. He reacted quickly, diving to one side and narrowly avoiding it. With a grunt, he dived on top of Alex and pinned her arms to the ground. "It's not worth it!" he shouted through gritted teeth. "Stop attacking anyone who cares about you!" He tightened his grip on her wrists, forcing her to miss as she released another blast.

Rile ducked. "This is getting better and better."

Alex lunged forward, driving her forehead into Cale's muzzle and simultaneously lashing out with a knee that connected with his solar plexus. He grunted in pain as his grip on Alex's wrist loosened. She spun away from him and prepared to strike again, but then Gabe burst into the room.

"What in the name of the Creator is going on here?" he demanded.

"Don't ask," Rile said, a smirk playing at his lips. "Just enjoy the show."

Gabe bellowed an order for them to stop, but Alex just laughed defiantly, her fingers sparking with electricity. In a split second, Cale had managed to twist her arm painfully behind her back, causing her to cry out in frustration. "Fire truck, Cale!"