I walked back towards one of the holes in the back of the camp, thinking about the message Heda had sent. Luckily, she agreed with my assessment that these children were no threat. Not to Trikru or the Kongeda, except maybe through ignorance or sheer stupidity. But she was wary of using resources to house, feed, and teach them with no guarantee of a positive return. And Heda had a point. Even after spending a week among them, I still only saw a handful that showed promise. That proved worthiness of becoming either a member of Trikru or part of the Kongeda. In the end, Heda had ordered me to find a way to test them within camp. Unfortunately, my injury prevented me from doing what I needed to do. And with a week to do it, I wasn't sure how with everything else going on.

I sighed and ran my hands through my hair, working out the tangles and knots as I continued to think. When I neared the wall and the hole I had left through, I slowed down, though. An odd sound reached my ears, and as I looked at the wall, I saw it tremble slightly. Tying my hair back to keep it from my face, I pulled out my knife and carefully approached the wall. I heard a male voice grumbling under his breath, but it was too low to make out who it belonged to.

The moment I stepped through, I grabbed the boy and pulled him back into the forest. Throwing him against the tree, I pressed his face against the bark, knife against his throat, and his arm pulled painfully behind him.

I pulled his arm up higher, eliciting a painful yelp as I growled out, "Why were you waiting for me?"

"I know you're not one of us," the boy, which I now recalled was called Murphy, gasped.

"And why do you say that, Murphy," I continued to growl.

"B-because the girl you look like, M-Mary," Murphy painfully replied. "Sh-she was in the cell next to mine. I used to talk to her."

For a second, I panicked and cursed myself for not remaining away from the others. Then, I took a breath to calm my thoughts and started thinking of what I could do.

"Does anyone else know," I demanded.

"No. No. Her cellmate was Trina. The one who was caught in the acid fog with my cellmate, Pascal," Murphy replied. "Look, I'm not planning on squealing. I just want to talk."

"Why should we talk when it is easier to kill you," I asked.

"B-because! Because I'll be missed! And. And I told a few guys that I was going to talk to you. If, if I go missing, they'll come to you. And, and I'm sure you don't want to have your cover blown."

"You're smart, Murphy," I growled. "I'll give you that. What do you want?"

"Ju-just to talk," Murphy repeated. "That's it."

I snorted, "That's bullshit. I know your type, Murphy. You're an opportunist. You follow whoever you think will come out stronger. So, I'm going to ask again. What do you want?"

"To survive," he burst out. "I want to survive."

I thought for a minute and then flipped him around, keeping him firmly against the tree with my hand, "If you want to survive, John Murphy, I suggest you speak truthfully and clearly. Your death and the death of the people you told are of no consequence to me."

"But I'm sure it is to whatever reason you're here," Murphy said, rubbing his shoulder.

I stayed silent, but the grip on my knife tightened. He took my silence as his cue to start talking.

"Here's what I think is going on," Murphy said. "I think you're a Grounder. Probably sent here to figure if we're a threat or not. I've overheard Blondie talking with Junior about the camp being watched. And I'm pretty sure that between you and the others watching us, you can see that we're barely surviving. We're hardly a threat. I don't know what your people are planning, and I don't really care. I only care about my own survival."

Murphy paused to gauge my reaction, but I gave him none. I just stared at him, coldly in silence.

He sighed, "I'm not thrilled that we're back in contact with the Ark. We have a good thing going here, even though we're barely surviving. No one's threatening us to stay in line. We all eat the same. But that won't continue when the Ark comes down. I'm sure you've heard the stories. Here's the thing. I have no one. Both my parents are dead. If I go back to the Ark, I'm going to go back to being ignored, kicked around, and getting in trouble. I'll run away the first chance I get. What I'd like is not to get killed the moment I'm alone in these woods. And I figured that you might just be my best shot at staying alive out here."

"What exactly are you asking me, Murphy," I asked, studying him, and seeing the nervousness and fear in his eyes.

"I'll keep your secret if you keep me alive," he said, looking me in the eyes.

"You want something more than that," I said. "Because I can have you thrown in a cell where you'll live the rest of your life and still hold to that. And you don't seem the type who appreciates hard work."

"I've always been a fan of the saying, 'work smarter, not harder," Murphy said. "But if I have to get dirty, I'll get dirty."

"And is your word worth much, John Murphy? How do I know you'll keep silent?"

"I may be a criminal, but I'm not a snitch," Murphy glowered at me.

"What was your crime, John Murphy?"

"Arson. I set fire to the quarters of the guard who floated my dad," his glower lessened to a frown. I read pain and anger in his eyes. Sadness too.

"And why was your father floated, John Murphy?"

"Because of me," Murphy barked out angrily. "I was sick. My dad got caught trying to steal medicine because I was sick."

"Was anyone killed in the fire you set?"

"No," he grumbled.

I smirked at his disappointment. I thought my options over quickly and decided that he was possibly my best choice to get the results I needed. Especially since the Blakes were no longer an option.

"Here's what's going to happen, John Murphy," I said, moving my hand from his chest to his throat and squeezing slightly. "I have been given one week to prove that the lot of you aren't worthless. I need an assistant since my injury prevents me from doing many things. You, John Murphy, are going to be that assistant. Without giving the reason why we will be training everyone in this camp how to survive. How to effectively hunt, gather food, build storage, and anything else I can think of. To prove your worth and word, John Murphy, you are to go back and tell your friends that you will be gone for the rest of the day. Then you are to come back, where Thor, here, will take you to my friend, Devin. You are to do everything Devin tells you to with no deviations, cut corners, whining, faking, or anything like that. If you do not follow through, you will not return."

"Thor," Murphy snorted. "As in—"

Thor dropped silently from the tree to stand beside me. I smirked as Murphy's eyes widened in shock and fear as Thor rose to his full height.

"Do you understand what I have told you, John Murphy," I said, my voice startling the boy.

He cleared his throat a couple of times before he could finally speak, "When you say that I won't return—"

"You won't return," I replied, not explaining further. "Do you understand, John Murphy? Because one of two things is going to happen now. Either you leave to tell your friends you will be gone all day, or…I kill you, and Thor gets rid of the body. Do we have an accord?"

"One question," Murphy asked, glancing warily between Thor and me. "What will happen to me if you can't prove that we're not worthless?"

I rolled my neck, making it pop as I mulled the question over, "If you do as I say with no complaints, and prove yourself to Devin and myself, you have my word that you will not share the same fate as your fellows. Do we have an accord?"

"Yeah, why not," Murphy said after a long moment. "We've got an agreement, Grounder Chick."

I squeezed his throat, making him gasp, as I stepped closer, "My name is not, 'Grounder Chick,' John Murphy. Within those walls, I am Harlee. Outside, in this forest, I am Trikova Heda, Shadow Commander. But you will refer to me as my men do, Wocha. Am I understood?"

"Y-yeah. G-got it," Murphy replied, and I squeezed harder to make my point, and he choked out, "W-watcher."

"Close enough," I relented and let his throat go. "Devin will work with you on that. Now, you have five minutes. If I see you in camp past that, you won't be around to greet the sun tomorrow."

Murphy nodded as I stepped back. He took one last glance at Thor beside me and took off again through the hole in the wall. I sighed and sheathed my knife as I waited for Thor to speak.

"Is this a good idea, boss," Thor asked.

"No," I replied. "But I have no choice. Heda has given me one week, and the person I would prefer is going to be spending her time with Linkon. John Murphy will obey because he wants to survive. But it does not make him trustworthy. The moment a better opportunity presents himself, he will turn on us."

"Then, we must make sure that he is not given such an opportunity."

I nodded in agreement, "Have Devin put him through his paces. Everything we teach goufas. Or as much as he can fit in a day. I want a full report, and John Murphy brought back to me at sunset."

"Sha, Wocha."

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get back. I left Klark in my hut, and I have been gone too long," I said, walking to the hole.

"Alright, boss. I will keep you informed," Thor said, laughter in his voice.

"Oh, shof op, Thor," I replied, rolling my eyes. "It's not like that."

"Sure, boss. Sure," came his teasing reply.

I just shook my head and headed back to my hut, passing Murphy on his way back out. We shared a glance, but otherwise, I ignored him. I had other important things to worry about.