AN: Hello my dear readers! Thank you so much for your comments, messages, favs and follows! I love to see what each and every one of you thinks about the story.

Now, without further ado, here's the next chapter! Can't wait to hear what you guys think! :)

Chapter 24

Time seemed to crawl as they waited for dawn to arrive. The exhaustion that had clouded her mind had been replaced by excitement and a bit of fear. She wasn't the only anxious one either, the entire camp was awake and restless, only one question on everyone's mind: what did they see fall from the sky?

With Bellamy's decision to wait until sunrise, they all had time to burn. And the best way seemed to be either sleep or keep busy.

Alex had attempted the first option, knowing that getting a couple of hours of sleep would do her good, but after spending an hour tossing and turning alone in her tent, she knew that it was wishful thinking. She knew she wouldn't be getting any sleep that night, her mind unable to settle as it raced from one thing to the next.

...Charlotte's frightened gaze before she leapt...Wells' dark, lifeless eyes Murphy's hateful glare as he looked at them...Nate...Octavia...Bellamy...

It was with a huff of frustration that she decided she'd had enough. Shoving herself to her feet, she ducked out of her tent and into the chilly night looking for something to keep her occupied.

She turned as someone cursed and found Fox carrying an armful of empty bottles, heading in the direction of the big water container the group had been using for water storage. Her face was the picture of frustration, as with every step another bottle seemed to tumble out of her arms onto the ground.

Then she tripped and half of the bottles sailed out of her arms.

A group of young guys sitting by a nearby fire snickered at the sight. They clearly had no problem watching the girl struggled.

Alex narrowed her eyes at them, then stepped towards the struggling girl, who glared at the offending bottles near her feet, looking like she was contemplating leaving them where they were.

As she approached the other girl, Alex ducked down, picking up the bottles. Standing up, she met Fox's suddenly unreadable eyes.

"Uh, need a hand?" Alex asked her, suddenly feeling uncertain about the other girls expression.

Then the corner of Fox's eyes crinkled as she smiled. Her smile was warm and sincere.

"Sure!" Fox replied, then held out a couple more bottles Alex could take. Then leaned towards her to whisper. "Thanks. I'm not sure I could have taken another second of being those guys entertainment."

"Clearly, chivalry is beyond dead," Alex said dryly then shot the boys another glare. When one of the boys caught her gaze, he blanched and whirled back towards the fire, shoulders tense. Alex found her own lips twitching in response. "Glad to be of service," she said, turning back to Fox.

Working with the other girl seemed to be the thing her brain needed. Fox was perfectly content to keep to herself as they worked, for which Alex was thankful. It gave her a moment to sort out her thoughts and think through the one thing that she couldn't seem to get off her mind.

Bellamy…

The expression on his face as he had stared up at the pod above them bothered her in a way she couldn't explain. It hadn't been a fleeting look of uneasiness or wariness or uncertainty.

No, it was an expression that she had never seen on him before.

Bellamy Blake had been afraid. And she couldn't get his expression out of her head.

But why? What could possibly scare him so much? Something about the situation bothered her and she couldn't put a finger on what it was. Was it because of Octavia? Or did he fear repercussions for coming down to Earth with the rest of us? She could understand some unease from the other delinquents - they had only just regained their freedom and distanced themselves from the Ark.

But Bellamy hadn't been a delinquent, he'd been a guard on the Ark, and that provided him with some form of protection that the rest of them wouldn't have it the Ark came down to Earth...

...Right?

And why had the Ark sent Bellamy down with the delinquents in the first place? Why only one guard? They must have known that one wouldn't be enough if we turned on him.

Her brow furrowed as she dunked another canteen in the water, her thoughts a puzzled swirl in her head. It was only the commotion from a nearby gate that interrupted her minds rambling.

Both her and Fox looked up.

"Looks like Clarke and Finn are finally back," Fox stated dryly, pulling her long brown hair over one shoulder. Then a sly grin tugged at her lips as she glanced back at Alex, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively. "One guess as to what they were doing - or more accurately - who they were doing."

Alex gave a small hum in agreement, eyeing the new arrivals. From the way they stood, shoulders and hands brushing lightly, she couldn't help agree with Fox's assessment.

But if they were so busy, do they even know about the pod? she wondered. Frowning, she shoved herself to her feet, looking back at the other girl. "I'll be back, I'm going to see if they saw it."

"Oh! I'll come too," Fox said excitedly, jumping to her feet. "Maybe Clarke will want to leave sooner than Bellamy. I mean - they're both supposed to be running things now, right?"

Good point.

"Right." Alex shrugged. "Only one way to find out."

Fox trailed behind her as she made her way over to Clarke and Finn, who were gazing around the camp with deep frowns on their faces. Alex wondered if they were confused about all the activity going on around the camp at such an unusual hour. Maybe they thought they could sneak back into camp without anyone being the wiser? She couldn't help but snort in amusement at the thought. Don't think it worked.

They both turned towards them as they approached, Clarke giving them a small nod in greeting, then eyeing Alex almost warily, as if she wasn't quite sure how she should react around her after the night before.

Alex ignored it.

"Did you see it?" she asked them, cutting straight to the chase, eyebrows raised questioningly.

Finn nodded, sharing a look with Clarke. "Yeah, we both saw it."

Before Alex could ask them what they thought it was, or why the Ark would be sending down another pod, Fox spoke up.

"You know it's from the Ark, right? It has to be!" the younger girl said, looking between the three of them excitedly.

Well, yeah. Where else would a pod come from? Alex wanted to ask, but decided to keep her mouth shut, biting the inside of her cheek instead.

Clarke seemed a bit more patient about the question and gave Fox a small smile. "Only one way to find out. Grab your stuff."

At Clarke's response, Fox frowned and glanced at Alex uncertainly. "Bellamy said we're gonna wait until sunrise before we go." Her disappointment was clear.

Clarke frowned and sent Alex a questioning look.

"He thinks it's too dangerous for everyone to be running around in the dark," Alex explained, lightly rolling her eyes. "And even if I agree with his logic, I do think it's a bad idea if we wait too long. There's a good chance someone else will get there before us. I don't think we can afford to lose the resources right now. But he decided we wait until morning."

At her words a weird look crossed Clarke's face and she turned to look around the camp.

"What?" Alex asked her with a frown, wondering what the other girl was thinking.

"Where's Bellamy now?" was all Clarke said in response.

The clear suspicion in Clarke's voice set off an alarm in Alex's head and the expression on Bellamy's face once again flashed through her mind. This time she couldn't shake the lingering feeling of doubt in her gut.

Alex's eyes narrowed, her gaze darting back to where she'd last seen him. "Uh, last I saw, he was in his tent…" she trailed off as Clarke took off in that direction, weaving through the small groups of delinquents.

She followed closely behind Clarke, each step feeling heavier than the last as she realized where Clarke's thoughts had lead her.

He wouldn't have…

Clarke didn't pause as she ducked into Bellamy's tent, but Alex hesitated just outside, her hand hovering just above the thick material that covered the door.

She didn't know what she was feeling, what she would feel if she found out that Bellamy had so blatantly lied to her, manipulating her feelings to suit his needs. So that she would stop asking questions and turn away...

The indignant female shout that came from inside jolted her back to reality.

Only one way to find out. Briefly closing her eyes, she gave a shaky sigh then pushed the fabric aside and ducked into the dimly lit space.

A heavy feeling settled in her stomach as she looked around.

Clarke was right. Bellamy was nowhere to be seen.

Alex couldn't quite shove down the bitter feeling at hurt and disappointment that came with the revelation.

The tent was empty except for Roma, who stood in the middle of the tent, clad only in her underwear, her hands clasped firmly over her breasts as she glared back at them, a deep scowl twisting her lips.

"Ever heard of knocking, bitch?" she sneered at one or both of them. Then Finn barged in the tent behind them and she let out a small shout of frustration. "Oh, great. It's a free show. Anyone else want to take a look?"

"He's gone?" Finn asked, ignoring Roma entirely and turning to Clarke and Alex.

Bellamy's fearful look as he stared up at the falling pod flashed through Alex's mind again, how strange he'd been acting. How he did everything he could to convince them not to go until morning...

He left... told us to wait, then left while no one was looking.

Clarke only nodded in response to Finn's question before turning on Roma. "Where the hell is Bellamy?" she demanded, glaring back at her, seemingly unbothered by the other girls state of undress.

Roma shrugged, turning her back on them as she pulled a dark top shirt over her head. "He took off a while ago," she sniped back, shooting them a glare over her shoulder.

"His gear's gone," Finn point out, nodding to the corner where it had been earlier.

Alex felt cold anger washed through her, soothing the stinging hurt away and bringing her mind sharply into focus. Bellamy lied to you. Lied right to your face and you fell for every damn word. She could only curse at how easy he had manipulated her. Stupid. He was probably laughing at how easy it was. Her jaw clenched at the thought. He even said it: 'You don't know me well enough,' He was right.

"He told everyone to stay. Whatever's in that thing, he wants it," Clarke said, anger clear in her words, echoing Alex's own thoughts.

But what's on there that he's so desperate to find - to keep us away from? There were only so many things that the Ark could send down to them. Weapons? No, they're not going to send weapons to a bunch of delinquents. Food, water, shelter…We have more down here then they do up there. So what is it?

Realization struck her like a ton of bricks.

"Of course, it makes sense," she mumbled to herself, though everyone else in the tent turned to her at her words. She met their gazes in turn. "Think about it - what's the one thing Blake's been doing since we got here?" When none of them answered her provided an answer she continued. "The wristbands!" she explained. "He's been doing everything he can to cut off our contact with the Ark since we landed."

The answer seemed to dawn on everyone else at the same time. Finn frowned, looking worried, but the look of realization that dawned on Clarke's face had Alex nodding along. Even Roma's brow furrowed in thought.

"You can bet that if that pod is carrying any supplies, then it's going to have a radio," Alex added hurriedly. "That's what he wants. That's what he's always wanted - to keep us from talking to them." She pointed towards the sky.

Clarke gave her a worried look. "We need to get there before he does."

Alex nodded in agreement. "If we don't, Blake might take away our only chance of getting in contact with the Ark."

And that's something I can't allow him to do.

Daylight streamed through the canopy above them as they hurried in the direction they thought the dropship may have landed. Fortunately, Alex recalled Jones mentioning that the pod may have landed in the next valley over, near a lake, which they had manage to pinpoint on the map Finn had found in Bellamy's tent. It was only by dumb luck that Bellamy had left the map behind.

Map in hand, Finn's tracking abilities once again came in handy as he guided them along the most direct route, although steering them clear of some of the steeper terrain in the area.

The tense silence between the three of them only gave Alex time to seethe as she walked, nothing else occupying her mind except Bellamy - fucking - Blake and thoughts of what she would do to him when they would undoubtedly came face to face.

That lying, two-faced bastard…But as much as she hated him for doing it, she hated herself more for falling for it.

Clarke and Finn were walking side by side up ahead of her, heads together as they looked at the map.

"It should be around here somewhere," Finn finally spoke up, voice cutting through the silence as he looked around. They all slowed to a stop, eyeing their surroundings in search for something that would stand out to them; metal debris, or scorch marks from an impact zone, anything that would tell them that they were on the right track.

But as Alex examined the area around them, all she could see was green, green and more green. We're never going to get there first at this rate. We don't even know if it actually landed in this area. She sighed.

At Alex's clear sound of disappointment, Clarke spoke up. "Think we should split up?" she turned back to them questioningly.

Finn nodded, looking thoughtful. "We'll be able to cover more ground that way. Clarke, you head in that direction. Alex, head that way. Call out if you find anything and be careful," he gave them both a grave look. "We don't know who else is in the area."

With a final glance between them, the three split up, Alex heading off in the direction Finn had pointed.

It didn't take long for the sounds of the other two to fade into the distance.

Then she was alone.

Pine needles crackled under her feet as she walked, hands tucked tightly into her jacket pockets, one wrapped around her folded blade. Even though her eyes scanned the area looking for any signs of a crash, she also kept an eye out for Bellamy. He'd had a decent enough head start that there was a good chance he would beat them to the crash site.

God, I hope he got lost in the woods, she thought spitefully, kicking an innocent branch out of the way. Maybe he went the wrong way and is wandering around looking like an idiot. It would serve him right. He IS an idiot. A pig-headed, stupid, moronic...

She hadn't been walking for longer than ten minutes when the sound of voices drifted past her ears. Freezing mid step, she tilted her head to the side, listening intently, suddenly remembering that there were others out here that weren't part of their group.

Grounders...

Swallowing harshly, heart now pounding in her chest, she wiped her sweaty palms on the legs of her pants as she listened, eyes skimming the forested area ahead of her, looking for any signs of someone else being out here. She couldn't see anything.

And for the life of her, she couldn't tell what language they were speaking.

Grounders or someone else? A mixture of curiosity and wariness over took her and before she knew it, she was tentatively stepping in the direction the voices were coming from, knife held firmly in hand.

Definitely female, she realized as she drew closer. The memory of the old woman and her companion on the other side of the river, as well as the weapons that had been strapped to his back, crossed her mind, making her hesitate a step. Just go and check, she told herself. If it's Grounders, you can turn and walk the other way, right?

With a shaky breath she kept moving, making sure each step was soft and doing her best to avoid stepping on any branches that could crack and give her away.

Then the sun reflected off of something in the distance, momentarily blinding her. Blinking the spot out of her vision, she narrowed her eyes in the direction it had come from. Metal?

Quickening her pace, her suspicions proved correct when she pushed past some thicker bushes and stepped into the edge of a clearing, the sight before her bringing her relief that had her shoulders sagging.

Clarke's now easily recognizable voice and even more recognizable curly blonde hair stood out clearly from across the open space.

Alex could see the smile on her face and noted how the other girl seemed happy, excited.

She could understand why.

On one side of the clearing stood a distinct metal pod that looked like it had been put together with scraps sat at the edge of the clearing. It was smaller than she imagined. But even though it looked like it had taken a beating upon re-entry, it remained intact.

And so had the pilot.

Standing in front of Clarke was another girl, wearing a rusty red jacket over dark top and pants, the patchwork material clearly marking her as someone from the Ark. Her long dark brown hair was pulled back and away from her face into a tight ponytail, which twirled around her as she spun on the spot, arms spread wide as she stared at the space around her with a look of wonder and amazement on her face.

Alex couldn't help the grin that tugged at her lips at the sight, remembering the feeling that had overwhelmed her when she had stepped off the dropship and onto Earth for the first time.

The colours. The sounds. The smells. Nothing on the Ark could have prepared them for it. Everything had simply been beyond belief.

At the sound of her approach, Clarke whirled around to face her, a look of panic on her face.

Alex raised her hands in surrender, giving her a small reassuring smile. "Just me."

The look on Clarke's face softened to one of relief, her shoulders drooping slightly before she smiled back.

Coming to stand next to Clarke, Alex turned to face the new arrival only to find the dark haired girl staring back at her with an odd look on her face.

Alex blinked, realizing she recognized the other girl.

"Well, well, if it isn't little Alex," the dark haired girl drawled.

"Uh, yeah. Raven… Right?" she asked with a frown, the name appearing on her tongue as if it were surfacing from a distant memory.

The girl smirked in response, but the look on her face didn't fade. "That's me," she tilted her head. "I'm surprised you remember that. It's been awhile."

The last time Alex and Raven had come face to face was years ago, when a fifteen year old Alex had applied for an internship at Mecha Station, asking for a chance to be a mechanic. Unfortunately, she'd never had a chance to progress further than an introductory tour where she had met the older girl. It was only a week later that she had been arrested and locked away in the Sky Box.

"Ah, yeah...I guess it's been awhile," Alex replied, uncertain how to address the other girl. Their last interaction felt like a lifetime ago.

Clarke gazed darted between the two of them, seeming to sense the discomfort between them.

Raven's attention abruptly shifted up from her face to something just over Alex's shoulder and something in her expression faltered in relief.

Wondering what had caught Raven's attention, both her and Clarke turned to face the area she was staring at, only to find a dumbfounded looking Finn standing frozen at the edge of the clearing.

"Raven?" He said, staring at the dark haired girl in shock.

At the sound of his voice, a huge smile bloomed across Raven's face. "Finn!" she squealed, covering the space between them in a few bounds and leapt straight into his arms, her own wrapping tightly around his neck and burying her face into his collar. "I knew it! I knew you couldn't be dead," she choked out. Alex couldn't tell if it was a laugh or a sob.

Although he looked just as shocked as before, Finn's arms encircled Raven's waist and gripped her tightly, and buried his face into the crook of her neck, the familiar action strongly suggesting that they knew each other intimately. It was only confirmed when Raven dug her fingers into Finn hair and pulled him away just far enough to press her lips firmly and desperately against his.

Umm...Alex's eyebrows jumped at the sight, her eyes darting almost unwillingly to Clarke, who stood frozen at her side. Weren't Finn and Clarke...

The look on Clarke's face gave her a quick answer to her question. The excited smile that had lit Clarke face only moments before had slid away as she stared at the embracing couple. She blinked once, twice, as if she couldn't quite believe what she was seeing. Then the expression melted away to one of forced, complete indifference.

Alex grimaced, feeling bad for her. Awkward...

The moment was broken as Finn gave a worried shout as Raven swayed on her feet. The dark haired girl blinked blearily, gaze unfocused, one hand reaching up for her head. She looked like she would have keeled over entirely if Finn hadn't been holding on to her.

"Raven, you're bleeding." He stared down at her, worry clear on his face, eyeing the thin trickle of blood sliding down one side of her forehead. "You must have hit your head."

Raven seemed to forcefully push the dizziness away and grinned up at him, although this time it was weaker, less bright than before. "I don't care," she said, leaning in to kiss him again, only to pout when he pulled away.

"How did you even get here?" He blinked, glancing up at the pod standing quietly behind them all.

Raven's grin returned, looking proud. "You know that big scraphold, the one on K-deck? There was a pod there...and, well, I kind of rebuilt it," she said sheepishly with a shrug.

Finn gave a laugh of disbelief, shaking his head down at her. "You're insane," he smiled.

As Finn and Raven talked about how she managed to get down to Earth in a pod that was built from nothing but scraps, Alex turned to Clarke who had busied herself digging through her backpack. She recognized the need to keep her hands busy when upset, she'd been doing to exact same thing that morning.

"You okay?" Alex asked her softly, turning her back on the other two to make sure they couldn't hear her.

Clarke looked startled as she snapped up to look at her. She looked like she had completely forgotten Alex was there. "Uh, yeah, I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?" she said hurriedly, giving her a questioning look, pretending that she didn't know what the other girl was talking about.

Alex gave her a dry look, but at the sharp look Clarke shot her in return, she decided not to push the issue if the other girl didn't want to talk about it.

It wasn't her business. And they had more important things to deal with.

At that moment, Finn jogged over to them, expression stuck somewhere between a cringe and looking apologetic as he stared down at Clarke who refused to meet his gaze. He had left Raven perched on a log nearby, dabbing the side of her head with her fingers.

As he opened his mouth to begin talking, Alex took that as her cue and stepped away, heading in Raven's direction, pretending she couldn't hear the terse way Clarke shot down Finn's apology.

It didn't take long for Clarke to dart past her, heading over to Raven as quickly as her feet would carry her, never once glancing back at where she had left Finn standing.

"You need to keep pressure on the wound," Clarke told Raven, voice hard as she handed her the folded piece of gauze.

"Oh, ah, thanks," Raven said uncertainly, immediately catching on to Clarke's unfriendly demeanor, even as she reached out and took the offered piece of fabric.

Finn sighed quietly to himself behind her and Alex shot him a look that said 'what did you really expect would happen?'. He only grimaced in response then stepped forward.

"This is Clarke and Alex," he told Raven, motioning to each of them in turn. "They were on the dropship too."

"Clarke?" In an instantly, Raven was on her feet, wound forgotten as she stared at Clarke in disbelief. "This was all because of your mom!"

Clarke seemed thrown by the change of topic. "My mom?" She frowned.

"This was all her plan," Raven explained, waving her hand around. "We were trying to come down here together. We waited…oh, my god." Shocked crossed her face. "We couldn't wait because the Council was voting on whether to kill three hundred people."

Shock rippled through Alex, Finn and Clarke at her words. Three hundred people...

"What?" Alex asked, staring at her in disbelief. "Why would they do that?"

"The Ark is failing. They're trying to conserve air," Clarke mumbled, staring blankly at the ground in front of her. Then her gaze snapped back to Raven. "When?"

There was urgency in Raven's face that hadn't been there before. "Today!" she said, hurrying over to the pod. "We have to tell them you're alive! We can still stop it." She yanked open the pods door and ducked her head inside, reaching in, only to freeze. "The radio's gone," she mumbled, voice shocked. Turning back to them, her eyes began roving the area around the pod, as if the radio would be laying on the ground nearby. "It must have gotten loose in re-entry."

Alex felt like she had been punched in the gut. The other's voices faded into the background as her mind went into overdrive.

Three hundred people...to conserve oxygen.

There was no doubt in her gut that Liam would be one of them. Unless his situation had changed in the time she was away, he would be considered a burden the Ark couldn't afford right now.

Why would they keep someone around who does nothing but consume resources they don't have? A flare of shaky panic shot through her at the thought before she could reign it in.

Stop, she told herself forceful, allowing her eyes to slide closed and took a deep steadying breath. Think. What can you do? She immediately knew the answer. The radio. We need the radio to contact the Ark. To let them know we're still alive. But how? Raven said...

Eyes snapping open, Alex stared at Raven, who was desperately searching around the pod for any sign of the missing radio. Turning to the pod, she eyed the exterior, looking for any way the small communication device could have fallen out mid flight. But despite its mix-and-match exterior, it was solidly built. Raven had done a good job piecing it together.

There's no way it fell out mid flight. If it had, there's no way Raven would have made it. No, Bellamy was here. He took it.

The thought had her gritting her teeth. But where would he go?

He's a liar. He's going to try to play it off that he has no idea what happened. He doesn't know we are right behind him, so chances are he's going to head back to the dropship and pretend he had no part in it before anyone realizes he's gone.

With that thought in mind, Alex turned on her heel and hurried across the clearing, heading in the direction she knew would be the fastest way back to the drop ship. He'll probably head straight back.

"Alex? Hey!" Finn called after her. "Where are you going?"

"After Bellamy," she called back, barely glancing over her shoulder at the other three. "He has the radio."

As she ducked into the trees and into more open terrain, she took off at a sprint. She didn't care if they others weren't with her. Clarke would come to the same conclusion soon enough.

The longer Bellamy had the radio, the more likely he would destroy it.

And Alex couldn't bare to think of what that would mean for those on the Ark.

Alex couldn't describe the feeling that swept through her as she finally caught sight of Bellamy's dark hair strolling through the forest ahead of her. His pace was calm and unhurried, as if he didn't have a care in the world. As if he hadn't just ruined their only way to contact the Ark. As if he hadn't just sacrificed the life of three hundred people.

Chest heaving, her narrowed eyes fixed on the back of his head -god, she wanted to throw something at it- she willed him to feel the heat of her glared and turn around to face her.

"Bellamy!"

At her angered shout, he barely turned to glance at her over his shoulder, a look of total disinterest on his face before he turned a kept walking.

With a snarl, she stormed after him, quickly catching up with his leisure's pace. Reaching out, she dug her fingertips into the rough material of his jacket and yanked him around to face her. To motion worked as planned and he halted to face her.

"Where the hell is it?" she demanded, glaring up at him.

Pulling his arm out of her grip, he cocked his head at her. "Where's what?" he asked, eyeing her with a look that boarded on boredom. "Don't know what you're talking about, Evans."

Even though he was trying to play it cool and collected, she could see the tension in his shoulders as he turned to face her.

Liar.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about, Bellamy," she accused. When all he gave her was a blank look, she stepped towards him until they were almost touching. "The radio - the one from the pod. Where. Is. It?" she hissed out, pointedly enunciating each word.

He leaned towards her. "I haven't been to the pod," he said, each of his words as pointed as her own, mocking her tone.

The overwhelming combination of feelings she had experience over the past couple of days - the fear, the anger, the panic - all came roaring back at once.

Something inside her snapped.

"Stop lying!" she yelled at him, pressing her hands against his chest and forcefully shoving him away. He stumbled back at her abrupt attack, but quickly regained his balance. "You're unbelievable! What, do you think I'm an idiot?" Her heart pounded in her chest. "We found the pod, Bellamy! And know what's conveniently missing? The radio! And somehow you're just, what? Strolling through the woods nearby, miles from camp? Give me a fucking break!"

A flicker of annoyance crossed his face and he narrowed his eyes at her. "Always so dramatic Evans. I still don't know what you're talking about," he said with a shrug and turned his back to her, beginning to leave.

Realizing he was just going to walk away from her, she leapt in front of him, blocking his path. Her hands once again found themselves on his chest, this time she gripped the front of his jacket. "Oh. No. No, you don't get to just walk away." She shook her head, staring up at him, then shook her head. "I can't fucking believe you," she scoffed, lowering her voice. "What was it you said? Oh yeah - 'This isn't about me, this is about what's best for the group'?"

He sneered at her, opening his mouth to reply. "I -"

"I can't believe you just lied to m- to everyone like that." She cut him off, then gave a bitter laugh. "This has never been about what's best for the group... It's not even about Octavia. This was only ever about you." She gave him a disgusted look. She continued, softening her voice. "And that's the thing about being a leader, Blake, it's about more than just you."

Her accusation seemed to hit a nerve and his glare darkened. He stepped towards over her until they were nearly nose to nose, forcing her to look up at him.

Chest heaving, she glared back at him, refusing to back down. He couldn't intimidate her.

"Yeah I took the radio," he spat at her.

Alex blinked, momentarily throw by his easy admission.

"And I am doing this for the group," he continued and when she rolled her eyes, he tightened his grip on her wrists. "What? Do you think that if the Ark comes down, they're just going to forgive and forget everyone's crimes? That we can all be one, big happy group?" he scoffed, clearly mocking her. "Oh, Evans, if you truly believe that, then you're more fucking stupid than I first thought."

She gritting her teeth and for the first time in a long time, she wanted to slam her fist into Bellamy Blake's pretty face.

"So you stole the radio?" she demanded, then shook her head. "What gives you the right to decide that for everyone else? Most of them still have family up there, Blake! People they love! What gives you the right to take that away from them?"

"Oh please. Don't pretend you care," he scoffed, rolling his eyes. "What difference does it make to you? The people on the Ark don't miss you - they were ready to execute you! And I overheard what you said to Octavia - you don't have anyone. No friends. No family. Nothing."

The scathing words hit something deep inside of her and this time she didn't stop herself from lashing out.

Except Bellamy seemed to have anticipated her reaction and leaned back, her fist only grazing his cheek before his fist curled around her wrist, yanking her towards him.

Alex's chest squeezed and she gasped for breath, her body trembling in anger. Her eyes blinking away the sudden moisture in her eyes.

He doesn't know anything.

For a long moment, they glared at each other. Bellamy simply watching her, waiting for her to regain control of herself, his demeanor cool in the face of her anger.

Then it was gone.

"Let go," she finally said tiredly, sagging, feeling her exhaustion. Even though she pulled, his grip was relentless.

"No," he said simply in response. "I want an answer. Why do you care so much about the Ark when they don't care about you?"

"Why don't you want us to contact the Ark?" she shot back in response. "What are you so afraid of?"

His glare darkened. "I'm not afraid of anything."

She pounced on the change in his expression. "See, I think you are. You're afraid of losing power. That they're going to come down here and strip you of everything and you'll once again be nothing." She echoed his earlier jab.

"Shut up." His grip on her wrist became bruising.

She refused to back down. "But I'm right, aren't I?" She sneered up at him. "That's why you came down on the dropship. You saw the opportunity to take power and took it. And you took the radio because you don't want to lose it. It was never about the group, never about Octavia-"

"This has always been about Octavia!" he shouted at her, letting go of her wrist and shoving her away. "I came down here for her! And if they come, I won't be able to protect her." His voice cracked towards the end.

Confusion cut through her anger. What is he talking about?

His breathing was ragged as he stared at her, eyes narrowed in anger, fists clenched tightly at his sides. "I have my reasons. But you - you make no sense. I don't get why you would want them to follow us down. The Chancellor. Kane." He shook his head in disbelief. "He'll never forget what you did to his son."

Liam.

"This isn't about him," she found herself saying, shaking her head. "He - there are others up there that don't deserve to die. And you don't get to make that decision. Your loved ones aren't more important than anyone else's."

Something in her words caused Bellamy's expression to shift. The anger in his face faded slightly as he stared at her, replaced with uncertainty.

"Saving them won't make up for what you did to him. To Liam," he said his voice quiet.

Alex flinched.

"I'm not trying to make up for anything. I'm trying to do this for him," she found herself saying. "If you do this, he dies. You say you'd do anything for Octavia, why is it so hard to believe that I might-" Realizing what she'd been about to say, she snapped her mouth shut, cutting herself off.

"What?" he scoffed. "That hardly the same. Octavia's my sister. He isn't…"

She was shaking her head even before his words trailed off. But as he froze, she found her mouth going dry.

His eyes narrowed, rapidly darting over her face in confusion. Then he blinked, shock sliding over his features, eyes going wide.

A look of realization.

She felt both frozen to the spot and wanting to flee as far as she could at the same time. She wanted to run. But her legs wouldn't move.

She wanted to run from the look of realization on his face.

"Holy shit," Bellamy breathed, staring at her with wide eyes.

She shrunk away from the knowing in his voice.

No, don't say it. Please, don't say it.

"Liam Kane is your brother."

AN: Dun dun duuun. What do you guy think?! Drop me a review and let me know!

Thanks so much for reading!