Chapter 34

Alex

Pain exploded along the side of her head, sending white hot sparks through her vision, before her world went dark and still.

Then the high-pitched ringing in her ears grew louder and louder, drowning out the pounding of her heartbeat in her head. Blinking rapidly, the dark tunnel around her vision slowly faded and she blinked up into the canopy above her. The trickle of something warm sliding down the side of her face brought her senses back into focus, her fingers automatically reaching up to brush the irritating feeling away. When she pulled her hand away, she could only stare at her blood covered fingers numbly.

What - what the fuck just happened?

The sound of movement drew her attention to the side, and she turned her head.

Confusion filled her at the sight of Myles standing not far from her, staring down at her with wide, wild eyes. Short, shallow gasps escaped him as he clutched a thick branch out before him like a bat.

Comprehension arrived all at once. He was holding a branch, the branch he had hit her with. Slowly, things came together in her mind. Him asking for help… Following him out of the camp… His nervousness to talk to her… The distance that he walked her away from camp…

He lured you out here to attack you. A flare of fear shot through her. You need to get out of here.

"Myles?" she asked cautiously, pushing herself up onto an elbow, getting ready to shove herself to her feet and run. But before she had a chance to push herself to her feet, before she could scramble away, he dropped the branch and launched himself down on top of her.

All the air in her lungs left her in a rush as his full body weight landed on her chest, before a hoarse scream escaped her when his knee slammed into the tender wound on her side. Her arms pushed and shoved at him, trying to get him off, but he wouldn't budge; his body weight was his advantage. Straddling her midsection, his hips pinning hers to the ground, he shoved her arms out of the way. Then his hands came up, his fingers finding the vulnerable, soft flesh of her throat, and he squeezed.

Her airway was completely cut off, sending her mind into a panicked frenzy. Hand coming up to yank at his, her fingernails dug into his skin, and crescent-shaped blood blossomed along his skin. Her feet scrambled on the pine needle covered ground beneath her, trying to find purchase to buck him off. But Myles held fast, sitting heavily on her hips, keeping them pinned. He ignored the bloody gouges her fingernails left in his skin.

Through the panic and fear, she could see Myles above her, sobbing heavily. His shoulders shook as he continued to strangle her. Through her heart pounding in her ears, she could hear the words he repeated over and over: "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry…" But he didn't let up; he only squeezed harder.

She thrashed, desperate to get away, to get him off, to get some air. Her throat ached and her lungs burned. But it didn't matter how much she struggled, she couldn't seem to make Myles loosen his grip. Soon, the lack of oxygen started taking effect, the edges of her vision began to darken, her struggles beginning to weaken…

Then Myles was gone, the pressure on her throat disappearing with him.

Coughing, gasping and gulping for air, her hands fluttered up to her throat as she breathed in deeply, her lungs taking in every bit of sweet air that they could. Blinking rapidly, she stared up through the trees to the blue sky above as she tried to catch her breath.

She didn't have time to turn over to see where Myles had gone when two hands grabbed her upper arms. Even as Nate dropped to his knees beside her, she jumped at the touch. "Alex!" His eyes were wide with panic, the tone in his voice telling her it wasn't the first time he had called her name.

"I'm fine," she gasped out, hands still on her throat. "I'm - I'm okay."

He exhaled forcefully, a look of relief crossing his face as she answered him. Gently, he helped her sit up, his hands never leaving her shoulders. He gripped her like he expected her to vanish from his grasp.

Then he did the unexpected. He hugged her.

His arms encircled her, pulling her towards him and crushing her against his chest. His one hand cradled the back of her neck, the other wrapped firmly around her back as he rested his cheek on the side of her head. She tensed at the action, but it only lasted a moment before she allowed herself to sink into the familiar comfort. Leaning against him, she closed her eyes, willing the trembling in her body to go away as the arms around her gave her a feeling of security she hadn't felt in a long, long time. She couldn't bring herself to question why he was hugging her now, after all this time.

"You followed us," she mumbled against his chest. Had he followed them because he knew something was off? Had he wanted to talk to her about Liam?

He exhaled heavily. Alex couldn't tell if it was annoyance or exasperation. "Yeah, I saw you guys leave. Thought it was weird that you left camp after just getting back. I can't have you getting into trouble when you only just got out of it." His voice rumbled through his chest. "I can think of a few people that would beat my ass if I let something happen to you right now."

She pulled away to look up at him. "You - you talked to Liam." She worried her lip, trying to get a read on his expression. "Do - do you believe me now? That it wasn't me?"

His gaze fell away. "I don't know what to believe. But Liam seems convinced it wasn't you, and for some strange reason I trust that idiot's opinion. So, yeah. If he's giving you the benefit of doubt… then so can I." His gaze returned to hers and he gave her a tentative smile.

A shuddering breath of relief escaped her and she couldn't stop herself from throwing her arms around his shoulders, blinking away tears. "It hurt," she admitted softly, choking up. "It hurt that you didn't believe me."

"I know," he said hoarsely, returning the hug, his arms squeezing her almost too tightly around her waist. "I'm sorry. Maybe I'm the idiot for believing you would do something like that. I should have known better."

"You're both idiots." A disbelieving laugh escaped her. "I missed you. I've missed you both so much."

He squeezed her tightly once more before letting go and pulling away. As he did, she caught sight of Myles' motionless body lying not far from them. She swallowed hard, her throat aching at the motion. "Is he…"

"No. Not that he doesn't deserve it." Nate glanced back to glare darkly at the other boy. "I got here just in time. If I'd been another minute…" He trailed off before looking back at her. "What the hell was that about? Why did he attack you?"

Good question. Why did he attack you? He had shown no inclination to being violent, not like some of the other delinquents. But that didn't mean anything, did it? She didn't know what crime they had arrested him for back on the Ark, but for all she knew, it could have been for murder. Somehow, she couldn't reconcile the two ideas in her mind. How could Myles, the gentle, rambling teen, be someone who would attack people? And why her? Was she just the first person to cross his path?

And why apologize? Why say he was sorry and then do it anyway?

"I… don't know." She shook her head.

He turned back to her, and his eyebrows jumped when he caught sight of the side of her head. "You're bleeding."

"Oh." Once he mentioned it, she could suddenly feel the sticky mess that was the side of her head. Reaching up, she dabbed the side of her head, feeling how the blood was already beginning to dry. "Right."

He rolled his eyes as he leaned towards her to inspect the cut. "It doesn't look too bad, just bled a lot. Already looks like it's slowing down. Must have just caught you with the edge of the stick."

When Myles had struck her, her flinch must have stopped the blow from striking her directly in the temple, catching her along her hairline instead. This might have been a different picture if he'd landed a good hit…

She chewed on the inside of her cheek. "It doesn't make any sense," she started. "Everything about it… He was nervous. He kept apologizing. I just get the feeling he didn't - he didn't want to do it."

Nate gave her an incredulous look. "Didn't want to? Alex - he had you pinned to the floor… with his hands around your neck."

"I know! I know," she exhaled forcefully. "It just seemed… off."

His eyes narrowed in thought. "But… now that you mention it. Myles was acting weird after he finished talking to his parents earlier."

"Weird, how?" Doubt filled her. "You think his parents have something to do with this? I mean… I couldn't even name who his parents are."

"Could be someone else on the Ark." He shrugged. "I didn't really see who he talked to."

She stared at him, her earlier thoughts that someone else was involved in Liam's stabbing suddenly came back to her.

"Do you think it's because of Liam?" The words left her before she gave it much thought, but a chill swept through her at the thought. Could someone have told Myles to kill her because Liam was now awake and talking? Did they think she knew something? Uneasiness filled her.

Nate's gaze snapped to her own, looking startled by the possibility. "Because he's awake?" He was quiet for a long moment. "If that's the case…."

"We - we should get back to the dropship," she said, pushing herself up to her feet. Nate nodded and grabbed her elbow to help her up, hauling her up to her feet. He didn't let go until he seemed to be sure that she wouldn't collapse.

They both moved forward, only to come to a stop next to the unconscious Myles. She could see blood along the side of his head, his wound nearly mirroring her own, and she wondered if Nate had struck him with the same stick. "What the hell should we do with him?" she asked, prodding Myles with her foot. He didn't respond at all.

"I'll tie him up and put him in the drop ship until we figure out what to do. Blake will want to know about this." Her eyes snapped to him at the mention of Bellamy and he shot her a knowing look as he ducked down and grabbed Myles' arm, pulling it over one shoulder. He hoisted him up with a grunt, then shot her a smirk. "So, you and Blake, huh? I honestly thought you guys might kill each other. And now you're fucking? Things changed fast."

She reddened. "We're not fucking." She ducked down underneath Myles' other arm with a grimace.

"But you want to," he stated, then they both grunted as they hauled Myles up; he wasn't light. Once he was up, Nate shrugged and continued what he had been saying. "I get it. He's not bad to look at."

"Nate!" When he shot her a knowing look, she sighed. "We kissed, that's it." When his smirk only grew, she rolled her eyes and scoffed. "God, I forgot how much of a secret gossip you were."

His smirk turned into a familiar grin. "You said you missed me!"

Things were crazy. They had to deal with the Grounders; the Ark was soon to come to the ground; she wasn't sure what the hell was going on between her and Bellamy Blake, and another delinquent had attacked her. Yet as they stumbled forward together, Myles' unconscious body dragging between them, blood coating the side of her face, her side throbbing, she couldn't stop the small smile that crossed her lips.

Despite it all, she had Liam again.

And now she had Nate, too.

—

As they walked back into camp, despite Nate's reassurance that he would watch Myles, Alex found herself filled with a new sense of paranoia. The joy of seeing Liam awake and well had been replaced by uncertainty and an odd need to constantly look over her shoulder.

Why had Myles attacked her? Could he have really been bribed into doing it?

Was he alone, or had others been given the same mission?

The thought filled her with uncertainty and suspicion as they dragged the unconscious teen back into camp. Looking around, her eyes trailed over the groups of teens sitting around the fires in the late afternoon light. Nobody seemed to give them a second glance as they carried Myles to the dropship, but she couldn't help looking for anyone who might be watching them too closely.

After helping Nate tie Myles up where he could watch both him and the Grounder, she headed to one fire on the far side of camp and sat with her back to the wall, allowing her nerves to settle. The spot gave her a vantage to see people coming and going. No one could sneak up on her here.

Using some water and a relatively clean cloth that she had found nearby, she dabbed at her blood crusted hair until it felt less like a sticky mess, and wiped the blood from the side of her face. Gently prodding the sore spot, she found the wound seemed to have stopped bleeding, though she would probably have to have Clarke look at it and make sure it didn't need some type of stitches.

The thought of Clarke sent a jolt through her. Her eyes shot up to the clear skies above, watching the way it was darkening. The sun was setting, shouldn't Clarke and Bellamy have returned by now? What if something had gone wrong?

She pushed the thought from her mind. There was nothing she could do about it. All she could do was sit and wait and think.

For a long while, she stared into the fire before her, the ruckus around her only background noise to her thoughts. Rubbing her sore neck, her mind kept returning to Myles and the possibility that someone had tasked him with attacking her, and that Liam could be in danger, but the thousands of kilometers between them meant she could do nothing.

They would have to wait for Myles to wake to get some sort of answer.

The noise around camp suddenly seemed to increase as the teens in camp got more rowdy. She frowned, distantly wondering if Monty and Jasper might have distributed more of their moonshine to the group. She could see Harper and some others chatting around one of the campfires. The other girl seemed to sense her stare and turned to meet her gaze, giving her a little wave, before pushing herself to her feet and stumbling her way towards her.

Even though she was wary, Alex's eyebrows shot up in amusement as the other girl approached, stumbling and swaying as she made her way over, before crashing to the ground next to her. But when Harper buried her face in her hands, her shoulders shaking, Alex frowned, concerned. Was she crying?

"Hey, you okay?" She reached out to touch the other girl's shoulder.

It was only when Harper rolled onto her side that Alex realized the other girl was giggling, not crying.

"Oh, Aaaalex, there you are," the younger girl slurred, turning over to lie on her side, propping her head up on her fist to gaze up at her. The dreamy smile on her face never faded. "My dearest Alex, you are so serious all the time. You really, really, should come join the fun." She waved her other hand back towards the rest of the group.

A smile tugged at her lips. "Are you drunk?"

"Am I?" Harper asked thoughtfully before bursting out laughing again. "Nooo, I don't think I am." She leaned forward and tapped Alex on the nose with her finger with a 'boop'. "Or am I?" she whispered conspiratorially.

Ohh, boy. "Um, right."

Harper reached into her pocket and pulled out some nuts, popping a few in her mouth before holding out her hand. "Want some? These will make you feel much better."

Alex stared down at the unfamiliar nuts. "Is this what you've been eating?"

"Oh, yeah. They are so. Fucking. Delicious." She moaned as she ate a few more. "Hey, do you think I should sleep with Jasper?"

The sudden change in topic almost gave Alex whiplash, but before she could reply, a nearby shout drew her attention and she looked up. And stared. All around camp, teenagers were stumbling around, some laughing, some singing and dancing around the fires, and some were definitely crying, clinging to each other, looking like it was the end of the world.

What the hell is going on?

"Alex," a new voice said from off to one side. Turning, she found Octavia standing close to her fire, her hands shoved deep into her jacket pockets. She looked significantly more sober than anyone else around them.

Leaving Harper pouting on the ground behind her, Alex shoved herself to her feet, bracing a hand on her side as she did so, and moved towards the dark-haired girl, giving her an incredulous look. "What's going on?"

Octavia blinked at her, taking in the side of her head with a frown. "What the hell happened to you?" she asked, instead of answering her question.

Alex reached up to prod the sore area with a wince. From Octavia's reaction, the cut was more noticeable than she'd hoped. She sighed, not really willing to get into the details of what happened. For some reason, she trusted Octavia to not stab her in the back. "Long story," she grimaced.

Octavia seemed to take her word on it and shrugged before holding out her hand, one of the same nuts Harper had been eating pinched between her fingers. "It's the nuts," she said. "Everybody has been eating them all day. Haven't you had any?"

She shook her head. "No, I haven't."

"Good." Octavia nodded, chucking the nut into the fire, then lowered her voice, leaning towards her. "Because I need your help. I'm going to get Lincoln out of here. Tonight."

"Now?" Alex stared at her, but even as she thought about it, she knew it made sense to do it now. This might be the only chance they would get with the entire camp distracted, and Bellamy and Clarke were out of the picture. But… "What about Na- Miller?" she asked with a frown. "There's no way he's going to let Lincoln out, not while he's on watch."

Octavia gave her a sheepish look. "Uh, well, I might have slipped him some nuts earlier on."

Alex's frown deepened. "They better not be deadly."

Octavia grimaced. "I hope not. Or our problems are going to get a whole lot worse."

"Maybe I should get a pet, like a squirrel or something?" Harper interrupted loudly from where she was still laying on the floor. Alex and Octavia glanced down at her blankly. Alex had almost forgotten the other girl was there.

"You do that, Harper," Octavia said with a fake smile, then turned back to Alex with a serious look. "Please. This might be the only chance we get."

Alex only hesitated for a second before nodding. Octavia was right. It was now or never.

Before they left, Octavia handed Harper a strip of fabric carefully cupped in her hands. "Look Harper! A baby squirrel! Could you take care of it for me?"

Harper pushed herself up onto her knees so fast that she nearly fell over sideways. Wobbling on her knees, she held out her hands with a gasp, gently scooping the strip of fabric from Octavia's hands before cradling it against her chest. "Awe, he's so cute."

At Alex's amused look, Octavia sighed. "It's not the first imaginary item I've had to hand out today,"

Alex couldn't help the laugh of disbelief that escaped her. "Good distraction," she said, seeing how occupied Harper was with her new 'squirrel'.

"Come on."

As they walked through the camp, Alex couldn't get over the effect the nuts were having on everyone. It must be hallucinogenic, she thought as she watched people see and react to things that simply weren't there. She stared with wide eyes as they walked past a guy who was desperately stripping his clothes off until he was completely naked, shouting: "Get them off! Get them off!" She wondered what he saw that made him react like that. Even so, she didn't miss the opportunity to scoop up his discarded jacket from the floor. She felt bad, but knew Lincoln would need clothes to sneak out in.

When she caught sight of Nate on the far side of the camp, she couldn't help the grin that tugged at her lips. He looked like he was deep in a philosophical debate with… nobody? One arm was crossed across his chest, his other hand fisted under his chin as he thought. He had never been one to turn down any type of serious debate and apparently that translated to what he was hallucinating, too.

Walking past a nearby fire, she saw Finn indiscriminately dumping out the cases full of nuts into the flames. We're going to need to be careful about how we do this. We're not the only sober ones around. Finn isn't going to like knowing that the Grounder that stabbed him is on the loose. Not far from him, Raven was hugging a crying Connor, looking completely perplexed about what she was doing. Alex had the feeling that she had never talked to Connor before in her life.

Ducking into the dropship after Octavia, she looked around and was glad when she could only see Myles, who was slumped away from them, bound to a pillar on the far side of the ship. She wasn't sure what she felt about the fact that he seemed to still be unconscious and briefly wondered if maybe Nate had hit him harder than he thought. With a scowl, she dismissed the thought, and followed Octavia up the ladder. He deserves what he got…

Closing the hatch softly behind them, Octavia immediately hurried over to Lincoln, who was watching them with dark eyes. Alex made her way over more cautiously, feeling wary over the whole thing. What if she was wrong? What if Lincoln didn't help them? He had stabbed Finn after all, and had then refused to tell them which antidote would cure his poisoning. What if this was all a ploy to get them to let him go? What if he attacked them the moment they let him go? She had seen how the Grounders fought; there was nothing stopping him from betraying them the moment they set him free. Somehow, she doubted he would have much problem dealing with her and Octavia.

Too late, she thought with a dry mouth, watching as Octavia undid his first binding around his wrist. He sagged slightly against his other arm, which was still tied across the room. You're just going to have to trust that he'll do the right thing and follow through on his promise.

She approached him cautiously as Octavia ducked under him to release his other binding. Once he was free, his weakness became apparent when his legs wobbled under him and Octavia ducked under one of his arms to keep him upright. Licking her lips, Alex stepped towards him and held out the jacket, which he took tentatively, eyeing her cautiously. It was clear neither of them trusted the other.

"We're putting a lot of trust in you to do the right thing," she told him. Octavia shot her a look but didn't comment as she helped him put the jacket on.

"I promised to do what I can," he said, giving her a nod, his voice gravelly. "And I will."

"Come on," Octavia urged, tugging him forward. "We don't know how much time we have, and you need to be gone before my brother comes back."

"Wait, let me go first," Alex said. "I'll let you know if it's clear."

Octavia nodded. Both her and Lincoln watched her open the hatch and peer down into the floor below, and when she didn't immediately see anyone, she made her way down slowly.

The main floor was still empty and Myles was still unconscious. She briefly wondered if she should check to see if he was even alive, but dismissed the thought. Peering up to the hatch up she met Octavia's dark eyes and nodded, telling her the way was clear.

Alex made her way over to the flaps that covered the dropship door to peer out at the rest of camp as Octavia and Lincoln made their way down the ladder. Glancing back at him, she could see from the way Lincoln moved that he was sore, his movements stiff as he stepped down the ladder and on to the main floor. Octavia was quick to descend the ladder behind him and duck back under his arm to give him support.

"Jobi nuts, the food you gave my guard," Lincoln spoke up. Alex turned to him as he spoke. "They go bad. They cause visions. But it wears off."

Relief filled her at his words. "Great," Alex sighed, glad Nate and the others would be alright.

Octavia leaned towards him, pulling his jacket together and doing up the zip. "Just try to get as far away from here as you can, okay?" He nodded, his eyes roving her face like it was the last time he would ever see it. "And try not to get yourself killed," she added.

Alex turned and glanced out of the dropship, seeing that it was as clear as it would probably get. "It's clear," she hissed back at them.

Lincoln's dark eyes darted up to meet hers, and he nodded. Taking a deep breath, he took a step away from Octavia, then hesitated. Then, in one smooth motion, he turned and captured Octavia's lips with his own. Although initially startled, Octavia quickly melted against him and returned the kiss with equal fervor.

Alex's eyebrows jumped as they kissed, and she turned her head away to give them some privacy. But after a moment or two, she knew that if Lincoln didn't get a move on, they might lose their chance. She cleared her throat. "Guys, now or never," she told them.

Surprisingly, it was Octavia that pulled away and met Alex's gaze, giving her a nod.

Lincoln reluctantly pulled away from the younger girl and moved towards the exit, pulling up his hood as he went. He paused right in front of Alex.

"I'm okay without the kiss," she told him flatly, leaning back slightly. His lips tugged at the corner, and for a moment she saw a sense of humour behind the stoic facade. Her amusement faded. "We both want the same thing," she continued softly. "Help me make this better."

He nodded firmly. Then, with one last glance at her and a lingering look at Octavia, Lincoln disappeared into the darkness, fading out of sight.

Behind her, Octavia let out a shaky breath.

Alex reached out and tugged her away. "Come on, we shouldn't linger here," she mumbled, pulling her out of the dropship. Without another word, they split up, Alex heading back to her fire, which thankfully wasn't occupied, while Octavia headed off on her own.

She had nearly made it, when Finn stepped in front of her, cutting her off. She came to a stop in front of him, his expression telling her what he was about to say.

"I saw what you did."

She kept her expression even. "I don't know what you're talking about." She went to walk around him, but his hand shot out and grabbed her wrist.

After everything that happened during the past week with the Grounders and Myles, she couldn't control her reaction. Grabbing his wrist, she twisted his thumb back, pushing it against his wrist. In an effort to stop her from breaking his thumb, he collapsed down onto his knees.

"Ow, ow, ow," he hissed up at her. "Sorry, I shouldn't have grabbed you. I shouldn't have grabbed you. I was going to say - I don't care that you and Octavia released the Grounder." His words spilled from him in a hurry.

Taking a deep breath, she willed her pounding heart to slow down. You're fine. He wasn't attacking you. You're fine. She forced her fingers to let him go. Finn might have been a bit of a show-off, but he had always been genuine and had never gone out of his way to hurt anyone. As far as you know. "You should have started with that," she mumbled, taking a step away from him, running a hand through her hair, unable to meet his gaze.

He massaged his wrist with a grimace before slowly pushing himself back to his feet. He eyed her warily. "You didn't really give me a chance," he grumbled.

She winced. "Sorry," she said, then shrugged. "You grabbed me."

"Ah. Yeah, I got that. Don't grab you," he said drily, then motioned his head towards her fire where they sat down. "Look, I'm not going to tell anyone about the Grounder."

"Why not?" she asked him, wary. If Finn did decide to tell on them, she and Octavia might have bigger problems dealing with the rest of the group. She had seen the way they had mobbed together against Murphy when they had thought he had done something he hadn't. They didn't need that anger directed at them. "Didn't he stab you?"

Finn's hand came up to rub the side of his chest absently. "Yeah. But this… this is bigger than that. If we want to live here, we're going to need to find a way to make peace with the Grounders. And it won't help if we have one locked up just to be Bellamy's torture toy." His tone took on a sneering note.

She pursed her lips at the comment about Bellamy, but ultimately decided to ignore it. "Lincoln - the Grounder - he said he would try to do what he can on his side," she found herself telling him. "I promised I would do the same here. But it feels impossible," she admitted. "How are we supposed to convince any of them that we don't want to fight, that we don't want war." She motioned to the teens around camp.

"We have our work cut out for us," Finn agreed.

A shout from the dropship interrupted them and both of them snapped around at the sound.

"He's gone! The Grounder is gone." Nate said as he stumbled out of the dropship. It looked like the effects of the jobi nuts were fading enough that some were starting to come down from their high and regain their senses. The words seemed to send a ripple of fear through the inebriated teens.

Finn sighed at her side, from where they were watching the commotion. "Gets better and better, doesn't it?"

"What if he brings other Grounders back with him?" Jasper demanded from nearby. His voice trembled as he spoke. "They'll kill us all!"

"Or worse!"

Alex swallowed hard, wanting to sink back as more and more teens became aware that their captured Grounder was no longer their prisoner. She could only hope that Finn was the only one who had seen her and Octavia let him go. She could only hope that he wouldn't say a word.

She could only hope she had made the right choice in letting Lincoln go.

"Then let the Grounders come." A new voice cut through the panicked shouts.

Her head snapped up towards the familiar voice to see Bellamy push through the crowd, Clarke at his side. They had made it back!

Her shoulders almost sagged in relief at the sight of him. Even though he had agreed to come back, had told her he would, somewhere inside herself she had doubted him, had doubted he would come back at all.

"We've been afraid for far too long, and why?" Bellamy continued. It was only then that she noticed his appearance - the darkening skin around his eye, the gash across the bridge of his nose. She frowned. He looked roughed up. He looked like he had been in a fight. "Because of their knives and spears? I don't know about you, but I'm tired of being afraid." Bellamy and Clarke shared a quick glance before unslinging the gear they were carrying on their shoulders, dumping the items into a pile on the ground.

Alex inhaled sharply at the site of the dark metal weapons that glistened in the orange light of the fires.

Guns…. they found guns.

Suddenly, their chances for peace seemed much further out of reach.