Traitors

Peter helps me drag Fierce's limp body into the house. Kyra waits for us at the top of the stairs whimpering at the sight of him. For the few days I stayed here, this place feels more like home to me than my actual home right now. Although for as long as I was here, I never dared to enter his bedroom. Peter shows no signs of stopping and Mae is preoccupied gathering everything she needs to tend to the wound on his back, so I don't have much time to mentally prepare.

All three of us can't fit through the door at once, so I let Peter go in first. I get pulled into his room quicker than I want to. Peter leads us to his bed which is pressed against the wall next to the door. Fierce remains unconscious leaving his body like dead weight. I glance around his room feeling like I'm invading his privacy. His room smells like his cologne which forms a smile on my face. I'm surprised it doesn't reek of stale cigarettes. There's a television on his dresser along with pictures and trinkets he's picked up over the years.

Mae scurries in and starts rattling off orders. She places medical supplies on the bed next to Peter whom is ripping Fierce's jacket off. Mae tears off his tie and begins to unbutton his shirt. I bite my lip and unbutton the buttons on the cuff of his shirt. The back of his shirt is soaked with blood which can only mean his back is worse than I imagined. Peter helps pull his shirt off as I stare in awe at the ink embedded on his skin which I thought stopped on his chest. Instead the black ink extends along his torso with shaded skulls, swirled designs, and a black pair of shaded wings.

Mae notices my eyes wandering along his body and she snaps her fingers in front of my face to get me to focus. Peter rises and climbs onto Fierce's bed still gripping his arm. I stand up and we maneuver him so he's lying on his stomach. Peter avoids looking at the damage leaving the medical stuff to Mae. He gracefully walks to the edge of the bed and hops down. He shifts Fierce's legs over so he's in a more comfortable position. He quickly exits the room leaving the three of us alone. Mae pulls on latex gloves and situates a towel underneath him. I step aside staring at the swollen slice across his back.

Dry and fresh blood stains his skin. A few tiny scratches are scattered everywhere, but the worst is almost in the dead center of his back. One cut stretches along his back oozing every kind of liquid. Mae shakes her head in disappointment and frustration. She grabs the bottle of saline solution and squirts it along his back. Sudden grunts emerge from Fierce's mouth as I glance up at his face. Mae ignores him as she clears away the blood as best she can. He balls his hand up into a fist which shakes subtly anytime Mae touches the center.

I watch as she attempts to clean out the wound. She uses several cotton swabs drenched in rubbing alcohol and runs it along the cut. I remember what it felt like when he saturated my thigh with the stuff and it hurt like hell. I'm not surprised he is writhing with pain and tries to fight her off every time she touches him. Mae sighs soaking a hand towel in cold water and placing it over the wound. She heads out of the room to grab antibiotics and I kneel on the floor next to his bed.

I grab onto the hand which is no longer clenched in a fist. I run my free hand along his forehead feeling how hot it's become. He remains still making me believe he's asleep. I take in a deep breath and release a heavy, silent sigh. He gives my hand a squeeze slowly opening his eyes. He looks tired and pain stricken, but still smiles when he sees me. Mae hurries in with a bottle of water, pills, and a bag of ice. She places the ice across his forehead and forces the pills down his throat. I give his hand a pat rising from the floor and heading out to the kitchen.

Peter sits on the couch in the living room staring at his hands. He takes multiple deep breaths attempting to keep his cool. He glances up at me with a trying smile, but looks slightly freaked out instead. I direct my attention to Kyra who is nestled in front of the sliding glass door staring out into the backyard. I walk over to her and give her a pat on her head. She jumps up onto her hind legs placing her front paws on my shoulders to give my face a few licks. I giggle reaching for the door to let her out. She quickly jumps off of me rushing outside into the freezing night.

I follow after her folding my arms across my chest hoping it'll somehow keep me warm from the chilled air. Kyra frolics in the frost covered grass while I take a seat on a patio chair. The door slides open and Mae wanders out finding the seat next to me. She has a blanket wrapped around her shoulders and hands me one, as well. The silence is heavy between us and it's slightly uncomfortable.

"Why don't you like me?" I break the silence. "Am I not good enough for Logan?" I ask flinching, still not used to his first name quite yet.

"I do like you. You're a very sweet and smart girl for him. I'm just worried about what happens from here." She admits. "He cares a lot about you and if something were to happen to you, I have no idea how he'll handle it."

"Nothing's going to happen." I pull the blanket over my bare shoulders.

"You can't promise that." Mae bites. I lean back letting the silence take over once again. "What you can promise me," she chimes back in, "is that you'll look after him for me." She smiles as I nod agreeing to her request. "Good. Now that that's out of the way, what happened with the whole driving ordeal earlier?"

"I have a fear of driving." I mumble to her softly. "A government car rammed me off the road about two years ago which means --"

"Which means you were left for dead." Mae shakes her head. "It's all so fucked up."

"He supposedly watched the whole thing happen and climbed into my car to check if I survived. I'm not entirely sure why. I don't remember anything from the accident, but I remember meeting him in the hospital and the doctors raving on about his brave course of action. He was so humble and concerned like he'd been doing it for years." Kyra runs up onto the patio and sits with us. "He introduced himself apparently for the second time and offered me the choice to join the rebellion."

"And you said yes." Mae rubs Kyra's head.

"And I said no." I say chuckling. Mae's head quickly turns to me to see if I'm being serious. "I turned him down. I was eighteen and still trying to find out who I was. I was into drugs and getting into some serious trouble which could have gotten me killed, but I acted like it was all a game." She shakes her head disapprovingly. "A few weeks after the accident, I was out by the old train station with my best friend, Pixel." I hesitate slightly before I continue. "We heard the cops in the distance and both ran like hell into the nearby corn field which was when we got separated. I made it through the whole thing and ended up near town where I ran into him again. His face was serious as he pulled me into the back alley and we hid as the cops ran by."

"Saved the day again, huh?" Mae crosses her legs resting her elbow on her knee and placing her head in her hand.

"Kind of, I guess." I shrug. "Not long after I heard Pixel yelling for me, but he held me down keeping me from running to her. We both knew she made a mistake by shouting, she drew the cops right to her." Mae gasps resting her hand on my lap. "We heard a gunshot and then silence. I fought him, begging him to let me go, but he was determined for us to stay hidden which we did. Eventually when the cops cleared out, I saw her body collapsed in the street right before it was taken away. He never left my side and that's when I decided to help him. I joined the rebellion for Pixel." I release a heavy sigh.

"I'm sorry you lost her." Mae reaches over lending her condolences by putting her hand on my shoulder.

"Mae," I sigh feeling a pain in my chest, "I'm going to lose more."

"What do you mean?" She asks moving closer to me.

"Your dad threatened me tonight. He claims he has someone working on the inside so he knows our every move." I look into her eyes feeling defeated, but that's just what he wants me to feel. I rise from the chair and head inside. "Peter, could you give me a ride into town?" He looks between me and Mae then slowly nods.

"What are you doing?" Mae asks letting Kyra walk inside first.

"I have to figure out a way to fix this."

"Fix what? What are you talking about? Mae asks following us downstairs. "What am I supposed to tell Logan?" I pause before opening the door to the garage.

"Tell him," I sigh, "tell him I left."

Peter closes the door behind him leaving Mae speechless and confused in the doorway. He doesn't say anything the entire car ride. I catch him wiping his palms on his pants a few times. I have him pull over a little bit away from town so he doesn't break the law. I politely thank him and tell him to head back to Fierce's place. The winter air bites away at my bare arms. I occasionally trip on my dress as I hurry my way into The Tunnel and down the hall to the plant.

Everyone's gone for the night, but Quela and Gabe. I burst open Gabe's door walking over to his desk. He stares up at me with his good eye not amused at the sight of me. I grab a tissue from the box on his desk and toss it into the air. He gives me a questionable look as I release a heavy sigh.

"I'm metaphorically throwing a white flag." I snarl.

"What the fuck are you --"

"We have a mole." I interrupt him. "Someone in here is working for Mayor Fierce." Gabe's eye widens as he shakes his head. "But I think together we can get a plan in motion that might help us figure out who it is." He grabs the fallen tissue and waves it.

"Truce, Detope." He declares. "Let's get started."