Chapter 102: 102-With Her On His Back
Clementine:
I had been holding the baby for a while. The tears on my cheek had dried, and my eyes stared blankly ahead.
"Clementine, come on, we have to head back to the station. The baby needs food," Troy’s voice finally broke through. He had been trying to reach me for some time. I heard him before, but I couldn’t pull myself out of the haze. Watching Sadie die right in front of me had crushed me. It wasn’t the monsters that killed her. It was the lurkers, the ringleaders, the headmaster.
"Why didn’t they help her like they promised?" I asked, turning to look at Troy.
"I don’t know. They’re messed-up people, Clementine. Don’t you see how they look at us? We’re like clowns in uniforms, as if this is some live show. It’s entertainment for them. But we have to get out of here—for these babies, for Hardin," Troy replied, sitting beside me.
I could barely move. My gaze kept drifting to Sadie. Her body had turned a deep blue. The last moments of her life were filled with unbearable pain.
"She must have been terrified this whole time, Troy," I murmured, my lips trembling.
"Clementine, please, hold yourself together." Troy set the baby down and took the one from my arms, wrapping him in a blanket because I couldn’t move. Then he hugged me, and I broke down, sobbing into his chest.
"Do you think Hardin will forgive everyone for what they did to his mother?" I sniffled, pulling back just enough to meet his eyes.
"I’m not sure how he’ll see the others, but he’ll have far more respect for you and Haiden than for anyone else," Troy said, wiping my cheeks with the back of his hand.
"I don’t want to leave her here," I whispered.
"Clementine, they won’t let us bring her body."
I shook my head. "No, she deserves a proper burial. She was a crusader, a fighter." My tears kept falling as Troy rubbed my shoulders to calm me.
"I’ll carry her to the train station and make sure they let us take her," he promised. The way he said it, with that steady, certain look in his eyes, made me start nodding along.
Troy carried her on his back while I held both babies, one in each arm. It was difficult, but not as hard as carrying a body. I was at least grateful to Troy for remembering my wish.
As we walked back to the station, I saw Oriana sitting on a bench, while Valerie was with the baby.
"Oh my god, where have you been? Hey, you found your friend!" Oriana, always so cheerful, jumped up to rush toward me. But the moment she saw our condition, she stopped and tilted her head. "Wait, that’s Sadie!" she gasped.
I expected her to hurry over and help Troy, but instead, she stepped back. "What happened to her?" she asked, pointing at Sadie. "And wait, is that her baby?" She gestured toward the child in my arms.
I didn’t answer. Her reaction wasn’t helpful. We needed action. Valerie set her baby down, hurried over, and took one of the babies from me so we could help Troy place Sadie’s body on the bench. Then she took the other baby while Oriana stood beside her.
Once my hands were free, I helped Troy lay Sadie down.
"I need a blanket to cover her," Troy said, his face heavy with sadness. I guessed he didn’t want to keep looking at her.
"I have one," Valerie replied, heading back to her bench and pulling out a blanket she must have taken from one of the houses. She handed it to Troy, who immediately draped it over Sadie. Then he just stood there, watching her.
"Oh my god, poor girl," Oriana finally murmured, as if waking from a daze.
"Are they going to let you take her back home?" Oriana snapped out of it quickly, firing off questions.
"They must. She was one of us," Valerie spoke firmly. She had a strong sense of loyalty but was still kind, and I felt proud of her.
"Right, as if they’ll listen to you," Oriana muttered, rolling her eyes at Valerie. Her attitude toward Valerie wasn’t what I had expected. Was she not getting along with her squadmates, or was something else going on?
Troy didn’t stick around for their exchange. He fetched the baby girl from the bench and went to sit by the tracks. I picked up Hardin and joined him. Silence settled between us as we cared for the babies.
I noticed Troy was better with a baby than most men I’d seen. He changed diapers, cleaned her, even rubbed her back and sang a lullaby. It was surprisingly gentle of him. Valerie came to sit nearby so the baby in her arms could enjoy the lullaby too.
"Where did you learn this?" I asked, remembering that he’d never seemed like someone who’d be so involved with children.
"I don’t know. Maybe I just did. Maybe fatherhood runs deeper in me," he said, trying to make a joke. But every time he moved, his gaze drifted behind me, and I guessed the sight of Sadie kept him quiet.
Oriana stayed far back, probably avoiding sitting with us while Valerie was there.
Meanwhile, Valerie told us her stepmother had been cruel enough to send both sisters away at once. She hadn’t wanted either of them to stay. She wanted them out of her life so her own daughter could receive good proposals. Her stepmother also had a son who was an alpha, so the decision against the sisters had been an easy one.
Our lives were just sad. We were all people cast aside because someone decided we were less deserving, simply because our fathers placed us second.
The babies were fussy all night, but Hardin barely cried. It broke my heart because he was such a calm child, yet his mother lay right behind him, never waking up. Every time I thought about it, the tears came again. I’d think of her, start crying, and Troy would have to comfort me.
"Are you going to accept Haiden?" It was around 3 a.m., and I didn’t expect Troy to ask me that.