The Broken Healer

Chapter 21: Genius of the Operations

Evelyn's black was slammed into a wall, something huge was holding her pinned to the wall, and something pressed against her lips, cutting off her air. Her tense muscles sagged. Goose broke the kiss as soon as she wasn't fighting anymore. He started talking quietly to her.

"Your name is Evelyn. WICKED calls you a Healing Witch. You have powers to heal the broken. You say you're wounded, we say your whole. Your power is destructive now. Your home was the Glade. There is no more Glade. You're home is where ever your friends are. You are an infected Crank with the rest of us. We're all dying. You said you're not scared of dying. It's forgetting that scares you.

Newt. Minho. Chuck. Nick. Sonny. Jeff. Tommy. Frypan. Tessa. Sonya. Jorge. Jaz. George. Jack. Gally. Alby. Clint. Winston.

These people are your happy thoughts when the crank becomes too much. Your friends. Your family. Your love. You home. You say them over and over; like a prayer. Trying to keep yourself sane; trying to hold on." 

"You forgot Noah." Evelyn whispered. The tears had started. "I'm sorry Noah. I'm sorry." 

"Don't be sorry. Life  is just about survival. Even the Munies understand it's about survival. We do what we have to." He rumbled quietly. His forehead was pressed into Evelyn's. 

"Did our guys get hurt?" She asked quietly, scared she hurt someone who she sort of counted as on her side. She knew turning on a friend wasn't out of the question for her, she already had. 

"No Kitten. We're all Fine." 

She just nodded. 

"Do you want me to put you down or just take you out of the room?" he asked rather gently. 

"...out..." She said quietly. 

Goose's chest rumbled as he hummed, holding her tightly, her legs wrapped around him, he carried her, like a child, away from the massacre in the room. He cried her back down the hall, and through the weird wiggling bodies and out in the fresh air of Central Zone. He placed her down finally. 

"Let's go back to The Circus." 

He took her hand and they walked back through the crowd, somehow Munies were back, they were intermingled with the Cranks again, breaking up fist fights. She saw all kinds of weirdness around her, but her eyes were glazed, she didn't see much, and she didn't hear much. For being well into the madness of the Flare, the cranks around them seemed to give Goose and Evelyn a wide berth. Her first time here with Newt- which was only yesterday- she was pushed and shoved, bumped and knocked into. Today Eyes followed where she went, or maybe it was followed where Goose went. They headed for the main Gate. Hatter took his hat off in a sweeping bow as they left. Goose nodded at him and continued down the path until he took a sharp turn down the dark alley.

Evelyn followed, feeling listless. She had such an empty heavy feeling inside of her. It felt like her entire insides were filled with weight and it was pulling her slowly down to the ground.  She had an overwhelming feeling to just melt into the ground and wallow in the sorrow. 

"Kitten, you look sad." 

"We are sad." She whispered, looking up at Goose with such bit sad puppy dog eyes. The pain hit her again, like a sharp pain, it was so painful she gasped, pulled her infected arm into her chest and bent double trying to catch her breath. It felt like there was shards of glass rattling around in her lungs. Her gasping for a breathing made it worse.

Goose turned towards her, worry written in his dark and broody face, he helped her lean against the wall, and then caught her as she slid down to sit crumpled on the cracked paved back alley road.