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— WHEN CHARLOTTE AWOKE HER THE NEXT MORNING, ALL CLEO FELT WAS PAIN. Her hand was throbbing and it felt so hot she could almost believe that she was holding it over a fire. A sharp hiss fell sloppily from her lips as she examined her hand. Her fingertips were disgusting and the rest of her hand looked like it had suffered from burns.
"Are you okay?" Charlotte asked, her eyes glued to Cleo's mangled fingers.
"I'm fine, don't worry about me, sweetheart." She covered her fingers quickly, shooting a surprisingly convincing smile towards her. "Let's go see if it's safe outside, yeah?"
They followed Bellamy who had already made his way towards the mouth of the cave. He poked his head out tentatively, checking for any traces of the acid fog. When he deemed it to be safe, he opened his mouth to speak.
"It's all clear," he told the girls. "Anybody out here? Jones?"
"We're here!" Jones answered almost immediately and relief flushed through Cleo's stomach.
She took Charlotte's hand with her good hand, walking with her out of the cave. Taking a glance at Bellamy, they seemed to have a silent agreement to take Charlotte back to camp. Or maybe it was all in Cleo's head, but she could've sworn she saw him look at Charlotte, then to her. Maybe the fog had scrambled her brains.
"Come on, let's go back to camp."
Her eyes dropped to the ground, then to the sun to determine where they were. Camp would be to the east, towards the rising sun. She began walking towards the sun, dragging Charlotte behind her.
A few strides into their journey, Cleo's eyes fell onto a lump on the forest floor. Her stomach dropped, instantly knowing what it was – who it was. She pulled Charlotte back, trying to spare her from the sight but by the time she had gotten the momentum, Charlotte had seen it.
