𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 | 𝐜.𝐛

18

Colby

My thumb traces her back lightly.

"Feeling better?" I ask, kissing her cheek.

"Mhmm," she hums. "I should probably get back."

"Whatever you want to do," I nod. She doesn't move. Chuckling, I kiss her shoulder and stop rubbing her back. Her eyes open.

"Why'd you stop?" She questions softly.

"If I didn't, we wouldn't be going anywhere," I laugh. She leans up on her arms before kissing me. My hand reaches up and twists in her hair. She pulls away before pushing up and out of the bed. "Do you trust them?"

"Who?" She asks, slipping on some leggings.

"Lenny and Kara."

"Lenny seems sweet but Kara hasn't spoken since she got here."

"I'm sure she's seen some stuff," I tell her.

"There's something not right there," she mumbles. She walks over to the dresser and opens one of my drawers. "Can I wear one of your shirts?"

"Of course," I chuckle, standing up. She picks out one of my flannels before putting it on and buttoning it up. Walking up behind her, I wrap my arms around her waist. "I think you should stay here."

"What do you mean?" She asks, turning to face me. She rests her arms on my shoulders. 

"For the chip. They need you here with her. Hunter, Luke, and I can go. We'd leave tomorrow morning and be back tomorrow night."

"What if something happens?"

"You have people here to protect you and everyone else here."

"Okay," she breathes. "Take a walkie please."

"I will," I grin. "We'll go a few hours out and ditch it before coming back."

"We should get going," she whispers. Nodding, I take her hand and we walk out of the house.

"What was the message?" Tara asks as I step into Sam's room.

"A girl was at the gates. She was bleeding. When Bella tried to help her she told her not to. She said she was a trap. Bella helped her anyway."

"Holy shit," Kat whispers. Sam sits up.

"Do you trust Lenny and Kara?" He asks. 

"I don't know," I sigh. "Bella wants to but I don't know if she does. As soon as Lenny got that chip out, a girl shows up covered in blood. I want to think it's a coincidence but I don't know."

"Well, what about the girl?" Tara asks.

"Bella's with her in the next room. I wanted to talk to you all about something. Luke, Hunter, and I are going to ditch the chip tomorrow."

"Is that safe?"

"I mean they've had their chance to kill us. Bella trusts the girls and I trust them."

"If you trust them then we do too."

"I'm gonna go check on Bella before talking to them," I explain. I say my goodbyes before leaving the room. When I go into the next room, Bella is sitting in a chair next to the girl. She looks at me with tears in her eyes. "You okay?"

"Yeah," she smiles, wiping under her eyes. I walk over to her and pull a chair over. She rests her head on my shoulder. "She's his type."

"It's okay," I assure. "She's safe while she's here."

She pulls my hand into her lap.

"Please be careful while you're out," she whispers.

"I will be. Plus, it's not until tomorrow and I still need to talk to Luke and Hunter," I explain. "Why'd you help her?"

"She was scared and alone. I know how that feels," she explains. "He wanted me to help her. That's why she tried to get me away. I guess he knows me."

"He took advantage of your heart. He saw how you went and helped Lenny rather than leaving." 

"How did she know where we were?"

"If the chip was tracking you then he knows you're here. Even more of a reason why we need to get it out of here."

"Does Kara look like Lenny's daughter to you?" She whispers.

"I was thinking about that," I reply just as low.

"Lenny is an older woman and Kara can't be older than 17," she mumbles. "What if they're lying? What if the chip was a lie and they're giving Michael information?"

"They've been in the hospital the whole time."

"And Lenny has a minor wound. Sam is healing faster than she is." 

"What do you want to do?" I ask, rubbing her knee.

"If they are giving him the information we can't let them know we're onto them. They could tell him and he could raid us." 

"What do you want me to do?"

"If you all don't leave with the chip, she'll know something is wrong."

"And when we do leave?"

"Hopefully, it keeps her thinking that we trust her."

"I need to go talk to Luke and Hunter but I'll be back," I assure, kissing her head. She nods and lets go of my hand. Standing, I walk out of the room and out of the hospital.

Isabella

There's a light knock on the door. Looking up, I see Tara and Kat.

"Hey," I smile.

"Hey." Their eyes find her.

"How is she?" Kat asks, walking over to me.

"She should wake up soon," I nod.

"Why are you staying with her?" Tara questions.

"I have questions and I don't want her to be alone when she wakes up."

"You have a good heart," she smiles. 

"It's hard in a world like this."

"You saved her because of it," Kat grins.

"I could get killed because of it," I whisper. Their eyebrows furrow.

"What do you mean?" She asks.

"He's alive. That son of a bitch is alive."

"If he sent her..."

"He knows where I am," I finish.

"So the chip was tracking you?" Tara questions.

"I don't know," I whisper. "We can't trust anyone here other than our group, Kendra, April, Hunter, and Luke."

"What did he do to you, Bella?" Tara asks, grabbing my hand. Pursing my lips, I take a deep breath. 

"One night, I tried to get a guard to take me out of the room so I could try to find Colby. Well, the guard had other ideas. He took me to a room and beat me with a belt. Michael shot him. He took me to a bathroom and..." a cry gets caught in my throat.

"Hey, it's okay," Kat assures, rubbing my back. "We're right here."

"He made me strip in front of him. Then, he bathed me. He stuck his hand under the water and," my voice shakes, "I tried to get him to stop so he held my head under the water as a threat. He said if I did it again he wouldn't let me back up. So, I shut down."

"Bella," Tara whispers. "I'm so sorry."

"I thought I killed him," I cry. "And now, he could get his second chance."