When Songbirds Fly | Bellamy Blake

Chapter Sixty-Two: The Other Side

TW// Blood, injury, death

—

'Bell?'

The streets are quiet. We remain in the shadows of the towering buildings, keeping out of sight. He continues without a response.

I reach out to take hold of his hand. 'Bellamy.'

'It's not safe,' he says. The look in his eyes is one of pure terror. Pulling me into a hug, he speaks in no more than a breathless whisper, 'I could return unseen, but they'll know that you weren't there before.'

My lips ghost against his jaw as I struggle to pull myself out of his crushing grip. 'We can't go back to the tower together,' I acknowledge begrudgingly, 'we have to split up.'

Neither of us want to.

He forces a stiff nod. 'We could always go back to a safe zone, slip in when nobody's looking.'

'My dad needs your support. It'll be fine, Bell.'

'Luna's out there. Roan may have spared us and I have no clue about Podakru's warrior, but there's no way she'll let us go. She doesn't care anymore. If she finds us—'

I cut him off with a lingering kiss. He immediately leans into it, holding me impossibly close. Rain starts to fall on us in heavy droplets.

Moving back slightly, I realise that he still hasn't let go. I nuzzle my nose against his in one last parting gesture. 'We'll be okay. Promise. I'll see you when this is over.'

He still doesn't seem convinced. 'Oh. Uh... y-yeah. See you.'

'I love you, okay?'

'Yeah. You, too.'

—

I don't get much further before the rain becomes heavier. Lightning splits the void sky. Thunder growls.

Then I feel it, a splash against the tip of my nose. It tingles, then it burns, then it scorches. I gasp and hurriedly rub it off with my sleeve. I dare not turn my head towards the heavens, for I know what will happen.

Black Rain.

It hits the cobbled stones of the street and the crumbling concrete around me, sizzling and hissing on impact. I can barely see five feet ahead of me but I know that the nearest safety zone is too far away. Even if I can get to the tunnels in time, it won't be enough. My skin is already beginning to blister. Turning up the collar of my jacket, I run as fast as I can down the alley until I find the first unlocked door.

The room inside is large but simple, decorated only by plain furniture and candles. Forcing myself to ignore the screams from outside, I desperately begin to strip off my jackets. There is a pail of water by the door, which I immediately use to splash away any remaining acid on my hair, face and arms.

A thudding comes from outside, growing closer and closer by the second. It isn't the steady rushing of rain, it's something else entirely, something possibly just as deadly. Footsteps.

I don't bother to retrieve my jackets or my cane from the ground before racing towards the closet that leans against the wall. The wooden doors screech slightly as I open them and the flooring creaks under my weight. I flatten myself against the back and remain as still as I possibly can, clamping a hand firmly over my mouth in an effort to silence my panicked gasps.

A thin line of light stretches across my vision. Then it grows dark. Somebody is stood right in front of me. I can see a face through the thin crack in the door.