DISCORDIA

[ 53 ] shot calls

       "Octavia, no!" Clarke yelled. "He's from Mount Weather, we need to keep him alive. Check to see if he's got a patch kit. We've got to get him back to camp."

       Jinny got off her horse and started forwards as Octavia pushed the Mountain Man to the ground. He was crying out in pain about how it burned, blistering red ulcers spreading across the skin of his face that was visible through the clear plastic sheet of his breathing helm. There was a tear in his right pants leg from where Octavia had slashed it earlier, and Jinny guessed the air must be extremely toxic to them. It was strange to witness.

       She went to examine the body of the other Mountain Man that had been killed by a Grounder's arrow, finding a sniper rifle positioned on the ground. So this was their would-be assassin. Octavia went through the pack that was left on the ground, unzipping the front pocket and finding old fashioned photographs inside. She let out a sharp breath of air and Jinny leaned forwards to have a closer look at them.

       It was a picture of her, holding Bellamy's hand as they walked through the gates of Tondc.

       Fuck, they knew his face.

       Octavia shuffled through the thin stack, and there were other photos of Clarke and Lexa in the bunch too. All of them had red circles around their faces. Targets. The Mountain Men were aiming at the three of them. Bellamy wasn't included on the hit list, which was a relief. They wouldn't be actively searching for him then. Jinny took the photographs from Octavia and marched up to the Mountain Man, grabbing the front of his suit roughly.

       "What the hell is this?" she shouted at him, waving the pictures in front of his face. He merely stared back at her as he continued to cry out in pain. "You were trying to assassinate us. How much do you know?"

       He ignored her, pressing his hands against the hole in his suit as Octavia came up with a patch kit. She knelt down and quickly plastered a thin layer of radiation shielding over the opening. The man calmed down slightly, though he was still gasping out in pain from the burns he'd sustained. Jinny crouched down and grabbed him again. "What have you done to my friends?" she asked. "Tell me what I want to hear and we'll let you live."

       "Carl Emerson," he said, voice muffled by his breathing apparatus. "Mount Weather security detail."

       "Hi, Carl Emerson, Mount Weather security detail," Jinny responded with a dangerous glint in her eyes as she stood up and unholstered her gun. She pressed the barrel against the man's head. "This is Glock 22 stocking .45 caliber ammunition."

       "Jinny, stop!" Clarke called.

       The Ark Guard walked up to her and shoved the pictures at the blonde. "We're their targets, us and Lexa."

       "We have to warn the Commander," Indra informed from the other side of the path before spitting out instructions in Trigedasleng to the Grounder escort. The warrior turned his horse around and whipped it into motion, galloping back down the dirt road.

       "I need to find out if Bellamy's made contact," Jinny said, climbing back onto her horse. She kicked her heels into the animal's sides and took off without waiting for the others. They would follow her soon enough.

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       The familiar ring of Alpha Station loomed high above her, blocking the harsh glare of the sun as she trotted through the gates of Camp Jaha. People immediately surrounded her, swarming her horse as they called out questions imperatively. Jinny ignored them as she dismounted, her eyes set on the station's entrance, and started forwards across the compound.