Vesper set her down on the chair, the movement was delicate and gentle, like she were afraid Bellamy would break. It was… odd. Bellamy didn’t know how to feel about any of this. Her emotions were a torrent, out of her control. Not like she’d had any control over them for the last week to begin with.
They’d gotten back to the hotel in half an hour, Vesper carrying Bellamy the entire time, saying almost nothing. And now she was taking care of Bellamy: shuffling around, getting her water, tossing her food, packing her clothes.
Above everything, one thought kept coming back, a hopeful peace settling in her chest—Vesper had killed Cedar. She hadkilledCedar. For Bellamy. After everything they’d been through—everything Bellamy had done to them—Vesper was still willing to fight for her. To risk her life for Bellamy.
She wanted to be happy. By all accounts, she should be thrilled. But mostly she was confused. Confused and worried as fuck. Bellamy had spent so long trying to keep Vesper out of her shit, to keep her alive, and in one fell swoop, they were both marked for death because of the very person Bellamy had been trying to get free from for years.
Well, she was free from her now.
“What are we waiting for?” Bellamy asked hesitantly when Vesper emerged with all of Bellamy’s stuff shoved into her bag. She’d set it down in front of her and then refilled Bellamy’s water without a word.
“I can’t carry all our shit and you, Bel. You need to be able to walk,” Vesper explained, giving her a quick once over before continuing. “And you need to change that shirt. We don’t need to draw attention. Can you do that on your own or are you still entirely useless?”
Bellamy glared at her. The subtle jab reminded her of just a few days ago when she’d been stabbed the first time—presumably by someone Cedar hired. Vesper had called her useless then, too, and then she’d fucking left her. For Cedar.
But Cedar was dead now. When it came down to it, Vesper chose Bellamy. Her body heated, and she tried to hide the smile playing on her lips.
Wincing, Bellamy carefully peeled the shirt up, revealing her injury. The blood had dried on her skin, and some of it flaked off as she moved. The inch-long slice in her belly had fully healed already. With a twinge of shock, Bellamy realized Vesper must have stitched her up while she was unconscious. She tried not to think about what that meant, about how Vesper would have argued with Cedar about it.
Her shirt was halfway off when Vesper knelt in front of her, and Bellamy’s breath caught. She stared in amazement, unwilling to move, as Vesper reached out and tenderly stroked her thumb over the small, raised line where the cut had been.
The sutures hadn’t fallen out yet, so her healing wasn’t completed. Hopefully it wouldn’t take much longer for the poison to clear her system. She’d have to drink more, flush it out. Once it was gone, she’d need sleep. Being poisoned was fucking exhausting. She couldn’t succumb to sleep now though. They had to get out of this city.
Bellamy trusted Vesper to figure everything outsince she certainly couldn’t do it at the moment. All of her energy was focused on staying awake until it was safe to pass out.
“Know any tricks to flush the poison faster?” Vesper asked. Bellamy smiled at the irritation in her voice. Vesper had always dismissed poison so quickly. She’d always hated it. It was one of the few things that Bellamy knew more about than Vesper.
She remembered the rants Vesper used to go on whenever someone mentioned using poison, or when a client suggested it for a job. She’d always stuck to her beliefs—poison was tactless. She didn’t appreciate how it was essentially stealing their work—her words.
“Bel?” Concern laced Vesper’s voice, and worry swam behind her eyes. It startled Bellamy out of her daydream. She was tired; her thoughts weren’t focusing, drifting instead to memories. It was hard to stay present.
Bellamy cleared her throat. “Water. I need to drink more.”
Vesper nodded, standing and refilling Bellamy’s water for a third time, then she handed her another pack of jerky while she bit into one herself. Bellamy hadn’t even considered how much magical energy Vesper would have used during the whole thing.
She must be nearly as drained as Bellamy. Bellamy didn’t realize she’d been staring until Vesper met her gaze. The worry in Vesper’s eyes still startled her. She wasn’t used to that—wasn’t used to anything but the anger she’d forced there all those years ago.
“You ok?” Vesper knocked her knee gently. Her words were soft.
“Why’d you do it?”
“Do what?”
“Do what?” Bellamy’s laugh was borderline hysterical. “Why’d you save me? Why’d you come back? Why didn’t you just go with your precious Cedar,” she spat the last words with vehemence, fear burning through her eyes. “You killed her, Ves. We didn’t both have to die. It would have just been me.” The fire left her quickly, and she deflated. “It shouldhave just been me.”
Vesper looked down, and Bellamy knew she wasn’t going to get an answer.
“Can you walk yet?” Vesper asked instead, checking the time and refusing to look at Bellamy.
“Ves…”
Vesper shook her head. Bellamy sighed. After a moment’s hesitation, she took Vesper’s hand, hoping Vesper would look at her. But her gaze was trained on the wall behind Bellamy.
Vesper’s steadying hand was warm in hers, and Bellamy thought she might cry. If they weren’t in such immediate danger, she might have. So much had changed in mere minutes. Her emotions hadn’t caught up yet. She still expected Vesper to drop her hand immediately. Vesper did drop her hold, but only after Bellamy was steady, and only to grab their bags.
Bellamy wobbled, unsteady on her feet. She could do this. Her legs were heavy as she took her first step. It was going to take all fucking day to get to the trolley station at this pace.
“Here,” Vesper sighed, shoving Bellamy’s bag in her arms. Before Bellamy had even a second to protest about how much longer it would take that way, Vesper’s strong arm was wrapped around her waist and she half dragged Bellamy out of the hotel. They didn’t stop until they reached the trolley station.
