Sour Candy | T. Drake ✔

[45] Tearing Up Old Wounds

It was difficult to convince Mona to leave Talia on her own in such difficult times for the League but the woman made sure to make her understand that it was the only option left. Eventually, Mona had to agree though she wasn't willing at all to go to Gotham.

"I want you safe, child, and it can't be possible if you stay here," she had hugged her tenderly before letting her go because deep down, she felt as if she would never see Mona again.

"Ummi, I don't want to leave you," she mumbled, holding on tightly to her.

"I know. But you're not leaving forever, right? I'll call you back when things get better," Talia gave her a soft reassuring smile, an expression that not many people had had the chance of seeing on her features, "but for now, I can't risk your life. If you stay here, you'll get targeted due to me and I don't want that."

She nodded with a heavy heart as Talia pulled apart, her fingers stroking her head gently.

Udit and Mona left the base that night because Talia had warned them to keep their departure a secret, knowing full well that if there were traitors among the League, they would target them and not let them leave.

And though they had boarded the train and were on their long journey to Gotham, Mona couldn't stop herself from thinking that they had made a huge mistake in leaving Talia alone at the base. 

True, the woman was skilled and deadly, able to defend her own self against whole battalions single-handedly. But if something fatal happened to her, the rest of the members of the League might not be as loyal to help her out as Mona and Udit had been in the most recent attack.

Exhaustion was overcoming her as they had been traveling for hours and she wasn't accustomed to it. She wanted to go to sleep but each time she would close her eyes, thoughts about Talia, the attacks, and the other side of her family that she was going to meet very soon would flash in her mind, making her uncomfortable with all the worries clouding in her head.

She was worried about what could happen to Talia if there was another attack in their absence and she was also anxious about whether her father, who probably didn't even know she existed, would be able to accept her or not. She might not have known the full extent of Nyssa and Tim's past, but she knew enough that accepting an assassin child could be a problem for any person.

She looked sideways at Udit who was sitting alert, his sharp eyes looking out for any sign of danger. Knowing that he was keeping watch and would alert her if something went askew, she closed her eyes briefly. Though she didn't realize when sleep overpowered her and she drifted off into a deep fatigued slumber.

Udit got startled when her head dropped on his arm, turning to look at the girl who was fast asleep. He became even more alert at that, knowing that he had to be very careful lest someone came after him and Mona.

And even though he was tired himself, sleep had abandoned him as he felt entitled to a huge responsibility since he had to make sure Mona reached Gotham safely. His eyes flickered toward his watch again, noting that there were still a few hours left till the next station.

From there, they had to take a bus to the nearest city and book a flight to Gotham. 

He hoped nothing went wrong in the meanwhile as there was still a lot of travel waiting ahead of them and he knew he would only be able to rest when he fulfilled his task.

***

Dora woke up as she felt Tim's arms retrieve from her and looked up to see that he was sitting on the bed. And though it was hard to see clearly due to the darkness in the room, she felt that he was slightly shaking, as if he had just woken up from a nightmare.