"She was like a new light. A new beginning. A new end." - Rick Grimes.
This story is about Bella Sinclair and her journey through the new world of the dead. A story of hope, of justice, of family and most importantly, of love. It focuses on a simil...
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Strand soon returned to his beloved Tower, which quickly reminded me how much more brutal he was compared to Howard.
"I brought you here because I thought you were worth the risk, only to find- as soon as my backs turned- you've injured several of my soldiers, gone against Howard's orders an risked the safety of the Tower for two meaningless lives." He bellowed with anger as I felt his glare radiate through my skin. "Do you have anything to say for yourself?" But I remained silent, only for his fist to slam into the desk in front of me. "Speak when spoken to!"
The choice of words ringing a memory of the past, I looked up to him with as much confidence as I could muster. "Thanks to me you have more leverage than before. The soldiers received some vital training in the midst of chaos. An Howard demonstrated that he is not worthy of being in charge in your absence, all of which is a benefit to you—"
"A benefit that was never worth the risk to prove." Strand leant against the chair he had ordered me to sit in, attempting to intimidate me with his higher stature. "A master knows all the cards to the game he plays." He riddled away. "If I have you, I don't need leverage an I probably don't even need the soldiers. As for Howard, I keep him close for a reason but not because I see him as a half decent deputy."
"Why keep him close if he has no value to you?" I questioned, perhaps too daringly.
Strand laughed inwardly, removing his hands from the arms of the chair and putting more distance between us as he sat on the edge of his desk. "Howard's like a pet dog. He's loyal an he does as he's told."
"Then what does that make me?" I wondered.
His hands, only recently departed, returned either side of me as he lowered his upper body to look down at me. "That makes you... a problem."
It made me rebellious. I have never been one to follow commands or leadership that wasn't right or my own. But I had a part to play here, a part that would ensure Kai, Ezra and Miya made it out alive. But I feared playing the part because of its meaning, because of what it formerly resembled. Ali and Charlie showed me that to feel was still a part of being truly alive, and most of all it was still within me, which is what I was so desperate to find before heading home. Playing the part Strand wanted from me would put that in jeopardy... so he made the call to help me get into his frame of mind.
"Urgh!"
My upper body swayed back and forth slightly, my wrists rubbing against the ropes binding me to the metal framed chair, as another blast of ice cold water hit my skin. Every time the pain worsening, as though a thousand daggers were piercing my body, leaving it pink and raw.
"Again." Strand ordered, watching me suffer with his sinister eyes.
"Ar- argh—"
The one comfort from all of this was that Ali and Charlie were safe, for now. June had bargained with her life, informing Howard that if anything were to happen to either of them, she would no longer act as caregiver and medic for the Tower. It was a temporary solution, one which gave us time... or gave them time at least.
