Molly - Part 1

Chapter 35

The next day Molly and Teddy knocked on Isaac's bedroom door. When no one answered, they entered. He lay there on his side, his face white. They confirmed him dead soonafter.

"We could stay here for a while," Teddy said.

"I think we better just keep going."

The rain came down in green sheets, covering the city. It was quiet, and Molly felt as if she were truly alone with Teddy for the first time since their flight. It was strange to feel such an attachment; she was completely familiar with it, while also not knowing how to put it into words.

They could hear the gunfire, the lazer-fire. And from afar: flashes of light, and the smell of burning. Molly gripped her nose but still coughed; Teddy didn't look to be faring much better.

"Everyone's going the same direction," Teddy said.

"Right."

"A bunch of desperate monsters packed into one, maybe two sectors. That doesn't seem very good."

"It's too late to stop it," Molly said, standing to the side and crossing her arms. "I don't know."

"Who are the important ones?" Teddy asked. "Maybe we can target them."

"The queen of the vultures," Molly whispered. "She'll be the first one to take off the mask, and it'll be incredible."

Teddy stared at her.

"Who else?"

"The sheep-mother, but her flock tends to go their own way. Gordon, I guess, but he's hanging by a thread. I don't know if his people will be there. More likely he's waiting to see who comes out on top."

Teddy stepped forward, frowning. "Who do you think that'll be?"

"At the end of the day, the state still has the most pull. All we can assume is that one day the government will intervene, but who knows when that will be."

"So we keep these...clans as peaceful as we can," Teddy said. "That's the most important thing."

"Yes."

"Okay. I hope you know what that means."

"It means we might have to kill people who don't deserve it. I know."

Teddy sighed. "I hope you're right about all of this."

"Molly Smith?"

Teddy was already aiming down his rifle, Molly snapping around and pointing her pistol.

It was a woman, covered in red lines. She was perched on an incline overlooking the street. She didn't move as Molly and Teddy's weapons trained on her, observing as if observing a common occurrence.

"How do you know my name?"

"Please do not insult me. Your actions reverberate across the city."

She rose up from the ledge, looking east, towards the fires.

"The culmination of our sins. The tree-mother has been watching you, Molly. She sees into your soul and knows what you really are."

"I don't care. What do you want from us?"

The woman glanced at Teddy. "She wants to speak to you."

"Why?"

"The answer should be obvious, but fine: She wants to look into your eyes and see you for what you are."

"If she already knows me, then she should know how trivial that is."

The woman shook her head. "No. No, I think you are lying to me. I think knowing you would reveal what this life is actually about. Why we suffer. Why we're here." She coughed once. "Will you come?"