Free Web NovelChapter 54: Chapter 54 - Me Too
Iyisha closed her notes and gave the signal to wrap up. "Read the case studies in the back before tomorrow," she said, her voice carrying over the room. Thirty trainees shuffled in their seats, some already sliding pens into pockets, others flipping books closed with relief.
She stayed at the front, watching them file out in pairs and clusters, their chatter fading down the hall. Once the room was nearly empty, she moved between the rows, collecting stray handouts, straightening stacks of reference books, nudging a chair back into line. The routine steadied her.
When she finally looked up, Mary was there, leaning on the doorframe. Arms crossed, one shoulder pressed against the wood, her expression flat enough that it was hard to read what she was thinking.
"You coming?" Mary asked, the words simple but edged with something more. "Ester needs help."
Iyisha froze for a beat, caught off guard. She hadn’t expected Mary to speak to her at all after yesterday. For a moment she thought she’d imagined it, that Mary would just turn away and leave her to the empty classroom.
She blinked, forcing herself to nod.
"Yeah." Her voice came out quieter than she intended. She stacked the last folder with more care than necessary, as if that small delay could cover her hesitation. freёwebnovel.com
The hallway felt too wide and too quiet, their footsteps echoing against the tile. It was no longer a hospital but a school, the wards turned into training rooms with only the occasional community patient passing through. Iyisha kept her eyes moving, tracing the charts on the walls and the empty beds, pretending to study them because she had no idea what to say.
They turned the corner toward the isolation wing. Mary finally spoke, her voice low and even, but it was clear she was using the words to cut through the quiet.
"Danny said she was running from her group. Said they tried to rape her."
She was talking about the wounded woman who was rescued.
Iyisha nodded slowly, keeping her face neutral. The story sounded possible but still, she looked sideways, trying to read Mary’s expression, to see if there was also doubt hiding there like hers but nothing.
The tension between them eased a fraction, not gone but thinner now, as they reached the heavy door to the isolation rooms.
"The wound is too light for that much blood," Iyisha said, watching Mary carefully, as if testing to see if she shared the same doubt.
Mary met her eyes for a moment before nodding. "I thought the same. It’s suspicious. We need to keep an eye on her."
They stepped out into the yard where fires burned in barrels, smoke curling into the cold air. People moved quickly around them, hauling wood, carrying buckets, talking in short bursts as the snow crunched under heavy boots. The drifts were deep now, but with the electricity still running it was bearable. Even so, everyone kept their coats wrapped tight.
Iyisha tugged hers closer and glanced at Mary. "Thanks for this. I’d be frozen without it."
Mary smiled, the first real ease in her face all day. "Welcome. That’s a twenty five thousand dollar coat."
Iyisha blinked, then let out a laugh, the sound raw from the cold. "I’ll pay you back when the bank opens."
That pulled a laugh from Mary too, the tension between them breaking just enough for the moment to feel almost normal.
The laughter lingered, warming Iyisha more than the fire ever could. For the first time since yesterday, the tightness in her chest eased. She glanced across the yard and noticed a group of guards huddled at the corner, their voices low, their postures sharp as if in a meeting.
"Looking for your man?" Mary teased, her tone casual but her smile sly.
"He is not my... man," Iyisha said quickly, her cheeks burning in the cold.
Mary’s brows lifted. "So no strings attached?"
Iyisha shook her head, the words slipping out before she could think. "Actually, we haven’t even had sex."
Mary blinked at her, genuine surprise crossing her face. "Impossible. Is he gay?"
That broke Iyisha into laughter, the sound spilling out before she could stop it.
"I hope not," Iyisha said, still smiling as the laugh faded. "He said he doesn’t like losing control."
Mary tilted her head, thoughtful, humming low in her throat. "Well then... I was wrong. You may not be like us."
Iyisha pressed her lips together, the smile slipping into something thinner. "I think I actually am," she muttered, a bitter edge in her voice. Her eyes dropped to the snow at her boots. "I’ve been alive just because of him. He made sure of that."
Mary’s smile faded into something more measured. "You know how it is now. Kindness gets paid for. If you’re not touching those hard pecs at night, then what do you bring to the table?"
Heat rushed to Iyisha’s face and she shook her head quickly. "Entertainment?" The word slipped out with a hollow laugh, though it left a sour taste. She didn’t even know why Malcolm was still taking care of her, even now.
Mary studied her for a long moment, then spoke more softly. "It’s hard, depending on someone. There is always a payment. Always." She let the words settle in the cold air, the fire crackling between them.
She nodded.
Mary’s eyes narrowed slightly, her expression turning contemplative. She leaned in, voice low and deliberate. "You were a doctor before all this. That is worth more than any stockpile of medicine. Don’t put yourself down. Your value is far greater than most here, and people know it."
Her voice lingered, then shifted, as if a memory pulled her backward. "I was traded between safe zones more than once. Not because I wanted to go. I didn’t even have the freedom to choose. Couldn’t step outside without knowing I’d be dragged back. That’s what it’s like when you’re worth something."
Iyisha blinked, caught off guard. "What?"
Mary’s gaze sharpened, studying her with suspicion. "How you got out of Redridge is still a mystery to me. People like you don’t just walk away."
"Well," Iyisha said slowly, "I was cast out."
The words sounded weak even to her own ears. Heat pricked her neck as Mary’s stare held steady, weighing her like she was a puzzle missing pieces.
Mary shook her head, disbelief plain on her face. "Cast out? A doctor? Impossible."
Iyisha forced a small shrug, though her chest felt tight. She looked away, pretending to study the fire, anything to break the scrutiny. A sudden confusion stirred in her. She had been cast out so quickly she had never really stopped to think about it.
Anderson hadn’t held a council, hadn’t followed any process. He had just kicked her out, no questions, no warning. It was over in a blink, and she had carried it like a sealed box she never opened. Now, under Mary’s stare, it cracked open, but there was nothing she could do. It was gone and done.
Mary let the thought hang, then added quietly, "Be careful out there."
Iyisha nodded once, but the warning clung to her, heavier than the coat on her shoulders. ƒreewebηoveℓ.com
The warmth inside the greenhouse was a sharp contrast to the cold outside, the air damp and thick with the smell of soil. Iyisha spotted Ester by the tables, sleeves rolled up, sorting through a tray of tools. For a moment her mind flicked back to that night, the one she had tried to bury, the image of Ester and Elmer tangled together where they thought no one could see. She forced the memory away as Ester looked up and waved them in.
Workers brushed past on their way out, coats pulled tight, boots tracking snow. Ester didn’t seem to notice anything in Iyisha’s face. If Mary had told her, she gave no sign.
"What do you need help with?" Iyisha asked, her smile practiced, steady.
Ester pointed at the counter where small packets of seeds sat open. "Hydroponics. We need more trays started. The winter’s going to be too long for what we’ve got now."
Iyisha slipped her coat off her shoulders, rolled up her sleeves, and pulled a stack of seedling trays closer. Her hands moved automatically, pressing the soil in place, tucking the seeds carefully into their rows.
They talked while they worked, voices carrying over the rustle of soil and the drip of water.
"Dinner last night was just porridge again," Mary said, settling beside her with a tray.
"At least it was hot," Iyisha replied, her tone dry.
Ester laughed under her breath. "Better than nothing. The ducks are suffering in this cold. Fewer eggs every week. I’m not sure how much longer we can stretch them."
Iyisha frowned as she pressed another seed into the soil. "If we didn’t have electricity we’d already be done for."
"True enough," Mary said. She brushed dirt from her fingers. "Imagine trying to keep all of this alive without the lamps."
Ester leaned against the table for a moment, rubbing her shoulder. "We should try trading for more bulbs while we still can. These won’t last forever."
"Good luck convincing the council," Mary muttered. "They’d rather gamble on the trucks making it back in spring."
Ester sighed, straightening the trays with a tired hand. "It’ll be on my head if the vegetables aren’t enough."
Mary gave a sharp nod. "And don’t forget, the supply count is on Friday. Make sure the hospital stock matches or our heads will be on the table too."
She froze mid-motion, blinking as if a thought struck her hard. "Oh shit," she muttered.
Iyisha looked up sharply. "What?"
Mary yanked her bag open and pulled out a bundle of crumpled papers, flipping through them in a rush. Her voice cracked low, almost frantic. "There was a cabinet... one of the locked ones. We cleaned it out weeks ago. There was a bag of first aid in there and if it’s not—"
She stopped cold, staring at the page in her hands, the color draining from her face.
