Lily was waiting for Octavia and Jasper to bring Bellamy in his tent. She was set down, next to the table where they had set the fingers and the knife. Lily could not take her eyes off of the table, as her legs bounced up and down in nervousness.
Those were Wells' fingers, and that knife… that knife belonged to them, and that had only one meaning.
Grounders would use their own weapons, she thought, trying to control her breathing. That was not supposed to happen. That shouldn't have happened.
"O, what is this all about–" Bellamy, stopped once he entered the tent, followed by his sister. His eyes noticed Lily sitting down and a frown appeared on his face, "Lily, what are you doing here?"
"I told you," Octavia said walking towards the table, as Lily got on her feet, "We need to show you something." Bellamy's glance went to his sister, he was confused, but he still didn't know the worst part.
"Octavia, we are here!" Jasper's voice preceded his entrance in the tent, followed by Clarke. On her face too appeared a confused frown.
"What's happening?" Clarke asked, walking forward, but her eyes immediately went to the table, not missing the knife and the fingers, her face growing paler. "What is that?" she asked and Bellamy looked down as well, his eyes grew larger as he watched close.
"We found them just outside," Octavia explained, "On the east side."
Lily noticed Bellamy spun his head towards his sister, "East, where?"
"Not far, just a few feet in the same direction," Octavia answered her brother, who took a deep breath, putting his hands on his hips.
"It's where we've found Wells…" he said, confirming what Lily had already thought, and what probably everyone had already in their minds. Silence grew between them, Lily was standing in between Octavia and Bellamy, her lips tight in a thin line. For a moment she had wished she was wrong, because now it was impossible not to start suspecting everyone. And by Clarke's expression she was having a similar thought, but then suddenly, Lily noticed the girl taking a breath, and on her face appeared an angry, furious look, once she reached out to study the knife more closely.
"This knife was made of metal from the dropship," Clarke said.
Jasper's eyes grew larger, "What do you mean?" he asked with a trembling voice. Lily was not surprised to see Clarke understanding in less than a second what that information implied.
Then she felt Bellamy shift next to her, as he turned to look at her, Octavia and Jasper, his jaw tight and his arms crossed over his chest. "Who else knows about this?"
Octavia was the one to answer, "No one," she said, with a shake of her head, "We brought it straight here."
They all knew what had happened but nobody had the strength to tell it out loud. Lily was still trying to wrap her head around it. Her pulse thundering in her ears.
"Clarke?" Jasper called his friend, as if he was trying to find reassurance, but he found any.
"The Grounders didn't kill Wells," she said, with a mix of shock and anger, "It was one of us."
Lily pushed her hair back, one of them had killed Wells. But why? Why so suddenly? She knew that many people wished for Wells to be dead, but doing it for real? That was another story.
"So, there's a murderer in the camp?" Jasper said, slightly panicking.
"There's more than one killer in this camp,there's no news," Bellamy spoke with a steady voice, but his posture was stiff, probably he was trying to keep a mask of control like always. But what should they do now?
"We need to keep it quiet," Bellamy's words made Lily look up at him. That could be the best thing; there were too many violent people in the hundred, knowing that there was a killer among them would only lead to fear and panic. Exactly what Lily was feeling at that moment.
Clarke suddenly let out a breath, and in an instant she was making her way towards the exit. Lily frowned observing her. What did she want to do?
Bellamy was quick to stop her, putting himself before her, "Get out of my way, Bellamy," Clarke hissed, meeting Bellamy's gaze. Lily had never seen her act like that. She would usually keep her calm and try to think, but this time Clarke seemed to be out of herself.
"Be smart about this," Bellamy said, "Look what we've achieved. The wall, the patrol. Like it or not, thinking the Grounders killed Wells is good for us." That was partially true, Lily had noticed it too, but Clarke didn't seem to agree and probably from her perspective it made sense. Lily wouldn't have liked if at Wells place there was her mother, or Grace, to be used to keep everyone calm.
"Oh, good for you, you mean," Clarke spatted at Bellamy, "What? Keep people afraid and they'll work for you? Is that it?"
"Yeah. That's it," Bellamy didn't hesitate to answer, "But it's good for all of us. Fear of the Grounders is building that wall."
"It's not just that," Lily spoke, making them all turn to her, "Fear against the Grounders is indeed building the walls," She said sharing a look with Bellamy, and then her attention went to Clarke, "But what happens if we start to be afraid of each other?"
Clarke's eyes widened, "I can't believe it— You're siding with him?" she exclaimed angrily, "Wells had been killed, and I'm not going to let it slide."
Lily moved forward, her eyes fixed on the other girl, "I'm not siding with anyone," she said trying to keep her voice calm, but she could not hide the shaky breath that left her lips, "But we have to be careful about it. People are already terrified enough. If we tell everyone there's a killer among us… it'll be chaos. Panic makes people dangerous."
Clarke's eyes flared. "So we lie to them?"
Lily blinked fast, trying to steady her breath.
"That's not what I'm saying," she said. "But if we make this public right now, people will start pointing fingers at anyone. We'll end up with people getting hurt—or killed— mostly innocent people, before we even know who actually did this."
"You want to go behind people's back," Clarke's eyes sharpened as she looked at Lily, "Kane taught you well." Lily's face was drained of color. Her mouth opened, but no words came out. She felt like the ground dropped beneath her feet.
"What…?" she whispered, barely finding her voice, as she could feel Bellamy's, Octavia's and Jasper's eyes on her.
"What..?" she whispered, as her mind went back to her father. Was she acting like Marcus Kane? That thought froze her on the spot, she had never thought of being anything similar to her father. He had spoken to her often about how keeping people in check and following the rules was the only way to keep them safe. They didn't have to know everything, they just needed to follow what was best for them. Lily had always questioned what he believed in; laws above anything. But she didn't feel like she was saying something against her own beliefs. Protecting people even from themselves was important, scared people most of all. But now that thought didn't seem so different from her father's.
Was she becoming like Marcus Kane? She didn't want to be.
"I'm not–" Lily stopped herself realizing that she had spoken in a more aggressive tone than she had intended to, and trying to stop her shaky hands she spoke again, "This has nothing to do with Kane," she said, trying to ignore the look Octavia and Jasper shared, "I want to try to find a way to keep people safe. All of us."
Clarke's eyes blazed. "Wells was murdered. And you want to just pretend nothing happened?"
Lily shook her head fiercely. "No!" she exclaimed, almost pleading with Clarke to listen to her, "But if we tell everyone now, what will we do when they start raising against each other?"
"It's not up to us," Clarke answered stubbornly, "It's something that involves all of us!"
"What are you going to do?" Bellamy broke in, getting Clarke's attention, "Just walk out there and ask the killer to step forward? You don't even know whose knife that is."
"Oh, really?" Lily's eyes widened when she saw Clarke turning the knife to show them the inner part of the handle. There was something written inside, Lily had not noticed it before, "J.M. John Murphy," Clarke said, "The people have the right to know."
Lily's blood froze in her veins. She remembered Murphy's threat against Wells on their first day on Earth. She could believe he'd do it — she'd seen the violence in his eyes. But accusing him publicly meant a bloodbath. What if he was innocent? What if someone had planted that knife to frame him? The knife was not enough. And the thought of being wrong somehow terrified her.
"Clarke!" Lily blurted out, her voice trembling, stepping forward as Clarke headed for the exit. She grabbed Clarke's arm, eyes wide. "You can't accuse him in front of everyone!"
Clarke jerked her arm free, glaring at Lily. "Get out of my way, Lily." Then she shoved past Lily and stormed out.
Lily's eyes widened, realizing that she was really going to do it. The fear of Grounders united everyone, the fear of a killer among them would divide them, but what if they were scared of a person inside their walls.
Lily stood frozen for a heartbeat, her chest rising and falling rapidly. She felt Bellamy's eyes on her, but she couldn't even look at him.
"What are they going to do…?" Lily whispered to herself, then stumbled forward, following Clarke out of the tent.
Lily found herself walking a few feet behind Clarke, who was marching towards Murphy. She hoped—she still hoped—that Clarke would have taken him aside and asked for some kind of explanation, but she didn't. Instead, Clarke shoved Murphy, pushing his chest.
Murphy took a couple of steps back, letting out a confused chuckle as he looked at Clarke, "Woah, what's your problem?" The interaction was quickly getting the attention of everyone around the camp.
"Recognize this?" Clarke asked, showing Murphy the knife.
Lily's eyes were fixed on Murphy, trying to see his reaction, hoping that he would be so proud to actually admit the crime. If he was guilty, she hoped he would say it. But on his face appeared a confused frown.
"It's my knife," he simply said. He still kept a half-smirk on his lips as he tried to reach out for the knife. "Where'd you find it?"
Clarke quickly pulled it away from his reach. "Where you dropped it after you killed Wells!" Lily's eyes moved to the crowd getting closer and closer, very much drawn there from the conversation.
Murphy stopped for a moment, blinking rapidly, a crease forming between his brows. "Where I what?" Lily couldn't help but think that he seemed genuinely confused, as Bellamy, Octavia and Jasper stopped next to her to look at the scene.
"The Grounders killed Wells, not me?" Murphy said.
Why wouldn't he admit it, if he was the culprit?
"I know what you did," Clarke hissed in his face, with venom in her voice. Murphy flinched slightly, shoulders tightening as he held her gaze.
He's too proud and cocky, Lily thought, looking at him. And he didn't seem to be a person that thought much about the consequences of his action.
Murphy's eyes sharpened as he looked at Clarke. "Really?" he said, his eyes moving to Bellamy. There was a flicker of desperation there, barely masked. "Bellamy, do you believe this crap?" Lily looked up to Bellamy, noticing the way he clenched his jaw, eyes darting briefly between Murphy and Clarke. His arms crossed, and no answer came from him.
But there are no consequences, Lily thought observing Bellamy. They were living by 'Whatever the Hell they wanted." Everything was allowed. Bellamy had told her and Wells that if they didn't agree on that, they could try to kill them, with no consequences. He had even given a knife to both Wells and Murphy to fight each other. Murphy would always walk around like he owned the world, because he was always supported by Bellamy. So why not admit it?
He can really be innocent, Lily thought, stepping forward to where Murphy and Clarke were.
"Lily?" Jasper called her with a confused and trembling voice, but she didn't stop.
"Clarke," she said looking at the girl, who glared at her with disbelief, "We need to do this in private."
"He killed Wells!" Clarke shouted in her face, but Lily didn't back away.
"He says he didn't do it," she spoke, more firmly than she had expected.
Clarke let out a shaky breath, "And you believe him?" At her words, Lily finally dared to glance sideways at Murphy—and found him staring back at her, wide-eyed and breathing fast, as if he couldn't believe she was speaking up for him. And when Lily's eyes moved back to Clarke, somehow she seemed to understand what Lily was thinking.
"How can you be so naive, Lily?" she exclaimed in disbelief, then she returned her attention to Murphy, "You threatened to kill him. We all have heard you," she said. "You hated Wells!"
"Plenty of people hated Wells," Murphy answered without hesitation. "He was the Chancellor that locked us up!"
"Yeah, but you're the only one who got in a knife fight with him!" Clarke argued.
"Yeah, I didn't kill him either." He spoke with confidence. But his shoulders remained stiff, and his eyes darted toward Bellamy again, as if hoping he'd intervene. And Lily felt even more confident that he was actually innocent. She had to make Clarke see it, but she was far too angry. What could she do?
"Tried to kill Jasper, too!" Octavia's voice made Lily take a shaky breath.
"What?" Jasper asked with wide eyes. Her and Monty had told Lily what had happened the night the acid fog appeared. Murphy was so fed up with Jasper's moanings that he actually tried to kill him to make him stop. He was not the only one though; many people wished for Jasper to die in those days. Yet he was the only one taking a knife.
Was she truly being naive? Had it really been him to kill Wells and she was defending a killer?
But why not say it? She thought, confused. Everybody knew he had tried to kill Jasper. He didn't keep it a secret, why do it now?
"Come on!" Murphy exclaimed, starting to get angry, "I don't have to answer to you, I don't have to answer to anybody!"
"Come again?" Bellamy's voice reached them, sharp and steady. A chill ran down Lily's spine at the authority in his tone. And Lily noticed how Murphy changed his behaviour immediately.
"Bellamy," he said nervously, walking towards him, "Look I'm telling you man, I didn't do it." He was pleading.
He would tell Bellamy, she thought. She was sure of that.
"They found his fingers on the ground with your knife,"Bellamy explained to him, and Murphy seemed at a loss for words. His mouth opened and closed like he wanted to speak but couldn't find the words.
"Couldn't someone have stolen it from him?" Lily spoke, making everyone look at her. She felt the weight of Bellamy's gaze anchoring her in place, his eyes narrowed in thought. Murphy turned to her too, his stare sharp but somehow tinged with something like disbelief—or gratitude.
"It's a hundred of us." Lily kept saying.
"That's a big if," Clarke said.
But Lily stood her ground, "So is your knife."
The other girl flared once again, "Why are you defending him?"
"I'm not saying he is innocent," Lily argued back, "But if Murphy truly had killed Wells don't you think he would have bragged about it? Why lie now?" Her voice trembled slightly, but her eyes remained locked on Clarke's.
"Because he succeeded this time," Clarke answered, and Lily understood that there was no way she'd convince her to rethink the situation. She took a breath. "Clarke, I know you're angry. I know you want someone to blame. But right now it's just your word against his. That's not enough to call someone a murderer."
Clarke shook her head. "You just don't want to see it," she said. "The proof is all in front of you, but you still don't want to see it. He is the only one who could have done it!" Then she turned. "Is this the kind of society you want?" she asked, and Lily felt slightly panicked, seeing that she was speaking to the crowd. "You said there should be no rules. Does that mean that we can kill each other without… without punishment?"
Lily's eyes widened at those words.
"I told you! I didn't do it!" Murphy said, walking towards Clarke. His face was flushed, panic breaking through the bravado. Lily moved forward, putting a hand on his arm trying to calm him. She felt the rigid tension under her fingers, like touching a spring about to snap.
"Clarke," she said, turning to the other girl. "We don't even know if it was him."
"Of course he was," Connor's voice cut in, sending a chill racing down Lily's spine. "I say we float him."
"What? No!" Lily exclaimed, glancing around. Faces twisted with rage surrounded her, every eye locked on Murphy like wolves scenting blood. Her breath quickened, a cold pressure tightening in her chest. So many people hated him—too many. Did they even care there wasn't enough proof?
"That's not what I'm saying," Clarke insisted, her voice trembling now, tinged with rising panic.
"You can't do this," Lily cried, still gripping Murphy's arm as she turned to Connor.
"Why not?" he shot back, his eyes burning as he glared at Murphy. "He deserves to float. It's justice!"
Murmurs erupted all around them, swelling into angry voices. Lily spun, searching the crowd, and her heart sank as more and more people nodded and began to chant, "Float him, float him," each repetition gaining force.
"Revenge isn't justice!" Clarke shouted, but the crowd barely seemed to hear her. They'd been pushed past reason, fueled by their hatred for Murphy.
"It's justice!" Connor yelled. "Float him!" And now the entire camp was screaming the words like a war cry.
"Oh my God," Lily whispered, panic flooding her veins as she looked up at Murphy. His face had gone pale, eyes wide and darting around, chest heaving as he tried to swallow air. "You need to get out of here." Her fingers clenched tighter on his jacket. Their eyes met, and for a fraction of a second, Lily saw raw fear staring back at her.
What have we done? she thought.
She twisted her head, seeking a solution, and her gaze found Bellamy. He stood frozen, eyes darting over the crowd, jaw clenched so tightly a muscle jumped in his cheek. Their eyes met, and Lily silently begged him for help—but she wasn't sure he'd move.
But before she could call out, Murphy tore himself free of her grip and lunged toward Clarke.
"Murphy, no!" Lily shouted, but he didn't reach her. Someone shoved him hard, sending him crashing to the ground. Instantly, more people closed in, fists and boots striking him from every side.
"No!" Lily cried, lunging forward, grabbing at arms, trying to pull attackers away. "Stop it!" Her voice cracked as the chaos roared around her. Beside her, she could hear Clarke shouting too, equally frantic.
But the fury of the mob was overwhelming. A boy Lily grabbed twisted violently from her grasp and slammed a foot into Murphy's stomach. Lily gasped in horror, shoving between bodies, fighting to reach him.
She finally broke through the circle, and the sight stole her breath. Murphy lay curled on the ground, arms over his head, blood dripping from his nose as blows rained down.
"That's enough!" Lily screamed, shoving a boy away from Murphy. "Leave him alone!" But a pair of hands seized her arms from behind and flung her to the ground.
From where she landed, dazed and winded, Lily looked up to see Connor gripping a length of red dropship belt. Three people were pinning Murphy to the dirt. In one swift motion, Connor forced the gag into Murphy's mouth.
"Murphy!" Lily cried. She scrambled up, stumbling forward, but someone caught her around the waist.
"You're just going to get hurt," Bellamy's voice murmured close to her ear. He held her tight, his breath harsh against her hair,
"They're going to kill him!" Lily shouted desperately. "We have to stop this. Let me go!" She struggled against his hold with all her strength. Her elbow connected with his chest, and Bellamy grunted, his fingers
slipped from her arm, and Lily dashed toward the clearing where they were dragging Murphy.
"Oh my God," Clarke gasped beside her, eyes wide with horror. "We have to stop this."
A surge of anger shot through Lily, and she spun on Clarke. "I warned you this would happen!" she shouted, her voice raw. "The whole damn camp has joined this madness!"
Regret shadowed Clarke's face, but she didn't reply because their attention swung to the group wrestling Murphy toward a tree. He was thrown into the mud, bound and helpless.
Lily shrieked as a boy yanked him upright, just enough for Connor to slam a fist into his jaw. She lunged forward, grabbing Connor's arm. "Stop it!"
But he jerked free, and someone else dragged Lily backward.
"Murphy!" she screamed, watching Connor punch him again. "Let me go!"
"You can't do this!" Clarke yelled as another boy tossed a rope over a thick branch. Lily's pulse nearly stopped. They were going to hang him.
Clarke shoved forward, trying to break through, but Connor blocked her path. Lily fought against the boy restraining her. "I said let me go!"
"Let her go," Bellamy's voice rang out. The hold around her finally pulled off, and she found herself pushing that boy away from her. Then she searched Murphy with her gaze and her eyes filled with tears as she saw that they had pulled the rope that was already secured around Murphy's neck. He was standing on a bucket.
"You can stop this!" Clarke exclaimed, pushing Bellamy's chest, looking at the scene with wide eyes. "They listen to you!"
"Bellamy, you should do it!" Connor proposed, he seemed moved by some kind of euphoria that only scared Lily more, as she turned to Bellamy.
He can't do it, she thought to herself, as all around the crowd began chanting his name, louder and louder, urging him to obey. He can't do it, she repeated to herself, watching Clarke talking to him. But then her heart dropped when she saw him step past Clarke, a dark resolution settling in his eyes. She knew what he had decided.
As he got closer though, she put herself before him, a hand pressed against his chest. She felt his heartbeat pounding under her palm.
"Bellamy," she said, her vision blurring with tears as she stared up at him. "Please don't do this."
"How could you?" she heard Clarke scream at Bellamy. He reacted instantly, grabbing Clarke by the arms.
"That's on you, princess," he said. "You should have kept your mouth shut!"
Lily's eyes were fixed on Murphy, watching the rope bite into his neck as he struggled, his face flushed and eyes bulging, desperately trying to drag in air that wouldn't come. Her gaze darted to the rope tied around the trunk of another tree. She started to rush toward it, but Connor caught her by the arm.
"Where do you think you're going?" he exclaimed, pulling her back roughly.
"Let me go!" she yelled, twisting against his grip. "Let go, damn it!" She finally kicked him hard in the shin, making him release her with a sharp curse.
Suddenly Finn's voice cut through the chaos, loud and furious.
"What the hell are you doing?!" he shouted, running toward them. "Cut him down!"
Lily lunged for Connor's knife, but he whipped it up, pointing it directly at her chest. She froze, her breath catching, her eyes flicking briefly to the blade—then straight back to Murphy, unable to look away from his choking gasps.
Finn stepped between her and the knife, shielding her with his body. But he wasn't armed, and more people were shoving and yelling, the crowd surging around them.
Then a thin, high voice cut through the noise like a blade.
"Stop, okay! Murphy didn't kill Wells," Lily turned, her eyes widening in shock as she saw Charlotte standing there, trembling but resolute. "I did!"
Clarke was the first to react, grabbing Bellamy's axe and racing to cut Murphy loose.
Lily was still reeling from Charlotte's words, confusion spinning in her head. But the instant she saw Murphy drop to the ground, she darted forward, shoving Connor aside with all her strength.
She dropped to her knees beside Murphy, immediately working to loosen the noose from around his neck. Her fingers fumbled at the knot, slick with sweat and trembling as she tore it free. She quickly pulled the belt from his mouth, and as the gag fell away, Murphy sucked in huge, ragged breaths.
"Deep breaths," she said, her voice soft but urgent, keeping her eyes on his as he gasped for air. His eyes were wild and red, searching her face like he couldn't quite believe she was there.
Once she saw him breathing more steadily, she moved to his wrists, carefully freeing his hands.
"It's okay," she murmured, gently helping him sit up. "It's alright. You're safe now."
As she spoke, her eyes flicked upward, scanning the clearing. She couldn't see Charlotte from where she knelt, but she could see Connor and the others who'd just been beating Murphy. Their faces were pale now, eyes wide as if only realizing what they'd done.
Then her gaze found Bellamy. His brown eyes were wide with disbelief. When their eyes met, his stare seemed to plead for something Lily couldn't quite name. Lily shook her head slowly, dropping her gaze back down to Murphy.