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Rosa was tense as she stood beside Harry, Lexie and Campbell, all of them watching silently as a large crowd began to gather in the freezing cold outdoors, awaiting their former leader's appearance.
The air was rife with whispers of anticipation, soon growing quiet the moment the car holding Allie and Will pulled up alongside them, the breaks whining as the vehicle came to a stop.
Rosa had easily picked out Sasha in the midst of the crowd, her friend turning her head firmly in the other direction the second their eyes threatened to meet. It was hard for both of them to put on such a strong act.
Rosa found herself wondering whether the remaining few people on Allie's side would rebel against Harry and Lexie, or whether they'd quietly accept defeat and rise up against them at a later time. Either way, she was certain that it would happen, one day or another. If Rosa didn't have that belief, that eventually the balance would be restored, then she wouldn't have risked everything to help make it happen.
She straightened her stance as the car doors were pushed open, the Guard forcefully dragging both teenagers to the front of the crowd, where they were immediately met with loud shouts and hollers from, what felt like, almost all the teenagers of New Ham.
"Traitors!"
"We trusted you!
"Liars!"
The jeers of the crowd quickly became overwhelming, people surging forwards to get closer to them. Rosa swallowed heavily as Harry took a step forwards, whistling loudly to silence everybody.
"These are people who we trusted," Harry began, raising his voice to be heard. "Who betrayed us. We wanted you to see them for who they really are!"
A rock was suddenly thrust in their direction, hitting Will hard in the stomach. He doubled over, grunting as he clutched his abdomen in pain. Rosa shifted her eyes elsewhere, keeping her head lifted, chin held high. She couldn't lose focus now, no matter what happened. Rosa had to see this plan through, she owed that to Allie.
"Hey!" Allie cried out, her voice cutting through the shouts surrounding them. "None of what they're saying is true! None of it!"
Another stone was launched through the air, hitting Allie hard above her eyebrow. Rosa involuntarily winced at the sight, watching with a heaviness in her chest as blood began to trickle from the open wound.
She released a breath, closing her eyes shut momentarily, desperately trying not to think too much of what was happening, or how she'd had a hand in causing this. Rosa couldn't let her emotions get the better of her, not now.
"No, no! No, stop!" Lexie shouted, stepping further in front of them. "Stop, okay? Listen to me. You cannot do it this way. We'll figure it all out, but not like that, because we are not a mob. All right? We still have rules here. We'll figure out what their punishment should be, eventually."
