Body of A Baby Crawler
Body of A Baby Crawler
Chapter 157: Body of A Baby Crawler
Reah's voice echoed through the forest, scattering the birds resting in the trees and startling the rest of the party. Everyone rushed toward the back of the house with their weapons drawn, hearts pounding and ready to attack.
Lena was the first to reach her. she found Reah standing perfectly still, staring at the ground with the strange camera held over one eye. Orion, who arrived last with Lyra, had his finger on the trigger of his gun, ready to fire without hesitation.
“What is it?" he asked, half-yelling.
Reah pointed toward an old tree. There, nestled beneath its roots, was a slightly raised mound of earth. It was neat and carefully constructed, surrounded by rocks that formed a large rectangle. A stone sat at the head of it, covered in moss, weeds, and years of dirt, with words carved into its face.
Lena stepped closer, squinting to read the carving: 'Here lies the family of Terone Vale.'
Lena frowned. "What does that mean?”
Reah shrugged, slipping the camera back into her coat after snapping a few pictures. “I don't know. I only felt something—I thought I heard voices, and it led me here.” She paused, then added casually, "I thought it might be important, but since you don't know…” She trailed off and glanced at the others.
Shayla let out an exhausted sigh. “I don't know them, either.”
Lyra walked closer to the grave, an unreadable expression on her face. “Oh," she mumbled, a small smile appearing when she saw the name. “They were alive during my time as Luna. They moved a lot and usually kept to themselves, especially when one of their daughters started acting strange.” The smile turned bittersweet. "Just one thing sent the entire family falling apart. Anyway, when they died, they were buried here. That’s all I know.”
Lena stared at the grave longer than she intended. She felt a connection to it, though she couldn't quite place the sensation.
Eventually, the group left the house and made their way back across the bridge. Lena paused behind the others to look back one last time. The door was still open, and she found herself silently hoping the stranger might be there, waving goodbye. But the doorway was empty. Her chest tightened as the stranger’s words played over and over in her head.
Once they emerged from the forest, Vitto was waiting for them. “Did you find anything?" he asked.
Lena hesitated, then nodded. "Yes. An answer... of sorts.”
Since she hadn't yet shared the details of her encounter, the group gathered around. They listened in silence as Lena explained everything the stranger had told her. She emphasized the name Elias and her visions, which still felt like a tangled puzzle.
Shayla was the first to summarize the situation. “To sum it up: Elias wants Lena because of her abilities. He doesn't even care if he knows what she can do yet, because if it's left to him, he will find out himself—and likely force her to develop even more."
Lena looked at her in surprise. Shayla had articulated the threat far better than she could have, and she was grateful for the clarity.
However, Lena said nothing about the stranger's mention of a "baby." It felt unnecessary and confusing. There was no baby, and as far as she was concerned, there wouldn't be—not while they were in the middle of a war. She wasn't ready for something like that.
They returned to the pack house and waited outside, despite the comfortable rooms available within. Teresa emerged shortly after, having heard of their return. She saw the group huddled by the entrance and frowned.
“Is something wrong?" she asked, announcing her presence. "What did you find?”
For a moment, Lena felt a spark of that same connection she’d felt when she first touched Teresa—a strange sense of guilt and familiarity. She smiled. "Don't worry. I'll tell you later.”
Teresa opened her mouth to protest but was cut off by the sound of approaching hoofbeats. Cain returned, carrying a small bundle. It was the corpse of Teresa's child. It still had the burnt, pale skin and was covered in dirt, but strangely, the body showed no signs of decaying. Ashley and Andrew followed behind him, both looking exhausted.
"We made it back as fast as we could," Andrew said, dismounting and taking the bundle from Cain.
Teresa instinctively stepped forward but then paused. She stared at the tiny form in Andrew’s arms with a blank expression. The anger and crushing sadness she expected to feel were gone, replaced by a hollow sense of relief.
Lena noticed the change in her, but before she could think too deeply on it, a question slipped out. “Teresa… how did Elias turn you into a crawler?”
Teresa blinked, surprised. She looked up, thinking hard as she tried to piece together the shattered memories. “I don’t remember everything,” she said slowly. “But there was a blue serum. He injected it into me. The last thing I felt was pain... and then I found you guys. The memories from that period are foggy.”
At that moment, a large metal shadow appeared in the distance. The human mobile lab had arrived, accompanied by the remaining soldiers. Reah’s eyes instantly lit up. She sprang to her feet and hurried toward Andrew, taking the small body from him with clinical care. Then, without hesitation, she grabbed Teresa’s hand.
“I need to run tests,” Reah said firmly, already pulling Teresa toward the lab. “An autopsy on the child and blood tests on Teresa.”
Before anyone could object, she was already out of earshot. Cain watched them go, then dismounted and turned to Lena. His face was tense, and his eyes were clouded with worry.
“Lena,” he said quietly. “We need to talk. Alone.”