\u201cNoble,\u201d Lara said softly. \u201cIf seemingly misguided. So he told you we were here, hm?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIn his defense, it was a safe assumption that there would be,\u201d Thom said, taking a quick sip from his mug. The liquid was as hot as it was fragrant and he nearly burned his tongue. \u201cNearest sizable city and all that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI assume that Grand Rapids is rubble, then,\u201d Lara said, her expression growing dark for a moment. \u201cOr are you not sure?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, we\u2019re sure it\u2019s mostly rubble,\u201d J.T. said, finally finding his voice again. \u201cSome of our people saw it firsthand.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thom swallowed hard, thinking about his wife, about how pale and ragged she\u2019d looked when he\u2019d woken up to see her staring down at him. He\u2019d been more worried about her than he\u2019d been about himself, then.<\/p>\n
It felt like forever ago.<\/p>\n
Lara seemed to notice his discomfort, her eyes falling on him for a moment before she turned her attention more fully to his companions. \u201cWell, that\u2019s more than we knew for certain, at least. Thank you for that.\u201d Her lips thinned. \u201cThe man\u2014your Phelan?\u2014he said that Chicago was in ruins.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMore than just Chicago,\u201d Seamus said quietly. \u201cThe Hunt didn\u2019t pass an intact city anywhere we\u2019ve been since the meteorfall. It\u2019s all rubble, dust and ashes.\u201d His eyes fluttered closed. \u201cGhosts and memories of what once was and is now lost.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lara sighed. \u201cBloody fantastic, then.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re on our own except for the alliances we can forge,\u201d Thom said quietly. \u201cAgain, that\u2019s why we\u2019re here. To trade, to make friends\u2014you\u2019ll have a place to fall back to if something else<\/em> happens here.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd something does? Would you come to our aid?\u201d<\/p>\n Words stuck in Thom\u2019s throat as he caught the barest flicker, of an older and wiser Lara, a stave in her hands, grim-faced as she calmly dispatched a foe. He could see Davon at her back, Paul beyond him, both older, more rugged.<\/p>\n He sat there, frozen for a moment, unable to give voice to the reassurance he\u2019d planned.<\/p>\n It was Cameron who answered for him, as if the other man knew he suddenly couldn\u2019t. \u201cAll you\u2019d have to do is call. We\u2019ll answer. We don\u2019t abandon our friends.\u201d<\/p>\n At that, Lara smiled. \u201cBold words. Can you back them up?\u201d<\/p>\n Cameron managed a small smile. \u201cWatch us.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201cNoble,\u201d Lara said softly. \u201cIf seemingly misguided. So he told you we were here, hm?\u201d \u201cIn his defense, it was a safe assumption that there would be,\u201d Thom said, taking a quick sip from his mug. The liquid was as … Continue reading