Page 84 of Whispers and Warriors
“In this world, who knows?” Emma sighed. “But whatever it was, it can’t be good.”
Liam nodded grimly. The thought of some secret, potentially dangerous technology out there, lost in the chaos of the apocalypse, sent a chill down his spine. They had enough to worry about just trying to survive day to day. The last thing they needed was some pre-war ghost coming back to haunt them.
And yet, a small, treacherous part of him couldn’t help but wonder. If Project Lazarus was what it sounded like...could it be the key to rebuilding what they’d lost? A way to bring back even a piece of the world before?
“Liam,” Chris’ warned as if he knew Liam was about to dig more.
He shook his head, dismissing the thought. It was a fool’s hope, and he knew it. The past was gone. All they could do now was try to build something new from the ashes.
“We need to tell the others,” he said, standing up. “If there’s even a chance this thing is still out there, we need to be prepared.”
Emma nodded, her face set with determination. “You’re right. We’ll figure this out, together. Like we always do.”
She reached out, twining her fingers with his, and he drew strength from her touch. As long as he had her, and the family they’d built here, he could face anything this broken world threw at them. Even the ghosts of the past.
The weariness in Liam’s bones seemed to melt away as he held Emma’s hand in his, her touch a steadying force amidst the swirling uncertainties. He met her gaze, those captivating eyes that always seemed to see right through him, and felt a surge of love and gratitude.
“What would I do without you?” he murmured, bringing her hand to his lips for a brief, tender kiss.
Emma’s smile was soft, but there was a glint of steel in her eyes. “Let’s hope you never have to find out. Now come on, weneed to move past this and just accept that this facility was here before the bombs and it explains why it’s so built up.”
Together, they made their way out of the monitoring room and down the halls of the compound. Liam couldn’t help but marvel at the efficiency and purpose in Emma’s stride, even as his own steps faltered slightly with exhaustion. She was a force of nature, his Emma. Unbreakable.
“Okay, go on ahead, I’ll catch up. I still need to lock this down. No one’s coming in to monitor radar at night.”
That always seemed weird to him, but he didn’t question it. The island had been functioning under cover for almost three years, almost right after the bombs.
He watched as they filed out, pulling out his access card and booting down the computer.
“Another day in paradise that seems almost too good to be true.” Liam snickered and stood, pushing the chair back. “Off to dinner and a good night’s sleep.”
Whistling, he left the navigation room and tugged the door shut behind him, knowing that it auto-locked before heading down the hall.
The low, indistinct voices from the adjacent room seemed to call to him, a siren song of secrets waiting to be uncovered. He glanced over his shoulder at the retreating backs of the others, torn between the desire to follow and the insatiable curiosity that had always been his greatest strength and weakness.
Stepping into the small hallway, Liam could still hear the faint murmur of voices from the other side of the door, but he resolutely kept his gaze forward. He wouldn’t look back. He couldn’t.
“It’s none of your business,” he muttered under his breath, a mantra to keep his curiosity at bay. “You’re not part of that conversation. You don’t need to be.”
With a sigh, he let his hand fall from the door and turned, moving quietly toward the source of the voices. As he drew closer, the words became clearer, snippets of conversation filtering through the thin walls.
“...Warrington’s planning something big...”
Liam’s heart ached as the weight of Victor’s name settled over him like a heavy fog. The man was a ghost, a specter that haunted the edges of their new world, a constant reminder of the darkness they’d fought and almost lost to.
He knew he should walk away, let the whispers fade into the background hum of the compound. But the part of him that had always sought the truth, that innate curiosity that had served him so well as a navigator, refused to be silenced.
Liam leaned against the wall, his fingers absently tracing the tattoo on the back of his hand as he strained to hear more. The voices were low, urgent, a rapid-fire exchange that set his nerves on edge.
“...the attack was just the beginning...”
“...need to keep this contained...”
“...heard they’re doubling the guard rotation, fortifying the perimeter...”
Each snippet of conversation was clearly a piece of a larger mosaic, a fractured image that Liam desperately wanted to see whole. He closed his eyes, trying to fit the fragments together in his mind.
The attack. The whispers of some larger plan. The frantic efforts to shore up their defenses. It all swirled together, a maelstrom of uncertainty and dread.
