Page 2 of Whispers and Warriors
“You okay back there?” Chris whispered over his shoulder, his voice softening with concern that reached his eyes.
Even she could barely hear her response. “I’m fine,” she said, but the tremor in her words betrayed her fear.
Chris paused at a junction, holding up a closed fist. Everyone froze. Emma hardly dared to breathe. After a moment, he signaled the “all clear”, and they continued on, winding through the maze-like corridors until they reached the garage.
There it was.
Sixteen spaces in was the last thing she thought she’d see again.
The vehicle she’d called home for a small time. The vehicle that had protected her and taken her to where she was supposed to be safe.
The hulking armored truck waited like an old friend ready to hang out once again.
Emma had hoped she’d never sit in that damn truck again, but it seemed the memories from just a few weeks ago could not be outrun, not when the truck would remind her of the past with every turn and bump in the road.
Their steps echoed in the otherwise empty garage, and Emma wondered if they shouldn’t be a little quieter as they moved to the truck.
Chris opened the rear doors and helped Emma climb up. Without hesitation she took her usual seat along the wall. Liam lifted his arm holding the leash and Ranger jumped in, moving to sit beside her. Chris jumped up as well, moving to her side. As she settled onto the hard metal bench, he cupped her face in his calloused palm.
“I love you,” he whispered fiercely. “No matter what happens, remember that. Everything will make sense soon, I promise.”
Emma could only nod, not trusting herself to speak. Chris placed a quick, hard kiss on her forehead.
The quiet and the unknown threatened to drive her to madness as Chris left the back of the truck.
What would wait for them outside these walls in the desolate wasteland that had once been a thriving world? Would they be able to survive with no destination in mind? Did they have a destination she just didn’t know about? Was the danger only here, could they go to the unit’s old base?
Fear clawed at her throat, but beneath it simmered a profound sense of loss and disappointment.
Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes and Emma furiously blinked them away. There would be time for crying later, when they were far away from whatever danger had forced them to flee. For now, she needed to be strong.
Ranger whined softly, sensing her distress, and Emma buried her face in his fur. “It’s okay, boy,” she murmured,though the words sounded hollow even to her own ears. “We’ll be okay.”
But would they? Emma couldn’t shake the sinking feeling that they were leaving behind more than just four walls and a roof.
They were abandoning the fragile dream of a future, of lazy mornings tangled in sheets and laughter echoing through the halls. Of shared meals and stolen kisses, of arguments and apologies and the simple joys of a life intertwined.
Emma closed her eyes and tried to hold on to those fleeting images. The warmth of Liam’s smile, the rumble of William’s laughter, Alex’s gentle hands, and Bash’s fierce protectiveness. And Chris...Chris, who had been her rock from the very beginning, whose love burned bright enough to chase away even the darkest of shadows.
They were her home, her heart, her everything. And though the road ahead was uncertain, Emma knew one thing for sure—she would fight with every last breath to keep them safe. No matter where this twisted journey took them next. No matter that she needed them for safety far more than they needed her, she would never stop fighting for them.
Chris’s heartseemed to slam against his ribs as he led the group through the abandoned compound, his senses on high alert for any signs they’d been followed. The weight of responsibility hung heavy on his shoulders, the lives of his team and the woman he loved rested squarely in his hands and he would not let anyone catch up to them.
They’d moved as a unit, getting Emma to the truck, a well-oiled machine honed by years of training and countless battles. But this time, the stakes were higher than ever before. As highas they’d been the day they had to save Emma and she ended up saving herself.
Chris’s jaw clenched, his heart aching to pull Emma into his arms and promise that everything would be alright. But he couldn’t afford to let his guard down, not even for a moment.
And he couldn’t bring himself to lie to her because he had no clue if everything would be alright when the smoke cleared.
The world beyond the base walls was a treacherous place, but they had no choice. They had to keep moving, to find a new safe haven and start again. To build a life and a future, no matter how fragile or fleeting.
His thoughts kept jumping back to the radio transmission that forced their hasty departure. He could only focus on the garbled words, the static-filled message that had set his heart pounding with dread. Radios were going to be the death of him if he didn’t learn to stop picking up calls, but in this broken world, any scrap of information could mean the difference between life and death.
And it certainly meant that this time.
Chris’s steps faltered when he should have started giving orders, his chest tightening with a surge of emotion. He turned back and went to Emma again, his hand reaching out to cup her cheek, his calloused fingers gentle against her soft skin.
“Emma,” he murmured, his voice low and intense. “I know this is hard, that you’re scared and confused. But I need you to trust me, to trust us.” He wasn’t sure why he was repeating himself, maybe it was the fear of losing her, of her saying she wanted to stay even though she’d packed with them.
