Page 85 of Whispers and Warriors
Liam’s jaw clenched as he pushed off the wall, a sudden resolve hardening in his gut. He couldn’t just stand by, not when their hard-won peace was at stake. He needed answers, needed to know what they were up against.
But even as the determination took hold, a flicker of doubt crept in, insidious and chilling. What if the truth was worse than the not knowing? What if Victor Warrington’s plans were beyond anything they could imagine, let alone fight?
Liam shook his head, banishing the dark thoughts. They had faced impossible odds before, had clawed their way out of the ashes of the old world and built something new, something worth protecting.
And he would do whatever it took to keep it safe, to keep his family safe. Even if it meant staring into the abyss of their past, into the shadowed heart of a man like Victor Warrington.
With a last, lingering look at the closed door, Liam turned and headed down the hallway, his steps heavy with purpose. He needed to at least share what he’d overheard. Chris would decide what to do next.
But even as he willed himself to walk away, the second mention of Victor Warrington’s name seemed to echo in his ears, stirring a knot of unease in his stomach that refused to dissipate. There was something about the millionaire that set Liam’s nerves on edge, a sense of barely leashed menace that lurked beneath the polished veneer.
Liam’s heart raced as he pressed his ear to the cold metal of the door, straining to catch every syllable. The voices were unfamiliar, the tone urgent and furtive. What were they talking about? What shipment? And what did they mean by ‘potential applications’?
Shaking his head, Liam tried to focus on the task at hand. He needed to finish his shift, to make sure the island’s defenses were holding strong. With the recent attack still fresh in everyone’s minds, they couldn’t afford any lapses in security.
He knew he should walk away, rejoin the others and let this mystery lie. But the part of him that had always been driven tounderstand, to unravel the knots of the unknown, wouldn’t let him. He had to know.
“One step at a time,” he reminded himself softly, pushing the troubling thoughts of Victor Warrington to the back of his mind. “Just focus on what’s in front of you.”
And right now, that was Emma. His heart lightened at the thought of her, at the news they were waiting for. If all went well at the doctor’s appointment, they would be taking their first steps into a new role, a new adventure.
Liam couldn’t help but smile at the thought of becoming a father, of raising a child with the woman he loved in this improbable sanctuary they had built. It was a future he had scarcely dared to dream of in the bleak years after the bombs fell, a glimmer of light amidst the darkness.
He would go home, and then they could decide how to tackle what he’d heard. It sounded like the island had it under control, and perhaps the unit hadn’t been there long enough to gain that trust.
Trust that we’ll just have to earn.
