Page 72 of Echos and Empires
It was madness to trust he was ready to be out here, to expect him to scout, but they had no choice, they needed his eyes and his contacts the rest didn’t have. They’d made their lives together, but separate once coming to the island.
Aside from checking on William, he kept peeking back at Emma as they walked, his thoughts circling like vultures. Was she really okay with being part of the fight now? Could she handle it? They couldn’t afford for her to be anything less than ready. He wouldn’t let her on the front lines, but he needed her experience, her voice, to prove that it wasn’t just an angry soldier looking for a win.
“Alex, swap with me.”
Alex moved to walk beside Liam without a word, leaving Chris to fall into step beside Emma and William.
The more he worried about her being here, the more certain he was that she should have stayed behind with the other women, away from this danger. He shouldn’t have let Liam, Alex, and Emma come. He should have insisted they split up. The thought gnawed at him. He couldn’t shake it. He needed her story to be a part of this. To be their voice.
“You okay?” Emma asked, and the softness of her voice cut through his thoughts like a knife through fog.
He hesitated, words tangled in his mind. “Are you?” he said finally, looking at her with an intensity that bordered on desperation. “Are you really okay being part of this fight now?”
She held his gaze, unwavering. He could see the question reflected in her eyes. Was he?
“I mean it,” Chris continued. “I won’t let you on the front lines, but I need your experiences. I need your voice.” The words poured out in a rush, as if he’d been holding them back too long.
Emma stopped walking, forcing everyone to stop too. She looked at him, determination etched into every line of her face. “I’ve been part of this since he tried to intimidate me. Fuck, since he tried to kill me on the ship. I’m more than ready,” she said, and there was a fierce conviction in her voice that he hadn’t expected.
Relief washed over him, but anxiety pulled at its edges, fraying it like an old rope. Was she really ready? Could he risk believing it? His mind flashed back to the day they found her in the bunker, how fragile she seemed, how quickly she’d become their everything. It felt like another life. It felt like yesterday.
Chris let out a breath, ran a hand through his hair. “Emma,” he began, but she cut him off.
“We have to fight,” she said, and her words were a mix of urgency and promise. “I want to be part of it. We’re saving the future, Chris. Of the island. Of humanity.” She spoke with a certainty that made him question all his doubts, that made him almost ready to believe her.
Her hand brushed against his, a small touch that carried the weight of the world. “We’ve already done the impossible,” she said. “We can do this, too.”
Chris felt something shift inside him, a growing resolve that wrapped around his fears and tightened like a fist. She was strong. Maybe strong enough for both of them. He felt his own strength growing with hers, felt his resolve cement into something unbreakable.
“Okay,” he said, nodding, more to himself than to her. “Okay.”
She started walking again, triggering the group to start again. This time he stayed back with her, his hand still clasping hers tightly. He knew he had to take this risk. It was a revolution now. It had to be fast. For better or worse, they were in it together.
He could see the truck just ahead, half buried in the low hanging foliage exactly as he’d wanted it.
Chris scanned the area, apprehension dragging his pulse into a relentless rhythm. No one was around, but the absence of threats only increased his tension. Where were Victor’s men? Was it a trap? “William?—”
“I know,” William replied before Chris finished, already climbing up a grassy incline for a better view. He paused, eyes narrowing as they surveyed the landscape like a hawk searching for prey. The moment stretched, taut with worry, until he slid back down. “All clear,” he said, voice steady but cautious. Chris sucked in a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. “Then let’s move.”
They moved through the remaining space quickly, and he was surprised to find the truck untouched. Which meant the powered down phones were as well. It was entirely possible they got away with powering the devices off before anyone realized what had happened—the building had been an abandoned lookout after all. Only the men who worked for Victor knew, and Bash killed at least half of them.
“Or they’ve been, and this is a trap.” He looked away from the truck. “William, Bash, go scout to see if there’s anything on the other side of the truck. Bash, watch his six. William, do what you do best.”
Chris exhaled, letting himself feel the relief, if only for a second. The rest of the group gathered around him, and he looked at Liam. “Where should we meet everyone? Your damn mapping idea has paid off. Again.”
“The shoreline,” Liam replied without hesitation. “On the far side of the island. It’s a long walk, but safer than being close to the caves.”
They’d need every advantage they could muster. He sat at the edge of his desk, the glow of the computer screen casting an anxious light on his furrowed brow. Each choice felt like a balancing act on a tightrope, the potential missteps looming like dark shadows ready to pull him down. The weight of it all pressed against his shoulders, heavy and unrelenting, as if he carried a backpack filled with lead.
He looked at Liam, grateful for his steadiness, his calm in the storm.
“Thanks,” Chris said. “For your level head.”
“Someone’s got to have one,” Liam replied with a grin, the familiar glint in his bright blue eyes. “Can’t say mine’s always that way now thanks to Emma, but I’ll always do my best to be what you need.”
A momentary lightness settled over him, the memory of their first meeting flickering through his mind. How long ago had it been? A lifetime. An instant. He relied on Liam, maybe more than he realized. Maybe more than he’d ever admit.
“All right,” Chris said, his voice cutting through the salty air. “Texts only, no calls, there’s no time for that. Burn the phones when you’re done, and by that I mean destroy them by whatever means necessary. It needs to be fast. We have to risk it now.”
