Chapter 56


Olympia Stadium,

Tom and Burk waded through the crowds of sick people being filed into the stadium. Tom was frantic to find his family. But there were so many faces and people suffering and calling for help. The cacophony of noise made worse by the never ending P.A. service announcement directing the traffic of people. He wished he could use the P.A. system to find his children but given Granderson's betrayal. He doubted the people operating this place would offer their assistance to him.

"Daddy?"

Tom stopped as he heard the echo a familiar voice. His daughter's voice; a voice he hadn't heard in over 5 months, at least not in real life given he'd played that recording Darien had sent him over and over. He couldn't help but wonder if his mind was playing tricks on him but then he heard it again.

"Daddy!" This time he knew it wasn't a trick. He turned around searching for her in the crowds until he spotted her with Sam and his father. He had walked past them without even seeing them, he couldn't believe he had overlooked them in his frantic search to find them but the chastisement was pushed aside for later as he found himself overwhelmed with relief. Relief that he had found them. He drank in the sight of them after of months of separation and felt his heart break at the state of them. His daughter and father were crouched on the floor by a cot where his son Sam was laying down. All were incredibly pale and their eyes sunken into their faces probably from the fever and dehydration. He stopped analysing them ad his heart began to pound even harder at the knowledge he might be too late.

"Daddy!" she exclaimed with a smile but sadly her smile didn't last as her face crumpled into tears.

"Ashley!" He said, he pushed past the people between them and knelt down as she raced into his arms. He wrapped her up tightly in his arms as she sobbed his name.

"Oh, my God." Tom exclaimed as relief washed through him. Hot tears burned his eyes as he held onto his daughter for fear that if he let go she would just disappear. He kissed the top of her head and held onto her for a moment more before he reluctantly pulled back slightly. Just enough to take a look at his son. they looked so incredibly ill he wondered how far gone were they and if he had made it time for the cure to work.

"Sammy, Sammy" Tom said he placed a hand on Sammy's chest and felt the unsteady thud of his son's heartbeat. He looked so incredibly small and fragile as he laid on the cot. He barely gave a whimper which gave him little comfort.

"Daddy, Daddy We're sick." Ashley told him, Tom nodded as he clearly could see that.

"I know, baby.I know." Tom said as he moved back slightly pulled the small case from his pocket and placed it on the bed. "Daddy's gonna make it better, okay?" he assured them as he couldn't stop his hands from shaking as he fumbled getting the zipper open. He wasn't one to get the shakes during combat but right now in this critical moment he couldn't settle his nerves.

"Where's Mommy?" he asked the kids distracting himself as much as he kid. Hoping they would tell him where Darien was, that hopefully she was nearby; that the deadening feeling in his gut and the way his father kept saying his name in that tone he reserved for bad news was nothing. It was just that his father was sick and Tom's gut feeling was him overreacting.

"Tommy" His father said but Tom barely spared him a look as he needed to save them first which meant giving them the cure. He managed to open the case and slip out one of the prepared syringes glad that Rachel had had the foresight to size up the doses ready for him as he wasn't sure he would have been able to pull the cure in accurate doses.

"Where's your mother?" Tom asked, he looked around to find her and to see if anyone was watching them as he lifted up Ashely's sleeve and injected her with cure; she cried from the jab of the needle. It hurt him to cause her pain but he reminded himself it was to save her.

"Tommy" his father said it was the first time Tom turned to acknowledge his father's presence just for a moment as he couldn't stand seeing his father look so broken and defeated. His father was always so strong and invincible; Tom had never even seen him sick before now. But it wasn't that, it was the expression on his father's face of heart wrenching anguish.

Tom swallowed or at least tried to swallow the lump in his throat as hot tears burned his eyes. He couldn't, no he didn't want to read into it. He didn't want even want to think about why his father would look so anguished. It was incredibly unbearable to see the expression that he had to look away as he didn't want to hear what his father was trying to say. Not yet, he just needed to give them the cure and everything would be fine.

"Dad, why didn't you wait for me?" Tom asked as he pulled the second syringe out of the case and moved closer to his son. He lifted up his son's sleeve and took a shaky breath as he could feel the control on his emotions slipping. He felt ready to fall apart but he couldn't, he had to hold it together.

"Sam, a little pinch. A little pinch. This is gonna make you feel better." Tom assured his son as he injected the cure into his son. Sam whimpered from the pain but remained prone on the bed. Tom felt his father's hand on his shoulder trying to get his attention.

"Tommy" his father said again. His father said his name with that tone, that same expression on his face when he told him that Mom had died.

"Where is she?" Tom asked wishing he didn't have to ask, wishing she was right here with them because as he saw the tears silently roll down his father's face. The silent look his father gave him that just said it all.

"Son, I'm sorry." Jed told him, Tom placed the syringe on the bed; he didn't want to hear apologies. He wanted answers; anger surged in him as he grabbed the collar of his father's shirt. Tom understood what he was saying but at the same time couldn't comprehend it. He was here, in Baltimore, he had a cure and he just needed to find Darien and cure her. His mind told him everything would be fine yet his father was apologising.

"Dad, where's Darien?!" Tom demanded, his grip tightening on the fabric. His father gripped him by the shoulders and looked him straight in the eyes.

"She's gone, son." His father told him in a serious tone so there was no mistaking what he was saying. Gone; a word that had so many connotations and today it ripped Tom's world apart as he was too late. He shook his head not wanting to believe it. He had ignored the blatant signs telling him she was dead as he didn't want to believe it. His logical side knew the truth but he still couldn't accept it, a small part of him kept thinking there was time.

"She's gone. I tried to do everything I could to save her." His father said, Tom dropped his head down as he couldn't hold his emotions in check. Tears ran down his face as he was at a loss for words. His father brought a hand to the back of his neck holding him there in the closest thing to a hug as they had had in over two decades. Tom allowed himself the comfort to momentarily grieve his loss as the tears silently ran down his face.

"I tried." His father told him in a hushed voice. "I tried." He assured Tom.

Tom stayed there for a moment as he pulled himself together. He chastised himself for his grief as right now was not the time or place. People needed him to be level headed, his family needed him to be strong especially his kids. His grief would take second place with that in mind; he reigned in his emotions pushed away from his father. He swiped a hand over his face to wipe the tears away before he gave his father a reassuring expression.

"I know you did, Pop" Tom assured his father as he could see the grief and guilt tearing his father to pieces. "I know you did." Tom repeated, he picked up the syringe and looked to his father.

"But right now I gotta give you this." He told him as he pushed up his father sleeve and pushed the needle into his father's arm and injected him with the cure. His throat constricted at the pain of vainly trying to contain his grief. He heard his children crying and turned to them and pulled them into an embrace allowing them a moment to acknowledge the loss as they still needed to get out of here.


Back on the ship,

Kate had no idea how much time had passed as she had dozed off to sleep but when she woke up she found it was long enough for the drugs they had given her to wear off. Something that one would think was great but given she was crammed into a tiny box with little to no wiggle room and her head was bent at an uncomfortable angle but the reality was she wasn't Houdini. She had no space and with her hand behind her back, she had nothing, no ideas and the air holes in the box weren't bringing in much cold air. So she was sweating in a very unladylike fashion and her body was in agony between overstretched muscles and pins and needles from parts of her body that had poor circulation due to her 'incarceration'.

Either way she on the fast track to a very bad mood and the only ideas she was having was of cold showers after kicking Norris and buddies asses. All of which required her to get out of the box first.

She listened for a while and heard no sounds of movement or life outside the box except the noise of the ventilation system and the ships engines that kept it running. She wondered if it would be a waste of time to scream for help but decided if on the off chance someone was walking by they might hear her. She cleared her throat and took a deep breath in or as much of one as she could given her limited space and began to yelling at the top of her lungs. Someone would have to hear her. Right?... Kate thought to herself.


On the bridge,

Mike stood with Lt Forster and Tophet talking about the logistics of when they would make port. With majority of their senior staff off the ship it was up to Mike and Forster to organise the port call and distribution of work and orders.

"You stack the cases by the hangar door, we'll put 'em on a pallet and unload 'em dockside as soon as we make port. I'm not sure exactly when that's gonna be-" Mike paused mid sentence as he caught Lt Norris sauntering onto the bridge.

"Oh, hey, Norris, answer a question for us if you could. is there-" Mike started to ask his question when Lt Norris pulled his sidearm and shot the pilot. Blood sprayed across the back wall as the crewman dropped to the floor presumably dead. Everyone on the bridge threw their hands up in surrender due to the shock of what happened.
"Hey!" Norris shouted to get their attention.

"Whoa! Whoa!" Mike said as if it would calm the shocked crew who were all fighting their natural instincts to run.

"Commander." Norris said in stern tone. The jovial man Mike had met only a few hours ago was gone. "Commander!" Norris shouted, Mike looked to him "I want you to get on the horn and give the order to drop anchor. You muster your entire crew on the flight deck and you open up the door to the helo bay where you're storing the cure." Norris ordered him, Mike narrowed his eyes at the man. Irrational anger surged through him as he felt betrayed and insulted by being told what to do by a man who was supposed to be their ally. A man who had just killed one of his crew and he had a nerve to make demands.
"I'm not giving you a goddamn thing, you son of a bitch." Mike said as his hands itched to tear him to shreds but there were too many people on the bridge and he couldn't risk losing another member. He needed to get closer to disarm the man.
"I don't know what your plan is here, but this is my ship!" Mike shouted at him.

"You'll do exactly what I say, or I'll pick off your entire crew one-by-one." Norris said speaking over his words which only angered Mike further as he had just been made a fool by some Podunk cop.
"My troopers are everywhere. This ship is mine now." Norris told him, Mike wanted to scoff that a small group of cops against 200 trained soldiers was a no brainer. His people would win out.
"Please, he needs help" Lt Foster said stepping forward but Mike and Tophet were for once of one mind as they stepped forward pushing her behind them. The woman seemed to have no self preservation for her unborn child.
"Hey" Norris said talking over forster as Gator had started to take a step back. Mike was sure the man was in shock and the movement was involuntary but it set Norris off as he moved his gun.

"Call Doc Rios!" Forster pleaded but Norris had no interest in saving Tophet. The man was a civilian and thus useless or so Mike believed was Norris reasoning as he could only assume he shot the pilot for shock value and because he was the closest sailor to him. He would have had an opening to take him down.

"Nobody moves!" Norris told them all as he kept his gun raised. Mike stepped forward and started shouting at Norris to drop his weapon and surrender but Norris seemed to think he was as he shouted back warning them not to move. That he would shoot but given that Mike had already managed two steps without being shot meant Norris wasn't good for his word. He threw in antagonising remarks, goading the man as it was distracting him.

"Nobody moves!" Norris shouted back at Mike yet his finger hadn't pulled the trigger. Mike wondered why the man hadn't shot him yet.

"Put down that weapon! Everyone heard that gunshot. They're gonna come running." Mike shouted at him as he took another step again.

"You don't think I'll do it, X.O.?!" Norris asked him, Mike knew he was posturing Norris needed the crew and him to run the ship. He couldn't afford to kill any of them. At least it was a chance he was willing to take.

"Put down that weapon!" Mike shouted at him.

"You think I won't do it, X.O.? Just try me!" Norris goaded him, but before Mike could try Tophet went at the man. Something Mike hadn't even expected from the man but ultimately foolish as Norris stepped back and shot him in the stomach.

Tophet cried out in pain as he dropped to his knees and fell on to his back clutching his wound. Mike looked to Norris who was now further out of his grasp than before and holding his gun looking sickeningly victorious.

"I'm not gonna tell you again, Commander. Muster your crew." Norris told him.


On the Mainland in Olympia Stadium,

Anna hated wearing the gas mask but it was the only thing saving her from being recaptured given she was deep in Granderson's territory and there was a nice reward on her head for her capture. She moved around the Olympia Stadium at a slow pace. She didn't have to pretend she was ill as she was. She was dehydrated, exhausted and light-headed from a lack of food.

She walked among the sick trying to find the Captain. Her memory was running a little fuzzy on what he looked like but she figured he'd be the healthy looking one not wearing Hazmat suit. She just hoped she hadn't missed him. She had tried the lower levels where they logged and tagged the fresh cases. Those who were more in a more progressed stage of the virus were taken to a separate area to euthanize them before being transported to the coal fired plant.

She looked around at the people around her feeling her skin crawl as they were just a fuel source to Granderson. She just wanted to yell at these people that Olympia stadium was a death camp. There was no cure, no treatment. But they were already dead before they came here. As soon as they contracted the virus it was just a matter of days. It was just disgusting that they wouldn't be treated with the dignity and respect a living being deserved after they died.

In her perusal of the area she spotted a group of people. Three men and presumably children but it was hard to see as they were quickly cutting across the crowd going the wrong direction. At the head she spotted an African American man look back in her direction, there was something familiar about his face that made her curious enough to follow.

She quickly cut through the same crowd and saw the plastic partition used to separate the mildly sick from the dead. She followed and doubled check she was being followed before she disappeared behind the plastic partition.


At Avocet building,

Rachel was shown down a long hallway to an office with double doors by two troopers. One of them opened the door and Rachel walked into the large space taking in the troopers standing guard in the large and spacious office. The room was decorated with furniture, sculptures and artwork that Rachel could only imagine would normally have cost a fortune. But the décor wasn't what was bothering her, it was the issue of the treatment protocols they were using for the sick and the fact she had been held in a room for over four hours under guard to see Mrs Granderson. Rachel had had a lot of time to think of all the angles on the situations and each time she came out feeling like she had lost.

"Doctor." Mrs Granderson said in greeting to Rachel as she injected herself with the cure. Rachel and the Nathan James' hardwork and sacrifice; all of it squandered in Rachel's opinion on people who were murderers.

"My troopers say they experienced no side effects from the cure. It's amazing what you've created." Mrs Granderson said to her, her warm motherly tone that imbued comfort and strength now felt unsettling and calculated.

"I wish I could say the same in return." Rachel said somewhat scathingly as she couldn't believe the world she had returned to.

"I understand you have some questions about the way we've been treating the sick." Mrs Granderson said as she sat back in her chair and looked to Rachel.

"What you are giving the sick is anything but a treatment Of that I am sure." Rachel told her.

"Doctor You know this. In the 14th century, the Black Death wiped out 60% of the European population.
The plague killed indiscriminately The artists, scientists, thinkers, so few and precious to begin with, were wiped out. It upended the social order and prolonged the dark ages 150 years. I cannot let that happen here." Mrs Granderson told her, Rachel couldn't believe what the woman was saying.

Mrs Granderson made it sound like God had come down and placed this martyrdom onto her shoulders to save the world. The woman made it sound like Genocide was an acceptable and necessary evil to meet her goals. Rachel remained silent completely speechless as Mrs Granderson continued to give her a well practised speech.

"I understand your allegiance to your friends. You've gone through so much together. But you've seen nothing of the chaos here at home. The hysteria, the cruelty, the savagery." Granderson said, Rachel was tempted to make a snide remark that the woman was the pot calling the kettle black given she knowingly orchestrated god knew how many atrocities.

"You must try to see the situation from our point of view. There are people out there who would use this crisis to take what does not belong to them. They are the barbarians at the gate who would send us into a new dark age. We have the power to stop them, to keep them in their place. It is my duty to help the right people first, the people whose survival will ensure the future of our entire society and all that we hold dear." Granderson said gravely, she completely believed her words and Rachel could understand how the woman kept an army and all the people who worked for her in line as she was compelling even if her morals were lacking.

"So you gather your elite few within these walls and the rest What happens to them?" Rachel asked disgusted at Mrs Granderson and ultimately disappointed in herself for being wooed and fooled by the dream Mrs Granderson's world encapsulated.

"The virus doesn't discriminate. That unfortunate task falls to me." Mrs Granderson said and Rachel's heart fell into her stomach as her hopes to cure the sick no matter their socio economic background, level of education or intelligence were destroyed.


Olympia Stadium,

"Relax, I'm a friend of Kate's. My name is Anna Hatake" Anna told Burk who had his weapon trained on the woman. He wondered if she was mad walking into a hot zone like Olympia without a mask. She didn't look sick as she held up her hands in surrender. He and the Captain had found his family. They were 'cured' yet obviously there was a recovery period from their illness as the kids and the Captain's old man were moving slowly. Something that was going to cause problems as they needed to get out of Olympia before Granderson's people caught up with.

They had left the main arena and ended up in some sort of back area when the Captain stopped to look into room. Thus leaving Burk to keep an eye out for trouble and here it was in the form of a 5ft7 euroasian woman with light brown skin, medium length brown hair and whisky coloured eyes. She was dressed in skinny jeans, combat boots and a heavy winter coat. When she had raised her arms in surrender he saw she had on a kevlar vest.

"Kate?" Burk asked playing dumb but he just needed to be sure given anyone could fake a friendship and a thick Australian accent which he had to admit sounded pretty convincing even though it was weird coming from her mouth. He stepped forward placing himself in front of Captain's father who was keeping the kids behind him. Burk didn't blame him, the woman looked completely healthy standing in a hot zone with no protection not even a mask. There was an air about her that bespoke of a military background.

"Australian redhead, 5ft 8' with a whole lot of attitude and foul language spewing from her mouth. She served in the Australian Army for over a decade before marrying that asshole Lassiter. Her maiden name is Gentry. Any of this ringing any bells" Anna offered. Burk looked her over sizing her up for the longest moment.

"If you are her friend then you'd know who the best man at her wedding was" Burk stated.

"Tex Nolan, ex special forces went private sector, he's a flirtatious bastard from Reno not Texas like everyone assumes because of his name." She said without hesitation. Burk relented and lowered his weapon slightly. He didn't know about the Reno thing but she was so confident in her answers that he believed her. That and she hadn't made any move to get close to him. The distance gave him opportunity to shoot her if necessary and meant she wasn't trying to disarm him yet.

"How did you find us and what are you doing here?" he asked her, not ready to completely trust her.

"I heard your Captain on the radio, his father saying he was going to Olympia. So here I am. Why am I here? I'm trying to get in contact with Kate. You got a radio?" Anna asked him, she still hadn't moved an inch towards the group as she felt it was easier to keep her distance. She noted the older man and two kids behind Burk, they were infected and the kids looked petrified. So she kept her distance as she didn't want them to be startled any more than they were.

"Yeah, but our comms are being jammed by Thorwald" Burk told her.

"No they aren't. Granderson has been jamming majority of the airwaves since your arrival. She's not a shining beacon of hope like you wanted to believe. She's just another tin pot dictator trying to keep a foothold on her slice of this city until the virus kills off her enemies. You and your ship have sailed rather blindly into one shitstorm my friend" Anna informed him. Burk looked dismayed and angry at the same time by the news. She didn't blame him. It was a lot to swallow.

"Look, you have no reason to trust me-" Anna started but she stopped as she heard the plastic partition behind her open. She turned on her feet and saw two soldiers in full hazmat come out. They immediately recognised as they lifted their weapons in her direction.

"Stop where you are!" one of the shouted, Anna didn't acquiesce to the request as she turned around and let the baton in her sleeve drop into her hand. She pressed the release button and extended out the baton with a flick of her wrist as she ran at the soldiers.

Anna threw the first strike and within two moves had one man down she turned to take care of the second when two shots sounded in the air. The soldier she was about to attack dropped to the ground with two bullets to the back. Anna looked to Burk and wanted to shout at him for the stupid and reckless move but it was too late as an alarm sounded.

"We have to get out of here" Anna informed him, just before a security alert sounded thanks to everyone hearing the gunshots but she couldn't allow any of the soldiers to know she was here. By the sounds coming from the other room, Anna was sure the Captain was losing his head.

"Security breach in Section Twelve" Sounded over the P.A.

"Now!" Anna prompted Burk.


On the ship,

"Unbelievable" Kate muttered as her voice was raw from the shouting and screaming. Apparently 'Help', 'fire', 'Man overboard' did not garner anyone's attention. Something she was definitely going to inform the Captain and Mike about if she ever got out of the damn box.

She couldn't believe no one had heard her given she heard the P.A. announcement for everyone to report to the flight deck. She had to have been shouting for hours before the call and even more so after.

Why isn't anyone coming?... she thought trying not to give into the panic of being stuffed into a plywood box for so many hours but failing miserably as tears ran down her face. She had been fine with the idea when it felt like she was going to get out of it but right now she thoroughly felt trapped and completely alone.


On the bridge,

"Do you read me?" Tom's voice played over the line, it was the first time Mike had heard a call from Tom in hours and yet he couldn't answer as Norris had his gun pointed at him. It was a shame the man wasn't seven steps closer as Mike would have broken his nose and disarmed him within second.

But it was no use wishing and Mike knew he would be shot if he tried to disarm him. Tophet gave a sickly gurgle and groan of pain that served as a reminder of the first failed attempt to disarm Lt Norris.

"Nathan James, come in. Do you read me? Nathan James, this is the Captain. Come in." Tom's voice said over the air waves.


Avocet building,

"I know it's hard to understand. You've been away so long" Mrs Granderson told her as she turned on a lamp to give the room more light. "But in time, Rachel, you'll see it's the only way." she assured her. But Rachel would never be convinced it was the 'only way' nor would she assist the woman with her endeavours. It would go against her personal ethos and when history was written she knew how she wanted to be remembered and it was not going to be a part of Granderson's legacy.

It made Rachel sick to her stomach as Mrs Granderson explained her plans for the future how she could use her assistance in creating a utopian future. She apparently came under the heading of the elite. She was disgusted by those she respected and worked with over the years being wooed by Mrs Granderson's offer or protection and well equipped laboratories. It made her question all the research she had read and the human volunteers who died further scientific knowledge of the human body. This woman was running an american version of Unit 731 and offering Rachel a job.

She was about to tell Mrs Granderson where she could cram her job offer when the doors to the office opened. Rachel looked over her shoulder and saw Lt Granderson being restrained by two troopers as she was forced into the room.

"She was trying to run." Lt Landau told Mrs Granderson as she yanked viciously on Lt Granderson to keep her in place the young woman looked to Rachel with wide innocent eyes.

"I swear I had no idea this was happening." Lt Granderson told Rachel in a pleading manner, pleading for Rachel to believe her. "I swear - " she began.

"Hush, dear." Mrs Granderson said in chastising manner to her daughter. Lt Granderson went quiet, Rachel looked at her feeling for her as she could only imagine how devasted she was to find her mother was not the woman she believed her to be.

"You can't replicate my work with the doses that I've given you. Everything that you need is locked up on that ship." Rachel told Mrs Granderson as she tried to reign in her anger and keep her tone even. She held back her threats as she knew it was best to hold her cards close to her chest than leave herself open. Though she wasn't sure if it was already too late for that.

"And the Captain will never give it up." Lt Granderson told her with conviction. It was the only positive part of this situation as it meant Mrs Granderson had lost at least this battle. Or so Rachel thought because when she looked at the older woman she saw a smug smile play on her lips.

"Let me worry about the Captain" Mrs Granderson told them, there was something about the way she said it that made Rachel fear for not just her life but for those on the Nathan James and Tom.


Just outside the Olympia stadium,

"Do you read me? Nathan James, where are you?" Tom said as he watched the trucks drive off with the dead taking them to the coal factory to burn for electricity. He couldn't believe the horror he'd walked into, Mrs Granderson was supposed to be their Ally and yet everything he believed her to be was just a cleverly crafted image.

"Your ship has been taken by Granderson. Can we please get out here before we're captured?" Anna asked, "I promise I will tell you everything but we have to go now" she added impatiently.

"And why should I trust you?" Tom snapped at her, he'd lost his wife, his ship and god knew who else in a matter of hours. This woman stood behind them seemingly in a rush had the nerve to tell him what to do.

"Anna, my name is Anna Hatake and I'm a friend of Kate's. The only Australian Helo pilot on your ship, I'm amazed you don't recognise me from Rota but then it's been 5 years and I cut my hair recently" Anna told him wryly.

"Rota?" He asked, he didn't recognise her at all. But he could believe she was Kate's friend from the amount of sass she was giving him but just to be on the safe side he asked her about Rota because he wanted to test her and she knew it as she gave an aggravated sigh.

"Yeah your friend Mike Slattery hooked up with Kate. They had a great time for about a year until he went back to his wife and kids. Apparently it was amicable break up though I still can't stand the taste of tequila thanks to their unrequited love. Now have I passed your test?" she asked snidely.

Tom looked to Burk who was looking rather shocked by the tidbit of news about Mike and Kate. Yeah, the crew knew the Kate an Mike were sharing quarters but held onto the fact that Mike was too much of a square to be an adulterer. But Burk was just informed otherwise and obviously the woman convinced his Lieutenant that she was trust worthy and she managed to navigate them out of the stadium to relative safety but right now Tom had trust issues. Thanks to Mrs Granderson it was hard to know who to trust especially one claiming to be Kate's friend.

"Daddy, we have to go" Ashley said tugging on his arm. Tom looked down at his daughter, he saw the fear in her eyes as she wanted to get out of here. He didn't blame her, he was sure she and Sam would have nightmares for a long time. He had to get to them to safety yet he had no clue where to take them. He looked to Anna.

"Kate is my only family in this world. Do you think I'd put you in danger when you're my only means to get to her?" she asked him, he heard the sincerity in her words and there was something about her expression that he recognised. He knew it because he'd seen it in the mirror every day, the gut wrenching need to find her loved one. That one being Kate of all people but for some strange reason that was what made him trust her the most in that moment.

"Which way do we go?" he asked her.