There wasn't a day that went by where Jerome didn't regret not lending a helping hand to the deputy in regards to the Faith situation. If he had helped much earlier then maybe things could've turned out different. The guilt leaving him to fend in his time of need didn't sit well with Jerome at all. The deputy never actually asked for any help from him probably because he expected him not to give any at all. An understandable, yet incorrect, assumption given how no one else bothered to help him.

Jerome had to try and fix things between everyone and Rook. It was the best way he could help him now, until he and Faith were found. But both things were much easier said than done, at least at the moment

It had been months since Jerome had last been to the Hope County Jail. If he recalled correctly, the last time had been four months ago. While he couldn't remember exactly why he'd been there, most probable guess was that it had something to do with Rook's decision. From then on, the most he knew about what happened in the river was through word of mouth.

It was, unsurprisingly, bustling with activity. A few people were in the entrance talking amongst each other, and others were up above in the guard posts keeping watch. It looked like everyone was still recovering from the sudden animal attacks that Jerome heard happened not long before. The bliss had a varied effect on animals that were exposed to heavy doses, some became extremely aggressive not only to people and other animals, but sometimes their own kind. There were also some that became rather docile and borderline unresponsive to humans.

The animal corpses were all burned far from the jail and no attempts to salvage meat were made. No one was risking anymore bliss in their systems.

There were crates of supplies scattered throughout the entrance, most were medical but a few had food in them. Jerome guessed they were recovered from hidden stashes since outposts were usually thoroughly searched for supplies after they were retaken, especially if it was months since any outpost had been liberated.

Some people took note of his arrival and waved, others walked up to him and gave warm welcomes. There were a few from confused and curious looks from people wondering just what he was doing in the Henbane. He understood it wasn't common for him to be so far from Falls End, especially under the circumstances. They must've come to the assumptions that he was there to help with the injured as no one said anything. Jerome made his way to the inside and to the cafeteria turned makeshift center of operations.

Looking around the cafeteria, Jerome could see that, despite the activity outside, spirits inside seemed to be mixed. Some folks were busy drinking away and celebrating the downfall of the cult, whilst others looked like they were tired and anxious for it all too finally come to an end. The only thing keeping the mood balanced was the alcohol and cheery doo-wop music playing on the intercom.

"Pastor Jerome? Well I'll be! What brings you over to our side of the county?"

Someone approached him from the farther ends of the cafeteria. Jerome recognized him as one of the many frequenters to his sermons, from before the war with Eden's Gate. It was slightly relieving that the man hadn't been one of the many who turned away to Joseph's teachings.

"Came to see the progress here, how the people were doing, amongst some other things."

"Well progress has been made, ever since Eden's Gate got their asses handed to them by the rookie" The man excitedly replied. One thing Jerome always kept in mind was that when discussing Eden's Gate, post-deputy leaving, was that no one ever played down his deeds or worse: pretend they never happened.

"That's also why I'm here to talk about the deputy… and Faith."

"Oh..." The man's face fell flat and he gave the other people behind them a quick yet uncertain glance. He then turned back to Jerome and with a curt nod, began walking away to outside.

"Good luck, Pastor. Maybe you'll get further with them than the sheriff did."

That wasn't exactly the most encouraging of statements, but Jerome appreciated the slight confidence nonetheless. Jerome found relief in the fact that the man didn't immediately begin talking about killing the deputy and Faith. That chatter was already extremely concerning.

Walking closer to where the majority of the cougars were, Jerome couldn't help but think that he chose the wrong time to bring up Faith or the deputy. More than a few people had bloodied bandages wrapped around various parts of their body. Talk was quiet and amongst groups of few. There was only so much alcohol and music could do to lighten the mood. Probably not enough discuss such things…

I'm here already, let's just see this through.

Jerome walked to the center of the cafeteria and in front of the table that had a communications radio and map of the county. No one paid him much attention, they were all distracted and doing their own thing. Clearing his throat helped though, many now-curious eyes glanced upwards at him.

"Hello everyone," His greeting garnered a few hi's and what's up's. "I need to speak with you about something important…"

Jerome was certain that they knew what or who he was going to talk about. Thankfully, the people remained silent and waited for him to continue.

"I'm here to talk about the deputy," It was then that Jerome expected some reaction but aside from a couple of nods, the reaction he was expecting wasn't there. His next words would for certain break their silence. "And, of course, Faith Seed."

Reactions were mixed, amongst the collective eye rolls and groans were silent yet expectant stares and one or two hopeful smiles. There were also those that immediately left at the mention of Faith.

Jerome wouldn't let that deter him, of course, he was determined to try and make them see reason. This couldn't be like his trip to the Whitetail Mountains were he got nowhere with Tammy and the militia, there had to be some progress made.

"I understand that this isn't something some of you are willing to talk about, but it is time that we do." He started off, hoping to ease the conversation to Rook and what happened between the cougars and him.

"What are we gonna talk about?" A voice amongst the crowd rhetorically asked.

"How she screwed with people's heads?" They were still all too focused on Faith that any mention of Rook was overshadowed by reminders of what she had done to the Henbane River.

"This is her Pastor. This is what she did." The man pointed at his injuries. Amongst the recently bandaged wounds were scars of when the conflict in the Henbane was at full swing.

"She ruined our homes, our families and he expected us to keep shut, to not react…

"There's reactions and there's also overreactions." A young woman retorted. Her sudden inclusion angered the man further.

"What're you talking about? You always agreed we needed her dead!" He accused. There were quiet murmurs of agreement but they didn't deter the young woman.

"I didn't fucking agree to killing the deputy too, Alan. That's on you and the rest of that group that marched up there that day!" She heatedly responded. Jerome didn't expect it to end violently but he had to calm both groups down.

How long had they bottled all of this up? It seemed his arrival and having brought up the subject brought out an argument that had been quietly brewing for a while.

"Everyone needs to calm down. My intent was to have a discussion with you, not a full blown argument." Jerome didn't know if the did it out of respect, or if the respective groups had said their piece, but everyone went quiet. "Let's forget Faith for a minute and go back to Rook."

"It's very clear that there was an overreaction in regards to the deputy. He didn't deserve what was done to him… what is being done to him."

"I mean… I really don't got nothing against the deputy or anything." The woman clarified. "He did a lot for us, we can't forget that."

"But Faith Seed? She and her group of crazies destroyed lives. You don't come back from being an Angel…"

"Yeah, her fucking drug resulted in the death of our mayor and the Marshall." An older woman exclaimed. The death of Minkler was more personal to the cougars than most others.

"Sure, the punishment she was gonna get wasn't gonna be a satisfying one but it was what Rook decided." The other woman continued, glaring at the other for having interrupted.

"So he was the only one that needed to decide that?"

Jerome decided he'd stick to the role of observer for the moment. The man, Alan, had a certain hate in his voice that made Jerome think he had something very personal against Faith.

"After everything he did for us and for the county? I don't see why the hell not." The young woman's words, along with the whispers of agreement from a few others, were of great relief to Jerome. That meant that things wouldn't be like in the Whitetails.

"Un-fucking-believable."

"We need to set aside all of this, and give Rook a chance to explain why he did what he did that day." Jerome told everyone, silently hoping that would set the conversation back on track. "This killing them both off mentality is dangerous, and it's going to get us nowhere."

The young woman and a few others openly agreed, while some looked unsure. Alan and the other majority found his words ridiculous.

"Let me ask you, Alan," Jerome addressed the man. "Do you know why the deputy spared Faith?"

"No." Was the begrudging answer.

"Because I assume you did not ask…"

"You know what? Fine." He stood up, picking up his rifle and slinging it over his shoulder. "Find them, bring them back and be ready for a world of disappointment. When you suddenly realize he isn't the same person, remember why he needed to go too…"

And with that, he left.

Jerome understood what the man meant. To the rest it sounded like he was referring to Faith having somehow converted the deputy to an Angel, but it was really about Nathan's conditioning, something Jerome had forgotten about. It wasn't a subject Nathan had ever let anyone know much about, just what the triggering song was and the immediate effects.

"Good riddance." The woman muttered. She turned her attention to Jerome. "Listen, Pastor, some of us do want to help the deputy but it's not gonna be easy."

"It certainly won't, but it's to be expected." He chuckled softly, things hadn't gone easy at any point aside from maybe the Holland Valley..

"You saw the anger people like Alan still have. It's gonna take more than just a couple of words to convince them to either rethink everything or at least to get out of the way."

"I suppose I'll have to consider that, but are you still willing to listen to the deputy and Faith?" It was clear they would listen to the deputy but Faith?... Jerome needed to know he wouldn't have to worry about this group trying to kill Faith as soon as they saw her.

"Frankly, I don't give two shits what she has to say, but if it'll help Rook…" She shrugged her shoulders.

"One more thing ma'am. While your willingness to help now is of great assistance, why didn't you help the deputy when he was under threat from the rest of the cougars?" He asked, hoping he didn't offend her. She didn't seem to have been so that was good.

"It's not like we didn't want to, but it's more of them than us." She responded. "Plus everyone was plenty pissed when he knocked the shit put of that poor guy the day of their escape."

"We had honestly expected the ultimatum that had been given to Rook was enough to get the message through." This time the resident quartermaster spoke up. "It's obvious now that after we cut him off so severely it wasn't gonna work, but no one gave it any thought then…"

Jerome nodded, it was interesting to see a prospective of things before everything went bad from people that didn't fill his ear with talk of "that traitor and the whore". He thanked the group and soon departed. While not exactly a victory, it could have gone the route of the talk with militia

I'm glad this seems to be a step in the right direction. I need to focus on convincing others to be more open to discussion, but I can't do it alone here…

It wasn't much, but he managed to get people to reconsider their approach and rethink about what they had done to the deputy. If he wanted to get more out of it, then he'd have to start off small next time. Trying to talk to a group of that size, all with very conflicting opinions, wouldn't work out, as evident.

So he'd start off again with the more approachable people. The ones that understood the overreaction of what happened leading up to the deputy and Faith running off but didn't find any issues in killing both to be one step closer to finally getting rid of the Seed family.

There was progress being made and that gave Jerome confidence that given some more time the thought of wanting to kill both Nathan and Faith would eventually dissipate from peoples minds.

Jess had to admit, Pastor Jerome really had a way with words. The people with him actually seemed to have an interest in what he had to say, despite it being about a subject no one liked talking about... at least not positively.

She'd been listening closely to his discussion. It was more of a one sided talk, everyone else either quickly refuted something he'd say or kept quiet.

"They aren't going to listen, don't know why he bothers trying…" She heard Tracey mumble behind her. There was an odd feeling of satisfaction at hearing her so upset. Had she not been there with a purpose, Jess might've wanted to take the time to relish it.

'I wouldn't speak too soon. It look like he has a couple of people listening." And that was true. There were more than a few people taking in his words and giving them some thought. "Maybe not everyone thinks the same."

As fine as that was, it wasn't what Jess was there for. Trying to change other people's views on the situation was something she'd leave to Jerome and the other's.

"So the offer, was it your idea?" The answer was obvious. Of course it had been her. "The one on these?'' She handed Tracey the paper with the offer to Nathan. Tracey gave it a quick glance and snorted quietly.

"Maybe." She shrugged and rolled her eyes at Jess's scowl, not fazed by it at all. "You're gonna scold me on that too?"

"It's fuckin' dumb, s'all I'm saying." To Jess it was much more than that. Right now, she couldn't be sure that Nathan would take the offer but a small part of her that despite thinking it was idiotic, he would.

"How so? Enlighten me, please." Tracey asked, probably rhetorically so but Jess seized the opportunity.

"You're making it seem like Faith didn't mess around with Nathan's head." Nothing could be confirmed yet so there was no definitive answer to what happened between Nathan and Faith before they ran away.

"And what if she didn't?"

"You really think you're somehow helping him with the offer? If the cult sees these, they're gonna find out that Faith is still alive, then they're gonna try to find her… and him!" It was only a matter of time before some cult straggler came across the poster and reported it back to Joseph.

"Then maybe he should stop wasting time and make up his mind." The dismissive tone in Tracey's voice greatly infuriated Jess.

"You never liked him, did you?" Jess always found that odd. While everyone else constantly championed Nathan, not that it meant much in the end, Tracey hardly ever did. She knew it had nothing to do with jealousy, or at least she hoped not. That would be the most petty and laughable reason to.

"Didn't hate him either if that's what you're getting at, Jess."

"Really? Then why are you acting like everything that happened was his fault?" Constantly blaming Nathan for the problems Eden's Gate caused was getting old.

"I get you liked the guy, but even you have to see how trying to arrest Joseph didn't exactly work out in anyone's favor." Tracey argued.

"Yeah, 'cause it was he who decided on that. Things were going to shit long before Nate ever even set foot here." It wasn't like Eden's Gate was peacefully standing idle, simply waiting for Nathan and the rest of the sheriff's department to come knocking on the Father's door. Otherwise, there would've been no need for them, arrest warrants, or U.S Marshalls.

"He definitely kicked the hornet's nest." Again she only mentioned him. Not Whitehorse, not Hudson, Pratt or Burke just Nathan. 'Cause I'm sure he went there and the only thing on his mind was how he could piss off the cult.

"It wasn't just him." Jess wouldn't argue that the whole arresting Joseph thing was idiotic, but she wouldn't place the blame on one single person. Especially not the person who's major contribution to the whole ordeal was carrying a pair of handcuffs.

"What's up with you? You've rarely shown any emotion aside from being pissed all the time and now you're going above and beyond for Rook."

"Maybe it's because I can actually stand up for a friend." Even after I didn't help him at first…

"Looks like someone managed to break through Jess Black's cold and brash demeanor." As much as she hated to admit it, Tracey did have a point. Jess never opened up to anyone like she did Nate, but she wasn't telling that to her.

"You're finally starting to care about people!"

"Caring about him doesn't mean that…" She quietly responded. Sensing the conversation wouldn't be going anywhere, Jess didn't see any point in sticking around anymore. It was best that she left and continued her search for Nathan. It was either that or start another pointless argument with Tracey that she knew wouldn't end well. For Tracey at least.

"Fuck this, I'm out."

"By all means, and don't let the door hit you on the ass on the way out." Jess surprisingly ignored the comment and walked away. Talking to Tracey was going to get her nowhere so anything she wanted to find out about Faith would have to be her own research.

"Jess, wait!" She heard Tracey call out to her. Part of her wanted to keep walking and ignore her but after a few seconds of serious consideration, she turned to face her.

"What."

"Seeing you this worried has become more sad than amusing so I'll let you in on a little tidbit, our bliss girl was a real big fan of this." Tracey clenched two of her fingers against her palm, placed them against her other arm and quickly pulled them off. "Give her some of that, and she'll sing like you wouldn't fuckin' believe."

"What's with the sudden change of heart?" This didn't seem to be something Tracey she would do out of the kindness of her heart.

"Oh no, this isn't one. Hell no. This is just to keep you off my back for now."

"Thanks, I guess…" Jess was already aware of Faith's status as an ex junkie, Nathan had told her more than once. When he did, Jess assumed that it was one of the many calls for sympathy he tried on her but it was obvious she wasn't giving any. She never gave it any more thought but Tracey's words did serve as a helpful reminder. Now THAT'S a first.

"Good luck."

She walked past the crowd of people and outside, all the while scratching out places where Nathan could've run off to with Faith. She saw the group of kids that had tried talking her into joining them on their hunt Already having ruled out the Holland Valley for the moment she turned to the other two regions, beginning with where she was: the Henbane.

It was obvious any outposts were out of the question, too many people. The many vacant cabins and prepper bunkers were the only things she couldn't yet rule out, but those always turned up empty unless she counted roaches and rats. And the occasional homeless person.

This has been going on for way too long already. Once I find you, you're gonna owe me big-time, Nate.

The walk from the main gate to her ride was short but she stopped when she heard her name being called. For a brief moment she thought it could've been Tracey, but the voice was extremely hard to mistaken. Turning back she saw the sheriff approaching her.

That was weird, Jess didn't remember the last time they ever spoke. What did he want?

"Afternoon Jess." He greeted, tipping the brim of his hat. She awkwardly gave a "Sup?" in response, still confused as to why he was talking to her. Jess always had a feeling he didn't like her all that much, maybe because she wasn't the nicest person to be around.

"I heard you've been on the lookout for Rook and Faith. How long has it been?" Of course it was about that.

Jess shrugged. "Dunno, not long after they left I guess. I haven't really had a chance to count..."

"Every once in a while, we have some people looking for them, some of the more trustworthy and all on the down low to avoid any suspicion." Whitehorse told her. That didn't sound very foolproof to Jess. Any one of the people looking for Nathan and Faith could just be doing it to get to them first. "Its still hard to believe how quickly Rook managed to completely disappear…"

"Weren't they seen in the valley a while back?" Another voice asked. Jess saw one of the other two deputies, Hudson, walking over to them. She gave her a greeting nod that Jess awkwardly returned. Having never spoken to either of them for more than a few seconds, it felt weird having the both of them talking to her at once.

Unlike the respect and admiration she had for Nathan, she couldn't exactly say much about his co-workers. In general she felt the department wasn't very bright for thinking going anywhere near Joseph was a good idea, but that had been more under the request of the Marshall more than willingness from Whitehorse and the rest.

"That's what everyone was saying but looking around they were nowhere to be seen" The more she gave it thought, the more it sounded like a simple case of misidentification. Jess's only lead the whole time she searched there was word of mouth, not exactly much to go by.

"Hudson, what were the casualties?" Whitehorse asked her. The attack had come out of nowhere and completely caught them off guard.

"None, but two people lost an arm so..." The lingering uncertainty in her voice made her next words all the more concerning. "Sheriff… the bear that got them ran off, the only animal that got away."

"Shit. And how are they being treated?"

"They were taken to the Whitetails on account of them having more medical supplies than what's available here. I think someone mentioned a doctor that's there." She explained. A doctor? Jess had never heard of any trained medical professional in the militia. The most she knew about Resistance doctors were people brave enough to hastily treat a bullet wound.

"Isn't there one in the Holland Valley? Why not just take 'em there?" Unless he had left the valley for the mountains? Maybe after the Holland was liberated.

"Well they haven't shown up to the clinic in weeks, and Tammy had sent some of her guys as soon as word got out of what happened."

"You guys heard Jerome in there?" Jess felt she'd be stupid to think either would disagree with him but she was inclined to ask.

Whitehorse and Hudson nodded.

"We don't have a lot of people that are willing to think it through, at least if they do then it's in private." Trying to calm down the ire of the cougars had proven to be extremely difficult. Whitehorse had only managed to make some consider not killing Nathan, and even less than that were able to have their minds changed on the situation.

"It's no use trying to get anything through them. We all agree that Nathan sparing Faith was stupid and very dangerous but in the end it was his decision."

"There was also some talk amongst our big game hunters about bounties, broke those up real quick. The last thing we need is someone hunting them for sport."

"That's going to be a problem… We can't have any of them getting the bright idea of thinking they can take on Rook."

"Where's the other guy, Pratt?"

"He's somewhere inside, said he wasn't feeling well. Must've been the bliss plus… he hasn't been in the same state of mind anymore…"

"Well, I won't take away any more of your time. I'll see you around." Whitehorse needed to check up on the injured, and talk with Pastor Jerome.

"Later." Jess walked off, relieved she didn't have to stay in the jail any longer.

Hudson caught up to the Sheriff and asked a question she had been pondering on ever since he had told her that people were looking for Nathan and Faith. "Sheriff, don't you worry about what'll happen when they're found?"

"Who knows how much Faith has been influencing Nathan." She continued. There was the worry that maybe Nathan had changed drastically under Faith's influence, and not for the better.

Whitehorse must have sensed her distress. "I'm worried too Hudson. But there isn't much to do except to wait."

After the discussion that happened not long ago, Kim felt it needed to continue if they wanted to make progress and narrow some things down. "We should get someone else to talk about this with. Someone that isn't Hurk or Sharky."

They were still going to be needed later but they would have to be separated from each other in order to get better answers. For now, it was best they stayed wherever they were.

"Maybe just for now."

"Got anybody on your mind?" Nick was quietly relieved they would get the cousins out of their hairs. He liked them, he really did! They just weren't taking things as seriously as they should have.

"Mary," Kim responded. She glanced upwards when she heard stifled whimpers from their bedroom. They quickly went quiet, and she continued. "Aside from Jerome, she's one of the few people we know the best."

"Sure, I suppose so. Remind me, were just gonna hear her opinion right? Because as far as I know she don't really want Nate dead." That would've been a surprising change of attitude. It was clear as day to everyone in Falls End that at one point there had been more between the bartender and the deputy. Nick knew of this because Nathan had told him, a smug grin never leaving his face as he did.

"Obviously. We need more input on this than just you, me, Grace or Hurk and Sharky. Who else but the person running things in town?" Being that Mary May was basically the leader of the resistance in Falls End and to an extent, Holland Valley, Kim knew she had her own opinions on the matter.

"Not just her, but other people too. We've got to get everyone's thoughts on this, make sure we're all on the same page." The people in the valley had never been onboard with killing Nathan but they wouldn't complain if someone got Faith. There were then those still adamant on getting rid of her, and they came to understand that they'd probably have to get Nathan out of the way first.

"For now though, let's just get her and see what her thoughts are. With any luck she'll help persuade other's to be more receptive." That was one of the main reasons Kim saw the importance of talking to Mary May first: People listened to her. "Also, she, unlike us, paid close attention to what was going on in the Henbane and the mountains."

"Speaking of paying close attention, I also gotta go back to looking for them. Maybe just one last trip over the valley." Nick didn't have high hopes but the seventh time was surely the charm.

"It's sweet to see you still looking for him" He was doing this for his friend, out of concern for Nathan. "…and her I suppose."

"Thanks honey, it's the least we can do for him. I always wanted to repay him for what he did, but he wouldn't take the vinyl's in the hangar."

"Like Nick Rye could ever live without his Supremes!" The thought of Nick giving those up made her laugh. 'One day they'll be worth a fortune' He always said.

"I thank God he never took 'em, with no internet how the hell would I get them back?"

"Anyways, this whole talk, what do you think Mary's uh… position is?" Nick hadn't given much thought to how she and the rest of the valley would think of the discussion.

"I don't know. She doesn't want the deputy dead an-" She was abruptly cut off.

"No, no she does not." Nick suddenly interrupted, confusing Kim.

"Right..." She continued after that brief moment. "But I mean it's probably like everyone else, she wouldn't be sad if Nathan was the only one returning."

"Grace is still gonna be around, hun?"

"Yeah, aside from Hurk and Sharky she's the only other person we've got in on this." Though soon after the initial discussion, Grace had departed somewhere else in the valley. She didn't specify where only that she'd return soon.

"You ever wonder if maybe the cult knows she's alive? It's not like they ever found her body…" The thought always popped up whenever Nick saw the random Peggie hiding out or Angel wandering around the marshes near the edge of the valley while he flew. The Peggies weren't dumb enough to move into any habited areas and the Angels hardly walked more than two feet from their last position, so he didn't see them as any threat.

"Probably. They might be looking for her, if they know of what happened between the resistance and Rook." Otherwise, they'd most likely think Faith was locked up in the Hope County Jail and that didn't seem worth the risk, at least not to Kim. "Then there'd be that to worry about."

"Yep. For now let's focus on what we need to talk about. You wanna give Mary a call?"

"Sure."

AN: Hey everyone, chapter 30's finally here. I apologize for not being able to get this up sooner, this past month was an awful one. Next chapter is obviously still coming this month, no reason to push that.

I kept getting constant 404 and 403 errors since Wednesday, which was the intended upload day, and I just couldn't get past the site menu. Funny, I'd never seen them until about a month ago.

This is already thirty chapters in which was the original length I had planned long ago. Now? Maybe 15-20 more and it's a wrap.