The following morning, Lillian said a tearful goodbye to MacCready when he left with the caravan. He promised to write as soon as he had arrived at his homestead.

"I hope you find your boy," he hugged her tightly. "Stay safe."

"You too, and when Duncan is well enough to travel, you can bring him back here."

"If he's still–"

"He will be, I'm sure of it," Lillian kissed him on the cheek, "Now you better get going, one of the guards is glaring at us."

He nodded, hugged her again, and left. Lillian turned to Piper who was watching from a few feet away.

"Here's hoping things are okay," she said, "Now let's go poke Cait awake so we can get going." They headed back through the gates. "I can't believe someone so skinny can snore so loud."

"I can," Lillian smirked slightly. "I once shared an apartment with a couple of other dancers and one of them could put a chainsaw to shame."

"Damn, Abbott has an old chainsaw he sometimes uses and you could hear that thing two blocks away."

Piper opened the door to her shack and greeted her sister who was just leaving for school. While Nat was complaining about some homework, Lillian leaned against the inoperable washing machine and worried about MacCready.

What if his son had already passed? What if something happened to the caravan on the way? What if he did get back and Duncan survived but he decided not to return? She felt so alone.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the door shutting as Nat left and Piper yelling up the stairs for Cait to get up.

"Rise and shine, Caity!" Piper clapped her hands. "It's a beautiful day out!"

"Fuck off!" Cait yelled back.

"Is that any way to treat someone who lets you sleep in their bed?"

Cait groaned loudly and Lillian could hear her shuffling upstairs, followed by some loud thumps.

"Come ooonnn," Piper whined, "We have things to do!"

Cait finally appeared at the top of the shoddy stairs, covering her eyes with one hand, the other holding onto the wall for stability.

"Fuck's sake, can't let a girl sleep, will ya?" she stumbled at the bottom step and fell against a bookshelf. "Chrissake, why'd you put this here?"

"I knew I shouldn't have let you drink so much last night," Piper sighed. "You want a coffee?"

"I wanna throw up." Cait's face went pale and she belched, clapping her hand over her mouth. Piper grabbed her arm and yanked her outside where Cait immediately threw up on the doorstep.

"Eww, you couldn't aim off to the side?" Piper wrinkled her nose at the amber-coloured vomit on the step. Lillian handed Cait her flask of water (freshly filled from Sheng's water purifier for the low price of five caps), which was quickly depleted.

Cait leaned against the wall beside the door, her eyes scrunched shut, and breathing heavily. "Eurgh, I'm gonna go back to bed."

"No, you're not," Piper shook her head. "You are going to sit here, have some coffee, and wait for Lillian and me to come back with Nick."

"Can't we do that tomorrow?" Cait whined.

"Not if you want to get paid!"

"Wait, I'm getting paid?" Cait opened her eyes slightly.

"Of course, so get some coffee and get ready to go," Piper demanded, then nodded at Lillian to follow her.

"How much am I supposed to pay her? And you, for that matter?" Lillian asked quietly as she followed Piper towards Nick's office.

"Don't worry about it," Piper brushed her off, "I'll figure something out."

Lillian sighed and followed her around through the alley to the office. She remained quiet as Piper greeted other people along the way, even stopping to ask an older man about his wife.

"You know she ain't well, leave us alone!" he snapped.

"Oh, I hope she feels better soon!" Piper called after him then turned to Lillian. "She's been refusing to come out of her house for the past month, only wanting the doctor to come to her. I think it's psychosomatic."

Lillian only nodded, feeling sympathy for the woman. Staying in her house and never leaving sounded pretty good right now.

They entered Nick Valentine's office to find him bent over the keyboard of a terminal while Ellie was reciting notes from a small notebook.

"Ah, be with you in just a moment," Nick called out as he continued to type quickly. Piper immediately sat down and started flipping through a file folder on the desk as Lillian just looked around the room.

An old faded poster of 'The Silver Shroud' caught her eye and she smiled, remembering all the evenings she'd spent with her granddad listening to the radio show. They even went to a live recording at the Emerson Colonial Theatre when she was a kid, then waiting by the stage door for autographs in a blizzard. When she heard they were making a Silver Shroud television show, she immediately ran to the phone to call him.

"Hello?" her granddad answered the phone.

"They're making a Silver Shroud tv show!" Lillian said excitedly.

"Who is this? How'd you get this number?"

"Granddad! You know it's me!"

"I know, Lillypop," Granddad chuckled, "And I just read about the show in the paper. I was going to call you later, but you beat me to it."

"Who do you think will play the Silver Shroud? Lamont Arnaud might be a little old now."

"I don't know. You should audition for a role, maybe even the Mistress of Mystery."

"Hah, I prefer dancing, thanks," Lillian laughed, "Besides, I don't think I'd be good at the talking part."

"Ah, there's plenty of actors who can't act if their life depended on it and they still get jobs."

"I don't know if I should feel insulted or not."

"I'll talk to your new fella, what's his name, Nate. I'm sure he'll agree you should audition."

"We've only been on a few dates, it's nothing serious."

"Not right now, but so long as you have the wedding before I die."

"I am not marrying him, geez. We hardly have anything in common."

"So why are you still seeing him?"

Lillian paused. "Because I think he's hot, okay?"

Her granddad smirked. "Well, I think you two would make a great Silver Shroud and Mistress of Mystery."

She giggled, trying to imagine Nate dressed in the Silver Shroud costume. But her granddad had gone silent.

"You know, it isn't fair that they shut down live theatre, ballet, and opera, but continue making television programs."

"Yeah."

"If not the lead, maybe they need a dancer in a role. At least that will be something."

Her thoughts were interrupted by Ellie snatching the file folder away from Piper.

"Can you not snoop so much?" Ellie shoved the folder into a drawer.

"Don't leave it lying around then," Piper said, unfazed. "Besides, I didn't know you kept records of when the brahmin escaped their pens."

"We don't, that's just for you," Nick said with a wink.

"I should've known," Piper pouted.

"How're you feeling, Lillian?" Nick turned to her.

"I'm fine," she shrugged.

"I suppose 'fine' in your case is that you're up and about rather than feeling like sunshine and roses," he said kindly.

"I just want to find my son, or at least find out what happened to him."

"Of course, and I will do everything I can to help, starting with having a look at the vault. Ready to go?"

Lillian nodded and her stomach flip flopped. She didn't know if she could handle going back into the vault. It was difficult enough trying to keep her composure when she saw the door to Vault 114 when they rescued Nick. She had been so afraid of what she might have found within, but was relieved to not find numerous pods of frozen people.

Instead she discovered that Vault-Tec seemed to be playing one big sick joke on the people. What other awful experiments were they pulling in other vaults? One of the other law students said his parents were guaranteed a spot in a vault in Virginia. What had happened to them?

She followed Nick and Piper out back to the marketplace where she heard her name being called.

"Hey, Lillian!" Arturo waved at her from his stall. "I have a small favour to ask."

"Another one?" she approached him.

"Yes, nothing major," he then lowered his voice. "Just another drop-off."

"What's it for?" she narrowed her eyes.

"I'm afraid I can't tell you, but I have something for you if you do," he smiled widely and pulled out a crossbow from behind the counter. "I was looking through some other books and thought this might be more effective than just a bow. Still silent, but deadlier."

Lillian took the crossbow from him and looked it over. She had used one before, but it had been years. (Centuries, technically.) He was right, it would be more effective.

"Alright, where do you need it dropped off?"

"It depends on where you're going, I have a few."

"And you want me to deliver all of them?"

"Oh, no, I have other contacts," he looked over at Piper who had now moved closer, "and no, I am not divulging their identities."

"Aw, but what's it all about?" Piper asked.

"One day, maybe, but not today," Arturo waved his finger at her.

"Well, we're heading north of Concord," Lillian said.

"Perfect. Give me a moment." He disappeared through a door and returned a moment later with a sealed envelope. "Lexington, mailbox outside of the Super Duper Mart."

"I nearly got shot going by there, and there were some weird running things there." Lillian paused. "Wait, maybe those were ghouls."

"Yeah, apparently there are ghouls and raiders in Lexington, but that's where this needs to be delivered."

"So what's in the envelope?" Piper asked, not taking her eyes off it.

"None of your business, and I mean it," Arturo's face darkened. "If you try to peek, it could end in a total disaster with a lot of deaths."

"Damn, Arturo, what have you gotten yourself into?"

"Anyway, Lillian, if you don't mind?" He turned back to Lillian, ignoring Piper. "And take the crossbow. You'll probably need it in Lexington."

Lillian pocketed the envelope and took the crossbow with thanks. She felt just as curious as Piper over what message was sealed within. But what would happen if she, or these other supposed messengers, were killed? The secret message wouldn't get to its intended recipient and then what?

She looked around at the market, suddenly envisioning a blinding flash of light and the whole stadium going up in a blast. Her chest began to tighten and she bit the inside of her lip hard to keep from bursting into tears.

The sooner they left and she dropped off the envelope, the better.

"Okay, let's go," she said to Piper, who was watching her curiously. Nick was standing near the noodle stand, looking over his robotic hand.

"You good, Blue?"

"Yeah, let's just get this over with."

They found Cait sitting on a bench outside of the chapel, bent over a steaming cup of coffee. She complained as Piper informed her it was time to go, chugged the rest of the coffee and tossed the empty cup to the side. Lillian frowned, picked up the cup and shoved it into an already overfilled garbage can nearby.

"Fuck's sake," Cait said under her breath as they headed up the stairs to the leave.

Piper and Nick made small talk as they made their way across the broken bridge towards Cambridge. Cait lagged slightly behind, more awake than she was before, but still cursing under her breath.

Lillian felt her heart start to beat faster as she realised they were passing by the police station. Should she stop in, give them an update? Or maybe not. Piper might get a little too nosy, Cait might get too mouthy, and Nick would probably be shot on sight.

She glanced at the windows as they passed, wondering if Haylen or Danse or even Rhys might be there, but she couldn't see anything. It's fine, she can stop by another time. Maybe after she had tried to find out more about that missing patrol, just so they wouldn't be too disappointed in her.

Paladin Danse was on the roof when he saw a group of four approach on the road. He stayed low, watching them carefully, unsure if they were simple passersby or someone with a more nefarious intention.

His stomach seemed to flip flop as he recognised Lillian's vibrant red hair. But that mercenary wasn't with her. Instead it was two other women, one with dark hair and a red cap with matching coat, and one with duller red hair, and a man who looked like one of those old detectives from movie posters.

Was he actually a detective, or was this a trap Lillian had gotten herself into? And where was that mercenary? Was he killed, or did he abandon her? That bastard, how could he do that?

Was this 'detective' some other mercenary? What about the women? The one tailing looked like she could be one.

The one in red looked familiar and it suddenly dawned on him that it was that damn reporter from Diamond City. She came sniffing around shortly after they had moved into the police station. Worwick had chased her off then, but they believed she kept spying on them.

Had Lillian told her about the Brotherhood squad? And if so, how much did that reporter know now? Lillian didn't seem the kind of person to talk too much, but what if she unintentionally said more than she should have?

He could've sworn he saw Lillian look up towards the building as they passed, and was disappointed when they kept walking. While he wanted her to stop, he didn't want the others to do so as well. Maybe she didn't need him.

Disheartened, he returned to his usual patrol, hoping she would come back soon.

The quartet reached the outskirts of Lexington where they heard some large blasts. Lillian's heart began to race with anxiety while Cait had a smoke. Nick and Piper both looked a little uneasy.

"If we go around this way," Nick pointed to the left, "We should be able to avoid whatever is happening in the middle of Lexington. Then we can see if there's a clear way to the drop off."

"I don't see why this is so important," Cait tossed the cigarette butt to the side and exhaled a stream of smoke. "Risking our lives for some stupid letter."

"I have my suspicions," Nick said. "Now stay quiet and stay low."

Cait rolled her eyes but reluctantly followed. Lillian and Piper stayed close behind Nick as they slowly made their way around the east side of Lexington.

She knew she had to concentrate on the task at hand, but Lillian couldn't help but be distracted by how human Nick moved. It was far smoother than the synths at ArcJet and somehow creepier. Perhaps it was what Joe Savaldi had said, that there were synths who looked exactly like people. Nick may not exactly look very human, but he sure moved like one.

They stopped at a narrow alleyway.

"See that?" Nick said quietly as he pointed down the alley to the middle of town. Lillian looked and had to clap her hand over her mouth to keep from gasping too loud. The biggest monster she ever saw was roaring and holding its head. It looked bigger than the deathclaw in Concord.

"Looks smaller than usual," Cait shrugged.

"Small?" Lillian couldn't help but ask. "The fuck is that?"

"Super mutant behemoth," Nick said. "You've seen super mutants right? Well, load them up with enough FEV and they can grow into that."

"FEV?"

"Forced Evolutionary Virus," Piper spat, "Apparently it was some experiment before the war, to stop people from getting sick. Then other groups got hold of it and altered it for their own experiments. This is one of the results." She nodded at the behemoth who had now picked up an old post box and threw it. A moment later there was a sudden blast which knocked them over.

Lillian's ears were ringing and she felt the ground shake again. Piper was talking to her, but all she could hear was that high-pitched whine of tinnitus. It took a few moments for her hearing to come back to normal.

"You okay?"

Lillian nodded and got back to her feet. She looked back down the alley and through the smoke, saw that the behemoth now lay dead. When the dust cleared more, it looked like the behemoth had been blasted apart, stringy organs spilling out into the town square. She thought she was going to get sick.

"Let's go, quickly," Nick said, "That was a mini nuke, you'll get sick if we stick around too long."

They followed Nick closely before sighting the Super Duper Mart. Lillian wondered what it looked like inside. Probably looted long ago by survivors.

"So there's the mailbox," Nick pointed, "But it's a clear view for whoever had blasted that behemoth. But maybe two of us can run around to the other side and cause a distraction, then the other two can make the drop off. We'll meet back at the old donut shop."

"I'll go with Lillian, and you two cause the distraction," Piper took Lillian's arm and started to pull her towards the Super Duper Mart.

Cait pouted about having to go with Nick, but followed him silently. Piper and Lillian waited around the corner until the distraction. Lillian readied her new crossbow, thankful to have already tested it out on some unsuspecting crates when they left Diamond City. This message she was to deliver must be incredibly important for Arturo to give her the crossbow as payment.

A few tense moments went by before they heard gunfire. They risked a glance into the square where a horde of ghouls were being gunned down presumably by raiders in an overpass, along with Nick and Cait in between some other buildings. More ghouls ran into the square from other abandoned buildings.

"Let's go," Piper nudged her, "I got you covered." She held up her pistol.

Lillian took a deep breath then sprinted straight to the mailbox. Every gunshot felt like they were inches away from her, though she could barely hear them over her heart pounding. She screamed when a bullet hit the ground just ahead and she nearly stumbled. Finally she reached the mailbox and jammed the envelope in as another bullet hit the side.

"Blue, on your left!" Piper shouted.

A feral ghoul stumbled towards her, spindly arms reaching out. Lillian quickly aimed and shot her crossbow at it. The ghoul fell forward with the arrow sticking out of its nasal cavity. She didn't give it another thought as she ran behind the buildings, cursing Arturo's name. This shit had better be worth it.

She heard footsteps as she caught her breath and was soon joined by Piper.

"Whew, that was a close one." Piper took off her hat and wiped her forehead with her sleeve. "You good?"

"Yeah. Are Nick and Cait okay?"

"Pretty sure they are, there were some raiders up in that overpass but I don't think they had a clear shot of Nicky and Cait. Seemed to be shooting more ghouls than anything else." She paused and Lillian noticed it had gone quiet. "Come on, let's get over to the donut shop."

Lillian nodded and followed Piper to the dilapidated but still standing Slocum's Joe. She tossed her backpack down in one of the torn booths and slumped down beside it. Her stomach rumbled with hunger but she didn't feel like eating. Instead she took out a bottle of water and had a small sip. Piper had wandered behind the counter to poke around.

Cait suddenly plopped down in the seat across from her, grabbed the bottle and chugged down half of the water before giving it back.

"Thanks," Lillian said quietly as she put the lid back on.

"Well, wasn't that fun?" Nick patted Lillian gently on the shoulder. "If you three need to rest, we should be good here for a bit."

"No, I think we should keep going," Lillian stood up, grabbed her backpack and threw it on.

"You sure?" Piper asked.

"Yes," Lillian paused. "Unless you need to rest."

"No, I'm fine. Cait, you good to go?" Piper turned to Cait who just shrugged and stood up from the booth. "Okay, guess we're carrying on."

They continued along and Lillian began to feel more and more nervous as they got closer and closer to Sanctuary Hills. She could feel her chest tighten as they approached Concord, remembering the huge deathclaw that rampaged through the streets. What if there was another one?

But it was quiet as they walked to the main street. The now rotting bodies of the raiders were still strewn about, along with the deathclaw. But as they got closer, Lillian could see that the deathclaw had been cut open and butchered.

"What happened to it?" she asked, pointing at it.

"Someone probably cut out the meat," Piper said, holding her nose as she went in for a closer look. She turned back to Lillian. "You never had deathclaw steaks before?"

Lillian shook her head.

"Oh my god, you have to try it. It's so good," Piper paused, "Depending on who makes it, that is. Wellingham in Diamond City can whip up a tasty deathclaw steak, but charges an arm and a leg for it. You can also get one at the Dugout, but it's a crapshoot whether you get it overcooked or unseasoned or both."

Before Lillian could say anything, her stomach suddenly lurched and she vomited. Piper immediately went to her side and offered her a sip from a water bottle. Lillian knelt down to catch her breath and take a drink. Ugh, the smell was rancid.

"Let's go back and go around," Nick said. "Nothing for us here."

Piper helped Lillian up then yelled at Cait to quit looting the dead raiders. Cait groaned in annoyance before following them out of Concord.

Lillian's stomach still hadn't settled by the time they reached Sanctuary Hills, but it didn't stop her from noticing how much had been done in her absence. There seemed to be more people, and the first few houses had the walls and roofs patched up. Some makeshift street lamps lined the street and in the dimming evening light, someone was going from one to the next, lighting them.

Then she heard barking and Canigou ran up to greet her, quickly followed by Charlie.

"Hey there, boy," Lillian knelt down to pet him, immediately feeling better, "Looks like you're getting around just fine now." She looked down at his stump, which didn't seem to bother him.

"Hi Lillian! Oh, you brought more friends!" Charlie greeted them with a smile then her face dropped at the sight of Nick. "Oh, and a, um…"

"Oh don't worry, he's good," Piper said, "Everyone likes him in Diamond City."

"You're from Diamond City?" Charlie's eyes widened. "What's it like? I've only been outside the big gate."

"You've never been inside?"

"Oh no, we tried to move there but the fat man said we couldn't because we needed caps."

Piper frowned. "Oh he did, did he? Well I think I am going to have a talk with him about that."

"Another time, Piper," Nick said, "We should get settled and get some rest."

Lillian stood up. "So more people have moved in?" She asked Charlie.

"Yeah, that Preston guy has been taking in people. Most of them are nice, but there are some who aren't. I just ignore them."

"Who's been mean to you? I'll talk to them."

"No, it's fine. Dad says they're just having a hard time so it's better that I leave them alone."

"Okay, well I need to go get some rest. Thanks for looking after Canigou."

"He's doing really good, especially after Dr. Rollins got here."

"Dr. Rollins?"

"He's another ghoul and he used to be a, uh, what do you call it, a special doctor for animals."

"Veterinarian."

"Yes! He said the amputation and stitches were well done, and he showed me how to change the bandages. Oh, there he is now!" Charlie waved at a ghoul wearing a tattered white lab coat leaving one of the nearby houses.

"Hello, young Charlie, and you must be Lillian," he reached out to shake her hand. "Canigou has been doing very well, as you can see."

"Oh for Chrissake, are we just going to stand here gabbing all day?" Cait complained. "Isn't there anything to drink here?"

Dr. Rollins looked at her and pointed down the road. "There's a fella serving beer that way, look for the lights."

Cait quickly shoved her way past Nick and Piper.

"Charming girl, ain't she?" Piper said.

"I'm sorry," Lillian apologised to Dr. Rollins, "We've been travelling all day and–"

"You just want to get some rest," he nodded, "No problem. I'll be around, and in case you need it, I treat humans as well."

"Thanks, I appreciate it."

He stared at her for a moment. "Speaking of, are you feeling okay? You're looking a little pale."

"I'm fine, just need rest."

He nodded affably then headed down the road, closely followed by Canigou and Charlie, chattering away. Lillian smiled and looked around.

It felt like only yesterday she had left Sanctuary Hills, all alone. Now it was turning into a bustling neighbourhood again.

She made her way to her house, unsurprised to see Codsworth still trying to trim the dead hedges.

"Ah, Miss Lillian!" he greeted her cheerfully, "We have some new residents here at Sanctuary Hills! It is nice to have neighbours again! And I see you have brought some more!"

"Oh! Right, this is Piper and Nick," she quickly gestured to them, feeling guilty for having forgotten they were there. "They're going to help find Shaun."

"Oh good! Would you like some tea? I can put the kettle on!"

"The stove doesn't work, Codsworth. And we don't have a kettle anymore."

"Right! Of course. I'm afraid I can't do tea at the moment. How about a coffee?"

"No, thank you," Lillian said, "I think we're okay."

"If you insist! But I will be here ready to serve!" He then moved on to the remains of their old rusted car and mumbled about how inconvenient it was to not be able to polish it.

"Don't mind him, being alone for two hundred years has taken its toll," Lillian said as she opened the door.

"You know, with all the crap General Atomics got up to, I gotta say it's impressive that their robots are still working," Piper said.

"Only with a few loose screws," Nick joked. "So this is your house before everything happened, right?"

Lillian nodded. "We learned about other cities being bombed from the news," she pointed at the broken tv. "Nate grabbed Shaun and we ran up the hill to the vault. We were just going down when the bomb hit."

"Damn, so you just made it," Piper removed her notepad from her pocket.

"If you don't mind, I'd like to go have a look at this vault," Nick said. "Why don't you get some rest?"

"I'll go too," Piper moved to follow Nick but he stopped her.

"You can be a reporter later. Right now, Lillian needs a friend. Besides, I can record everything up here." Nick tapped the side of his head.

"Yeah, you're right," Piper turned to Lillian, "Is there anything Nicky should know about the vault?"

Lillian paused before answering. "Please don't disturb my husband," she said quietly. "I'm sorry, I just don't want anyone–"

"I understand," Nick put up his hand. "I promise I will take the utmost of care around your husband and everyone else still down there."

"Thank you," she felt relieved, feeling like she could trust him. Why was he so trustworthy? He's a synth, and the ones in ArcJet didn't hesitate to try to kill her and Paladin Danse. Was it his particular model? Maybe this Institute made synths who could be trusted.

But why were those other ones at ArcJet? What exactly were they looking for? While one of them had that transmitter on them, they hadn't left the facility. What else was there?

Her thoughts were then interrupted by Piper snapping her fingers at her.

"Hey, you okay?"

"Hm? Yeah, just thinking." Lillian sat on the worn sofa. She found herself missing MacCready, having gotten to know him fairly well these past weeks. She barely knew Piper, Nick, and Cait, and she didn't feel entirely comfortable around them yet.

"About what? No, sorry, I shouldn't be asking," Piper wandered over to the kitchen and picked up something off the counter. "Looks like you got a letter."

"I did?" Lillian stood up and took the envelope. Her name was written neatly on the front and she quickly opened it up. She couldn't help but smile when she saw Danse's name signed on the bottom. She read through the letter, but frowned at the part where he suggested that MacCready was luring her into a trap. Of course he didn't know MacCready like she did, but she couldn't help but feel a little offended. She folded the letter back into the envelope and put it in her pocket.

"So, who's it from?" Piper asked.

"It's from–" Lillian stopped. She didn't want to be inundated with questions about the Brotherhood from Piper. "It's from someone I helped a while ago, just a thank you note."

"Oh, okay." But Piper clearly didn't believe her and continued to look around the kitchen.

Lillian lay on the couch, exhausted from the day, feeling sick to her stomach about what Nick may or may not find down in the vault. Maybe she should've gone with him but she couldn't bear to go back.