| Subject: Hope (Untitled) - Chapter 6 |
Author:
Athena4
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Date Posted: 18:29:14 07/20/03 Sun
In reply to:
Athena4
's message, "Hope (Untitled)" on 18:20:25 07/20/03 Sun
The next day dawned bright and clear, a rarity in the north. Standing outside the shelter, Madeline closed her eyes, lifting her face to the sun. It warmed only temporarily, before bitter wind replaced it, but that split second between heat and cold reminded her she was alive.
Something she might not be in a few hours.
The meeting with George had gone well, she thought. But not as well as she’d hoped. In her memory, she seemed desperate, and desperation bred carelessness. Had she been too heavy-handed? Should she have left well enough alone?
A hand on her shoulder pulled her out of her thoughts and she opened her eyes, turning to look up at Egran. He stared at her worriedly, and she smiled. At the oddest times, he reminded her of Paul. Paul
“You didn’t tell me how it went yesterday,” he said, pulling her once again out of her own thoughts. “You haven’t spoken much at all.”
“No. I suppose I haven’t.”
“Well?”
“I played my cards. Now we wait.”
“That simple?”
“No,” she paused, closing her eyes for a moment before continuing. But, as she opened her mouth to speak, she found she couldn’t say the words aloud. What if I’ve made a mistake?
“You did what you could,” Egran said, and Madeline wondered for a minute if she had spoken aloud. “You gave them hope. And if it all ends here and now, if George descends with an army, they had that.”
“That’s awfully optimistic.” Madeline smiled, shaking her head.
“Someone has to be.”
They stood in silence, watching clouds blow in from the north, darkening the sky with the threat of snow. The wind grew more bitter and blew harder, and Madeline sighed, pulling her parka tighter.
“It’s going to be another cold one,” Madeline said quietly, stealing a last look at the sun before it was buried by clouds.
“And this surprises you?”
“No. I guess not. Maybe I was just hoping for a lull in the storm.”
“It’s been a rough couple of days,” Egran said, voice pitched to be heard over the wind.
Madeline nodded, then turned towards him. Something else had been troubling her, something other than George; something that, in some ways, seemed far more important. “Egran?”
“Yes?”
“The other night…”
“Nothing needs to be said.” He stepped closer to her, so they didn’t have to speak so loudly over the wind. Pulling off his glove, he reached out a hand to touch her face. “I know what desperation looks like, Madeline. I know what it feels like.”
Relief flooded through her. “Your friendship is important to me, Egran. I can’t afford to lose that. Especially not now.”
He shook his head, chuckling softly. “You haven’t. To tell you the truth, if you hadn’t begun it that night, I probably would have. It felt….safe for a while.”
“Yes. That’s it exactly.”
“So, no regrets.” He smiled, pulling his glove back on. “I’m going to do a quick tour of the perimeter, then head in. You’ll be okay here?”
“Of course.”
As Egran headed off to the west, Madeline turned her gaze back to the clouds. The wind had broken and large flakes of snow had started to fall, drifting easily down through the sky. The world was serene around her, but her mind couldn’t seem to slow; everything that had brought them to this point was fluttering in rampant circles.
In truth, she was beginning to second guess herself again. Despite Egran’s assurances, she still wasn’t completely convinced she hadn’t made a mistake taking on George; that there hadn’t been some other way to bring her team out alive.
She could feel her own desperation and fear eating away at her, and worried that it was that, not reliable intel, that had drawn her into a confrontation with him. Letting her emotions get the better of her had failed her in the past, it had brought her to where she was now, and she hoped that this time, she hadn’t caused four others to suffer with her.
“Madeline.”
Pushing her fears to the back of her mind, Madeline turned, giving the girl before her a small confident grin. “Yes, Natasha?”
Natasha stood shivering in the cold, only a blanket around her shoulders.
“We’ve got a call,” she said, slightly fearfully. “Secure channel. Your eyes only.”
Madeline was in motion before Natasha finished speaking, grasping her arm and pulling her back towards the shelter. “Get your coat,” she ordered, pushing her through the door in front of her. “Find Egran. He went west.”
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