Morningside Fall(104)
“Everyone’s been very kind.”
Lil sighed. “I’m glad that’s how it seems.” She looked over her shoulder at the people gathered around other tables. “But you didn’t know us before. We’re a changed people. I fear this latest attack may have broken us.”
“It’s only been three days, Lil,” Elan said. “We’ll adapt, same as always. Just takes time.”
Lil turned back and stirred the stew in her bowl. “I hope you’re right, Elan.” She looked at Thani, and stroked the girl’s hair. “But it wasn’t just the attack. We’ve been dwindling for a long time now. Once we lost Chapel…”
“Chapel was your leader?” Cass asked.
Lil smiled a little sadly. “He would’ve said ‘no’. But Chapel was the heart of our community. He was the first to believe we could live without walls. The first to show it. After he was taken…” She paused and shook her head again. “It was a slow process, but hope started to drain away. Families left. I suppose it was only a matter of time before our little remnant would fail.”
“How did it happen, Lil?” asked Wren. There was an edge to the question, a hint of anger. “How did they get him?”
“I still ask myself the same question, Wren. It seems impossible, doesn’t it?” Wren nodded.
“One night they came, and we repelled them. It wasn’t even that large an attack. Nothing like the one we suffered when you were with us. But afterwards, when we all gathered back together, he was just… gone.”
“Lil pursued them,” Elan said. “She never tells that part.”
“Many of us did, Elan.”
“Not like you.”
Lil shrugged.
“After Chapel, Lil has led us in his stead,” Elan continued. “She kept our community together. If not for her, it would’ve collapsed completely.”
“Elan is being generous,” Lil said. But Elan shook his head.
“No, I’m being honest. If not for her, I don’t think any of us would’ve survived.”
“What will you do now?” Gamble asked.
“Get well first, I hope,” Lil said. “After that, I have no idea.”
“You could come to Morningside,” Cass said. “I’m sure we could find a place for you there. For all of you.”
Lil made a little frown, but more from thought than displeasure at the idea. “I’m not sure how my people would adjust. That would be quite a shock.”
“It’s not like it used to be,” Wren said.
“And yet you fled it?” Lil asked. Cass and Gamble exchanged a quick glance.
Lil smiled gently. “You looked too much like a war party for me to believe you were just out for a visit.”
“It’s temporary,” Cass answered. “We’ll be returning soon.”
Lil dipped her head. She didn’t press for more information, but her eyes suggested she knew more than they’d shared. “We need some time to recover. Then we’ll see. It’s been years since I’ve been to a city.”
“We can exchange SNIPs, if you like. When it comes time to make a decision, you can always pim me.”
Lil nodded. “I’d like that. And what about you then? How many days do you think you’ll be with us?”
Gamble shook her head. “Not many. We don’t want to be a burden.”
“You’re free to do as you wish, of course, but you’re no burden to us.”
“Just the same,” Gamble said.
“I understand,” Lil answered, and the tone of her voice suggested she really did.
They finished their meal together, with the conversation carefully directed away from any more discussion of future plans. Wren was finally able to provide some closure for Lil and the others, telling the full story of what had happened after he’d left their compound: of Mister Carter’s death at the hands of Dagon; of Three’s attempt to reunite Wren with his father and his sacrifice; and of Asher’s terrifying domination of the Weir, and of Cass’s return.
“It all seems so impossible,” Lil said. “And yet here you are. When Mister Carter didn’t return, we knew something terrible had happened, but…” She trailed off with a shake of head.
Both Lil and Elan had questions about the Awakened, which they asked diplomatically. It was clear they still weren’t fully comfortable with the idea or the implications, but they seemed to be genuinely making an effort to understand and to accept this new reality.
Cass wondered how much of the distance kept by the others here had to do exclusively with Painter and her. The more they all talked, the more she felt the group would’ve been welcomed far more had she not been accompanying them.