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“Only for a little bit, hon,” he answered, giving her a small smile.

“Am I dreaming?”

“No, hon. You’re awake. Out of the coma. Lots of prayers were going up for you, you know,” Ralph said with a wink.

“What’s happening?” Nerit asked slowly, cautiously.

Looking sad, Ralph sighed and squeezed her hand. “What happens next is gonna be hard. Not to my liking. Probably not to yours. But how it is. ”

“Ralph, you’re frightening me,” Nerit whispered. She felt groggy and unsure of the world around her. The dreams of Israel had been so vivid they had felt real to her.

“Sometimes, Nerit, we gotta sacrifice ourselves for the greater good. We gotta do the hard job. The thing that hurts most. ” Ralph sighed softly.

“Lots of prayers for you, like I said. Lots of fear here. Lots of need. ”

“Ralph, please, I know I have cancer, I know--” She dreaded that he was here to take her for good.

“Not no more, Nerit. It’s gone. I wanted you home. With me. ” He looked so heartrendingly sad and Nerit squeezed his hand tightly. “But, you got an extension. You got more time. They need you here. They need who you are and what you can do. I even prayed myself for you to stay here. ”

“Ralph, I’ll always love you and-” The sense of relief she felt was overwhelming. To not die of cancer, to fight on for the fort, it was all she wanted, yet; she felt so sad to not be with him.

“I know, Nerit. But your place is here. And this changes everything for the fort. Time is not set in stone. Some of us on the other side realized that.

We saw it all: Past, Present, Future. We knew what could happen and we. . . we found a place in time to try to change how it comes out. Not saying it’s going to turn out okay, but you guys got a better chance now. ”

“I don’t understand, Ralph,” Nerit said softly.

With a sad, weary sigh, her dead husband said, “There are points in time that the future hinges on. A moment when it can all go one way or the other. This is one of those times. Some of us have worked hard to see that this swings in a way that will let the living win. ”

Slowly, achingly, Nerit sat up. She could feel herself growing stronger in mind, body and spirit and her eyes became more sharply focused. “I see. ”

“I’ve seen two futures, Nerit. I hope, pray that. . . ” He hesitated and slowly stood up. “I hope that the world lives on beyond tomorrow. ”

“Ralph,” she said softly. She looked at him evenly. “Tell me what to do. ”

With a short nod of his head, Ralph said, “That’s my girl. This is what you gotta do. . . ”

* * * * * “Curtis,” Travis said in a low, soft voice. “You don’t want to do this. ”

“No, actually I do. ” Curtis took one step forward. His young face was very calm, his eyes hard, and his jaw set. He was more self-assured, cockier than usual. He moved with confidence that made him only seem deadlier.

“What purpose will it serve to kill me?” Travis asked, watching the knife warily. His body was tense, ready to evade any attack. His heart was thundering in his ears.

“I’m not going to kill you, Travis. Just help you along. ” Curtis smiled slowly. “You know, originally, I wanted to ditch Katie over the wall. Let you see how it feels to lose the woman you love. But I am okay with this.

You dying works fine. ”

The cold manner in which Curtis spoke of throwing his wife over the wall had Travis speechless with horror. He took a long breath to calm himself.

He needed to think clearly, not emotionally. Stepping back, Travis could feel the catwalk sway slightly. Looking around him, he realized how perfectly isolated they were. Curtis had picked one of the best places in the entire fort for an attack.

“Who knows? Maybe your lesbo wife will hook up with Bette and return my girl to me. That could work. Maybe. ” Curtis moved forward in a slow relentless pace.

“Curtis, think about what you are saying. You’re speaking about murder,”

Travis said in a measured voice. “You don’t want to do this. ”

“Why not? I’ve done it before. I got rid of the people you wouldn’t. I took care of the fort when you wouldn’t. Yeah, yeah, you all blamed Blanche, but she was a stupid whore. I took care of this fort when you wouldn’t. I did what was necessary!”