<sup>"Thanks for letting us know," I said, leaning over to place my hand on his shoulder. I felt the strange electric charge, I thought, but I was probably just convincing myself of something that existed where there was nothing at all. "I'm glad that you trust us, and yeah, I trust you, too."

"Good," he said. "I think I need another cigarette." And Janine laughed at that, relieved after the tension of the moment.

"What do you think we’re going to discover at the end of all of this?" Hunter asked, as his own laughter trailed off.</sup>