My name is Sam Cortland... and I will not be afraid.
The world was waiting--wide open and hers for the taking.
She couldn't bring herself to care, because those moment she spent brawling were the few moments she felt like herself again.
The world was too big, too full of splintered dreams.
Embracing Sam was different, somehow. Like she wanted to curl into his warmth, like for one moment, she didn't have to worry about anything or anybody.
For a heartbeat, the silence peeled back long enough for that question to worm its way into her skull, into her skin, into her breath and bones. And in the dark, she remembered.