The words that were being lobbed back and forth between the council members made as much sense to Cameron as if they were in a different language. Chesapeake often kept their people in the dark about what was happening outside of their walls – whether it was to prevent fear or instill it, she still wasn’t sure – but her curiosity was a large reason as they saw her as a threat and sought to neutralize that problem. The people here were kind yet powerful, intimidating yet calm. A rare breed to Cameron.

Two things snapped her out of the information swirling around in her head: The clicking of the box opening, and Justin’s finger tracing the line on a hand-drawn map in front of her. Everything in her head began to fit together, like pieces of a puzzle, and she was keeping her cool until she heard the words. 

[b]”You had the last hope of civilization in your pack, and you didn’t even know it.”[/b]

They made her crumbled from the inside out. Her lip began to quiver, and her eyes flooded with tears as she was striving to not completely break down sobbing. The thought of all these strangers seeing her in such a state made her feel extremely vulnerable, but knowing that the events of the past week weren’t for nothing overwhelmed her senses, and she buried her face in her hands while she tried to collect herself. There was hope. 

After a few sniffles ad taking a deep breath, she looked around the room at the leaders before looking to Justin and nodding to say that she was okay. Not that he asked. Not that he even cared, possibly. There were bigger fish to fry, but he didn’t seem the type to [i]not[/i] care. He, and the rest of them, had been so amiable, but the last thing she would want is for someone to feel the need to take care of her, or that she was weak, in troubling times like this. No. This was her time to prove that she was strong and could take care of herself. To prove everyone wrong that told her she wouldn’t ever amount to anything other than a homemaker and that it wasn’t her place to be anything else. 

She cleared her throat of the emotions that had constricted, and her hoarse, stern voice broke the momentary silence in the circle. “I’m at your disposal. You have all been so welcoming, especially under the circumstances, so anything I can do, I will.” Her glanced shifted to Justin, and she smiled faintly. “Thank you,” she whispered at a volume he could only hear. If he hadn’t taken her in and protected her, she’d be dead, and the box would be in the hands of someone that would not use its contents for good. He deserved a lot more than a thank you, but it was not like she had any way to return the favor. Not yet, anyway. All she could do was help him. His people.