"No."
He looked at her.
"We have until tomorrow night."
The next morning, Jonah and Ayanna left before sunrise.
They traveled east toward an abandoned mining settlement.
According to the list, two women were being held there.
The road was rough.
The sky was gray.
Neither spoke much.
At midday, Ayanna finally said:
"Why did you come for me?"
Jonah kept his eyes on the trail.
"You already asked."
"And you didn't answer."
He smiled faintly.
"I told you."
"You said you don't like bullies."
"That's true."
"That's not enough."
Jonah looked at her.
"Maybe it isn't."
She waited.
He sighed.
"My brother."
Ayanna said nothing.
"He was younger than me."
Jonah's voice changed.
"During the war, his unit was ordered to hold a bridge."
"What happened?"
"The commander knew they couldn't hold it."
Jonah stared ahead.
"He sent them anyway."
"Your brother died."
"Yes."
"I'm sorry."
"Afterward, I spent years thinking I should have stopped it."
"You couldn't."
"I know that now."
He looked at her.
"But I learned something."
"What?"
"When someone is powerless, the worst thing you can do is tell them their suffering is unavoidable."
Ayanna looked down.
"So you won't let that happen to me."
"No."
Jonah paused.
"I won't."
They reached the mining settlement before sunset.
The place was deserted.
Broken buildings stood along the road.
A mine shaft disappeared into the hillside.
Jonah dismounted.
Ayanna followed.
They found the women in an old storage building.
Two of them.
Terrified.
Hungry.
Alive.
Jonah freed them.
Then they heard horses.
Too many.
He looked at Ayanna.
"Take them through the mine."
"What about you?"
"I'll follow."
"No."
She grabbed his arm.
"We go together."
Jonah looked at her.
"You can't fight ten men."
"Neither can you."
"Fair."
They moved together.
The mine tunnel was narrow.
Behind them, gunshots echoed.
They ran.
At the far end, they emerged into a ravine.
Jonah expected to see open land.
Instead, he saw Pike.
Standing beside six armed men.
Pike smiled.
"You've made this difficult."
Jonah stepped forward.
"Let them go."
Pike laughed.
"You still think you're negotiating."
Ayanna stood beside Jonah.
Pike looked at her.
"You should have stayed where you were put."
Ayanna's face hardened.
"I was never where I was supposed to be."
Pike raised his gun.
Jonah fired first.
The fight lasted less than a minute.
When it ended, Pike was wounded and the others had fled.
But Jonah had been shot.
Ayanna caught him before he fell.
"Jonah!"
"I'm fine."
"You are bleeding."
"I noticed."
She pressed her hands against his side.
"Stay awake."
"I'm trying."
"Don't joke."
"I'm not."
Her eyes filled with tears.
"Please."
Jonah looked at her.
"I told you."
"What?"
"You have a key."
She shook her head.
"I don't want the key."
"What do you want?"
She looked directly into his eyes.
"You."
Jonah stopped breathing for a moment.
Then he smiled.
"That's a dangerous answer."
"I know."
Jonah survived.
Barely.
For three weeks, he stayed in bed while Ayanna cared for him.
She changed bandages.
Cooked.
Fed the horses.
Repaired the fence.
And every evening, she sat beside the window.
Jonah noticed that she never asked whether she could stay.
She simply stayed.
One morning, he woke to find her packing.