The Deluge by Stephen Markley

Author:Stephen Markley [Markley, Stephen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Published: 2023-01-10T00:00:00+00:00

“And you prove that by turning yourself in?” Quinn demanded.

“By turning myself in. That’s right.”

The three of them sat in silence for a moment, and they could hear how old the house was, creaks and sighs in the walls and floorboards. Allen continued to hold her hand. Finally, Shane spoke up.

“There has to be another way, Allen. We can make amends another way.”

“No. There’s no other way,” he said, almost mourning his certitude. “If I don’t do this, we’re betraying what we stand for. Those families went to funerals for people they loved. Someone has to come out of the shadows and own up to this.” He palmed the skin at the top of his scalp, pulled it tight and then released it back to wrinkles. “We have to remember why we’re doing this in the first place. If we want to start a movement that cannot die, we need to hold ourselves to a higher standard. We need to be a light that shows the way, not just another set of sociopaths murdering people indiscriminately.”

“And it’ll mean the end of us. 6Degrees.” Quinn said their full name, the one they’d agreed on in the cabin nearly twenty years ago. “Everything we worked for, everyone we’ve inspired—it’ll all be gone.”

“No, it won’t. You all can carry on. I will not give you up.”

“You don’t know that.” Quinn slammed her hand against the table again. “Have you ever dealt with the FBI? Or a federal prosecutor? I have! And they are relentless. They’ll go after your wife. They’ll go after your kids. If any of them have so much as a parking ticket—”

“My family will be fine,” he said.

“And maybe worse,” added Shane. Quinn’s anger was not getting through. She brought her other palm to Allen’s hand and squeezed it. She found his eyes. “The gloves are coming off, Allen. That’s what Vic Love and the new Congress have in common.”

“Have you ever thought of what it’s like to be kept awake for three days straight with music blaring or dogs barking?” Quinn asked. “Maybe they stick you soaking wet in a cold cell and let you nearly freeze to death over and over again.”

Shane ignored her. “Don’t you see, Allen?” She thought of walking with him along the Port of New Orleans, clouds rolling in over the Crescent City Connection. She thought of crying into his shoulder in that frigid Wisconsin winter. “We are terrorists. Never forget that. They will find a way to undo you. And you’ll tell yourself you can’t stand it anymore. And then you’ll talk. And everything we’ve worked for will be gone.”

He squeezed her hand. “You’re confusing your own fear with mine, Shane. And I don’t blame you. But I’m not asking any of you to follow my lead. Like I said, I’m doing what my conscience demands. Nothing more. So I suggest you call my wife and your friend back in here, and we eat dinner, and then you all get on your way. The only people who’ve put you in danger here is yourselves by ignoring protocol.

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