Page 144 of Rangers Last Promise

Hampton glances over.

“With his life.”

The words hurt.

“He died anyway.”

“So did a lot of people.”

“Don't.”

“You need to hear this, Doc.”

“I've heard enough.”

“No, you've spent fifteen years remembering the part where Grant died beneath your hands. You never bothered finding out what happened before that.”

Anger explodes through me.

I grab Hampton by the front of his jacket.

The truck swerves.

“Careful!”

“You don't get to tell me what I did after Grant died.”

“Then let go of me before we both join him.”

I release him.

The truck straightens.

For several seconds, neither of us speaks.

Then Hampton says quietly, “Grant knew he might not make it out of that valley.”

I stare through the windshield.

“No.”

“Yes.”

“He wouldn't have gone.”

“He would if refusing meant warning the people behind Twenty-Three that he'd discovered them.”

“He could have told command.”

“Which command?”

That shuts me up.

Don't trust the man in command.

Maybe Grant wasn't talking about Fred Miller.

Maybe he wasn't talking about one man at all.