I meet him later in the evening when the search has stalled. I sit on a bench next to one of the gardens a couple of streets down from Main Street as he stands next to a wall nearby. There are hardly ever people in this part of the town, so it’s a good place for a private conversation. The entire town seems to be on edge after having their homes searched and raided. Some are complaining to the guards publicly, others demanding to see Paxton. I think Gabe is just happy to be sitting away from the commotion.

“Before all this crap started, I used to smoke,” he says, rubbing the stubble on his face.

“The greyskin crap?” I ask.

He nods and turns his head to me. “Cigarettes became pretty scarce in the months after.”

“I bet,” I say. “I’ve never tried cigarettes, but I believe I’ve needed one a time or two.”

He laughs as he leans against the wall. His face then becomes very serious. “What did you find out?”

I shrug at him. “What’s it worth to you?” I ask playfully, pulling my knees up to my chest.

“I’m not in the mood for games, Remi,” he says, looking up and down the street. “I’m really uncomfortable with all this. Do you know how much trouble we can get in?”

“It’s just a stupid journal,” I say.

“And a gun!” he says in a harsh whisper. “I can’t begin to tell you how mad Paxton was last night.”

I know, I heard, I wanted to say.

“Why’d you take the gun, Remi, why?”

I look away from him, my knees leaving my chest, and I bend my head to stare at the ground. I sit for a moment, not wanting to say anything, not really knowing what to say. Should I tell him that having a gun helps me sleep? Do I tell him that three months ago I had been on the road where almost everywhere I went there were greyskins? Should I talk about all the times I was awoken by the gargling noises of the dead chasing after me, wanting nothing but to rip the muscle from my bones? What about all the nights for the past three months since I’ve been safe where all I can do is dream about greyskins coming after me, and of all the people that I’ve lost?

My eyes go from the ground to Gabe. “Why did you take my gun?” I ask, standing to my feet. I take a few steps closer to him. “Answer me that.”

“Those are the rules,” he says.

I take another step forward and shove his chest. He reaches out to try and stop me, but I just shove him again until he’s standing upright, no longer leaning against the wall. His eyebrows dart downward as he stares at me.