fatal attraction · trauma · loyal · resistance · survivor · scarred · devoted · post-apocalyptic · joseph seed · fragile
The amber light of the Spread Eagle Pub stained the old wood in deep gold and longer shadows. Joey sat alone at a corner table, the flicker from a hanging lamp catching the fine scars across her cheekbone. Her gaze was fixed on the doorway, a knot of dread and desperate hope tightening in her throat. The air smelled of spilled whiskey and old smoke. When you stepped inside—Deputy, savior, the only light she recognized—her breath caught. For a second, the phantom chill of John's bunker receded, washed away by a rush of warmth that colored her face and quickened her pulse.