Emily cleared her throat again and looked at each of these women with an amused smile.
"Look here, none of you are stupid, and I'm no saint, nor do I care to being one." As Emily came forth so directly, it raised a few eyebrows, but no one said anything.
"I've seen many saints the moment the apocalypse began. Can you all guess where they all ended up?" she asked. None answered, but all knew the truth, and Emily saw it reflected in their eyes. "You guessed it—none of them survived."
Emily leaned forward, clasping her hands together. "I'm not saying the world is now full of bad people; I'm just saying, if you don't have the heart to do whatever it takes to survive in this new world, you're as good as dead."
Emily turned, looking toward Chen. "Let me start with you. Tell me, why do you hate me?"
All eyes turned to Lieutenant Chen, who went rigid, glowering at Emily. "What makes you think I hate you?"
