This story is the continuation of Behind closed doors so if you haven't read that one I suggest to start there. This novel is more storydriven than BCD and also involves more focus on the other characters in the Overwatch family.
The story picks up...
Jesse swallowed. He had a hard time reading the Crusader's intentions from his voice alone and his facial expressions didn't help either. It was rare to see Reinhardt this serious, so Jesse figured that it was for the best not to argue about it, although he would have preferred to spend the rest of the day in bed.
"Get dressed, I will be waiting for you outside," Reinhardt continued before standing up and leaving the room.
Jesse's body was extremely drained from enduring his panic attack earlier. He put down the now empty glass and tried to gather his thoughts.
He stared up into nothingness and let his mind wander off.
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Maybe he should just pack up and leave. Reinhardt and Ana were clearly enjoying a quiet and happy life together... they didn't need Jesse to bring in his troubles and heartbreak when they finally had gotten the opportunity to be together in peace.
At the same time, he knew that neither Reinhardt nor Ana would let him leave without a proper explanation, it was just diffi-
"I am still waiting!" Reinhardt loudly proclaimed from the outside, interrupting Jesse's thoughts.
Jesse sighed and got out of bed. He put on his clothes, grabbed his hat and then walked out into the living room. He couldn't see Ana anywhere around, which he was quite grateful for. He felt ashamed of his irritating behavior and needed some more time to think about how he was going to apologize to her. She had only tried to cheer him up, but little did she know what hearing Jack's name would do to him.
"Now, I am going to show you something!" Reinhardt proclaimed excitedly as Jesse stepped out of the house.
He put an arm around the shoulder of the much shorter cowboy and led him away.
Jesse hadn't had the time to actually take a look at the outside of where Reinhardt and Ana were staying.
It was a beautiful and sunny afternoon in Eichenwalde. The houses around them ranged from simple one-story homes to extravagant three-story houses and shops, accentuated by their white bricked exteriors and wood frame corners and windows. The roads were mainly built of cobble stone, giving the place an old-timey feeling. Trees, bushes and flowers filled up the empty spaces, giving their surroundings an atmosphere of coziness and serenity.
That was, until they had walked for a few minutes and entered a part of town where the houses suddenly shifted from well-maintained to ruins falling apart and reclaimed by nature. Jesse got an uneasy feeling as he saw the old, massive, broken and overgrown Omnic units around him. He could see bullet holes in the walls and vines that had taken over entire structures.
He realized that he hadn't actually seen any other people in either part of the town but this area was very clearly abandoned.
