Crossfire - Fallout 4 - [R J MacCready x Sole Survivor]

Chapter 19

Goodneighbor has most certainly worn out its welcome within five minutes of MacCready stepping foot through the gates. The familiar smell of piss and garbage permeated the smoke filled air, and his boots crunched against some broken glass as he strode over to Daisy's shop.

Daisy was busily rearranging her stock on the shelves behind the counter, and she hummed an old pre-war tune as she worked, but as soon as her black eyes lifted to meet MacCready's, she stopped mid tune. A huge smile stretched across her leathery face, and MacCready grinned back in kind.

"Good to see you again, Robert!" She greeted with glee. Daisy put aside the left over stock and leant her elbows on the counter. "So, what brings you to these parts?"

MacCready chuckled under his breath and removed his hat to wipe the sweat from his brow. "You know me, Daisy. I can't stay away from my favourite gal for too long."

She guffawed at his statement. "Flirt all you want, I ain't giving you a lower discount than you already got. Might as well be throwing my wares at you for free," she shook her head as she returned to fixing up her shop. "Besides, I don't want to make K-L-EO jealous. Damn thing already has her wires in a twist over you travelling with that Minutemen General... ah, what's her name? Darla?"

"Dawn." He corrected as he quickly glanced over to the gun shop next door. Thankfully, the robot in question was not there, and only a lone drifter was leaning on the corner of the building with his arms crossed. MacCready turned back to Daisy with uncertainty. "Hey, can I ask you something?"

Daisy's voice was muffled as she buried her head into a shipment crate. "Ask away!"

"You...uh," he cleared his throat as he thought over his next words. "You know you sent Duncan's cure back up to DC? Well, I just wanna know if that was delivered safely. I know you said that the caravan was your most trusted but...y'know..." He trailed off his sentence with a sheepish shrug.

The air hung with brief silence before Daisy stepped back up to the counter. "It's all delivered, safe and sound, last I heard. Made sure that they had three guards instead of the one," she flashed a crooked smile as she studied him. "Please don't worry, Robert. I know you've been away from your son for a long time, but your hard work has paid off. You got the cure and Duncan is safe. Like I said to you last time; you did it!"

Daisy reached out to rest her weathered hand on MacCready's shoulder, her grip tight but reassuring as she gave him a quick squeeze. "Robert, as soon as you've finished your current job, go back home and see your kid. You ain't got no reason to stay here."

Her words struck him with a sudden onset of guilt. He'd heard those very same words from Dawn before she left, but this time it had sunk deeper into his gut and weighed him down. He could hear his heart thump loudly in his ears, a horrible feeling which shook him to his core.

"I can't, Daisy," he said, voice strained. "There's something that I still need to do."

She didn't pry, but he could tell from the look in her black eyes that she picked up on his distress. A sigh rattled from between her chapped lips, then she bent down to retrieve something from behind the counter. She placed it in front of him, a dusty box with faded lettering, but he could recognize the packaging anywhere.

A box of .308 bullets.

"Take this," she said. "I can only guess that you'll need them with whatever you're planning."

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Another long trek, and despite his aching legs protesting every step of his journey, MacCready finally stopped when the familiar overpass came into view.