” She shrugged as she finished her thought, “The rumor is, the council was going to offer bounties to select guardsmen to do it on their days off....You earned enough respect during the assault that if you asked, I’m sure they’d jump at the help.”Hank nodded while she spoke, then added his own opinion, “I don’t know of any guild or the like, so I think asking the Captain of the Guard about the bounties would be best. I have the afternoon off, so we can go now if you want.”After agreeing to meet. Why what are you thinking?"He then asked me if I would be interested in helping him with a little party/poker night he had planned for the following weekend...He had a "boys" poker night planned for him and 4 of his friends ( Colin, Gordon, Peter and Fred) I had met both Colin and Gordon before, at some of our times with Eric.They were all in their 50s, except Fred who was according to Alan was the "old man of the group"He was just turned 60 and recently retired.I asked what was planned and. I stood there in disbelief as it burned, and in anguish and terror as it collapsed." He took a deep breath, fought back the tears, and continued in an obviously tortured voice, "I heard my wife's last words on my cell phone as she rode the top of that huge building down."He took another deep breath and continued in a more level tone, "I cannot describe the depth of shock and sorrow I felt. All I could think about was my two children, the one thing of real value my wife had left me. They had. But there’s always a tomorrow, and one way or another we’ll see it together.”“I don’t understand how you can call anything about this beautiful.”“Because, my love,” she said, caressing his cheek, “everything about us is beautiful. And whether or not we cry or feel pain doesn’t change that. Not in the least.”There was a preternatural calmness to Kathryn’s demeanor, as if she was taking on the full weight of their emotional burdens, burying it in a deep, quiet place so she could shepherd their.