Hope and Faith

Part Four: Hope

It had been hours. Jacob spent these long hours trying to calm Niki down, and he finally succeeded. "You okay now...?" She gave a nod. He stood up with his walking stick and helped her up before slowly making their way to the town. He couldn't stand seeing her cry, nor did he want to see her cry again. "Wait a second..." Jacob stopped. "What is it...?" She tilted her head. "This place is underground, so it could have been a mining colony, which means...?" He looked at her, hoping she would finish the sentence. She thought for a second before her eyes went from gloomy to hopeful. "There must be mining tools!!" She yelled. "You're a genius!" She ran and hugged him, causing him to blush. She looked up at him and started leaning closer. Knowing her intent, he did the same. Their lips met passionately, being held for almost a minute before Jacob pulled away with a smile. She smiled back. "Let's go to the town..." Her tone was calmer than ever. "Agreed." They went to the abandoned area and heard a noise.
mew!
Niki looked around, as did Jacob.
mew!
"Is that a cat...?" Jacob questioned. Niki then looked down at her feet, where she had yet to look, and found a small kitten at her feet. It mewed over and over, having a small limp. "Aww... We should keep it." Jacob seemed disapproving of the idea. "We're already having trouble escaping with the two of us." She picked it up. "But it could be like a child..." He immediately froze up. "Jacob...?" He started having a flashback.

12 years ago... (Jacob, age 5)
He was sitting in his newborn brother's room, watching him from mom's rocking chair. Silence was in the room. Jacob had sworn to protect the blessing he called his brother. Gunshots sounded in the house. "Mom?!" Jacob screamed. No answer... A few minutes later, a masked man burst into the room, causing the infant to cry. The man pointed the gun at him. Jacob ran to block the bullet, but was grabbed and thrown into the wall. Another shot rang out.
The infant's cries were silent.

End of flashback...

"Jacob?!" He jumped and opened his eyes, his face in tears. "Jacob, what happened?!" He sighed and told her the story. She teared up and hugged him. "Who would kill an infant...?" Was all Jacob could say. "C'mon... Let's get the mining tools..." She spoke softly.
Then it started to get dark...