" 'He's not that man anymore?' How do you know that, Nicky? How can you be so sure when we were so easily led to the slaughter by him? You think he has had a stunning change of character in a year? Because of home cooked meals and his regrets?"

Joe scrubbed at his face and all but growled in his own frustration and impotence here. He had been fighting this battle for fucking months and Nicky was no closer to listening now than he was that first day. It was like talking to a wall and Joe just didn't know how to make a dent into it. He had never had a time in his long life with Nicky that had them on odds and unwilling to bend. He hated the feeling of it.

"Merrick was evil. He wanted to enslave us to profit off of our gifts. He got people close to us to lie to our faces and throw us willingly into harm's way. He was selfish and did what he did for himself and his own good. For his own profit with no regard for morality.

"You taking a fucking second to sit down and assess the risks of blowing into this building alone is not even close to being Merrick. It's just putting a value on your life that isn't subtracted from everyone else's first."