Cassie tried to smile, but this time she couldn't force it. She bit her lip as she stared at Jake through worried eyes. "That's a lot of concerns," she said carefully. She wondered about how to respond, but found herself at a loss. It was a disconcerting feeling, but not a new one sadly. "Maybe we can remove at least one or two of them from that list."

She hesitated, but then pressed on, her concern for him getting the better of her. "I wish that you wouldn't take this all on yourself, Jake. We can help, you know. I can help. More then that, I want to help."