Sarah Hewitt (nee Williams) continued slurping at her milkshake, only vaguely aware of how delicious it was.

The look on Captain Shepard's face haunted her. Not the look when she'd mentioned Thomas, but the look when they first came face to face. For a moment, she thought the Captain was going to scream, as if confronted by a ghost. Then, the moment passed. But the Captain's expression still bothered her.

"They're heading to Sanctuary. I wasn't with them so I'm following, I just…I just needed to let Thomas go, first."

"I thank you for his sacrifice."

Now, with the shuttle that would take her to meet up with her family leaving in twenty minutes, Sarah felt undecided.

"…do you really think it's a good idea? Sanctuary, I mean?"

"It's supposed to be. But I think it's just bottling people up in a bunker and hoping the Reapers are beaten before they decide a soft target is what they want. No one else's defenses have stood up particularly well against a Reaper invasion."

That was true. The turians and the Alliance hadn't turned back the Reapers, though they were certainly putting up a good fight. Nor had the asari, who were also putting up a fight. She couldn't call it a good fight, because they still seemed to be in shock that their homeworld had come under attack with no better results than anyone else's.

Sarah rolled her eyes. She'd been sitting in front of a pair of asari on the shuttle that brought her here and had to listen to them whine, moan, and puzzle for the whole trip. It had been so sad she hadn't even been tempted to tell them they'd be better off doing something constructive than trying to figure out who was responsible for what was wrong—as a turian passenger had, rather sharply, too.

Shepard's thoughts on Sanctuary left Sarah uneasy. The idea of being trapped somewhere, when she couldn't see how the Reapers would be deterred from investigating the place, didn't appeal to her. In fact, as she thought about it, what was stopping the Reapers from deciding any time was a good time to descend on Sanctuary? It's location might not be loudly announced—one had to go through intermediaries and shuttle changes, ostensibly for security—but if any Reapers were watching, they could probably figure out where the place was with ease.

It might even be that they left the place alone simply because it was such an appealing idea to hide until the war was over.

Sarah's milkshake gurgled, signaling that she had reached the bottom. She sighed, taking the straw out of her mouth. No, with Shepard's cynical answer in mind, Sanctuary suddenly didn't seem so appealing. At least, in the wider galaxy, there were places to run. In a place like Sanctuary…well. People trying to run might attract attention; she didn't think the residents would be allowed to wander very far for security reasons.

If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is, Ash had observed on multiple occasions. If it sounds too good, then alarm bells should be ringing.

Sarah bit her lip. Sanctuary did sound too good to be true.

Not for the first time, Sarah found herself rolling around the idea that Thomas hadn't tried to run and hide. Nor had Ash. Nor had Shepard or her crew. Adm. Hackett wasn't running or hiding, though he kept a low profile to avoid being assassinated (or having a Reaper armada descend on top of his position). No. Lots of people weren't running and hiding.

Abruptly, she cued her omnitool, punching in her mother's frequency, praying she picked up. Just when Sarah was about to curse lapses in communication, the line connected.

"Sarah?"

"Mom. I'm not going to Sanctuary…and I don't think you should, either," Sarah blurted out, feeling as if hands had clenched around her heart and lungs.

"…Sarah, we talked about it. We agreed, remember?"

"I know. But all of a sudden, it looks way too good to be true, and I have a really bad feeling. I don't think anyone should go," Sarah said, swallowing hard and wishing the shortness of breath would go away.

Her mother frowned.

"I'm-I'm not going to run and hide. Ash didn't. Neither did Thomas. I'm going to the nearest recruited to enlist." She bit her lip, the suddenness of her commitment leaving her uncomfortably clammy.

"What changed your mind?" her mother asked reasonably.

"I saw Shepard on the Citadel," Sarah admitted. "She doesn't think it's really safe, either. The Reapers are just ignoring it because they don't need to worry about it. They can come after the refugees at any time…and wouldn't that be such a blow to morale? The Allied Galaxy is putting up a good fight, then Thessia falls, then a major refugee center gets taking out?" Sarah shook her head. "Don't go, Mom. Please, don't go. At least, wherever you are, there's a whole planet you can run across, or find a place to hide on." Tears stung her eyes.

"…I'll talk to your sisters," her mother said slowly. "Tell them what you think. But, Sarah…it's Shepard's job to be pessimistic."

"Yeah. I know. But she's got more experience with Reapers and their tactics than we do. If anyone knows how those things thing, it'd be her, right?"

Suddenly, Sarah became aware that several pairs of ears were listening in on her conversation. She pushed back the embarrassment. "Look, Mom, I've got to go. Let me know what you and the others decide, okay? So I don't lose sleep?" She tried, and failed, to smile.

By now, her mother looked deeply troubled. "Of course, I'll let you know." Her mouth worked silently for a moment, as if trying to come up with counter arguments.

"I love you, Mom. Tell Abby and Lynn." Sarah cut the connection, momentarily regarding the table before her with deep unease. She pushed to her feet and left the restaurant.