When the tears welled and fell, he didn’t stop them; he was too tired. All his life, he’d been taught the same things. Men didn’t cry. Warriors didn’t cry. He’d wanted to a warrior, believed that the title and rank would give him something he wanted, needed. Emotion had been a thing to bury without remorse because that was how to show strength. So, he’d buried his pain. He’d spent years burying anything that made him uncomfortable, upset, or nervous, and he’d run from his own nightmares until they’d hunted him down like beasts of prey. He was tired of running too.
