Having someone there with him, to comfort him like that, was almost a forgotten feeling. His deceased wife was the only person who'd ever been there for him like that, and since her passing, he didn't realize how much he missed having someone to be there when he was hurting, or when he needed to just have someone nearby. Sometimes he'd come home from a job and see the way his family had to live with so much frustration in his heart. His wife would comfort him always, and after their son had fallen asleep, would get to any piece of bare skin she could find and just glide her fingernails across it, so softly it almost tickled. It would give him goosebumps every time, and no matter how bad he felt, it would always help him feel better.<br/><br/>Memories of late night cups of coffee and lovemaking filled his head for a brief moment, but he quickly banished them before things started to happen physically. Ethan straightened up, then reached out and put his hand against her upper arm. He offered her a very small smile. "Well given my circumstances, currently, I don't think i'm in any place to refuse. Except that sort of thing might be a little out of my league." He flexed his mechanical fingers at eye level. "My hands aren't like they used to be." They were much much stronger, of course, but he hadn't tried them on any fine detail before. It had been years since he'd picked up a paint brush or a piece of charcoal.<br/><br/>His eyes, again, drifted to the TV, to a breaking news story.<br/><br/><span class="fixed-color" style="color:#ff8000">"Breaking news tonight in the Lorenza neighborhood in Daylight district. A robotic vehicle was traveling north when it suddenly veered off the road and into on-coming traffic at high speeds. A head-on collision followed, after which the vehicle spun out of control, rolling over onto its side until it reached the sidewalk. Initial reports claim that at least eight people have died, including the two passengers of the car, a family of four in the van that was struck, and another three that were on the sidewalk when the crash occurred. CyTek Industries immediately released this statement, reaching out to the media before being formally questioned:"<br/>
<br/>
'<i>We do not yet know the full details, but CyTek has been investigating a possible fault within the programming of our latest update to self-driving vehicles. Our robotics department will be scrutinized and measures will be taken to insure that a tragedy such as this never happens again. It has been long suspected that the department head, Charlotte Montgomery, has been suspected of cutting corners in order to strengthen her department's bottom line, but the company was not aware that any such speculations had been proven correct.'</i></span><br/><span class="fixed-color" style="color:rgb(255, 128, 0)"></span><br/><span class="fixed-color" style="color:#ff8000">"Authorities arrived on the scene quickly, but were too late to perform any type of rescue. Social media has already lit up with numerous messages demanding the resignation, and possibly prosecution, of CyTek's Robotic's director, Charlotte Montgomery. We will have more as the story unfolds...."<br/>
</span><br/>Again Ethan was taken back into his memories, reliving the horrible nightmare that cost him the lives of his wife and child. The difference, then, was that he could not pull himself away from them. They stuck in his mind; he could hear their brief screams and the sounds of twisting metal. He could smell the odor of smoke, and could feel the fire that burned just underneath his feet. Ethan stopped dead in his tracks, turning toward Charlotte with a look of both anger and pain in his eyes, the deepest pain one could feel, short of losing a loved one. "You...? That... that was your fault?!"<br/><br/>His voice raised quickly in volume as his hands began to shake. "Is that the game? Find some poor schlub who's pressed for cash, a real fixer-upper, and use them to boost your image while you cut fucking corners to save your family business a few extra dollars!? I thought you were different!" If it weren't for the prior events leading up to that moment, Ethan might have been far more level-headed about the situation. But given his injuries, the death threats, the insurmountable debt on his shoulders, and the reminder of the loss of his family heaped into one pile, he could no longer see reason. In his mind, in that very moment, Charlotte was response for the death of his wife and son. She took them away from him just to look better for the company.<br/><br/>"What is it, hmm? Montgomery's not making enough money off the backs of the struggling poor, you gotta take liberties with safety too? I thought you were different, Charlotte. I thought...." he sighed before speaking again, his voice much lower in volume but backed by an even deeper anger. "You're just as bad as the rest of them. Worse. At least when they fuck someone over they at least buy you dinner after. You? You're shaping up to be the 'best' Montgomery ever. Get the hell out of my home, and stay away this time."