"What happened?" Ezekiel eventually asked.
Philip was quiet for a moment.
"We started running out of supplies."
His expression must have changed because he paused before continuing. Through the panel, Ezekiel could see the way his shoulders tensed, then slowly released.
"It wasn't something that happened all at once. We had difficulties getting certain things, and eventually, the resources we had started running low. Small shortages at first. Then larger ones. We couldn't keep going the way we were. We needed help."
He explained that the situation had become serious enough for them to approach Stinstill Pack.
Since they were under Stinstill's protection, asking for assistance wasn't unusual. They had relied on the larger pack before, and there was no reason to believe this time would be any different. The request was formal but familiar. Giovanni had gone with the others who usually handled those conversations.
