Tears stung her eyes. She didn't want to have this fight but he he had to... he had to understand. If you didn't understand then you'd lose the war. Harry was making things too simple. Slater was never simple.
"Harry, stop! He's got you now, he's pushed you and he knows it and you're just going to lose if you don't..." her voice caught on a sob. "You just don't got... the rules..." Mary could feel the squares on her back and concentrated on that for just a moment. Rules kept you or killed you. She wiped her cheek with a hand and made herself look at Harry.
"You think he's just a thug and a killer and nothing, don't you? An old man without nothing but killing and hurting who don't got an eye on anything else?" she said it, remembering his words that first day. "You're not seeing him, Harry. He sees you, but you're fighting someone else. I won't ask you not to do this. But I want you to go in knowing, so maybe you won't... maybe you won't lose." Tears fell again, and she let them slide down her cheeks. "I don't want you to lose." But she would lose one of them, no matter what and it hurt like nothing ever had.