365 Days At War

by Nancy Isaak

  “You can spit razors!” whistled Cherry, impressed. “That’s a heck of a talent.”

  “Not where I come from,” murmured Florenza.

  “But you guys don’t have to worry,” I quickly added, “because Florenza doesn’t have any weapons on her.”

  Jude took a step forward, giving Florenza an up-and-down look. “I don’t think we’re worried. Because we don’t have any reason to be worried. Do we, blade-girl?”

  “You leave me alone,” Florenza shrugged, “I leave you alone.”

  “Then, we understand each other,” nodded Jude. She stepped back, apparently satisfied. To her right, meanwhile, Lily and Hannah stood together, nervously holding hands—not taking their eyes off of the new girl.

  “You two have names?” Florenza asked, pointing at them.

  They both nodded, but didn’t say a word—just continued to stare at Florenza.

  Jude placed a hand on each of the young girls’ heads. “This knucklehead is Lily, this one is Hannah,” she explained. “And if they get hurt in any way, I’ll kill the one responsible…you get me?”

  “Yeah, sure,” shrugged Florenza.

  “I’ve got a dog named Pugly,” Lily piped up. “He’s with my brother now, but he’ll come live with us next week.”

  “I like dogs.”

  “Do you like cats?” asked Hannah, in a soft voice. “Xavier has a cat. Its name is Kanga.”

  Florenza nodded. “Cats are cool.”

  I pointed to Shawnee, who was sitting on a nearby staircase, smoothing out the feathers of one of her arrows. “You’ve already met Shawnee, of course. She’s Cherry’s sister.”

  “You really shoot that thing—that bow and arrow?” asked Florenza, curious.

  “She’s a bow-sniper,” bragged Cherry—proud. “My sister can hit almost anything with her bow.”

  “Now, that’s a real talent,” offered Florenza. “Very useful these days.”

  Shawnee smiled in response.

  “So, anyways, guys,” I continued. “Florenza will be staying with us for a while.”

  “How long is a while?” asked Cammie, not happy.

  “Don’t know,” shrugged Florenza. “Guess I’ll leave when I leave.”

  “She can have the room down at the end of the hallway,” I said. “It’s got a nice view and the bed is already made.” I turned to Florenza. “I think you’ll like it.”

  She shrugged again. “It’s got a bed, it’s safe…it’s good.”

  The door suddenly opened behind me and Jay walked in. She looked exhausted and there was enough dried blood on her shirt that it made Hannah squeal in dismay.

  “How’s the kid doing?” Florenza immediately asked.

  “Pauly’s fine,” Jay yawned. “Going to have a nasty scar around his neck, though.”

  “And a great story to tell the chicks,” grinned Jude.

  Sophia—who had been remaining silent—pushed forward, looking concerned. “Did you eat, Jay? Because I’ve still got some soup left over from lunch.”

  “That would be so great,” said Jay, tiredly. “Just let me wash up and change my shirt.”

  Beside me, Florenza’s belly suddenly growled. She immediately shuffled her foot along the floor, trying to make enough noise to cover the sound.

  Sophia, however, had noticed. Hands on her hips, she faced Florenza. “In the compound—they didn’t feed you?”

  “I’m okay,” Florenza muttered, looking a little embarrassed. “You don’t worry about me.”

  Apparently, Sophia disagreed; she reached out and grabbed Florenza’s hand. “Come on…we get you some soup. I also got some cake you’re gonna’ like.”

  As they headed down the hallway, I kept expecting Florenza to pull her hand from Sophia’s.

  It didn’t happen.

  * * * *

  “You think it’s smart, bringing her here,” asked Cammie, when the two girls had disappeared around the corner. “Especially after what she did to Pauly.”

  “What’s the alternative,” I asked, pointedly. “Leaving Florenza out on the highway for the Crazies to pick up?”

  Cammie frowned, unhappy. “It’s just…well…there are young girls here.”

  “But I like her,” Lily said, overhearing us. She turned to Hannah, poking her friend in the arm. “Do you like Florenza?”

  Hannah nodded. “But her eyebrows are weird.”

  JACOB

  Josh showed up two days after Pauly’s team had returned.

  The other two guys we had sent up had stayed behind. They were now embedded with the Stars—each of them belonging to a different soldier-cell.

  “I honestly don’t know where they are exactly,” Josh told us. “We thought it’d be better that I wasn’t told, just in case I got caught.”

  We were in the Council room—sitting around the table. Aside from myself and Josh—Kaylee, Kieran and Connor were also there. Porter was supposed to have attended the debriefing but, according to Connor, he was sick—probably with the flu.

  “How do we talk to the spies, then?” Kaylee asked.

  “The same way as we do with Brent and Han,” answered Josh. “Leave a note at the water tower.”

  “But have you seen them since they joined the Stars?” Kaylee persisted. “Are you sure that they’re okay?”

  Josh nodded. “I’ve seen them a couple of times in the market. Talked with them both and they’re fine. Right now, they’re just fitting in, trying to make their way up the Crazy-line.”

  “What about Alice?” Kieran asked. “What did the Stars say about her?”

  “She’s definitely one of them now,” Josh told us. “Been one since around the beginning of December. And get this—she’s the one who found them. She wasn’t recruited.”

  That shocked me. “How did Alice even know about the Stars?”

  “The girl is smart. When everything went down in the Arena—when we got you and Kaylee out—she was watching. Remember those guys Brent and Han had up in the stands? Apparently, she followed one of them—kind of, like when she was trying to get away from the action.”

  “So, she followed them to a soldier-cell?” asked Kieran.

  Josh shook his head. “No—she got caught before then. Crazies got her and took her back to the Arena, where they were collecting everybody. But the redhead and the supermodel…”

  “Orla and Tray,” Kaylee muttered.

  “Yeah, those two…they vouched for Alice, so she didn’t have to become a slave. Instead, she worked for the Fox chicks from then on—because they trust her.”

  “Then, how did she become a Star?” asked Jacob.

  “Girl kept her eye out. Saw some things—figured out some other stuff. Then, one day she calls Brent out, tells him that she knows what’s going on. Girl had even figured out the star tattoos.”

  “So, she could have turned the Stars in at any time?” mused Kaylee.

  “Absolutely,” Josh nodded. “They wouldn’t of even seen it coming.”

  “Which means she’s probably legit,” I conceded.

  “Brent and Han think so. Alice has been really helping them. She’s even got her own soldier-cell, some of the other girls who work for the Foxes. I think there might be four of them, including Alice, but I don’t know all of their names. Anyway, their cell…well, they have like this Underground Railroad. They sneak slaves to the Stars—help them escape the Crazies.”

  “And Brent and Han definitely trust Alice?” I asked, not quite convinced.

  “They don’t see any reason not to trust her,” Josh shrugged. “In their eyes—if she was a Crazy—girl could of turned them in at any time. But she didn’t.”

  “Have you talked to Alice at all?” asked Kaylee.

  Josh shook his head. “I couldn’t get near her. I mean, I saw her lots in the marketplace. She goes to where they sell the slaves a lot. I saw her there on her horse. But I didn’t talk to her—Brent and Han didn’t want me to take the chance.”

  “So, she doesn’t kn
ow who you are?” I said. “Good.”

  “Well…I think she actually might,” Josh admitted. “Because—one time—she rode past me and she like gave me this little nod. And she moved her hand—the one that was holding the reins—just enough so that I could see the star tattoo.”

  “But you don’t think that Brent and Han told her about you?”

  “Nope,” Josh said. “I think the girl just figured it out on her own.”

  Beside me, Kaylee frowned. Like me, she wasn’t completely convinced. “Did Brent or Han say why Alice has turned on the Foxes?”

  “Kind of—they said the whole slave thing really bothered her. They said she was also freaked out about some things that happened when there weren’t any guys around. She didn’t tell them what—just that she wanted to make up for them.”

  “She damn well should!” hissed Kaylee, under her breath.

  * * * *

  While the news about Alice was tentatively good, the news about Victor was bad.

  “He’s definitely with the Crazies now,” Josh told us, a few minutes later.

  “Just what we were afraid of,” groaned Kaylee. “Looks like that Point Mugu sentry, Larry, was right about what he saw—Victor went through Camarillo and got back on the 101 Freeway.”

  “And got picked up at Moorpark,” I added, frustrated that we still weren’t rid of the kid.

  “Alice told Han that Victor had a meeting with Brandon and the Foxes,” Josh continued. “Like they locked themselves up in a room and didn’t come out for an hour.”

  “Any idea what they were talking about in there?” I asked.

  “From what Alice said, it looked like they were asking Victor questions about us.”

  “What kind of questions?” Kaylee asked, looking worried.

  “Alice didn’t know,” Josh said. “The only reason she knew it had to do with us was because she overheard Victor talking about Kaylee when they were coming out of the room. Then, when Alice went in the room later, she saw that there was a map on a table and it was of Point Dume.”

  “What was Victor saying about Kaylee?” I growled—a tiny knot of fury beginning to twist inside of me.

  “She heard two things,” Josh reported. “Victor said that Kaylee needed some retraining and then Brandon said that he would look forward to doing just that.”

  Beside me, Kaylee tensed. I quickly reached out and took her hand, squeezing it. “They won’t get anywhere near you,” I promised her.

  Sadly, I was wrong.

  * * * *

  About an hour into Josh’s meeting, Kieran was overtaken with a bout of coughing. I had noticed that—over the last few days—he seemed to be tiring more easily and there were dark circles under his eyes.

  “You’re sick,” I told him. “Go see Jay in the Medical Clinic.”

  Kieran shook his head. “I’ll be fine. I just didn’t sleep much last night, that’s all.”

  Beside me, Kaylee frowned, looking worried. “Did you eat anything today?”

  “Some cereal and that God-awful soy milk.” He began to cough again. When he was done, I pointed to the door.

  “Go!” I ordered. “And I don’t want to see you back here until Jay tells me personally that you’re feeling better.”

  Grumbling, Kieran pushed himself up from his seat and shuffled out. When the door closed behind him, Kaylee immediately turned toward me, frowning. “He’s sick. And Porter’s sick. Jacob…this could be bad.”

  “We’ll have to be careful,” Connor piped up. “Set some flu-rules, so that it doesn’t run through the tribe.”

  “Can you be responsible for that?” I asked.

  Connor nodded. “I’ll work with Jay on a list of rules—washing hands, keeping things clean and sanitized, that sort of thing.”

  “What’s our medicine supply like right now?” asked Kaylee.

  “We’ve got some antibiotics. Most likely, whatever Porter and Kieran have probably can’t be medicated anyway. But if it’s something more serious—then we should probably start resupplying.”

  “Maybe on the trip to the library,” I suggested. “I guess it’s probably time for that.”

  “Well, if we’re heading up into Oxnard, there’s that hospital there,” said Connor. “If it hasn’t been emptied, that would be an ideal place to stock up.”

  “If people are getting sick,” said Kaylee, “then that trip better take place as soon as possible.”

  * * * *

  After Kieran left, Josh continued with his report. “I saw that supermodel in the market a couple of times, but the redhead and Brandon mostly stayed in their compound. And, when they do come out, apparently they’re surrounded by lots of soldiers.”

  “Probably afraid of being assassinated,” Kaylee frowned.

  Josh nodded. “That’s what the Stars think—which is a good thing. If people are unhappy, that means there’s a chance they might revolt against Brandon and the Foxes.”

  “If they can get near them,” muttered Connor.

  “But Tray comes out,” said Kaylee. “Maybe that’s a way into the Foxes’ Compound.”

  “The supermodel does like to watch the slaves being sold,” admitted Josh. “And when the Crazies who wear white t-shirts pull someone out of the crowd, she usually does the whipping.”

  “That sounds like Tray,” said Kaylee, darkly.

  “The guys in the white t-shirts,” Connor murmured. “They sound like the religious police in those third world countries, don’t they? The ones who beat up on anyone who disagrees with them.”

  “That’s exactly what they do,” Josh nodded. “I saw them checking out back tattoos one time, and this guy—I don’t know what was wrong with his tattoo, but they got all up in his face about it. Then, they started asking him all these questions about what he believed and did he ‘take the flesh’.”

  “Was the guy they grabbed a Star?” asked Kaylee.

  Josh shook his head. “Just some kid that bugged them. I don’t know—maybe he got mouthy or something—but the White Shirt-Crazies, they ripped his shirt off of him and tied him over this big wooden block that they’ve put in the middle of the market. Then, the supermodel comes over and starts whipping the kid. And I mean she really laid into him! It was so bizarre—like here was this girl and she’s smiling like a beauty queen and all the while she’s stripping the skin off of this kid’s back.”

  “What happened to the kid?” asked Connor.

  “I don’t know,” Josh shrugged. “One of the White Shirt-Crazies made Tray stop whipping the kid. I think he was afraid that she was going to kill him. Then, the White Shirts, they carried the kid away…never saw him again after that.”

  “I’ll bet they put him in the Arena,” I said.

  “Probably,” Josh acknowledged. “That’s what everyone I heard talking in the market thought would happen.”

  “Just because there was something wrong with his tattoo,” muttered Kaylee. “Which means that we were right to tattoo you guys before we sent you up.”

  “And they definitely checked,” said Josh. “I don’t think a day went by that one of the White Shirts or a guy at a checkpoint didn’t have me pull up my shirt to look at my tattoo. It’s like they’re definitely looking for kids who don’t have them.”

  “Brandon is worried we’ll send up spies,” I concluded.

  “Yeah, probably,” nodded Josh. “And that Mateo kid is leading the White Shirts now. They can do anything they want basically—whip you, beat you, kill you. Everybody is scared of them…oh, and look at this.” Josh pulled a piece of paper from his pocket and, unfolding it, placed it in the middle of the table. “It’s a reward poster. They’ve got them plastered everywhere in Agoura Hills.”

  “This isn’t hand-drawn,” said Connor, studying the poster. “Did somebody silkscreen it?”

  “From what I was told,” said Josh, “it’s drawn on this kind of paper that makes holes in it. Then, the paper is attached to a drum and you put ink over it. When you crank the dru
m, it rolls the ink over the paper and it goes through the holes onto the blank piece of paper. They said it’s like an olden-days copy machine.”

  “That must be a Gestetner,” said Connor. “My mom told me about those things.” He turned to me, excited “We need to put that on our supply list, Jacob!”

  I nodded, then turned my attention back to the reward poster. From the artistry and the attention to detail, I would have guessed that it had been created by the same guy who had been doing the new Crazy tattoos.

  The ‘Wanted’ poster called for the capture of any Local.

  If it was a Local-guy, they were to be delivered to the Agoura High football field—dead or alive—for a reward of booze or cigarettes. If it was a Local-girl, they were only eligible for a reward if they were handed over—alive and unmolested.

  “Guess it’s obvious what they want the girls for,” growled Kaylee.

  “Turn it over,” said Josh. “There’s more on the other side.”

  Flipping the paper over, I looked down at the six people pictured there. Peering over my shoulder, Kaylee hissed in distress. “Ohmigod!”

  * * * *

  “It’s a good likeness of you, Connor,” I murmured. “Sorry about that.”

  “They want me alive,” Connor said, tapping the writing under the drawing of his face. “Porter, too.”

  “Because they know you’re useful. You’ve both got abilities the Crazies can use.”

  “They’re offering a horse for both of you,” Josh said. “For Rhys and Pauly, it’s two horses each. Three horses for Kieran.”

  “And for you, Jacob,” said Connor, reading the small print under my likeness, “they’re paying five horses. The same for Kaylee.”

  “Brandon wants you bad,” Josh admitted. “There’s a lot of talk about it in the market.”

  I looked over at Kaylee. Frankly—she looked scared.

  “It’s just a poster,” I told her, trying to sound reassuring. “That doesn’t mean it will actually happen.”

  She shook her head, her eyes becoming moist. “It’s not just a poster, Jacob. It’s an order to all the Crazies. Now, they know what we look like—and they know that they’ll get a reward if they bring us in.”