They didn’t take me seriously, judging from their chuckling, but I gave them all the time they needed to make up their minds. It was hard to keep my fingers from twitching now, but at least I got a few more moments to study them, trying to find any weaknesses—except the mental ones that were quite obvious—I could exploit.
“Methinks the lady doth protest too much,” the blond one offered, pushing away from the side of the house to come sauntering toward me.
I shook my head, laughing under my breath, without taking my eyes off him. “Nope, the lady doth protest exactly as much as she believes is right. Not sure how I can get any more clear. Fuck. Off.” Part of me wanted to slap myself for using that word a wiser woman might have avoided, but it wasn’t like I was afraid. Wary, yes, and decidedly not jonesing for a fight, but I knew that if they wanted to start one, I would end it.
Blondie still wasn’t impressed by my stance. “Oh, we will, once we’re done here. You came in with the traders this afternoon, right? What do three more upstanding guys matter when you’re already entertaining an entire train of, what? Twenty people? Twenty-five?”
A different kind of annoyance made me crinkle my nose at him. “Exactly why do idiots like you always presume that any woman out there is just tagging along to whore herself out? I’ve met my fair share of tough broads out there, and none of them has shown even a hint of an inclination to stoop that low. Turn around. Get drunk and find someone more appreciative of the great work you’re doing, but I won’t be part of that.” I was tempted to add a “I’m warning you,” but refrained. Now was not the time to make them reconsider if, just maybe, they’d seen or heard me somewhere.
Thankfully, that concern was still unfounded, I realized, when the third guy called over from the alley. “Stop screwing around! Either get it done or swap places with me if you’re not man enough. I’m done standing around here.”
The playfulness left Blondie’s expression, and I bolted forward the moment conviction took its place. He was quick to make a grab for me, but I was faster, surging ahead with a bout of speed that likely churned up dust where I’d been standing the moment before. Brown-haired guy was too perplexed to react as I dashed by him, hurtling toward the mouth of the alley. Judging from his grand words, I expected the one standing guard to become a problem, but he’d turned partially away after delivering his speech, making it easy for me to simply push by him. Likely not so tough himself if he wasn’t that keen on watching his buddies take down a presumably defenseless girl.
A shout rang after me but by then I’d already shot out into the middle of the street, narrowly avoiding crashing into a man pulling a horse laden with sacks of rice or grain along. I used the animal for cover as I turned to the left, slowing down now that there were people around. Ahead, I saw the side street that belonged to the shortcut I’d wanted to aim for in the first place but I remained on the main thoroughfare, deciding that a few hundred yards more wouldn’t kill me.
Glancing over my shoulder, I saw the three stooges pile out of the alley, and they set out after me without much hesitation. I hastened my step but made sure not to run outright, looking like I was busy, but not about to alarm anyone. Why, I couldn’t quite say, but I had a sinking feeling that the townspeople would likely just stand by idly, letting us scavengers have it out without interfering. And as much as I yearned to send my knees and boots into certain perfectly aimed targets, I’d rather avoid confrontation if I could.
Up ahead, the street broadened until it ended in the open area by the palisades, our cars a more than welcome sight. Another look back revealed that walking had eaten up most of my lead, but another dash between two groups of busy-looking people got me out into the open without anyone managing to make a grab for me. I very purposefully marched toward the Jeep, elation twining with my annoyance as I recognized Nate and Burns standing there, talking to a handful of people loading another horse and hand-drawn cart. I wasn’t quite there yet when Nate’s gaze flitted to me, dismissing me after a second—until his focus snapped back to me, his eyes quickly scanning my face. I did my best to smooth my features, but I wouldn’t have been surprised if I was wearing a thunderclouds-worthy scowl.
“What’s up,” Nate asked, his tone neutral, all the more demanding because of the missing sharpness. Burns turned his back on us, both to lend us some privacy, but also to form a neat barrier to the people he was still negotiating with.
“Nothing,” I offered, keeping my voice as bland as possible, only a hint breathy with exertion. “What, missed me already?”
Nate spent another second staring at me—as if that would make me spill all my secrets. Fat chance. Then his head turned as he looked past me back the way I’d come, his eyes narrowing as he tried to make out the source of my vexation—or whatever else it was he’d read on my face. Or more likely, in my body language, as while I had gotten better at not carrying my heart on my sleeve, it was hard to shake my body out of fight mode just like that from one moment to the next, knowing full well that what had caused it was still lurking behind my back somewhere.
In perfect timing, I heard Blondie holler a loud, “Wait up, pretty lady!” after me that got not only my ire centered on him.
“Nothing worth making waves over,” I explained in hushed tones to Nate. “Nothing you need to concern yourself with.”
Rather than answer, Nate blindly leaned into the Jeep, coming up with one of my shotguns in his hand. I huffed with annoyance, pulling the gun from his fingers and putting it back where it belonged before he could make a show of loading it, or something. It was, of course, fully loaded, but I didn’t expect him to shoot first unless he really had to.
“Doesn’t look like nothing to me,” he grumbled under his breath, raising one brow at me as I came back out of the car. “Or are we back to ‘nothing’ really being something—“
My—now decidedly angry—sigh shut him up. “It’s just three assholes being assholes.” The words came out harsh and clipped, and it only took a moment for me to realize that my anger and apprehension had now turned around to center on me, and what I knew was about to come. “I was stupid, okay? I was traipsing around on my own, needing a little time to myself. I forgot. Shit, I miss being in Dispatch or our camp where I could just roam free on my own without needing to constantly watch my back. It was my fault, but nothing happened. Certainly nothing that warrants you making a scene and possibly getting us kicked out or in some other kind of trouble. Just drop it.”
Nate relaxed infinitesimally—or at least stopped looking ready to reach around me for the shotgun once more—but the stare he fixed me with made me want to squirm. “Really? That speech coming from you of all people?”
I couldn’t help but laugh dryly. “Yeah, I’m disappointed in myself, too. But guess what? Even before the zombies took over we weren’t living in a country where a woman could just go wherever she pleased, minding her own business, trusting that nobody would take that as an invitation to earn himself a kick in the balls. Just drop it. It’s not worth it.” Looking back, I saw the idiots still hanging around the edge of the square, but they’d seen me aiming for the thick of the cars. If they weren’t completely incompetent they could put two and two together and would stop now that they saw themselves confronted not just with Nate, Burns, and several of the people from our convoy, but also town officials and such. They turned away a few seconds later, heading back the way they’d come.
Nate waited until they were out of sight—and not about to return a moment later on the other side of the street—before he looked back to me. “It’s unlike you not to underline what I expect was a rather soapboxy argument with some well-aimed kicks and punches.”
“Would you believe me if I said I’m older and wiser now, hoping to win arguments with facts rather than sheer force?”
“Not in a million years.” Before I could snap something back, the mirth on his face draining away made my hackles rise once more. Admonishment 101, right up ahead.
Only I was w
rong again, I realized, when it was concern that took over Nate’s eyes. Scowling, I crossed my arms over my chest. “At first I thought they were coming after me because they’d recognized me. You know, like the way our herd of sheeple are looking at us all the time? I couldn’t very well go all, ‘Oh, never mind, this is only because I’m a woman?’ on them once I realized I was wrong. Of course I could have punched or shot my way through them, but they were so fucking dumb and pretty much let me walk out on them with minimal resistance. So that’s what I did. Problem solved. People here seem rather relaxed about us. No need to give them cause to change their minds.”
“If you say so.” Nate’s mutter was a far shot from enthusiastic, but he didn’t speak up further to contradict me.
“I feel like you should be gloating now,” I told him. “Even just a little bit? After all, I did wander off on my own to find myself some trouble. That usually comes with a hefty dose of ‘I told you so’ from you.”
A muscle in his cheek jumped, but his overall mood remained tense. “Not sure I deserve that chance. I didn’t think twice about you not wandering off just like that. It’s not like you can’t take care of yourself.” He scratched his chin, letting his gaze roam over the cars parked around us. It was only then that I saw that almost all scavengers and traders—at least those that looked like they weren’t more permanent installations here—usually kept to themselves, groups of three up to twenty moving between the more solitary residents. People had always been somewhat cautious around each other, wherever we’d gone—including Dispatch—but even in Harristown, where the asshole of a mayor had pulled all registers to make us feel like we didn’t belong, there had been a good bit of mingling once the terms had been agreed on.
“This is the price we have to pay for speaking up for ourselves,” I more mused than stated, not liking my observation one bit. “They know they rely on us, and they resent us for it. They recognize that we’re strong, but that also means they’re ready to fight back if push comes to shove. And let’s not forget that, even when we planned the attack on the base, we were far from one unified force with one ideology riding on our backs.”
Nate gave a shrug that could have meant anything, but I could see in the set of his jaw that he agreed with me. Yet far was it from him to admit so, as he offered up a hint of a smirk as he turned back to me. “Exactly how much did you have to drink before you stumbled across those nitwits? You sound like an old drunkard after his fifth beer of the night.”
“I wish,” I complained. “Only had some water with my stew, or whatever that was. I’d likely start the next revolution if I had any booze, let alone in those quantities!”
“Yeah, let’s not,” Nate shot back before he rounded on Burns. “Business is concluded, I hope? Let’s get some grub before we hit the sack. Let the others stand guard over the cars. I need some sleep.”
Burns acknowledged that with a nod as he turned to me. “What did I miss?”
“Someone not taking me seriously. The usual.”
That got me the expected chuckle. “How many broken bones and split lips?”
“Surprisingly few,” I admitted. “Only one bruised ego.”
“You’ll survive,” he enthused, sending me forward after Nate with a hearty slap on my back. “Now what was this about beer and stew?”
“No booze,” Nate shot back over his shoulder, not even checking whether we were following. “And don’t eat yourself into a coma. We all have to sleep in the same dorm, and I won’t have you keeping me up all night with your incessant farting.”
Burns chuckled. “Still better entertainment than listening to you both silently pine for each other all night long.”
“That’s not me pining,” Nate offered, needlessly adding a rather crude gesture that sent Burns into a laughing fit.
I shook my head at them both. “And there I wonder sometimes why people think we’re not fit for civilized company. Boggles the mind.”
I might have already eaten, but while I didn’t feel hunger in general, I wasn’t going to skip an opportunity for another hot meal. Who knew when I’d get the next? Only that this time, that idea wasn’t exactly one that left me feeling uncomfortable. Settlements? Very overrated.
Chapter 8
I hadn’t expected to sleep like the dead in a room that I shared with thirty other people, filled with gear that stank of bleach and bodies that could have done with some extra hot water as well, but one moment I was snuggling up to Nate—mostly to steal more of his sleeping bag to get an extra layer than for intimate contact—the next I woke up with scratchy eyes already tearing up from the brightness of the light outside, and an equally scratchy throat. Before I could start to grope around for my shades, Nate already held them out to me, taking care of one problem, and a quick swill of coffee did away with the rest. Half of the floor spaces were deserted, people already packing up to leave, but we didn’t seem to be in much of a hurry.
“Harris is negotiating some deals for the road,” Nate explained. “It seems like people don’t exactly want to go out there to bring shit they don’t need back to those that do, so might as well pick up the slack if we’re headed that way, anyway. A little distraction will do us some good.”
I had no idea what he was trying to tell me with that, but I didn’t protest. Raiding a mall or two didn’t sound like such a bad idea, and not just to pick up some extra loot. I’d never really been one of the girls that was crazy for shopping, but busting open doors and killing shamblers that were just waiting for their jump-scare moment? Who wouldn’t want to do that for fun?
After dropping off our sleeping bags and gear at the car, we got some breakfast—the inevitable beans, plus some really nice bacon and eggs with fresh bread—served with more coffee that did away with the last weird feeling in my throat. I kept expecting the asshole brigade from last night to waltz in, but while there were scavengers aplenty around, none of them so much as glanced our way. Tanner’s assessment seemed to have been right—the town needed outside help, and people seemed ready to supply it. The sheer number of people with marks on their hands and necks made me wonder why none of them tried to make the run south to New Angeles, but I had to admit, if we hadn’t gotten the intel from Jared back in Isabella, we likely wouldn’t have tried, either—or known where to start looking. Gabriel Greene had never admitted as much, but in hindsight it made a lot of sense that he’d tried to get us down there, one way or another, if only so he could gloat in my face. It was neither his nor my fault that our cooperation had turned out beneficial for all parties involved.
“Still annoyed about what happened yesterday?” Nate ventured a guess around his coffee mug. At my imploring look, he smiled. “You’re scowling.”
“Nope, just thinking about my favorite territorial dictator.”
Mirth sparked in Nate’s eyes, but he kept his tongue. My, wasn’t he agreeable these days? While it was nice not to have my nose shoved into every tiny mistake I might have been making, hypothetical or real, it was starting to get annoyingly boring.
“Speaking of which,” I started, snatching up a last strip of bacon to noisily chew on it. “Why are you so relaxed about Greene? If my memory serves me correctly, that was murderous rage in your eyes when you slammed your fist over and over into Greene’s face, back at the Green Fields Biotech building after your little science quiz. Not to forget that Greene almost bashed my head in. Why the downright amicable friendship thing that you’ve both got going on now? It’s highly confusing, bordering on insulting.”
Nate’s shrug was nothing if not ambiguous. “That was when I was convinced that he’d been directly involved in my brother’s murder. If I tried to kill anyone just because he’s an asshole or has issues with you, history would convict me of genocide.”
My snort was more of a growl, really. “But when we came to New Angeles, you didn’t yet know that it was your tech wizard who’d betrayed you. And I hadn’t yet had time to tell you about Kat and her connection to Thecla.”
> While he didn’t look particularly happy about that reminder, Nate remained calm and relaxed. “Let’s just say that, looking back, Thecla’s suicide looked a lot less like she was trying to hide anyone else’s involvement, and a lot more like a quick exit before the nightmare could eat her up, maybe not just figuratively. Even then I wasn’t convinced that it was Greene who she tried to protect, but there were too many loose ends and things that didn’t make any sense that I could allow myself to give him the benefit of the doubt. Besides, what would antagonizing him when we needed his help have gotten us, except exiled to the zombie-infested desert? So I took a risk, trusting him.”
“Just like that?”
Another shrug followed. “Let’s put it like this. We’ve met a lot of assholes out there, and a handful of people I felt like I could trust in a pinch. Half of the latter had connections to New Angeles. If I had to take sides—blindly—I would have trusted their judgment. So when it came to that, I did. End of story. What I personally think of that cretin of a man hasn’t changed, if you were wondering. But I won’t let that cloud my judgment.”
Gee, way to make me feel petty—again. But then it was easy for him to pretend to be all realistic and unbiased, seeing as he had me to ride on my unicorn made of nothing but prejudice and righteous anger most days. My, how things change.
“Do you think our camp will turn into a settlement like this one?” I looked around, nodding toward the other benches where scavengers and traders were busy shoveling breakfast into their mouths, while the residents didn’t bother to drop in beyond getting some provisions to cook their own meals, if even that.
“Nah.” Nate’s answer came without any hesitation. “We’re an outpost, an enclave, if you will, but not a trade hub. Depending on how they want to keep reinforcing their defenses, maybe one day we will become kind of a dock or portal to the city where goods get prepped to make the last leg of the journey by sea, but other towns are much better suited for that.” He paused, studying me intently. “Why?”
Green Fields (Book 7): Affliction Page 10
