“Hence one of the reasons you are still alive, Vincent,” Conwell replied. “New insights, new ideas, new motivation. Yes, we could still use you as our chef, for the last few days your poor wife has been run ragged with your absence and in no way is as good as you. But in the end, she will do if she must. We made do before you and we can manage without you if it comes to that.”
“So, I can cook and plan meals, so I get to live? I earn a safety net here? I won’t be dragged from my bed and sold like fucking livestock?” He spat on the floor. “How bloody delightful!”
“Because of you, several less people each year have to be “sold,” Murphy replied. “Think about that before you make your decision.”
“That is just one of the reasons you have been granted safety, Vincent. The other is you are a smart man. You have survived out there, you know what it is like. Most of us behind these walls only got a taste of the world beyond. Ignorance keeps us safe, keeps us from being able to see past what we know and how we do things. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t room to grow, to change, as long as the right perspective is there.”
“What are you trying to say?” Vincent asked with growing unease.
“Accept what is happening, allow it, for the time being, keep the secret, keep the peace, go back to work. In the Spring, we will bring you on as part of the council and you can help us slowly make changes.”
“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me!”
“Vincent, just accept it!” Kelli blurted out.
“Thought Kelli was to get a seat on the council, for her ‘service’ to your secrets!” he spat again.
Conwell sighed. “She was, but she forfeited it to you if you’ll only take it. Frankly, Vincent, your time runs short. I can see you’ll need a few more days to think this over.” He stood again. “After that, you’ll be free of this cell, either in a bag or as a high citizen of Sanctuary.” He went to the door. “The choice is yours to make. We have been more than fair in this.”
“Yeah,” Vincent coughed out, “fair… like that’s even a word you should be able to say.”
“May I have a moment?” Kelli asked Conwell.
“Make it quick,” Conwell replied, annoyance in his tone. “Murphy stay here and lock up when she is done.”
Kelli cleared the room and knelt beside him. “Just say yes, Vincent! Don’t be a fucking idiot, not over this! Dying isn’t going to change anything, no one will even know why. But accepting and living offers you the chance to change everything in time! Don’t throw everything away for some stupid pride or moral that doesn’t apply to this world anymore.”
Staring at her with pained eyes, he whispered, “Why do you even care?”
“Because I love you! If I didn’t, this conversation today wouldn’t have happened and you’d be dead right now!” Her eyes glistened with fresh tears. “Don’t throw it all away! What we have, what we might still be able to have, what Sanctuary can still have and become!”
“Leave me alone, Kelli,” Vincent muttered moving away from her. A small amount of him wanted to attack, to see if he could take Captain Murphy and fight his way out of here. Another part didn’t even care at this point. What was the point? Everything… every single thing was broken, the world lost to anyone with any desire to see good in it still.
Sighing, Kelli stood. “Well, think long and hard, Vincent, because when that door opens again, it’ll be do or die. If not for me, think of everyone out there and the good you could still bring them.”
The door closed and he could hear the faint footfalls as they walked away from wherever he was. He could also hear them talking vaguely and knew Kelli was being asked if they thought he would commit to their ideal, or if the next time that door opened, he’d be a dead man.
He laughed to himself. “I wish I knew the answer to that myself. What would you have done, Archer?” He asked the empty room. “What a dumb question that is… You’d never have stayed here long enough for this to happen, and if it had happened you would have just fought your way out of this room with a shoe or something stupid like that because you were fucking fearless!” He banged his head on the wall behind him. “And I am not. I don’t want to die… not yet and certainly not like this. But I don’t think I can live with this secret.” He cursed. “Why’d they have to give me options…”
Finally, the truck sputtered, the last gas fumes forcing the engine the last twenty meters before giving up and coasting to a stop. They had gotten further than they had expected and easily put nearly thirty miles between them and the cannibals. A good head start, but with the death of the truck and few weapons, a sense of foreboding was already lingering in everyone’s eyes.
“Everyone lineup!” Everett called out with brisk authority as he climbed out of the backseat of the truck. “Discussion time ladies! Big news, big things!”
The men almost looked confused by this turn of events but followed protocol and lined up along the side of the truck anyways. Some weren’t looking well; wounds that needed looking after bled and dripped from more than a handful of them. On the drive two men hadn’t been able to hold on and had fallen off, to stay where they landed.
“Fuck, boss, it is good to see you again!” one of the men said with a black toothy grin; a bloody cut had dried just above his left eye.
Another was checking to see if a bullet had gone through or was stuck in his shoulder. “Almost thought you might have left us for dead. Glad I was wrong. Though if I had been you, I wouldn’t have come back like a hero.”
“That’s why he’s the boss,” another man said.
Everett walked up and down the line of the nine men he had left. It was a small group, but the ones here were tough, hard men who would listen and follow him… or so he hoped. “Our lives have been turned upside down this fucking trip! Worse than ever before, much worse, and I promised you a grand payout for riding with me.”
Several voiced their agreement, their eyes staring hatefully at Auska, Jennifer and Wren, who stood up against the truck, uneasy.
“It’s because of that bitch!” one of the men growled and others quickly agreed, the air of danger quickly taking over.
Everett held up his hands and silenced them, knowing if he let the anger build too much, he’d have no control. “You aren’t wrong, it is entirely that bitch’s fault. Since the night at the pump house, she has caused us nothing but grief.”
“Let us have some fun with her and cut her throat after!” Several loud cheers came from this.
“Enough!” The slaver leader roared out. “Hours ago, I would have agreed with you. Hell, I would have been the first to push her over a log, but the situation can change quickly and new outcomes have been presented.”
One of the men limped forward a step. “And what could have possibly happened to spare that bitch’s life after all the shit she has caused us? All the lives lost because of her! Our supplies and wares have gone! We are fucking ruined boss!”
“Sanctuary,” he told them with a grin.
“We are going back?” someone muttered.
“We have nothing to trade now.”
“We aren’t going back to trade with them, we aren’t going back to seek safety.” He grinned. “We are going back to take over and claim it as ours! Then the men we lost, the supplies we lost, will be worth it. We will have our own kingdom to rule!”
The men began talking amongst themselves; some were happy with this news, others confused, others not sold at all.
“And how the fuck do you think we are going to take a place like that with a tiny handful of us, against hundreds of them?”
“With their help.” He pointed to Auska and Jen.
Now the man that stepped forward truly started to laugh. “Have you lost your fucking mind, Everett?” He turned to look at the others. “Do you really think you can trust the word of those two? More so, to help us take over their home?”
“You mean the home that sold us like cattle to you pricks?” Auska snarled, meeting his gaze wi
th her own. “Or the one that has been doing this for years and will continue to do it unless it is stopped?” She stepped forward threateningly, feeling the handgun still wedged into her boot. Would she be fast enough if needed? “Is that the fucking home you are referring to? Because that’s not a home I hold a lot of care for anymore.”
“Who the fuck are you to open your fucking mouth to me, you stupid wench!” hissed the man raising his hand, but Everett placed a hand on his chest and pushed him back a step.
“She is right,” one of the others said in the group and got a lot of stares. “No guys, think about it. What does that place have for her now? They cast her out for sale. Why would she have any good feelings for them?”
“Don’t overthink this, Derek,” Everett told the man. “We aren’t going in there for slaughter, we are going in to kill the council and the soldiers who would stand in our way. The rest go unharmed,” he grinned again. “Can’t rule a kingdom if all the subjects are dead.”
“And how the fuck are we going to manage that?” the first man growled again. “Just storm the fucking wall? We’ll be shot down before we even reach it.”
“You aren’t thinking clearly, aren’t seeing the golden key we have right fucking here!” Everett growled pointing to Auska and Jen again. “A plan is in the works, one that, if all goes well, will see none of us dead! But before anything else is done, who is with me and who is not? For if you are with me then we shall march on our new kingdom! Those who are not may take what they can from the truck and fuck off. I’ll give you twenty mins to decide, then we march.”
Auska, Jennifer and Wren were set into the middle of the camp; all around them were Everett’s men, watching them closely. They were chained to each other by the ankles, not the throat and not to trees. There had only been the one chain in the truck and not enough to do it the way they had before. So, this was settled upon, regardless of Auska’s and Jennifer’s protests that they wouldn’t run off or attack anyone.
It was fine. Auska knew she could leave whenever she wanted. They hadn’t searched her and found the handgun, even though they had searched every inch of Wren and found all his hidden pins. There would be no lock picking to free them, but a bullet thought the lock would work just fine if it was needed; then she would have six more, to kill who she had to.
After Everett’s little pep talk, all his men had finally agreed to follow him, though it was clear a few of them had their doubts. They had walked for nearly an hour before things had become too dark and they had made camp. No fire was permitted; they were in too open terrain to allow such a thing. It would be seen for a score of miles in every direction and the threat of Tonka and his army was still large.
The night was chill and crisp; every step they took north would bring them back into the coming of winter’s grip. Frost would already be seeping into the ground and snow would begin to fall any day now. If this plan didn’t work, it would be likely most of them would die from the cold alone before anything else would end them.
“So, what’s the escape plan?” Wren whispered, looking around to make sure no one was paying attention. “Cause unless one of you has something to pick a lock with, I’m not much help right now. They got every one of them when they searched me.”
Jennifer glared over at Auska. “Yes, please enlighten us as to the escape plan now, or are we all on our own again?”
“There is no escape plan. We follow through with this,” Auska replied coldly. “We follow through with this because it is what needs to happen. The council needs to be stopped.”
“Of course, there is no escape plan because you are practically one of them now.” Jen hissed. “You are a fucking coward and a traitor! And to think all I wanted was to be your fucking friend!”
Auska shrugged. “And I told you from day one I didn’t need nor want friends and for you to fuck off.” She glared at the taller girl.
“Guess I should have listened to you,” the taller girl muttered. “Might have saved a whole lot of grief.”
“Well, this is going to be a pleasant adventure I can just tell,” Wren groaned.
“I’ll not let that bastard and these pricks to overtake Sanctuary,” Jen said coldly. “I don’t care what you’ve promised for yourself. It’s still my home and I’ll not have it ruled by worse men then it already is.”
“I need you to trust me, Jen.”
“Like my brother did when he chose to follow you, just for you to put a knife in his heart?”
“Hey, you three shut the fuck up!” one of the men growled from the dark.
Auska looked at Wren and sighed, pulling the tattered blanket around her. This was stupid, the whole thing was stupid, her plan was so full of fault that it was clearly stupid. She should just wait an hour, shoot her lock off, kill Everett and run and never look back. That is what she should do, what she would have done only days before… until she had witnessed her younger self screaming at Archer in her dream about not wanting to survive but to live. Something inside her had changed, an old wire reconnected in her… a sudden need to see to a wrong being righted, no matter what that meant.
Sanctuary was meant to be a safe place, not what it had turned into. She would see to it that new management would be put in place. It would work, she just needed to hold strong and play this out until the end. It would work, she would see to that.
Auska looked over at Jen, who seemed to have fallen asleep. “Don’t hate me for what will happen, just have faith that I know what I am doing,” she told herself before sleep slowly crept into her.
Three days of travel had worn the small group down. They were up before first light and pushing hard well after dusk, trying to cover as much ground as they could before winter took hold and they were caught in the first snowstorms. They were ill-prepared for this kind of weather and it was sapping their strength and morale quickly.
They had about two full days of hard travel left before they would reach Sanctuary. Then a day of planning and set up, and then the attack. It would either go brilliantly or fail miserably. There would be no middle ground, and everyone was aware of it. If they failed to take Sanctuary, any survivors of the attack that escaped would be hunted down easily by the defenders or freeze to death in a matter of days.
Either way, it was a win or die situation and they had already crossed the threshold of no return. Supplies were nearly gone, food rations dwindled to a few bites each a day. The cold was sapping their strength at night and even with the small fires they were allowed now, it wasn’t enough when you were sleeping on the frozen ground.
“What will be the best way to close the last distance to Sanctuary?” Everett asked, walking beside Auska.
“Northeast. They will have done their checks and scouting a few days ago and be working through other sectors, giving us a clear sheltered run within half a mile from the wall.”
Everett kept his eyes forward as they walked. “So, tell me exactly how this is going to work, how you plan on getting us in there and taking over so easily?” His tone had an edge of violence to it. Everything was riding on this single plan and if she fucked him over, he would strangle the fucking life from her here and now.
“Do you know where the tunnel is that they use to transport…” her tone turned ugly, “…people, out of?”
“Yes, but there is no way to get in from the outside, it’s locked up tight from the inside,” he replied. “Believe me, we looked at it once before. It’d take a week to break through by hand, and that’s if we had the tools, which we don’t. Not to mention it’s guarded closely. Even when we looked around there was always at least three guards around the area. Short of blowing a hole through the entrance, that way isn’t going to work.”
“It’ll work if someone opens it from the inside,” she assured him.
“Yeah, you just know someone inside that knows where the secret tunnel is that will be willing to open it for us?” Everett scoffed. “Pray tell me who this person is so that I can shake his bloody hand, not to mention
how you are going to relay that information to them?”
Auska turned and looked at Wren. “He’s the guy to open the door. And I’m the one who will sneak in and find it.”
“Me?” Wren stammered. “Me, what now?”
“Him? Are you fucking serious?” Everett snapped.
Shrugging, Auska picked up the pace. “He’s the only one we got that can pick locks, you got a better idea?”
“And what makes you think I am going to let you two sneak over the wall? Do you think I am fucking stupid? I allow that and that’s it. Next thing I’ll have to deal with is an army.”
Auska stopped dead in her track and spun around on him, her eyes burning with hatred and contempt. “You’re a piece of shit and I would gladly watch you die with a smile on my face.” Her voice quivered, “But the council in there is selling people like fucking cattle, sold ME like fucking cattle! I have a bigger score to settle with them than I do with you! And I can’t get to them without you! So, you see where my dilemma is?”
“Everett!” Jackson cried out rushing up to the group. The wound above his eye still looked bad, but there was nothing they could do about it. “They’re still following us!”
“What?”
“The cannibals,” he wheezed. “Fucking cocksuckers are only about a day behind us and gaining fast!”
“Fucking Tonka just won’t quit!” Everett growled, staring the way they had come, almost expecting to see the enemy. “How many?”
“Twenty, twenty-five,” he shrugged, “give or take. Armed to the teeth and looking for a fight.”
“The fuck we going to do boss?” a different man said, gripping the long-handled axe tighter.
“We need to keep fucking moving!” Auska barked at them.
What Remains (Book 2): What's Left Page 19
