“We’ll collect tolls for folks traveling on our roads, parking on our streets, trading, or simply visiting their friends and loved ones. If someone doesn’t pay, we’ll confiscate their property. If that isn’t enough, we’ll use our courts and jails to make sure they remain in compliance with our laws. We’ll have our own armed police and can kill anyone who doesn’t abide by our rules. It’s a new ballgame boys and we are making the rules.”
A roar of approval went up from the group of men gathered for this special meeting. “I have chosen my most trusted lieutenants for chief of police, jailer, city manager, comptroller, tax assessor, tax collector, water commissioner, and electrical chief. You will all answer directly to me.”
“We’ll have a city council, which I will chair, of course. You’ll have the opportunity to choose those you want to serve under you and you’ll share in the revenue generated from your divisions. We’ll come up with an amicable split, but rest assured, we will all get a piece of the pie.”
He waited for the mumbling to subside before continuing. “Gentlemen, we’re all thieves and murderers. I don’t see a face here that hasn’t killed someone or stolen something. There is something you all likely know, but it needs to be said: there is honor among us. In this new game, we will continue to have honor among us, as well. If we collect a dollar, it will get split fairly among us. Those of us in charge will determine the penalty for anyone who tries to screw us.”
“The punishment,” he hesitated, lowering his voice to make sure his words had impact, “the punishment will be harsh and swift. We have an opportunity to steal and we’ll be licensed to do it. The law will be on our side because we will make the laws. As long as we play the game of legitimacy, we cannot lose. This is a stepping stone for bigger and better things in the future.”
Again he paused and let his words sink in. They knew he was telling them that it would be business as usual… just differently. This time they would hide behind the law. His men liked that. “As each of us moves up and beyond where we are today in terms of station, someone below will also move up. It will simply mean being patient for your turn to move up. If we work it right, we will have the world by the tail. You men are destined for greatness, power and wealth. Play your cards right, and you’ll never want for anything. In a week we will have all of the positions filled, so let’s prepare for better days.”
One of the men asked, “How are we going to eat?”
“We’ll rent out the land where the food will be grown. We’ll set up a group of farmers who will grow everything and split the food with us before any of it goes to market. Then we’ll tax them on the profit from the food they sell.”
“Who will see to the split?”
“We will have a committee to oversee what is produced and how it’s distributed. They will answer to me. If I catch anyone with their paws in the cookie jar, I’ll personally cut them off.”
The meeting was adjourned and they agreed to meet again in a week.
Mike, Sheriff Waters, and Randy Stewart waited for Penny Rolls to arrive, so they could start the meeting. She could take shorthand with amazing speed and accuracy. It was important to make sure the minutes of this meeting were transcribed and left for others to read for years to come. It wasn’t a popular decision to allow the slavers to skate away from punishment, but it was necessary to ensure a peace that everyone longed for.
Mike realized that negotiations required both sides giving and receiving something by mutual consent. Some thought he gave away too much, but Mike reasoned that to give and walk away with honor would help establish peace, which was more important than egos.
Regardless, the die was cast, and the people of the surrounding area of Fitch, Avalon, and later Bishop, would have to live up to the commitments that were being made. They were ready to live by those promises, but it remained to be seen if the slavers would.
Mike chose a wait-and-see attitude. The Admiral knew the whole thing could backfire, and that was the last thing he wanted. He pledged that if the slavers didn’t live up to their promises, he would come down on them like a Tsunami. There would be no mercy next time.
Mike was also a cautious man. He learned a long time ago to wait and observe the enemy. He considered the slavers a challenge that he would scrutinize carefully, like a spider waiting in a web. He hoped things would work out okay, but only time would tell.
The slavers rode into town. It reminded some of the townspeople of the day they rode in with Bone Breaker and wrought havoc. The memories of death and destruction were more than some could handle, so they went to their homes. It was better to be away from these scum than witness them coming and going among respectable people.
The bikers filed in front of town tall and parked their motorcycles. Most were dressed in freshly laundered clothing and most of the men had shaved. They looked like ordinary weekend motorcycle riders. They were unarmed.
The Sheriff had sharpshooters posted at various observation posts around town, just in case. Everyone knew the slavers were coming well in advance because of the warning towers that had been erected months ago. Mike and the Sheriff waited for them to park their bikes and enter the town hall. Tables and chairs were arranged to accommodate the participants. The townspeople did not attend this meeting.
Slasher sat in the middle of one side of the long conference table, while his men sat in a row on either side of him. Mike, the Sheriff and Marcie sat on the opposite side of the table, along with Randy Stewart, Caroline, Harlan Herrera and Penny Rolls.
Once everyone was seated, the Sheriff opened the meeting. “We’re here to listen to your long and short term goals. As Governor of California, I will act as the Chief Executive for the State. As Sheriff, until a new one is elected, I’ll maintain law and order. He looked at Slasher. You’re in my jurisdiction as a law enforcement officer. Please begin.”
“If you don’t mind, could you introduce us to your people?” Slasher inquired politely.
Mike took over. “This is Caroline Reynolds, our medical doctor. Seated next to her is Sheriff and Governor, Bob Waters. Marcie Waters is Deputy Sheriff, and the official scribe at all meetings. The next person is Randy Stewart, my second in command. Harlan Herrera is a trusted Lieutenant, and that lady is Penny Rolls, our newspaper editor. I’m Admiral Mike Reynolds. I was commissioned by our President. Please introduce your group.”
“My name is Alvin Cobb and I am the new Mayor of our town, which we call Wormwood. It was an abandoned town we moved into and took over. These men are the various heads of our city. This is Kurt Sands, our chief of police. Shelby Givens is our comptroller. Charles Stone our tax collector. Skipper Long city engineer. Howard Keets is our chief of utilities and Glen Thomas is our jailer.
We’ve organized our town to model any small town in America. We have put aside those things most of you find appalling. We’ll slowly fill positions below these men. We’re in the process of looking for people to farm the land on the outskirts of our town for agriculture and cattle ranching. We started with the gifts of animals and seeds you gave on our last visit. We ask that you, Governor Waters, sanction our town as a legal city with all of the privileges therein.”
He paused and studied their faces before continuing. It looked like they were buying his load of crap. “We want to be good citizens and good trade partners in this new country we’re all building from scratch. We ask that you accept us and allow bygones to be bygones. You won’t have any more problems with us. If we have a problem, we hope you will come to our aid.” He sat down.
Mike asked permission to speak and the Governor nodded. “We accept your request. The papers to show your new town’s charter will be issued in about one week. Please send someone to retrieve them. Go in peace and please remember, it isn’t easy to control a group of rowdy men. Good luck.”
The meeting adjourned and they moved outside into blazing sunshine and a beautiful blue sky. A soft breeze was blowing as they mounted their motorcycles. Slasher gave a slight nod and the
bikers rode out of sight.
The Sheriff faced Mike. “Whadaya think Mike? Will they live up to their word?”
Mike gazed off into the distance where the bikers disappeared. “I sure hope so. We’ve lost some good people because of them. All we can do is hope for the best but remain prepared for the worst.”
At that moment, a gyro copter flew over their heads, landed, and taxied toward them. Greg and Harvey were returning from looking for stragglers.
Greg would give them some good news. “Hi Mike! We found some more groups and they seem to be doing well. They’re growing their own food and have established mini-Avalons in their own right. They’ll be sending representatives to meet with us soon. They should arrive early next week. Most are traveling by horseback or walking. I told them we’ll help them strengthen their position against the slavers over the next six months.”
Mike took him by the elbow and led him to one side. “We just concluded a meeting with the slavers. It looks like we’re making progress. For the time being, we are at peace with them…”
“Peace?!” Greg interrupted. “What the hell does that mean? You can’t be serious! We’ve been out telling people to be prepared. The only reason we’re this late getting back is because we had some mechanical issues we had to fix, which delayed us three weeks. Are you telling me we missed the fight and now a truce of some sort?”
“That’s exactly what I’m saying, as strange as it sounds,” Mike thought it sounded more weird summed up so succinctly. “All the same, good job, and welcome home. Why don’t you and Harvey head back up to Avalon and get some food and rest. We’ve got a lot of work cut out for us in the upcoming days, and we’ll fill you in on the rest.”
Greg and Harvey got into their gyro copter and headed toward Avalon.
Mike turned to Caroline. “Whadaya say, wench? Shall we go home now?”
Chapter 23
Spies Spurned
CAROLINE AND DAYNA were pregnant, which ended up being more stress on Mike. Caroline had taken lead on all medical responsibilities. Roger was training to be a doctor, but had not yet achieved the same level of proficiency as Caroline. He would be delivering both babies when the time came.
Both women were into their sixth month and becoming slightly uncomfortable. Understandably, Dayna had become quite dismal since her husband’s death but she was coping the best she could. Both women were excited at the prospect of giving birth.
A crowd of people were in front of the hardware store, involved in a heated argument. The topic was the spies they had among them, eating their food and enjoying the protection Fitch had provided, all the while planning to sabotage the entire town.
“If it was up to me, I’d string them up.”
“We’re feeding them and they want to kill us. I say we kill them before they get us.”
The Sheriff came by on his way to the outskirts of town and parked his car along the curb in front of the store. He got out and approached the group, numbering about ten people. “What’s the trouble here?”
“When are your people going to do something about those spies?”
“Okay folks, calm down. Getting all worked up like this leads nowhere.”
“We all work our fingers to the bone to make sure we stay safe and have enough to eat. And you let these scum live among us. We’re supposed to pretend we don’t know what they’re up to? I’m not pretending any longer! They should be driven out of town, or at the very least, locked up. We don’t need to be feeding them. They came here to kill us or make it easy for their friends to kill us.”
The Sheriff tried to calm them down, but he wasn’t getting anywhere. The crowd was getting louder, and more aggressive.
“String them up from the nearest tree!”
A truck with a half dozen people came by headed to one of the cornfields on the outskirts of Fitch. They were on their way to weed and apply fertilizer to the young stalks, but with the spontaneous crowd somewhat blocking the street, they stopped to see what was going on. The men got out of the truck and listened to the argument for a bit. Then one of them shouted at the group. “Listen to the Sheriff!”
Not getting anywhere, he bellowed it at the top of his lungs, “Listen to the Sheriff, people! This isn’t the way to handle this situation.”
The crowd grew quiet and the man continued. “Yes, we all know about the spies and why they were sent here. Many of us lost people to this gang. But remember, most of those who descended on us were killed during this last battle. These are not the same people who killed and took our children and women captives. Let’s put the problem in perspective. We all know why that couple was sent here. But are we barbarians? The Sheriff is right.”
“How about it Sheriff? Are we going to continue to feed these people or are we going to do something about why they were sent here in the first place?”
“Yes, of course you’re all right. You have every right to be upset. I’ll call the Admiral and we’ll have a meeting in a day or two. In the meantime, let’s continue our current setup. I trust you will control yourselves, and I hope you trust that we’ll find a solution. Now, please go about your business and don’t cause anymore disturbances.”
The people walked away and the men got back in their truck and drove down the street. The Sheriff knew they were right, of course. But a lynch mob wasn’t the solution.
He got back in his car and went to his office to find Marcie. “Please radio the Admiral and ask him to come down here at his earliest opportunity. Tell him we have a situation here involving the spies. We need to have a council meeting.”
Mike couldn’t stop thinking about his friends, Dan and Sam. It was difficult to realize they were really gone. He always confided in them and depended on their good judgment. He felt the void deep in his soul.
His mind drifted to Caroline and the baby. He secretly hoped it would be a boy. But he would be happy as long as the baby was healthy. He never imagined himself as a father before and wondered what it was going to be like to have a little person depend on him. He and Caroline were going to be parents. He felt such pride and hope for the future that it almost overwhelmed his senses.
At the same time, he was anxious about bringing this baby into such an uncertain world. Would he live long enough to watch his child grow up? Or would he perish like Dan and leave this little one without the guidance and protection of a father?
Crystal interrupted his thoughts. There was a radio message from the Sheriff. Mike rose from the table and walked to the radio room with Crystal. “It was Marcie. The Sheriff wants you to come down to Fitch for a meeting as soon as convenient, something about the spies. Do you want me to radio them and tell them you’ll be down?”
“Let him know I’ll be there in the morning.”
Mike went in to the restaurant and poured himself a cup of coffee. He penciled a few notes regarding the two spies. He had hoped they could just let things ride for the time being but it didn’t look like that was going to happen. He knew that there would always be hard feelings between the townspeople at Fitch and the slavers. But if they indeed wanted peace, they were entitled to an opportunity. They needed to stop referring to them as slavers.
Mike was hopeful the men wanted a chance to become productive members of society. They certainly had changed the way they looked and smelled in recent days. And they made a reasonable proposal to set things straight at the meeting or at least it appeared that way. He was keeping his fingers crossed that things would get better for everyone.
Mike looked forward to seeing people come out of hiding and help rebuild their fallen country. He longed for the days when he rode down the highway in his Corvette Stingray. What a car that was. He hadn’t thought of his car in months. He wondered if it was still where he left it in the garage. One day he would go back and see for himself.
Back to his notes. He needed to come up with a few ideas regarding the spies. As he sat thinking about it, his two friends, Sam and Doctor Dan, popped back into his thoughts. He could
n’t help but wonder how they would have dealt with those two?
The coffee tasted good and he wondered what life would have been without Avalon and the fine people that helped put it all together. A soft hand suddenly touched his shoulder. Caroline massaged his neck gently, and it felt really good. He was lucky to have found her. And now they would soon share their love with a child. It gave him so much hope for the future.
“Whatcha doin’ sweetie?” Caroline asked softly.
“Just trying to come up with a plan for the spies that wandered into Fitch. The people down there want to banish them, or worse, kill them. I saw it coming, but I’ve been busy with other things. I sure miss Sam and Daniel. They would suggest a reasonable outcome, I’m sure. Now it’s just you, me… and the baby!”
“Yes, Michael, it isn’t easy having to make decisions for so many people. I just had to tell an old lady some bad news. She recently came in with the group just before the battle started. Do you recall them?”
“Yes I do. What about her?”
“She’s dying. She has cancer and we have no way to treat her. Everything we once had is gone now. Poor thing. She’ll die in another month or two. All I can do is try to alleviate her pain somewhat, but that’s it.”
“We all die, Caroline. It’s simply part of life. I wonder if it isn’t a continuation of part of living.”
“What will you do about the spies?” Her blonde hair fell into her face and she paused to put it into a ponytail.
“I think we should simply send them back to where they came from. They have been watched and monitored since they arrived. I doubt they know much in terms of the town’s defenses or anything else of significance.”
“The woman worked in the hospital for a bit, but she wasn’t allowed to wander around by herself. I think they know that we know. Where was her husband or whatever he was to her?”
“He was doing grounds maintenance out near the airport with the others. He was never left alone, either. I think you’re right, though… about them knowing we know. In any event, their house was bugged and the Sheriff made a few recordings of their conversations.”
Avalon: Beyond the Retreat (The Avalon Series Book 2) Page 20
