Eight

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"Hola!"

The woman stood right in the middle of the doorway, even as the doors swung open.

The woman was a Hispanic. She wore a flannel suit over her wide frame. Her hips jutted out and swished wildly as she walked towards us. Her dark, black hair was curled and cascade over her shoulders, framing her face.

"I'm Nita, Mayor of Topeka."

Even from here I could see right through the act. This was the woman who enforced the rule that locked an old woman in the dark. This was the woman who ordered her tunnels to be filled with nerve gas every night.

She spread her arms out wide. "Welcome to Topeka!" She beamed. Her voice was high pitched and cheerful. "Lamar here will show you to your quarters. But first we must chat. Tomorrow will be your grand tour of the city. After the tour you will choose a job. Every citizen must contribute or this city will die. After you pick the job, an instructor will be assigned to you and will train you. After you get settled, you may be able to buy a different residence. As soon as you start working without the instructor, you'll need to move out of the dorms."

I didn't know what to think. Was the city peaceful on the inside and dangerous on the outside? Or was this entire place decked up in military? It was hard to tell from her brief speech.

"The laws of the old world still apply within these doors. There are three branches of military that offer jobs. The street police, the Gate Guards, and the Runners. The first two are obvious. The Runners are those who leave the city ever week to collect supplies. Now, Lamar, take over. May I please see Kelly Movlid and Sara McEntire?"

Me? Why would she want to see me and Sara?

Sara and I broke away from the crowd and followed Nita into a tiny door. The door was across the tiny river.

It looked like and interrogation room. One table in the center of a room with bare, tile walls. However there was no one-way mirror.

Sara ad I took a seat across from the Mayor.

"You two are the ones that fought the Butterflies during the ambush of the bus. Am I correct."

It was as if her cheerful demeanor dissolved. Her voice was now hard as stone and her deep green eyes looked form me to Sara and back again, intensely.

"Yes," I managed, my voice shaking. Sara was a much better talker than I was.

"So you too have experience in war?"

"Not necessarily," Sara said. Her sassiness had returned even though Jasmine slept soundly against her chest.

"But you are skilled fighters?"

"Yes."

"I'd like to make you a deal. The Runners' salary is three thousand a month. They are the wealthiest in the city. You two would be perfect Runners. I'd like to ask you to make a decision now."

I looked at Sara. Her face was blank. She was so good at hiding emotions.

"I'll do it," she said softly. Her voice and eyes were distant.

I looked back to Nita. "Where will Jasmine be while we're out?"

"Well the Runners can get stuck out in the city for as much as weeks at a time. We will assign her a babysitter for all of your outings."

"It has to be somebody I trust," I said. My shyness was replaced by a protective, motherly feeling.

"I suppose it'll be a while until you find anyone to trust around here," she said. "We can put her in the nursery with Yerlin. She's the Topeka nanny. She watches over the newborns."

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