Deadland Rising (part 3 of the Deadland Saga)

Uncertainty (Chapter 5)

"I thought these guys were supposed to be your friends," I snapped at Marco.

Marco held up his hands. "They were. They are." He turned to the man at his side. "What's going on? I tried to reach you on the radio but never got a response."

"We haven't had the resources to listen on the radios lately," The man replied. "There's been a lot going on."

Marco's lips thinned. "You'll have to fill me in later, after we get these folks to New Eden. Come on, we've been on the road a long time and are beat. I gave them my word we'd be safe at New Eden."

I had to shade my eyes against the sunlight to make out the man's features. He was short, fair-skinned, with curly brown hair that had likely been much shorter and groomed before the outbreak.

The man's lips thinned. "It's nothing personal, but we've had to take new precautions since all the squadrons followed the herds south. Ever since the migration, the Black Sheep have really put a hit on New Eden. They sent in two assassins last week alone. So, you can see why we can't let anyone armed enter New Eden without quarantine and interviews."

"That's bullshit," Jase said at my side. "We're obviously not bandits. Look at us. Half of our group is women. We even have a kid with us. Have you ever seen bandits like this before?"

The man scowled. "And one of the assassins was a teenaged girl. Listen, I get that you're not happy. That's fair. But, it doesn't change the rules. I won't negotiate on this. If you want to enter New Eden, you have to surrender your weapons until you're cleared."

Clutch took a step forward. "And how long will that take?"

"Since Marco led you here, probably two days at most," the man replied. "The choice is yours. I'll give you five minutes to make your decision."

The man tilted his head at Marco. "In the meantime, you can fill me in. Where is the rest of your squadron? Why did they send you ahead?"

Even though we'd all gathered around Clutch, no one spoke. We all watched Marco.

"I'm all that's left," Marco said after a long pause. "The Black Sheep had ambushed their community." He pointed our way. "We moved in to help, but things went bad. There's no one left. Everyone's gone."

The man placed a hand on Marco's shoulder. "I'm sorry for your loss. I hope your squadron was able to put just as much a hurtin' on the Black Sheep."

"We did, but one managed to get away." Marco took a deep breath. "And, these folks say he was missing three fingers on his left hand."

"Hodge," the man said, the name dripping with hatred. "That son of a bitch just won't die. Well, I guess we couldn't expect to be that lucky. At least you got the rest. Not that it helps the pain. Good people were lost, and the news is going to hit New Eden hard. Especially since the capital had ordered all but one of our remaining squadrons to the south."

"South?" Marco asked. "Why?"

"A lot's happened this week. I'll fill you in once we reach town. You've been through enough and probably want to sleep in a safe place tonight."

"Do I ever," Marco said quickly. "Give us a moment."

The man nodded and took several steps back.

Marco joined us. "How about it? You guys ready to give New Eden a shot?"

After a moment of internal debate, I shrugged. "We didn't drive all this way for nothing. I'd say we give it a shot."

"Oh, what the hell," Griz said. "We didn't come all this way for a Sunday drive."

Others chimed in before Clutch spoke loudly. "We've come a long way. And, we all could use a place to kick up our heels for a bit. Marco's like us. He's a survivor, and I believe him. New Eden is worth a shot. All right. We've had this debate a hundred times. This is the last vote. New Eden or Fox Park. Each person has to make his or her own decision." He lifted a hand. "All in favor of New Eden, raise your hand."

One by one, the hands went up. Benji was watching Frost, and his small hand shot up as soon as his grandfather raised his hand, like always. Jase and then Hali grudgingly lifted his hand after all other hands rose. It was unanimous.

"Okay," I said, not really knowing what to say. "I guess it's settled. New Eden, it is."

Marco grinned at us before waving Justin back over. "You guys won't regret it," he said. "New Eden is good people.

The man stepped over, followed by several others. "So you've decided?"

Clutch made eye contact with each of us one last time before speaking. "We have. We'll follow you to New Eden under the condition that we can each retain a weapon for self-defense."

"That's not our policy," the man replied.

"Where we came from, we'd let folks keep knives," Jase said. "You can't leave folks completely defenseless, not in this world."

"No guns," the man said after a moment. "Not until you're cleared."

"No guns," Clutch echoed.

"Fair enough." He motioned to their SUVs. "I'll ride with Marco in your vehicle. You'll ride with my people and follow us to New Eden."

"What are you going to do with our Humvee?" Griz asked. "Because I've got a lot of hours with her and would hate to see her go."

"We'll park it-her-until you're done with quarantine, at which time she's all yours again."

"Including everything inside?" Griz countered.

"Including everything inside, as long as it doesn't pose a risk to New Eden citizens. Marco's been with us since the beginning, and I trust his judgment. If you don't mean to do harm to anyone in New Eden, you'll have nothing to fear from us."

He then called to his men to collect our weapons. "The name's Justin, and I serve as the mayor of New Eden, the safest place in the Midwest. You have my word. You'll be safe there."

He motioned to Marco. "Marco, you can fill me in on what's happened in the past month."

We'll see, I thought to myself as I gave up my rifle. Sunlight glistened off the barrel as I handed it over in exchange for the promise of safety. I was relieved we stashed most of our supplies, but I had a tough time believing Marco would keep his word. After all, New Eden was his home. Why wouldn't he tell them?

I didn't have long to dwell on the situation, because the short drive felt like it took only seconds before we came to a fenced-in small town flying a huge American flag with an eagle stitched over it.

New Eden.

We had arrived.