“Where is Bunker 114?” Makara asked. “We will leave immediately.”
“114 is not far – it lies in the heart of Cold Mountain, about fifteen miles northwest.”
“And he never returned?” Makara asked.
“No,” Ohlan said. “After losing so much, I cannot risk more men and resources. In fact, I couldn’t get anyone to go even if I wanted to. The widows still mourn the loss of their husbands. You can hear them weeping, in the night. And it’s been such a cold, dry year. The crop is pitiful. Worse, those men had weapons and supplies with them, things that cannot be replaced.” Ohlan sighed. “If only I could get them back.”
“We will go,” Makara said. “We will bring them back.”
I looked at Makara, and looked at Ohlan. He gave a small, satisfied smile.
“Makara, I do not want to give you false hope. We have not heard from them since the day after they set out. Your brother…”
“…May still be alive. Even if he is dead, I need to know the truth. I couldn’t live knowing he might be out there, still.”
“Honorable. But what of your friend, here?”
“I will help her,” I said. “These supplies must be very useful to you. Surely, you would like them back?”
Ohlan licked his lips. “Yes, of course I would.”
“We will bring them back for you. In exchange, we would like to stay here, in safety.”
Ohlan frowned. “Now, that is a lot to ask.”
“What’s the difference?” I asked. “You lost five, and you would gain two. Perhaps more, if there are any survivors. Furthermore, you would get the supplies.”
Ohlan considered. I couldn’t believe I was convincing him. Makara was quiet. Even she seemed impressed.
Ohlan nodded. “Very well. It is done. You can sleep here tonight. Ren will see to your meal, and give you enough for your journey there and back. You can start tomorrow morning.”
“Thank you, Ohlan,” Makara said. “We will not disappoint you.”
Ohlan smirked. “Disappoint me? I have nothing to lose.”
“We’ll bring those supplies back. I’ll make sure of it.”
“And I hope you can find out what happened at 114,” Ohlan said. “The supplies are most important, of course, but I would like to know what was strong enough to kill a patrol of my best men.”
When Ohlan put it that way, going to Cold Mountain seemed like a bad idea. Yet, this was our only way into a safe home. And it was the only way Makara could find out about Samuel.
“Ren, show our guests to the common house.”
Ren, the guard who had brought us here, saluted with his hand over his heart. “Yes, Elder.” He turned to us. “Follow me.”
We followed Ren down the road from which we came. The street was empty, though yellow lights illumined a building that seemed to be a saloon. Inside I could hear raucous laughter and booming, electronic music.
We walked until we stood in front of a sheet metal building along the wall.
“This is the common house,” Ren said. “You will rest here tonight.”
We went inside. The house was empty, and looked like it had not been used in a long time. Several rows of bunks lined one half of the room, containing dirty mattresses. Still, the prospect of sleeping on something other than rock or floor was good. The other half of the house contained a table. A large pot sat in one of the corners.
“What’s that?” I asked.
Ren looked from me, to Makara, wondering if I was joking. “It’s a piss pot.”
Makara smiled at my embarrassment as Ren turned to leave.
“I’ll be back with food,” he said. “Ohlan wants you up and ready to go before dawn. You are not to leave this building until then.”
“We don’t plan to,” Makara said.
When Ren walked out, we stashed our stuff by the bunks in the corner. Makara took my pack – the one with the batts in it, and hid it away under the corner bed where it would be out of sight.
We then went to the table, and sat.
“So, where did you get that extra gun?” I asked.
Makara turned back to me. She was tired, and did not look like she wanted to talk.
“It was for safekeeping,” she said. “I did not know if I could trust you. I took it from Brux’s pack after I knocked you out. I guess we’ll be getting them back in the morning.”
“Yeah. I guess.”
“Look,” Makara said. “I’m sorry. I see you’re not going to try to shoot me with it, now. I’ll give it to you tomorrow. Promise.”
Makara seemed far away.
“How are you doing?” I asked.
“Just…shocked. Completely shocked. I thought he was dead these last two years. Now, he might be alive. Still, probably dead. But there is hope and I don’t know what to do with it.” She sighed. “I don’t know if I can sleep tonight. My brother was all I had, Alex.”
“He might still be alive,” I said. “That would be something.”
“I don’t want to get my hopes up,” Makara said. “I don’t want this to be just another link on the chain of disappointments.”
“Either way,” I said. “At least we’ll have somewhere to stay.”
“Yes. But what’s the point of being alive when you have nothing to be alive for?”
“Makara…wasn’t it you who told me we went down fighting?”
She sighed. “Yes. But…I feel different now.”
“That’s all it is: a feeling. You never know what could be coming around.”
“Sometimes, I feel like I’m just saying words. Words can’t bring my brother back.”
“Maybe we just have to believe. Even if it’s in nothing.”
“Believe in belief?”
“Maybe. Tomorrow, we will be closer to knowing the truth.”
“That’s what I’m most afraid of. I’ve lived my whole life the past two years on the assumption that he’s dead. What will he think of me and what I’ve done to survive? I did all those things because I didn’t care. But now, maybe I do.”
“There is a time for that,” I said. “But it is not now. Now, we have a chance to rest. So let’s do that.”
We sat there for a few minutes. Makara calmed down. Somehow, my words had done the trick.
The thing was, even I didn’t know how much I believed in them.
I thought about Ohlan. Living here under the dominion of that man seemed an evil fate in and of itself.
“Was Ohlan always like this?”
“Yes. He is a smart man, but he is also cruel. But it is his cruel and calculating ways that helped him to build Oasis. People follow him without question. If they didn’t, they would be ostracized, which is as good as death.”
“I almost don’t want to stay here,” I said. “But it’s hard to argue with a full stomach. It doesn’t have to be forever, I guess.”
We still had the batts. Surely, that had to be worth something somewhere. We could always find another town.
At that moment, the door opened. Ren walked in, carrying two steaming trays of food. My mouth watered, and my stomach growled.
He set the trays on the table.
“There is a well behind the house, near the wall,” he said.
Ren left without another word.
“Charming,” I said.
“This place does not like strangers, that is for sure.” Makara stood. “I’ll go fill our canteens. You can start eating without me.”