“Where’s he going to stay, especially if he does have his family with him?” She would never admit it to Sierra, or Crispin when he heard about her choice, but this was one reason she wanted the efficiency apartment. She could turn down Cyrus and his wife, Sandee, but if she had a spare bedroom, it would be hard to refuse giving the grandchildren a place to sleep. And Cyrus wouldn’t hesitate to use his children as the wedge to get as much from her as he could. Which wasn’t much, considering how little she had right now, but it still soured the day knowing that his children paid for his schemes because helping them meant helping him continue to do wrong, and that she would not do.
“Not all the apartments are occupied,” Sierra said in a small voice. “And we don’t have to pay . . .”
“That’s what you told him? You’ve got a place rent free? Child, what are you using for a brain these days?”
“The Others said we could live here. They’ve even given us some furniture and stuff.”
“They’re not giving you those things. They’re providing some furnishings that stay with the apartment. Those things are not for you to do with as you please. And living in those buildings isn’t free. Crispin doesn’t work in the Courtyard, so he pays rent like he would to any other landlord. For the folks who do work in the Courtyard, the rent is deducted from the pay up front—something you should think about if you’re going to live here.”
Sierra stared at her, her mouth hanging open.
“Well.” Twyla sighed. “You’d best decide quick if you want to find a job at a local business and pay rent same as Crispin or if you’re going to work in the Courtyard doing whatever you’re assigned to do.”
Sierra walked out of the room. A few moments later, Twyla heard the apartment door close.
It wasn’t surprising that the girl hadn’t taken it all in when the terms of employment were explained. They’d been told about working in the Courtyard shortly after the storm came through last month—the storm and the terror that had followed in its wake.
The terror hadn’t gone away. Not completely. No one said anything, but Twyla knew it by the way Eve and Pete Denby kept a sharp eye on their children, by the way Crispin called to check on her and Lizzy and Sierra a couple of times a day despite being with them each evening. She knew it by the way the Crows flew over to see what was happening at the apartments—curious about the humans, sure, but also watchful for what might whisper past the buildings unseen. She knew by the way the Wolves howled at night.
And she didn’t need to hear Meg Corbyn speak prophecy to know what would happen to the humans in this city if the Wolves stopped howling.
She needed to tell Crispin about this as soon as possible. And she needed to warn Meg about Cyrus. A lot of folks now were aware of what it meant when a girl had evenly spaced scars. Cyrus would look at Meg and see his ticket to wealth beyond measure. He wouldn’t consider that she might be treasured by someone else for very different reasons.
If he found an opportunity and acted on it, he might get them all killed.
Steve Ferryman handed Tolya’s letter back to Simon. “Are you limiting the potential settlers to Intuits and terra indigene?”
“Who else did you have in mind?” Simon asked.
“Simple Life folk.” Steve looked at Henry, Tess, Vlad, and Elliot before focusing on Simon. “I hadn’t realized they were following what was happening in the Midwest so closely until James Gardner asked Roger Czerneda about who was going to resettle the empty towns. Simple Life families have the same challenges as any human group—limited space and opportunities for their children. There are folks on Great Island who are interested in resettling. A few Simple Life youngsters are going to resettle in the River Road Community and are happy about having their own place that still isn’t far from home and family. But others . . .” He sat back. “I have a feeling some of the Simple Life folk don’t want to abandon their way of life altogether, but they’re looking to expand what is available to them. The Intuit way of life is somewhere between Simple Life and what most people living in Lakeside would consider the necessities of life.”
“Do any of the Simple Life youngsters know about livestock? About cattle?” Henry asked.
Steve nodded. “Dairy cows. Horses. Some sheep and goats. Chickens.”
Simon scratched behind one ear. None of the humans on the ranches between Prairie Gold and Bennett had survived the Elders’ wrath. But not all the houses and outbuildings had been destroyed, and the animals were still out there. The Intuits who worked on the Prairie Gold ranch couldn’t handle all the livestock, but Simple Life humans occupying the empty ranches might not provoke the Elders into another attack. “We’ll consider them.”
“How do you want to do this?” Steve asked. “Hold a job fair?”
They all stared at him.
“You mean have a hoard of humans descend on us looking for work?” Vlad finally asked.
Steve winced. “Not exactly. Well, sort of. If I can have a copy of the list of desired skills, I’ll ask Lois Greene, the editor of the Great Island Reporter, to print a special page with the information, and I’ll see it’s distributed to the Simple Life folk as well as the Intuits in Ferryman’s Landing.” He blew out a breath. “You should know I’ve been receiving some queries from Intuit settlements in the Midwest asking if the terra indigene are going to allow the empty towns to be resettled. Obviously they can’t come here for a personal interview, but it’s something for the terra indigene leaders to think about.”
“None of those places will be human only or human controlled,” Simon said. “Not anymore.”
“I think everyone who is inquiring realizes that ‘empty’ means empty of humans, not empty of everyone,” Steve replied.
“I want to hear more about this job fair,” Tess said. “Telling the Intuits and Simple Life folk about potential work in Bennett is one thing, but word will spread to the humans out there, and what do we do with the mob who thinks they’re entitled to work whether they’re qualified or not—or whether the terra indigene want them?”
“We’re not going to advertise it beyond Great Island,” Steve said.
“Humans will notice that many humans are gathering at the Courtyard,” Henry said. “Some will be curious and join them, will find out why they’re there and apply for work.”
“The people who have approached me have been thinking about this for a while,” Steve said. “Maybe they’ve been wanting a change for a lot longer but didn’t see how to make it happen. And maybe this is an opportunity for some of your people too. Is there anyone here who is able to run a business but will remain subordinate if he or she stays in Lakeside?”
Simon sat up, thinking hard about the question and about the Courtyard residents. There was at least one who fit that description.
“I’ll specify that this job fair is about taking a job in Bennett, and that the interview here is a preliminary one. The final decision will be made by the leaders in Bennett, so there is the possibility that a person will be sent back to Great Island if they aren’t suitable.”
“Or if they’re uncomfortable when they get there,” Vlad said.
Young Intuits had already traveled to Bennett to help clean up the town—organizing food supplies and discarding food that had gone bad being some of the first things that had been done. Some of those youngsters, mostly male, had remained in Bennett hoping to find other kinds of work. Some had expressed interest in going on to the next town that needed cleanup and had been reassigned. Others had returned to Great Island, unnerved by the feel of the Elders who were watching the town.