More cheers and applause came forth. Summer took a quick visual survey and it appeared all but the one man who’d heckled her had gotten on board.
She brought her arms down and let go of Liz and Krista’s hands. Her two co-leaders stepped off the podium and returned to their positions along the side of the platform.
Summer closed her speech paper along the same fold as before, knowing the rest by heart. “In closing, we will be holding services for all those who have been lost. Everyone who’d like to pay their respects can do so at that time. The wall behind you has information regarding how rotations will be handled. Please keep your visitation short, as I’m sure there will be many behind you, waiting to do the same. That’s it for now. Thank you for coming.” She raised both hands in the air with closed fists; so did Krista and Liz, just as they had planned. “Long live Nirvana!”
Most of the crowd did the same with their arms and hands, answering back tenfold. “Long live Nirvana!”
CHAPTER 32
Rod Zimmer pushed the door open to the locker room with a jam of his forearm, then walked the middle aisle, taking him past two guards who were bent over, lacing their combat boots on a raised bench. “Where’s your boss?”
The larger of the two craned his neck to look up as he pointed to the right, aiming his finger at the door leading to the armory. “In there. But you might want to wait until she’s done.”
“This can’t wait,” Zimmer said, his arms pumping to match the speed of his walk. He plowed through the second door, using the same stab maneuver he’d used on the first.
“There you are,” he said when Krista’s face came into view. “I’ve been looking for you.”
“Well, you found me,” she said, putting a pistol on the staging rack and grabbing the one next to it.
“What the hell is going on? Why wasn’t I told?”
“About what?” she said, pressing the magazine release button, then racking the slide. It locked open. She checked the contents of the chamber, then freed the slide before putting the magazine back into the weapon and slotting it in the rack.
“About this new Triad Council—”
“—Ruling Triad.”
“Okay, Ruling Triad, or whatever the hell you three are calling it.”
She shrugged. “Your consult wasn’t needed, Rod.”
“You can’t do an end run like that. I’m a member of The Committee, in case you’ve forgotten. All major decisions require a vote. In other words, they must go through me.”
“Not anymore. That’s been disbanded.”
Zimmer sucked in a lip, holding back what he really wanted to say. “You can’t do that, Krista.”
“Well, we just did. What’s done is done.”
Zimmer wasn’t sure how to respond, her words and her tone taking him by surprise.
Krista continued inspecting pistols, looking more interested in her routine weapons check than in dealing with the heat in his words. She pinched her brow, never taking her eyes from the gun in her hand. “Nirvana needed a new direction, Rod. Something to galvanize the citizens and serve as a distraction with all that’s happened. So we girls got together and decided to make a few changes. For the greater good.”
Rod snorted a breathy huff. “You know, history is full of power-hungry dictators making changes that were supposed to be for the greater good. Like Germany of the 1940s. And we all know how well that worked out—for the greater good.”
“All we did was form a new ruling team. That’s all. Nothing sinister, I promise you.”
“No, what you did was choose Summer over me.”
“Relax, Rod. You’re completely misreading the situation. Nothing is going to change. I simply convinced Liz that it would be better if we grabbed some of the power from Summer while we could. You know, all in the name of showing a softer side with a woman-led team.”
“Yeah, I get that part. I was there for the announcement, remember.”
“Once she and I explained to Summer that a three-headed approach would help alleviate some of the anxiety in the ranks, the girl agreed. She’s not exactly the most confident leader right now. I had to move while I could.”
“And you just tossed me aside in the process? I thought you and I were partners.”
“We are. But there’s a new dynamic at play after what happened at the Trading Post. And with Morse’s cancer. Summer is vulnerable right now. I had to do this, before she found her footing. An all-woman council seemed like the easiest way to work myself inside.”
“So where does that leave me?”
“Your job hasn’t changed, except you’ll be reporting directly to me.”
“That’s unacceptable. I demand to be heard.”
“By whom? All that’s left of the Committee is Liz and me. And now Summer.”
“That little snot—” Zimmer said.
“This keeps me close to her and in the loop. Isn’t that what you wanted? For me to keep her in line?
“Yes, but—”
“This is the most effective way, Rod. Whatever you need can go through me. I’ll take care of it. She’ll be none the wiser.”
He paced the room, walking from one end to the other and back again, turning every five steps.
Krista stopped him with an arm grab. “Don’t make a big stink about it. Otherwise, all the groundwork I’m laying will be for nothing. I know what I’m doing.”
Zimmer appreciated her candor and her softer tone, both working to calm the fire inside him. “You better be right about this.”
“I am, trust me. This is how it needs to be. We stay close and lead from within. Right now, I’m in her circle of trust and I plan to stay there.”
“Which is a good thing.”
“She’s constantly asking for my advice, so this seemed like the right move at the right time, Krista said. “As long as she thinks I’m on her side and have her back, I’ll be able to control things. Isn’t that exactly what you wanted?”
“Actually, what I wanted was for you to be in charge. We talked about that.”
“That was before Edison’s dying wish. Don’t forget the Rules of Succession, Rod. What’s done is done. If I don’t follow the rules, someone will notice. Now is not the time to start breaking traditions.”
“I still don’t like this one bit. Especially with Liz involved. She’s just another one of Edison’s clones, all kumbaya and hugs. You know how that’ll play out.”
“Don’t worry about Liz. I can handle her, too. Her mind is in a million places right now, with Stuart’s death and all. They were more than friends, in case you didn’t know. That, too, makes her pliable. This is our shot, Rod. Right here and right now. I had to take it.”
Zimmer nodded, but held his tongue.
Krista let go of his arm. “You need to take a breath and let this go. I’ll work our agenda from the inside. Then we’ll reposition as we go. It’s the only way to get where we want to be.”
“Okay, I’ll let you run with this and see how it goes.”
“Don’t forget, Summer will be busy learning her new job and trying to deal with the aftermath of Edison’s death. You’ll be free to work your magic while nobody is looking. There’s real value in that.”
“True,” Zimmer said, pausing while the scenario played out in his head. “But let me make one thing perfectly clear. If I sense, even for a second, that this is spinning out of control, I’m going to take that little shit out. And I don’t want you standing in the way when I do.”