Page 19 of Sanctuary

“Ah. Then that won’t work. We welcome any woman who wants to do good. But not men.”

I’ve already deduced that much. “But I can give you directions to get to that hotel they’ve taken over, so you can scope it out and decide if it’s something you’re able to tackle. Then maybe I can catch up with you somewhere?”

“Yes. That will work. Can you show me on a map?” She gestures and one of the women brings over a worn paper map book of the entire country. She flips through pages until she finds the one she wants, and then we both lean over to peer at it.

It takes a minute or two for me to orient myself, but I eventually find Monument on the map of western Virginia, and from there it’s easy to identify the established communities that still exist and the area south where the old hotel was located.

They’ll travel down to check it out and then head north to Monument. They’ll need to find volunteers to help if there’s anyhope of bringing down the gangs, and that’s as good a place as any to start from.

I’m excited when I finally say goodbye to them. Hopeful in a way I haven’t been in ages.

Not just that Del and I can survive. Not just that we can stay safe and have a somewhat decent life.

But that I might be able to do something—take action—to right some of what’s wrong in the world.

I never believed it possible before.

4

Two days later,I’ve delivered the package and am on my way back. All I got in return for the package is a sealed note to pass on to James. I have no idea what it says. No idea what was in the package to begin with.

I feel a bit like a drug mule, but I honestly can’t imagine that anything in either the package or the note would be a problem enough for me to not want to deliver them.

People keep a lot of trades secret nowadays. If you get your hands on medication or batteries or seasoning for food, you stay quiet about it so someone else doesn’t come along and take it from you by force.

So I’m not particularly worried about being drawn into anything unethical. It’s not like I’d ever agree to work for or with those criminals in the mountain fortress.

Not like someone else I know.

I haven’t seen a glimpse of Aidan since Maria sent him away. If he’s following or tracking me, he’s being sneaky about it. And I honestly can’t think of any reason why he would bother.

From his point of view, it probably made sense to take that package from me while I was sleeping. Then he could deliver ithimself and cut off my access to Sharpsburg business. But he didn’t catch me again before I delivered it, and he may or may not even know that I have a letter to pass on in return.

Aidan is practical more than anything else. He’s not going to go far out of his way or use up a lot of time and energy on a task that isn’t going to net him a pretty good profit. His grudge against me surely isn’t enough of an incentive.

On my way back to Sharpsburg, I make a point to stop at every established community and settlement in the area, asking about jobs they might need doing. I don’t have a lot of luck, since Aidan pretty much has a lock on this region, but I keep trying.

When I reach Sharpsburg, James appears pleased by my timely completion of the job. He gives me our agree-upon barrel of corn and also a bonus of a set of clothes from their stockpile, since I returned a day sooner than we agreed on. I pick out a pair of jeans and a long-sleeve shirt I think will fit Cole. It’s really hard to find stuff in his size, and everything he owns is threadbare.

James agrees to hold my earnings for me for a week so I don’t have to return to Monument immediately but also don’t make myself a mark for theft on the road for the next several days.

Then I head west into an area Aidan doesn’t travel so frequently.

The first settlement I aim for used to be a militia-held ranch. In the early years, militia groups were just as bad as the criminals, using violence to take whatever they wanted. But gradually this community has lost most of the truly violent types—they’ve either died or joined gangs or droves—and now it’s not much different than the fortified towns nearby. The people are unwelcoming and ingrown, but they aren’t actively dangerous.

I’ve talked to them a couple of times, but they’ve always said they prefer to take care of their own runs. But I decide it’s worth one more attempt since the compound is well-stocked and largeenough to offer a lot of jobs if they’d ever be willing to accept outside help.

One of the guards recognizes me and waves me in without too much of an interrogation. The leader of the community is a woman in her fifties named Agatha. She’s got a prematurely wrinkled face and steel gray hair pulled back in a tight bun, and she usually wears army fatigues.

She’s as hard as granite with a blunt manner and a quick intelligence.

I have to wait a couple of hours before I can see her. She’s either busy or pretending to be busy as a power play. I’m not surprised and don’t mind waiting.

I wait outside her office in the main building. I thought she was in there, but finally she walks in from outside and gestures me into the office without a word of greeting.

“You want work?” she asks, giving me a quick once-over. Agatha lives with much-younger male partner, but the first time I met her she propositioned me for a one-night stand. She evidently has sex with anyone who catches her eye. I politely declined, explaining that I don’t have sex with anyone. She accepted this answer without question or pressure, so I haven’t been worried that she resents my refusal.

“Yes. I thought I’d check in again. I know y’all mostly take care of yourselves, but I figured sometimes there’s a run that you don’t want to risk your own people on.”

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