Page 23

She struggles to fit in and she’s not doing too well. ”

Travis stopped, turned, and regarded Stephen with raised eyebrows.

“You’re joking, right?”

Stephen ran his hand over his hair nervously. “What do you mean?”

“Blanche does not try to fit in at all. She yells at everyone all the time and is a right, royal bitch. She lied to Linda about the Imotrex and accused her of stealing. She also shoved my very pregnant wife when Katie tried to calm the situation down. So do not tell me that Blanche is trying. ”

His brow puckering, Stephen averted his eyes, obviously weighing what his next words should be. “Okay. So maybe she’s not trying, but this has been difficult for her. She was raised dirt poor, but her Mama always took good care of her and treated her like a princess. When she married me, I made sure she got everything she deserved. ”

Travis sighed, rubbing his tired eyes. “Stephen, why are you telling me this? What do you want?”

Stephen fumbled with the buttons of his shirt nervously. “We want to go home. Blanche hates it here. She wants the Hummer back and anything you guys took from our estate and she wants to go home. ”

“No. The Hummer is an important part of our defense and anything salvaged from your home is part of the fort’s inventory now. If you want to leave, we can get you a car, a few days of food, and a gun, but then you guys are on your own. ” Travis hated the words coming out of his mouth, but this was the law of the new world. As mayor of the fort, it was his responsibility to keep its inhabitants safe and as healthy as possible.

“You can’t do that. It’s our property. ” Stephen’s voice rose in pitch and a few people walking by hurried on. “We paid for all of that. Our money.

Our property. Give it back. ”

“Stephen, no. We took food and anything else the fort needed when we salvaged your place. It’s part of the stores now. How are we supposed to know what we took at this point? That was months ago. We probably ate the food by now. ” Travis set his hands on his hips and gazed steadily at Stephen. “And why do you want the Hummer?”

“Because it’s ours!”

“Are you going to use it to drive you and Blanche out to areas to salvage?

Where are you going to get your food? Your supplies? Chances are, we give you the Hummer, you take off, and we’ll find you two moaning outside our walls in a few days. ”

“Don’t underestimate us, Travis. ”

“Blanche won’t even clean her own damn room right now. Who is going to cook?”

“Actually, Blanche thought maybe we could get a few people to go with us if we promised them some jewelry and other valuables,” Stephen answered in a cold, angry voice. He was growing impatient. He was used to being able to push around local officials. He did not like being rebuffed.

“You mean stuff that is worthless now that the zombies have risen. ” Travis shook his head. “Unbelievable. Really. ”

“Why do you want us here? You hate us! Everyone does. You hate our wealth and our prestige. ”

Travis gripped Stephen’s arm tightly with one hand. “Stephen, you’re not wealthy or prestigious anymore. Now, you’re just another living human being. You’re a part of this town. This fort. I wish to God you two would settle down and just adapt. Look, I get that you used to be spoiled rotten, but those days are gone. All of us need to carry our own damn weight and help everyone out here in this fort. Do you get that? Do you understand that? We can’t afford to be selfish anymore. ”

Wrenching his arm away, Stephen looked unsure of what to say next. He rubbed his arm, his eyes cast downward.

“The old world is gone. This is the new world. You gotta adapt. Be a part of us. Settle down. Learn some useful skills. Chip in. Make some friends, Stephen. ”

“You know, everyone keeps talking about the old world being gone. But it’s really not. It’s just waiting for us to push back the dead then everything will go back to the way it was. I will rise to the top again. I will take care of my wife. You’ll go back to being a foreman of a construction site, working for me, not strutting around acting like you’re the mayor. ”

Stephen’s voice was angry, but defensive. “All these people you want us to be friends with will go back to their pathetic lives. You think everyone is equal, but people with power, like me, have that power because we worked hard to gain it and we deserve it. ”

“Stephen, you got your money cause your great-grandpa was smart enough to take advantage of the railroad when it came through these parts way back in the day. He worked his ass off to be a success and bring commerce to this area. He put this town on the map. He built this hotel.

He brought jobs into this town and he made it happen. Hell, this town is named after your great-grandma. I’ve been in that little museum down the hall that shows him working side by side with the townspeople. So maybe you should follow his example and join us in making this fort a success. Let that be your legacy. ”

“You don’t get it, Travis. You think I’m just a spoiled, rich man who never did anything to earn my keep. Well, I have. I have worked damn hard.

And I love my wife. I want her to be happy and she is not happy. She wants our supplies back and our Hummer. She wants an armed escort and some people to come along to work the estate. I think she deserves those things. Being here is hard on her. And being a good, decent husband, I plan to do what she needs to make her safe and happy. ”

Stephen was close to being enraged.