“I guess you were unemployed for a minute there.”
We break the hug, and I pull him in for another one. “This one’s from Dino.”
He holds me firmly. “Received.”
We turn around at the sound of approaching footsteps. “Is everybody okay?” Timothy calls.
“Nanny Spider!” River crouches with his arms open.
Timothy wraps him in a hug. “My brave boy!”
“You two showed up suspiciously fast,” I tell Josh.
“We came across refugees from this town yesterday. Finn mentioned you’d be coming through here, so we changed course.”
“I was close enough to feel that Nanny Spider was in danger,” River says. I wonder if his hair is even redder now, but I likely forgot how red it was. It still surprises me how such delicate features can coexist with someone so deadly.
“I can’t communicate with River like his people can, but we're able to sense each other to a degree,” Timothy says. “Finn, are you hurt?”
“I’m okay.”
I clear my throat as some of the townsfolk begin to leave their homes, watching us with suspicion.
“Trey, you guys spread out and look for more Raiders that might be hiding. High alert.”
“Roger that.”
I walk to face the gathering crowd. Even with the Raiders lying dead around us, they look terrified and traumatized. “You’re safe,” I say loudly, making sure they all can hear. “I’m sorry this happened to you, but I need some volunteers to help dump the trash into the river.”
Almost everyone raises their hands, even some of the children. We drag the bodies to the river and let the current take them away. Once the town is clear of Raiders—dead or alive—the residents take to the streets to celebrate. We’re invited to eat at one of their restaurants, and they also offer us rooms at the nearby motel. I sit around a table with Finn, Josh, River, and Timothy. It should feel strange shifting from combat to dinner so quickly, but it’s the circle of life as I know it.
“Show Timothy the gift you brought him,” Josh says.
River opens his bag and takes out a small black cowboy hat with a chin strap. “This is for you, Nanny Spider.”
“It’s beautiful!”
“I took it from a monkey doll.”
“Oh, well. Thank you.”
“Did you get my letters?” River asks Finn.
“Yes. All twenty-three of them.”
River scowls. “That’s it? What happened to the rest?”
The rest?
“I told you he wouldn’t get all of them,” Josh says. “The roads are becoming more dangerous.” He bumps his knee with mine. “I’m sorry about your squad.”
I nod and leave it at that.
“Denver is the source,” Finn says in a low voice. “It’s the heart of everything they do. We need to get the king of High Hope to join us, and then we’ll have the troops we need to strike.”
“You’ve met that king before?” I ask River.
“A few times. Lyla works for him as an advisor.”
