“We should probably let everyone know where the cameras are stationed,” Wylie said. “I wouldn’t want them to think we’re spying on them.”
I shifted my view to the other screens, not wanting to intrude on their private moment. It was then that I noticed movement at the front gate and pointed it out to Wylie. He shifted the camera via remote to show four military Jeeps coming up the road in a single-file line. The United Forces had returned, just as Cipher and Macon predicted. What did they want with us now?
At my hip, my radio buzzed with noise. “Cipher, come in.” It was my brother’s voice on the walkie talkie.
“What’s up?” Cipher replied.
“We’ve got visitors. Four vehicles approaching from the east, headed towards our compound.”
“Military?” Cipher asked.
“Looks like it.”
“Fuck, not this again. All right, standby. I’m on my way up there. Don’t take any action.”
“Roger that, boss.”
My brother was a hothead who generally thought he should be in charge, so I appreciated his deferential tone when speaking to Cipher. I supposed we were all capable of growth.
I left my biscuits behind and walked out of the shade of the garage and into the bright afternoon sunlight, shielding my eyes to squint up at the watchtower where my brother was on patrol.Cipher was swiftly approaching from the other side of the cul-de-sac, his gait more lopsided in his haste to reach the tower. I decided to follow him up there to get a better look at what was going on.
“Hey,” I said to them both once I’d reached the top platform. Santiago had the rifle raised, looking through the weapon’s scope at our visitors. Cipher held the binoculars, which he passed over to me after he’d gotten a good look. Through their lenses I saw the same gray-haired woman as before, Captain Crenshaw, but there were a lot more soldiers with her this time, and they looked like they were ready for battle as they exited their vehicles in full tactical gear–face shields, helmets, body armor, the works.
“Shit, they mean business,” Santiago said, echoing my thoughts.
“Yeah, not good,” Cipher muttered. “Not good at all.”
We waited as Crenshaw took hold of the megaphone. The smile on her face was likely meant to be warm, but it looked a little forced. “Despite what it may look like, we are not here to invade you,” she called out.
“Coulda fooled me,” was Cipher’s response.
“You’ve injured your arm,” she said.
“Rabids,” he said curtly.
“That problem seems to be getting worse,” she said while Cipher only stared back at her, the line of his shoulders tense and ready. “To whom am I speaking?” she asked.
“Cipher,” he said begrudgingly into the megaphone, withholding his government name. We were outmanned and outgunned. Cipher must have done the calculus already. He wouldn’t risk our lives without an imminent threat to our safety.
“All right, Cipher, here’s the deal. Same as before, we’d like to come inside and take a look around, but this time, the request is non-negotiable.”
“And if we don’t comply?” he asked. His voice was calm, disinterested even, but there was sweat dripping down the back of his neck and collecting on his shirt collar. His good hand reached for his Glock as he silently unholstered it from his hip.
“Then we’ll have to enter by force. But, if you put down your weapons and allow us to enter peacefully, I can assure you, we will do our best not to disturb you, and when we are finished, you can carry on with the rest of your day.”
“Do you think she’s lying?” I asked Cipher and my brother.
“I don’t know, but we’re fucked either way,” Santiago said.
Cipher then countered her offer with, “How about this, Captain Crenshaw? We let a couple of you inside, but I keep my man here with his gun trained on your people and if shit goes sideways, then at least we both lose?”
She pursed her lips and crossed her arms. “That would require a lot of trust on my part,” she said at last.
“Ours as well.”
She took a moment to discuss it with her squad before addressing us again. “All right, Cipher. You have a deal. Four of us will enter, armed, and the rest of us will hang back, but I will require that you keep your gate open in case we need to retreat.”
Cipher lowered his megaphone and asked us both, “What do you guys think?”
