My eyebrows dart upwards. What has Harriet done now?
He must see the question on my face because Matt shakes his head and mouthslateras he grabs his wife’s hand and drags her towards their caravan. I shake my head and watch them go. Some things never change.
Once they’re out of sight, I stride over to where the four leaders stand, the knot in my stomach tightening as I ready to defend my decision. “Councillors,” I say, inclining my head in respect.
Katherine waves me off. “Don’t start with that formal shit, Rhys,” she says with a roll of her eyes. “You know as well as I do that we’re nothing more than glorified desk jockeys.”
Adam snorts. “Ain’t that the truth. You’d think in the apocalypse that paperwork would be a distant memory, but apparently not.” He’s the newest elected member of the leadership and a few years younger than the other three. “If I’d known I’d be sitting at a desk all day, filling out forms and reading reports, I’d never have applied for election.”
“We warned you,” Elsa says with a smile as she bumps her shoulder into his.
Katherine grins in agreement.
The only one not smiling and joking around is Charles. He’s the oldest of the four and one of the first to be elected leader. He’s staring at the large group of people, his grey brows pulled down into a frown.
“How did you find so many people?” he asks, turning his frown to me.
“They were Scourge captives.”
He makes a noise of disapproval. “And you brought all of themhere? When we’re already full of people?”
Here we go. While I understand where he’s coming from—Haven is almost to capacity with the food and water we have—he’s also kind of a dick. Even more than I am. “Well, I couldn’t exactly leave them there. A lot of them lack the skills needed to survive outside with the infected, and some were too injured. Would you rather I had left them to die?” I arch an eyebrow at him.
“Of course not!” he sputters, looking at me in horror. “But wasn’t there any other settlements along the way that could have taken them?”
“You mean the Lodge?” There’s a bitter edge to my voice.
He nods.
“I would have, if they hadn’t allied with the Scourge and attacked us.”
All four pairs of eyes widen. The blood drains from Elsa's and Katherine’s faces while Adam looks like he’s about to be sick. Charles looks less disturbed and more annoyed by the revelation.
“What?” Adam says, shaking his head. He’s the most shocked out of the four of them, which makes sense considering he originally came from there. “Mark wouldn’t do that. He hates the Scourge just as much as the rest of us.”
“Well, he did. We have confirmation from one of his men that not only did he ally with the Scourge, but he used me and the guys as pawns to secure a better position for himself.” Anger sparks in my chest at what that bastard did.
Charles’s face pinches like he just bit into a sour lemon. “I’m assuming that means we’re no longer allies, then.”
No shit unless you want to deal with potential rapists and murderers. I bite my tongue and simply nod. “We should update our defences since some members of the Lodge have been here and could feed the Scourge vital information.”
Katherine nod vigorously. “Excellent idea,” she says, clapping her hands together.
Adam and Elsa make noises of agreement.
Charles just sighs. “Are you sure that’s necessary?”
“Completely.” After the brutal attack the Scourge launched at us last month that set this whole journey in motion, I’m not fucking around with people’s safety. Especially with Ollie being here now. While I might have told her I wanted to be friends, I’d be blind not to see the way she looks at me.
Or the way I look at her.
I’m not stupid or naïve enough to think that we’ll always stay as friends. My attraction to her is only growing—along with my feelings—so the idea of her being in danger makes me sick to my stomach.
“I’ll set up a meeting for tomorrow,” Adam says before turning on his heel and marching away, still looking nauseous.
Elsa moves up to me and pats my shoulder. “Thank you for bringing these people home safely.”
Katherine echoes the sentiment before the two of them walk back into the main building. Charles lingers, a frown on his weathered face as his clear blue eyes flick to the new residents of Haven with suspicion and doubt.
