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“Or, maybe they’re just keeping the guns in the town,” Stan suggested.
Justin shook his head. “They’d want them up there, if they had them, at the first line of defense.”
There was a chinking sound, like a chain being pulled, and the garage door in the center of the wall began to rise. They drove the wagon through the entrance, and the silence around them was unsettling. A large group of people stood on the other side of the gate, lining the road on both sides, and more crowded on the wood stairs that led to the top of the wall. It was so quiet Carly could hear the leather creak on Shadowfax’s harness. To her relief, she saw children among them and a few pregnant women.
Shadowfax rumbled and tossed her head, unaccustomed to seeing so many people together. Carly understood the feeling. She held Dagny tightly and stayed near the spot where the gun was taped under the seat.
They stopped, and the gate was lowered behind them. The people crowded around their wagon, but kept back a few respectful feet. Carly’s breath began to come faster as her anxiety rose.
“Forgive the crowd’s curiosity.” Carly recognized the speaker as the older man from on top of the wall. He was on the slender side and tall, with gray stubble that lined his jaw. “You’re the first people we’ve let in since the Crisis, and yours is the first baby we’ve seen with any outsider. Name’s Tom Clark. This lovely lady is my wife, Cynthia.”
“Pleased to meet you,” Cynthia murmured. Her eyes were fastened on Dagny, as were her husband’s. The man stared at the baby as though he had never seen one before. His eyes flicked up to Carly. “Were any of you Infected?”
“All immune,” Justin replied. “You’ve seen the baby. Now step away.”
Sam sat up and gave a soft rumble to punctuate Justin’s words. Not a growl, but a rumble that made his point, nonetheless. The man noticed him for the first time and retreated, his eyes wide. “Is that a wolf?”
“Yes,” Justin said, his tone curt. Tension tightened his shoulders, and Carly wanted to hug him. She could tell Justin wasn’t concerned for their safety as his hands hung loose at his sides, not hovering at the ready near his weapons. She supposed it was being around so many strangers and having so many people stare at his wife and baby that made him tense.
“My God, he’s huge.”
Carly scratched Sam behind the ears. “He’s getting big, aren’t you, boy?” Sam glanced back at Carly, and as she’d hoped, some of the wolf’s tension eased. It wouldn’t do them any good if Sam snarled and scared the people before they could trade and acquire permission to pass through their town and continue on their way.
“Please, come to our house for a bit of refreshment,” Cynthia said, beckoning to them to follow her. Her smile was warm and friendly, as though she already knew them. It was striking after months of encountering nothing but wary travelers, bandits, or those whose minds had been burned away by the fever.
Justin considered her offer and then nodded. Following Tom and Cynthia, who were strolling hand in hand like a pair of teenagers, they drove the wagon down the main street to a lovely powder blue Victorian on the corner, its porch in deep shade.
“We can sit out here to watch your wagon,” Tom said. “None of my people would steal from you, but I’m sure you’d feel more comfortable keeping an eye on it.”
Carly sat down in the wicker chair beside Justin. Tom and Cynthia took a seat on the porch swing. Carly noticed they were still holding hands, and Cynthia leaned her head against Tom’s shoulder with familiar affection.
Stan sat down on the porch steps, and Mindy settled on the step below him. Stan drew her body back against his, and Carly saw him press a kiss against the top of her head. A young woman emerged carrying a pitcher of lemonade with slices of lemon bobbing at the top. She set the tray on the little wicker table and poured a glass for everyone.
“Our daughter, Andrea,” Tom said. Andrea was shy, though, and all she did was give them a quick, blushing smile before she darted back into the house. Carly lifted her glass, and Justin nudged her. She knew what he meant. She waited until Tom and Cynthia had sipped from theirs.
It was tart and sweet and cool. Everything a glass of lemonade should be. Carly sighed with bliss. All of their drinks on the road had been tepid due to the heat. “This is wonderful!”
“There’s a cold spring trough in the basement,” Tom said. “Big old stone thing that looked like a bathtub. I never knew what it was for though, until Old Miz Marson told me they used to keep milk jugs in there to keep them cool. Just a matter of pulling out the plug to get it going again.”
Justin took another sip of his lemonade before setting the glass on the table. “You said we’re the only ones you’ve let in since the Crisis?”
Tom nodded. “When the first case of the Infection was reported nearby, we built the wall. Tommy Burton moved some of those containers with the crane from the junkyard. It wasn’t a popular decision, I’ll tell you that. Some folks wanted to leave until we told ‘em they couldn’t come back if they did. And there were some people who tried to force their way in. Couldn’t let them do that.” His voice held a hint of regret, but his jaw was set in firm, resolute lines. “It was the only way all of us were going to survive. And it turned out we were right.”
“Who is ‘we’?” Justin asked.
“Town council. Me, Doc Cotton, Old Miz Marson, Clayton Bierce, and Shelt Jackson. Shelt was sort of our honorary mayor.”
“Was?”
“Died of a heart attack two months ago. Goddamn shame to live through the apocalypse and be felled by a faulty ticker.”
“Language, Tom,” Cynthia chided him with a gentle bump of her elbow. “There are ladies present.”
“Beg pardon.” Tom glanced at Carly and Mindy with a sheepish little smile. “I picked up a foul mouth while I was in the service and never managed to change my wicked ways, despite the gentle nagging of my better half, here.”
Carly, who had grown used to Justin’s colorful language, smiled at him and waved a hand to show she didn’t mind. Mindy giggled and poked Stan, whom she had teasingly chastised over the past few days for picking up Justin’s habit of swearing.
“Anyways, we put up the gates, kept everyone out, and none of us fell sick.”
