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Ledger cut a look at Church, who gave a small shake of his head.
Dahlia took a breath, then tore open the envelope. She read it, nodding to herself. When she looked up at the crowd, they were all staring at her, intent and tense.
“Guilty,” she said. “I mean . . . of course they’re guilty.”
There was a sob from one of the defendants. There were sobs from some of the helpers, too.
Mr. Church cleared his throat. “And what is the sentence?” he asked.
Dahlia nodded again and let the paper fall to the floor.
“The world ended,” she said. “Maybe as much as seven billion people died. We’re pretty close to being extinct and yet you parasites dragged old thinking into this world. Hatred, intolerance, all of that. You had the chance to leave all of that behind and yet you didn’t. You tried to make it part of this world. You’re no better than the Rovers. You do know that, right?” She walked over to stand looking down at Margaret Van Sloane. “We killed the Rovers. Every last one of them we could find. And why? Because they were predators and monsters a lot worse than the living dead. All they wanted was to take, to own, to have. They weren’t going to give anything back to the world. So . . . tell me, Mayor Van Sloane, what should we do to you?”
Van Sloane tried to meet her eyes, tried to stare Dahlia down, but she could not. Not one of the defendants could do that.
“I should have you all killed,” Dahlia said to them. “I should. Hell, I know that’s what you would do.”
She hooked a finger under the mayor’s chin and forced her head up.
“Look at me,” she snarled.
Van Sloane raised her eyes, though it clearly cost her the last of her dignity to do it.
“I want to live in a better world than that,” said Dahlia. “I want to live in a world where people like you don’t get to make the rules. I want to live in a world where people like me do. And my friends. And the helpers. And, fuck, your own kids.”
The room was absolutely silent.
Dahlia released the woman’s chin.
“My ruling is this. No one dies. No one goes to jail. No one gets staked out in the woods.” There were gasps and some small cries. Ledger rested his hand on the butt of his pistol and Baskerville got to his feet. To the defendants, Dahlia said, “And no one forgets, either.”
She stepped back and licked her lips, which had gone paste dry.
“The defendants have a choice. Something they didn’t give to the people who came here asking for help, for shelter. You can stay, but if you do, you have to leave all your old world shit behind. Racism, sexism, and all of that. Gone. Done. It dies right here and right now. I don’t care how you manage it. Pray, or do yoga or whatever. I don’t care. You take a scalpel and cut it out of who you are. If you can do that, then you can stay. I’m a sucker for a good redemption story. But,” she said, and the word was like a punch, “it better come from the heart, because we’ll be watching. This is our town now. The Pack and the helpers and anyone else who wants to make this a place worth living.”
She bent over Van Sloane one last time.
“If you can’t do that, then you’re gone. We wo
n’t hurt you. We’ll even give you weapons and supplies and help you get clear of these woods. But you can’t ever come back here, ‘cause if you do then I swear to God I’ll kill you myself.”
Dahlia looked at everyone.
“I’m going to give the defendants one day to decide. One day. If any of them leave, and you’re related to them, you can choose to go or stay. If you stay, you know my rules.”
The silence that filled the room was massive and heavy, and she did not see acceptance on every face. She didn’t expect to. When she glanced at Mr. Church, though, she saw approval and something else. A smile. Small, but there.
Thomas was the first person to start applauding. It wasn’t some cliché slow hand clap. He leaped to his feet with a cheer and began beating his hands together. So, too, did Zack. Despite all he had been through, so did Zack.
After that it was thunder.
Only a few of the defendants did not clap. Most did. Not all.
— 3 —
Joe Ledger stayed in town for a month.
He spent many long hours talking with Mr. Church. He spent most of his days overseeing the repairs to the wall, including a massive and ambitious upgrade to the overall security. He trained scouts and fighters.
