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“I did, and so did you, but only once, and I know you’re built for several more. We’re going to be separated for several days, so let me give you as many as I can to get you through the drought.”
Smiling, I roll onto my back and exhale a long breath. “If you must.”
Epilogue
ALISTAIR
One Month Later
Thirty eight…thirty nine…forty…
I drop the last rager, taking a deep breath as I scan my surroundings. Three are coming at me from a distance. I get into position to make short work of them, hoping they’ll be the last I’ll have to contend with before I reenter the Keep.
I’d decided to come out and take down a few corpses to pass the time before Britney’s release, which should be in another hour. Sitting around the Keep makes time move painfully slow, and dropping the dead at least makes for a brighter future for Britney and our future children.
Every rager I put down is one I won’t have to worry about.
Forty one…forty two…forty three…
The last one drops, and I take out the small can of accelerant to spray on the fallen bodies before lighting them up.
Without the Vultures, we’re forced to burn the dead ourselves, which is a fucking annoyance but entirely necessary. The stench they would cause, coupled with the diseases theyd breed, are not risks we’re willing to take because we fully intend on making the topside safe.
Thankfully, with all the good work I’ve done, I’ll be able to spend the next couple of weeks giving Britney my undivided attention.
After heading back in, I endure Christine’s inspection, then head to the command post to meet with Cole.
“Take a seat,” he says, his eyes never leaving the monitor he’s gazing at.
“What’s up, boss?”
“Caspian made contact.”
My hands ball into fists. “That fucking so?”
“He’s willing to discuss terms.”
“Terms? What fucking terms? We have the Keep—game over.”
“But they have the streets, and that’s a damn fact. They’re growing in number, and I think I found out why.”
“What do you mean, growing in number?”
“Atticus looked back at Caspian’s login and the data he looked at. As it turns out, he was accessing our schedules, where we’d be, which buildings we were focusing on.”
“So?”
“It looks like he was selling intel to the Vultures long before they became an issue. As you know, he’s the reason they are a problem. He planted ideas in their heads, telling them we were out to kill them. So, they raided buildings before us, taking the survivors and bringing them over to their cause. Forming a goddamn army.”
“What does it matter now?”
“It matters because their numbers grew beyond what we were aware of, taking every man and woman they came across.”
“Britney said there were only a few dozen men and some bedraggled women.”
“Those were the ones she saw. Apparently, they’re based out of three locations. An elite base, which has the strongest, most capable men and the choicest women, a middling base, which is where most of the new people end up, trying to work their way up, and the sludge base, which is where Britney was brought to. It’s where all the undesirables get put.”
“How do you know this?”
