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The woman stared at her, and Saff could sense the energy in the room shift.
“Did you come here from another settlement or one of the military safe zones?” the woman asked slowly.
Saff shook her head. “No.”
“You have people you are trying to get back to?”
“No.” Saff shook her head again.
The woman squinted curiously at her again.
They sat in silence for a few moments as Saff took another sip of her coffee.
Finally, the woman loosed a breath, leaning back as she folded her hands in her lap. “I’d like you to look at someone. Give your medical opinion.”
Saff set the mug back down. “I want my guns back.”
The woman scoffed, shaking her head. “No. No one carries weapons inside the walls. It’s completely forbidden.”
Saff stared at her in disbelief. “You don’t let people defend themselves? What if raiders come?”
The woman’s eyes flicked away for a split second, then met her gaze again. It was only a second, but Saff detected a hint of something resembling fear in her expression.
“Let them come,” she said. “No one can get through our walls.”
Saff couldn’t believe the stupidity she was hearing. She couldn’t believe that Maddie was about to be living in a place where the people were convinced they could keep the outside world out forever.
“We have a lot of medication,” the woman said. “We might have what you need. Depending on what it is and how much we have, I might be willing to trade it with you. But that’s the deal. You need to check out one of our people first.”
Saff let out a small exhale. It wasn’t a bad trade. It was actually much better than she’d been expecting. And after the previous night, she hadn’t really been expecting to get what she wanted at all.
She took another slow sip of her coffee. “Fine.”
The woman nodded once at her, then shot a look at the boy still standing in the corner of the room. “Good. You’ll go now.”
“Now?” Saff repeated.
That wasn’t a good sign. Whoever they wanted her to see must have been in bad shape.
“Yes. Now.”
Then, without another word, the woman stood and walked out. Saff watched her exit through the doorway, still processing what she said.
Then, a moment later, the woman walked back in, pulling a thin jacket over her arms. “Let’s go.”
Saff stood from the chair, taking one last large gulp of the coffee. Then she followed her back through the foyer and out of the house.
The sun was finally rising, pouring a gray light over the houses and street.
The woman walked quickly, and Saff followed closely behind as they went through a row of houses.
They came to an area that looked like it maybe would have once been a park, but was now some type of farming area. A large garden sat in the center with crops growing and a wooden structure that she guessed held animals.
People ambled sporadically through, some talking and laughing, others working either in the garden or in front of the houses.
They continued down the street, then crossed onto another one.
Right as they did, the woman turned and walked up the driveway of the first house on their right. Saff paused for a moment before following her up the short driveway.
