Commune 5: Commune Series Book 5 by Joshua Gayou & Devon C. Ford

Author:Joshua Gayou & Devon C. Ford [Gayou, Joshua]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Aethon Books
Published: 2022-09-26T16:00:00+00:00

24

DISTANT OPPOSITION

THE MALL

Knox lived in a dark chamber somewhere deep beneath the Mall. No windows, single door. It measured ten feet by fourteen, with walls of ancient concrete that liked to flake under a probing fingernail. There was a single bed in the far corner, blankets folded under with perfect hospital corners and a four-inch fold, as if never used. Beside the bed was a small side table. In the opposite corner, a writing desk. Everything was written now. He had to write down his wishes on slips of paper, to be taken off to their intended recipients by runners. Sometimes he missed e-mail, but not often.

There was an antique wash basin; one of those old wooden tables with a hole cut in the middle to cradle the bowl. He stared into the mirror as he worked, scraping the lather from his face with a straight razor. It was a methodical process - always working from right to left. He dealt with the complicated angles of the chin last. The fat candle guttering away on the basin top made enough light to discern rough shapes, a faint highlight in the eyes, and no more. At his back, the chamber seemed more like a cave.

Or a den.

Knox toweled his face and breathed in deeply. Smells of mint and rosemary.

He thought about the new arrivals and grimaced. It was an obnoxious situation - his instincts screamed that he had to do something about it, but when he searched within himself for an idea (any idea at all, really), he came up empty. The problem was delicate.

Various of his people fell on both sides of the argument, he well knew. There were those like Bruno - himself a bizarre holdover from a long dead era - who maintained a healthy distrust of anything new. What the hell had he said about the military? Something about hanging noodles on their ears. Knox had no idea what that was supposed to mean - another one of his Russian sayings, he supposed. And it hadn’t been just any military; he’d indicated the American military, specifically. Either way, if it was coming from Bruno, the exact meaning didn’t really matter. The intent was there, hidden beneath the colloquialism.

I don’t trust them, and neither should you.

At the opposing end was Grease, the man who forever calculated. He saw opportunity everywhere, especially where the danger was greatest. “More risk, better payoff,” as he always liked to say. Knox had seen the wheels turning within him as soon as he got a look at the weaponry upon which they’d ridden.

Then after, when they’d spoken privately: “That’s a lot of hardware, Skipp...”

“Yeah, I know. And they could point it just about any place they choose.”

“Sure, but...it’s a lot of hardware. Maybe...you know? Make some friends?”

Knox had looked at him closely. “What if they’re the kind we don’t want to be friends with?”

Grease shrugged. “Eh, there’s nothin’ says friendship’s gotta be permanent.”

“Oh, yeah? Just like that, huh? What happens when they don’t see it that way?”

Grease smiled at this question.

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