Steal City: A Post-Apocalyptic Adventure (After the End Book 4) by Doug Troxell

Author:Doug Troxell [Troxell, Doug]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Independent
Published: 2023-02-23T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 16

The journey back to Mecca for Draven, Shadow, and the Amazon refugees was long and slow. Hungry and cold, they walked in single file along the main roads back to Mecca—or Elway. Draven was in no rush. There was nothing to return to except more problems, more questions, and more ghosts.

He hadn’t slept at all the previous night. The pain in his shoulder kept him awake. The arrow had caught him in the shoulder blade so it hadn’t gone deep, but it was a dull pain that lingered and radiated throughout his entire back. Luckily, one of the Amazons was a medic. Her name was Divine. She patched Draven up and gave him the last of their antibiotics and apologized profusely since she had been the one who fired the arrow.

The breeze blew through the trees, tearing the leaves from the branches. Autumn was stretching its limbs. Draven couldn’t help but wonder if Mecca would survive to see another spring. He had no idea how Mecca would survive the winter with Khan’s percentages in place. He figured that was the point.

A long, drawn-out whistle blast heralded Draven’s return. Charlotte and a contingent of Keepers were waiting for him at the gate. She greeted him with a look of relief, but that relief quickly evaporated when she saw who was with him—and who wasn’t.

“Are you a prisoner?” she asked, surveying the Amazons at his back.

“They’re refugees. I’ve agreed to grant them asylum.”

“What about Dru? And Moxie? And the others?”

“Khan took Drusilla hostage. Moxie and the Keepers are dead.”

If Charlotte was surprised, she didn’t show it. “So who’s in charge?”

“Khan is. He’s been in charge since the beginning.”

“But who’s going to run things around here?”

“I guess I am.”

“Good.”

“Charlotte—”

“If this is the way it has to happen, then so be it. I know how you feel about Drusilla, but she was going to be the death of us. Now we can move on.”

“On to what? It’s over! Ash is gone. Drusilla is gone. We have nothing left! Mecca is broken. Hell, we’re Elway now!”

He knew he needed to maintain his composure, but he felt the stress of the last few days overwhelming him. He was drowning in it.

“You’re wrong,” she said. “We have you. And look, you’ve already helped Mecca grow.” She pointed to the Amazons. “Not a bad start. So what’s next?”

“I have no idea. I have no idea about any of it. I just—I need some time.”

He turned away from her.

“But what about the people? Don’t you want to talk to them?”

Several tradespeople milled around the center of Mecca. Most seemed indifferent to his return. They were on automatic pilot. Ash had programmed them to be production machines. They woke, they ate, they worked, they slept.

“They don’t need me,” Draven said.

He walked away while Charlotte called for him to return.

Draven fell into the comfort of his old routine. As general, he had wandered the camp often, so that’s what he did. The culinary crew was cleaning up the last shift of breakfast.

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