I
heard
the
bathroom
door
open
and
close.
“I
know
of a
way
you
can help.”
I
straightened
as
Pam
came
back
to
the
table.
Tanya
smiled.
“How
much
longer
are
you
two
planning
on
staying?”
“We
should
really
head
back,”
I
said.
“There’s
nothing
here for us.”
Tanya
stood
and
held
out
her
hand,
which
Pam
and
I
shook.
“It
was
nice to
see
you
again.”
Pam
headed
for
the
door.
“Hey,”
I
called
after
her,
“I’m
going
to
stop
by
the
ladies’
room.
I’ll
meet
you
at
the
truck.”
Pam
nodded
and
headed
out.
I
turned
toward
Tanya.
“There
are
people
in the
West
who
feel
the
same
way
you
do.
Although
I
find
it
weird
that
you
even
feel
that
way.
If
we
ever
get
the
chance,
you
have
to
tell
me
what
changed
your
mind.
We
want
to
arm
the
people
so
they
can
overthrow
The
Families
and
help
destroy
the
zombie
horde. Can
I
trust
you
with
this?”
“On
my
dad
’s
life.”
“I
hope
so,
because
he
’ll
be the
first
person
I
come
after
if
you
double
cross
me.
The
only
way
we
can
transport
the
weapons
is by
hiding
them
on
the
trucks.
If
we
can
get
you
the
weapons,
do
you
have
a
means
to
hide
them
and
get
them
to
the
people
who
can
use
them?”
Tanya
nodded.
“How
are
you
going
to
get
to
the
trucks?”
“My
dad
owns
a
storage
unit
here
in
town,
so
a lot
of
the
supplies
will
be
brought
there.”
“Tha
t’s
convenient.”
Tanya
smiled.
“I
know.
It’s
strange
how
fate
crosses
the
paths
of
those
who
need
each
other
the
most.”
“There
will
be
another
truck
in a
couple
weeks
with
instructions
under
the
passenger
seat.”
“I’l
l
be
waiting
for
it.”
I
glanced
over
my
shoulder
out
the
front
window.
I
proceeded
to
the
bathroom.
On
my
way
out, I
stopped
once
more
at
the
counter.
“There
will
be no
way
for us to
contact
each
other,
and
for
safety
’s
sake,
we
probably
shouldn
’t.
I
know
you
’re taking
a
great
risk,
especially
with
your
family,
but
I
appreciate
your
help in
this
matter.”
Without
waiting
for a
response,
I
turned
and
left
the
coffee
shop.
CHAPTER
17
I took
the
first
driving
shift
and
fretted
the
entire
time I
was
behind
the
wheel. Had
I
made
the
right
decision?
Would
I
be
able
to
trust
Tanya?
I
hadn
’t
talked
to
her
for
two
years,
then
in
the
months
I
was
gone,
she
completely
changed
her
outlook
on
life.
It
wasn
’t
unheard
of,
just
odd,
especially
with
her.
I
was
pretty
sure
she
wasn
’t
a
spy,
and
there
was
no
way
Liet or
The
Families
knew
what
we
were
up
to.
I
just
found
out. Even
if
they
did,
Pearl
would
be
the
better
mole.
I
trusted
her,
and
she
followed
The
Families’
every
word.
They
couldn
’t
know.
I
didn’t
know
what
Tanya
hoped
to
gain
from
the
situation.
She
claimed
she
wanted
a
better
world,
but
who
didn’t?
Unfortunately,
I
didn’t
have
any
other
options.
I
had
to
get
the
weapons
to
Florida.
It
was
unnerving
for
me
to
hear
that
The
Families
had
taken
on
a
dictator
role,
though
I
wasn
’t
really
surprised.
Even
in
my
short
time
there
I
was
able
to
see they
were
power
hungry. Although
crises
can
bring
out
the
best
in
people,
it
usually
brings
out
those
who
are
looking
to
gain
something.
The
Families
had
the
money
and
the
ability
to
protect
the
citizens
and
make
sure
they
lived
in comfort,
but
once
that
was
gone,
they
had
to
keep
the
people
in
line
with
fear.
Money
didn’t
mean
anything
anymore.
Food,
clothing,
and
weapons
were
what
made
an
individual
rich. If
they
could
control
the
commodities,
they
could
control
the
masses.
Eventually,
though,
the
population
would
grow
and
supplies
would
run
low.
I saw
it
firsthand
in North
Platte,
and
I
could
only
imagine
Florida
would experience
it
on
a
grander
scale.
Although
it
was
obvious
they
had
tradespeople
and
professionals, without
raw
material,
they
wouldn
’t
be
able
to
produce
their
wares.
Once
the
supplies
dwindled,
blind
faith in
the
leadership
would
no
longer
be
enough. Groups
would
form
that
would
question
The
Families’
authority
—
maybe
they
already
were,
I
didn
’t
know.
What
I
did
know
was
that
The
Families
would
quash
any
uprisings.
I
was
sure
most
of
the
rebellious
people
were
sent
away
to labor
on
the
wall, even
Tanya
implied
that,
but
a
few
wouldn
’t
be
able
to
disappear
so
easily.
That
would
explain
why
crews
were
being
sent
into
the
neighboring
states. Eventually,
The
Families
would
have
to
allow
a
few
people
out
to
colonize.
In
a
sense,
Liet
had
it
a lot
easier. He
at
least
had
the
zombies
to
back
him
up.
If
someone
irritated
him
enough,
he
could
exile
them.
If
they
really
pissed
him
off,
he
could
say
they
got
bit
and
shoot
them
in the
head. Either
way,
it was a
win,
win
for
him.
Yet
he
and
his
troops
were
outnumbered
by
workers by
five
to
one.
If
the
people
decided
to
revolt,
there
wasn
’t
much
he
could
do
about
it,
which
was
why
he kept
them
overworked
and
half
-
starved.
They
didn’t
have
the
energy
to fight.
If
it
came
down
to it,
though,
I bet
it
wouldn
’t
take
much
to
get
the
workers
and
some
of
the
guards
to
riot.
There
seemed
to
be
some
dissention
in
his ranks.
Pam
had
stopped
following
his
orders
exactly,
and
he’d
condemned
another
to
death
for
giving
out
more
food
than
was
rationed.
I
hadn
’t
been
there
a
lot
in
the
past
weeks,
but
I
was
sure it
was
only
going
to
get
worse.
I also
wondered
if
The
Families
were
going
to
hold
true
to
their
promise
of
sending professionals. Even
though
Liet
never
really
claimed
that
was
what
he
wanted,
I
was
sure
that
was
his
intention.
I
was
going
to
have
to lie
and
tell
Liet
they
needed
supply
trucks
sent
down
every
month
so
I
could
get
weapons
into
the
state,
and
he
wasn
’t
going
to
be
happy,
but
he
’d
do
it.
The
Families
wouldn
’t
question
it
. They
’d
think
Liet
was
being
friendly.
This
would
ensure
that
I
’d
be
able
to
keep
going
to
the
West
and
keep
seeing
Quinn.