“Ms. MacNamara. Please join us. I believe it is fitting for the liaison, shall we say, to be part of this," she said, opening the door again.
Evie waited for Magda to sit at her desk before she made her way to the back of the room and browsed the book spines, just as she did when she had first arrived. Nico took his pack off and reached in to grab something.
"First, I would like to give you this.” He handed her a bottle of wine from the Ranch that had a small square of paper tied to the neck of it with twine.
Magda stood up and reached over the desk to take it from him. "Oh, my. Please send her my appreciation." She caught the dangling note and read it:
From one leader to another,
You may not need it now,
But we both know you will eventually.
~Antonia
Magda smirked and let out a quick and quiet laugh. She placed it on her desk off to the side and sat back down. "Alright Nico, what can we do for you or give to you to help repay the debt we owe you?"
"I have not yet seen your place in entirety, ma'am. But I do know enough about it. Obviously, that is a reason we’re here in the first place. I'm going to be blunt, as my mother prefers. There really isn't much you can give in return to balance it all out." He watched as Magda swallowed. Evie stilled in the back not sure where this was going. “And that's alright. We didn't expect you to in the first place. Evie-“ he looked back at her quickly, and they caught each others eye. “She spoke very highly of this place, and the people who run it. Especially you. We are happy to help you continue to succeed here, but yes, my mother doesn't just hand things out for free or send her people out of our gates haphazardly. So, we would simply like to propose an alliance."
Magda let her breath out subtly, and Evie took a step back towards the books. "Of course, though I'm not sure what we could really do for you."
He gave her another polite smile. "We would just like to know, that if we ever needed help, you would be there for us if we came seeking it. You have a few people in your walls that would be capable of lending themselves to our needs if the time so came." Magda sat for a moment unsure of what he was getting at, but he put her to ease. "As we would do for you. If any trouble comes knocking on our doors, we would stand together for the other."
"That sounds more than fine with me," she said with relief.
"And also, if ever there comes a time where we may need a place to stay safe, or we need fresh water, we can count on the Block to give us that." Before she could answer, he added, “And we would pull our own weight here of course."
"Undoubtedly, I'm sure. I believe we are in complete agreement here, Nico. And I accept your mother's terms no question.” She stood up once more, extending her hand out.
Though he rose too, he did not extend his hand in return, but sheepishly added, "Well, before we shake, there's one more term we'd like to add." Evie turned her attention away from the books once more. "One of our younger members has taken quite the liking to your apples. If your harvest yields enough, would it be alright if we occasionally got some, in whatever form you can spare for us? Fresh, dried, sauced."
Evie couldn't help herself, a knowing smile spread across her face. Emma.
"Sir," Magda reached her hand out even further to him and laughed. "I can assure you one thing: we never have a shortage of apples. You have a deal."
He reached over and they shook. The Ranch and the Block were now partners in whatever way that may end up meaning.
"Now please, Nico, if there's nothing else, may I suggest you go and rest. Have something to eat and drink, maybe take a look around. Am I right in assuming you'll be staying the night at least?"
"Yes, Ma'am. And maybe another depending on how well we can get you settled in and ready for the growing season. I'll know once I talk with my brother."
"Stay as long as you'd like. We have adjoining rooms ready for you, directly across from Evie's room. We figured you and your brother and sister-in-law would like to stay together in some respect. If not we have plenty of other rooms for you to choose from.” She walked over to open the door for him and see him out.
"That'll do just fine, Magda. Thank you very much.” He shouldered his bag and waited for Evie to make her way out too.
They left together and walked to the top of the main staircase. Evie turned to him. “So, tour or lunch?”
He gave her a big smile. “A little of both?”
“Alright,” she chuckled. “From the second floor down then, for now.”
She gave him brief directions to places in the Block. She showed him the main common rooms and told him they would be on the third floor where her room was. She took him down to the gym floor, and then out through the garage to sit at a picnic table, and to keep an eye on Wyatt. When they sat he pulled out a fabric wrapped bundle like the ones they gave to them on their departure. He unwrapped it. A sandwich like the one they sent them off with laid inside. A little pile of raisins was in there too. She knew the usual food parcels they took with them when they went out from the Ranch. She would bet some where else in his pack were a few hard boiled eggs, carefully package to keep from cracking.
Off to the side of them, in the back, Rae was running around with the kids in what looked like a game of tag, but it was more like a round of just-go-get-Rae. When she noticed them sitting there, she grabbed her pack from where the horses were tied to a tree, drinking their water. The kids followed her as she made her way over and she sat next to Evie. They looked at each other and smiled as the kids crowded around Nico’s food, taking a look at it in disbelief. Rae started to unpack hers, which revealed just the same. She watched as Nico squinted his eyes at the kids, pretending to guard his sandwich from them. Then he sneakily slipped each one of them a few raisins, which they devoured eagerly, savoring a different flavor for once in a long time. Rae gave them each some of hers too, then took a large bite of her sandwich.
“How's he doing back there?" she asked of Wyatt without turning around to look over at the field.
Nico was watching his brother as he ate. "Seems ok. Just came back out. He's even acting serious it seems."
Evie smirked, "You know he occasionally is when the correct moment calls for it."
Nico chewed as he watched Wyatt walking back over to the field with Ted. He motioned towards the area, seeming to be giving Ted instructions for something. When he was scanning the grounds, he noticed them all sitting at the table. He shook Ted's hand, then started to head their way. As he got closer his tunnel vision broke a bit and he noticed the kids hanging around with them. Suddenly his mischievous smile slid back across his face.
"Who's Sunny?" he asked in a faux tough guy face. The young boy stuck his head around the back of Timmy and meekly stuck his little hand up. "I gotta tell you kid, that is one fine chicken coop you've designed. Ingenious use of materials if I do say so." He turned to Nico. "Now my brother is an animal doctor, you know?” Ryan's head whipped over to look at him in awe, and Nico smiled and made his eyebrows jump for him. "I'm going to want him to check it out and see it's magnificence now that's it's completed. But I think you should go on over and check it out yourself since you're all the real experts. Give it a once over. Make sure it's spic and span, ready to go. Then I'll send my brother your way, so you can give him the whole tour. Deal?"
The kids looked at each other, then scurried off to the coop where Charlie was just laying down what would be the ramp for the chickens. As soon as they reached him, Wyatt turned back to the table. The mischievous look gone. He kissed Rae on top of the head, then took his pack off, and sat next to Nico, but he was looking at Evie.
She could tell where this was going so she decided to lead the way. "I know. Not good, huh?"
He reached down, taking a bottle of water out of his pack and took a sip. "No, not really. I will say, they seem to have enough food to get them through until the crops start to yield for harvest, but as far as that harvest goes… even if every single seed planted grew and provided so
mething, they would just barely get by until the start of next spring. Any farmer knows, no way is every seed going to grow. And that's from experienced farmers with fresh ones to plant. The seeds they have now are at least two years old already, but they were kept well. The chickens won't start laying until-" He looked over at his brother.
Nico wiped some crumbs off his chin. "Not until September."
Wyatt turned back to Evie. "They have to kill, butcher, and keep about one thousand pounds of meat just to keep their group fed well through the winter months, and you told me they haven't even started yet."
"Well, technically they've started.” She recalled when they first met. “But they haven't brought any back yet. One of them seems like an avid hunter who knows what he's doing," she said, thinking of Doug.
"Well, they're going to need to bring back about twenty deer just to stock for winter, Evie.” He lowered his eyes a bit as he watched the kids playing around the coop. "The Ranch can't feed these people even if we wanted to. I mean we do. It's just not possible to do and still be able to take care of ourselves and our animals.”
Evie took a deep breath, but did not seem like she was surprised by anything he was saying. "I know, and I don't expect you too. I just need to give it a try, and I needed to hear it from you to be sure about what would have to be done."
"Even with the corn we've brought, and the sprouted potatoes, like I said, it's only going to go so far. This is a fairly good sized group here. Now I'm sure you've got some tricks up your sleeve. No. Damnit, I know you do, but I'm not sure you're going to be able to pull this one off even if you taught them all how to forage, or stumbled upon more things to grow. I know they have the apple trees, and I saw the berry bushes you mentioned when we were coming in. But they need the meat and even more stores.” His voice drifted off and all three of them were looking at Evie with worry. "They just need at least one more growing season to prepare and to be self sufficient."
She rubbed her forehead. "I know."
They sat there, sandwiches unfinished for a few moments in silence. Rae looked at her husband and brother-in-law with an unreadable face. They both looked back not sure what she was thinking. Then she turned towards her on the bench they shared.
"Evie.” She tilted her head off to the side to see more of her face. "What do you mean when you said 'what would have to be done?’” Both men sat up straight realizing they had completely let that statement fly by them, and they tensed as they waited for their friend’s response.
"I'm going to have to go back," she said simply.
Rae looked at Wyatt, and they both looked at Nico. He was watching her with a mix of emotions on his face, but the one that showed most was nervousness.
"Back where, Evie?" he asked her so quietly that Wyatt and Rae barely heard him.
She kept her head down towards the table, but she slowly looked up at him. Softly, she let out a breath, but she never said a word.
"I'll go with you, " he said, never once looking to his family. Wyatt put his hand on his shoulder, but kept looking at Rae.
"No. You won’t.” She gave him a tiny smile. "Toni would kill me, and, anyway, it's not for you to do."
"She's right, Nic.” Wyatt still had his hand on his brother's back.
"The deal was here and back, and Toni didn't even like that.“ Evie was looking him straight in the face now, and he met her gaze.
"Well, we're in this alliance now. It wouldn't be right to-" Nico was grasping at straws, and she stopped him right away.
"This is not part of this newly formed alliance, Nic, and don't make it."
They looked at each other in a silent stand off. There was nothing Nico could say to convince her to let him go, and there was nothing she could say that would make him feel ok about that. Deep down he knew she wouldn't take him with her. She never did. But this one seemed different. She was going back. Back to wherever she meant, but also back to the Evie early on. He could see it on her. The clench of her jaw. Her sentences getting shorter and shorter. Soon her eyes would start searching, panicked, all around out of no where, like she heard something. She would start to look to their faces for confirmation of her fears: real danger or her losing her mind.
"I'll be going tomorrow morning.” Her voice broke through his thoughts. "It can't wait. They need supplies. We need to know where they stand, sooner rather than later.“
Though Nico stayed quiet in his concerns and frustrations, Wyatt asked the questions they all wanted to know. "Is it something you're doing by yourself?"
She thought for just a second, then shook her head, "No. I'm going to need a car and a few extra hands to speed things along. I want to be back by nightfall." She looked back at Nico, though she was still speaking to all of them. "This is their fight, and they're going to have to go out and fight it."
"Then why are you going?"
It was a stupid question, he knew that, but he needed to ask it and for her to hear it. It was the same reason she comes back to them every month. The same reason she leaves them too. She has to. There are places where she leaves a part of herself whether she likes it or not, and she has to go back and check on it. If she doesn't, it will drive her mad and send her spiraling. Whether it's people or a place or even a thing, Nico knew, she needs a reason to keep going. Rae says it's her need to control some good, but his mother would say it was to outrun her demons. Nico thought it was both. It was a way to cancel it all out, even if just for a while. This new trip, seemed like the perfect example of the two colliding. Whatever she was going back to, she was only doing it out of desperation for these people, not to confront what had happened to her, or what she did, or whatever the hell had her wandering through those woods bleeding and switched off like one of those monsters. She wasn’t ready to do it for herself, but she was for them. That’s what made him the most nervous. She was going out there when her mind wasn’t ready to go back to that place yet.
As they continued to stare in tense silence, Rae broke it for everyone. "We'll wait here for you then. Help them plant, get them started, and see how it went when you get back." Rae placed her hand on her shoulder to show it was done. Mac turned to her and gave her a weak quick smile, then turned to the sound of the kids coming back to the table.
"Come on!" Susie shouted, and they grabbed Wyatt then Rae and finally Nico, dragging them over to the coop.
Evie watched as they put on their happy faces again for the kids. Nico wasn't as good as Wyatt and Rae though. He looked back at her angrily once, then again sadly before he crouched his six foot two body into the chicken coop. Then she got up and went inside. She was going to have to talk to Magda about taking a car and volunteers.
CHAPTER 22
Going Back
She laid out her weapons on the little table across from her bed and started to clean her guns. She dismantled the Glock slowly and purposefully, her make shift cleaning supplies lined up next to the parts. It was now after dinner, a dinner she had missed along with Magda. They discussed the truth about their situation for a bit, and the necessity of leaving the Block again. In the end, Magda said to take two cars, and would assign a team to go with her. When they got up to leave her office, Magda said she was going to go see if there was any leftovers from dinner, and asked if she was coming. She was happy not to, though she didn’t say it. The Ranch three were occupied by the people of the Block, which meant Evie might be able to get away without anymore lectures from Nico, or at the very least, his looks of worry and disapproval. Susie had been doing a good job of occupying him, once she found out he spoke Italian. So when the knock came at her door, an immediate wave of frustration washed through her. Nic had some how snuck away and was now going to be free to talk with her until Rae or Wyatt realized where he was and came to get him. When she opened the door, her surprise threw them both off.
“I’m sorry, am I bothering you?” Jack asked as he stood in the hall with a bowl of soup from dinner and a left over roll from lunch.
“No, I’m sorry.
I just thought-“ She took a deep breath. “I don’t know what I thought.” She stepped away from the door to let him in, and he walked over to the little island at the small kitchen and set down the tray of food.
“Magda wanted me to bring you some dinner and tell you who’s coming with us in the morning.”
Evie was already back down at the table cleaning her gun, but looked up when he said “us.” She figured he’d go. He was good to have out there, for now. He pulled the only other seat out from the tiny table and motioned to her if it was ok to sit. She nodded, and got back to work.
“We’ll be taking the Jeep and the old sedan out there. It’s the one in best shape. The shuttle’s not good for long runs unless absolutely necessary. I’ll be driving the Jeep at the front with you and Nate. Cara will be driving the other with Joe and Laila.”
“No Charlie?” she asked without looking up.
“Still grounded from earlier.”
She made a noise of understanding and smirked.
He suddenly became a bit more tense. “Do you mind me asking, I mean, Magda didn’t really tell us much, but where exactly are we going?”
“A house. Pretty out of the way. Hopefully it’ll still have food that’s made it through.”
“Why haven’t you gathered it up before now?”
Evie didn’t answer. She kept working on her gun. After a while, Jack moved on. “Do you think you’ll ever get sick of saving us?” he joked, trying to break the tension.
“I don’t know,” she said, her head still down. “You think you’ll ever get sick of me having to save you?” She looked up and smirked at him, then started to reassemble her gun.
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