When the sun was a dull orange glow low in the sky but already throwing down oppressive heat, the companions were fully ready to face the rigors of the day ahead.
“This should be interesting,” Mildred murmured, casting a glance at the activity among the workers as they rose and prepared to leave.
“One way of saying it,” J.B. replied. “Think we can trust them, Ryan?”
“We have to—for now,” the one-eyed man returned. He was about to speak further when he saw the giant Native American crossing the sand toward them. “Well, let’s see what he has to say.”
“I would say good morning, but that may seem inappropriate,” Crow said wryly as he reached them. “The wag to take us back to Salvation will be arriving in about an hour,” he continued, checking his wrist chron. “It’ll also have drivers for the supply wags.”
“You do not trust your workers?” Doc asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Would you?” Crow returned. “Baron Silas certainly doesn’t. Most of these lowlifes would steal from themselves if they had half the chance. So we make sure we only use workers who can’t drive.”
“Anyone can drive,” the Armorer interjected cynically.
“You wouldn’t say that if you’d seen one of these sons of bitches try and steal a wag on the first night we were here,” Crow answered. “That would change your views. But I didn’t come to you to discuss this. Come and eat, take water before we leave. It’s a long, hot journey back.”
Krysty glanced over to the camp. “It’ll be longer if we have to see them before the wag gets here,” she said quietly, her hair curling gently at the ends around her neck.
“There’ll be no need for concern,” Crow said. “These boys know what’ll happen if’3.
.n they get stupe about this. They don’t want to get chilled before they get their jack. Mebbe they’ll get chilled after, when they get into a firefight over some gaudy slut, but that ain’t my problem, or yours.”
Krysty and Mildred looked at Ryan. He returned their gaze evenly, and noted from the corner of his eye that Dean, Jak, Doc and J.B. were also watching him intently. As leader of the group, Ryan knew that they were all uneasy about mixing with the armed workers when they themselves had been stripped of their blasters. He also knew that it would be difficult for Krysty and Mildred to travel easily back to Salvation in the same wag as the men who had wanted to rape them.
But Ryan knew that survival was about playing odds. They needed to get their blasters back, and Crow had told them that Baron Silas Hunter wanted to meet them, possibly with a proposition that would give them both their blasters and some jack. They would also get taken to a ville and out of the inhospitable desert. However hostile Salvation might be, there would be more places to hide, and more places to steal food and water if necessary.
At the end of the rad-blasted day, a few slim chances were better than none at all.
“Okay,” Ryan said eventually, “we’ll follow you over.”
The Native American nodded and turned his back, heading back to the sheltered camp without a backward glance.
The companions extinguished the last embers of their night’s fire and gathered their clothing together.
“Not sure ’bout this,” Jak said bluntly. “Chilling time.”
“Yeah, but not for us,” Ryan answered. “I’ve got a feeling that Crow’s under orders from this Baron Silas to treat us like the most precious treasure.”
“But why would we be that important? Not that I wish to denigrate our worth in any manner,” Doc continued, “but nonetheless, I fail to see why we have suddenly become so precious.”
“So do I,” Ryan replied. “But if we’re worth something, then we stand a better chance there than we do staying out here.”
He turned to the women. “It’s going to be bastard hard, but we just smile sweetly and chill the fuckers later if necessary, okay?”
Krysty smiled. “If you say so, lover.”
“Then let’s go, get it over with,” Dean added.
So they moved off towards the camp.