Resolutions

Chapter 2-1

2

“Every decision has its upside and its downside. The key is to make the best decisions you can with the facts available at any given time. Refusing to decide is, of itself, a decision.”

KEVIN MURDOCK, COLLECTED SAYINGS

An hour after the first newcomers disembarked from their pod, the ramp of the second pod opened. Murdock was waiting at the barrier when the inhabitants exited.

After eating, Declan had gathered a large amount of clay, with Andy’s help, from the stream bank, and was now cleaning it of larger bits of debris that would hinder the manufacture of high-quality clay. Mei Lee helped by emptying the cart and getting it set closer to the barrier so Declan could use it as a bench. The younger children, Rosa Lea, Maureen, and Roslynn, were playing near Emily and little Gordon, staying out from underfoot.

When Declan started making the frames, he was interrupted by Sebastian Heartly, Elizabeth Reyes, and the rest of their troop getting close to the camp fringes.

“What’re you doing here?” Declan growled.

Annie joined him.

“Relax, Declan,” Bass Heartly said. “We aren’t here to cause any trouble.”

“Where’s Murdock?” Reyes asked dismissively as she pushed her way forward. “We have business here, so go fetch him.”

“What’s the nature of that business?” Annie asked the shorter, Hispanic woman. “He’s busy, at present, so you can tell me and I’ll see to it he gets the message.”

Reyes chuckled. “My business with him is my business. I don’t deal with underlings. Is that pork you’re cooking?” She pushed Annie aside and strode into the camp with her five followers.

“That’s close enough, Elizabeth.” Mei Lee had approached from behind Declan and Annie, and no one had noticed the short Asian woman. “You’re not barging into our camp, uninvited!” Her bow was at the ready.

“And who’ll stop me? You? There are enough of us to take over your camp.”

One man stepped forward. Mei Lee shot him in the leg and nocked another arrow before anyone could react. Another man reached for his machete, but before it cleared the scabbard, she shot him in the arm. Everyone not injured rushed her. She used her bow as a staff, laying out Bass Heartly with a strike aside his head. Another man grabbed the bow from behind, lifting Mei Lee off the ground. She kicked Reyes in the solar plexus. While Reyes gasped for air, Declan and Annie jumped in and tried to subdue the remaining men.

“Bridget?” Mei Lee flashed.

Reyes and her followers dropped to the ground, unconscious.

When Reyes awoke, she saw the sky and Murdock bending over her.

“What?” Reyes said, after a long silence. “Did you take advantage of me while I was unconscious?” She glared at Murdock, who remained silent, scowling at her. “Where are my men?” she said, after looking around. “Are you going to answer me or just stare?”

“What’re you doing here?” Murdock asked impatiently.

“I’ve come to get replacements. I’m allowed, aren’t I?”

“You’re allowed to come to the newbies and ask if any want to join your group. However, you may not come into my camp and try to take it over for yourself.”

“Your minions attacked a peaceful party,” Reyes said.

“My wife did as I would expect her to. Besides, there’s nothing peaceful about your party. Be thankful I was busy. If it would’ve been me, you wouldn’t be explaining yourself. We’d be burying you.”

“That sounds like you. Two years ago, we marked you a bandit. You’re someone to be eliminated at any opportunity. You, and any who follows you, are a plague upon those who live here.”

Murdock laughed. “Well, here I am. Eliminate me.”

“That’s just your style. You won’t face a man, but an unarmed woman is all you can handle!”

Murdock pulled out his eighteen-inch machete. “Would this be big enough for you?”

Reyes stared at him for a few seconds. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you? It would give you a reason to kill me and claim self-defense.”

“I don’t understand your anger with me.” Murdock replaced the machete.

“You stranded us in the middle of nowhere! You let us all freeze and starve!”

“You chose the place for your encampment. I tried to help you get started. It’s not my fault if you didn’t learn or do the work required.” Murdock looked at her with mock compassion. “I told you early on I wouldn’t do the work for you. So now you feel justified in attacking my family.” He shook his head. “You think I owe you something. You think I owe you survival. You have a right for a chance to survive. Survival isn’t guaranteed. I gave you your chance to survive, so it’s not my fault you squandered it.” He turned to leave.

“Is that it, then? You’re going to turn your back on us… again!”

Murdock stopped. “Liz, go home. Take your men and go home.” He didn’t turn around. “Take this as my last friendly gesture. I won’t recommend your group to any of the newcomers, so go home!” he growled, through clenched teeth.

Reyes stood to protest, but didn’t see Murdock anywhere. When she turned around, she saw her men staring at her, their wounds dressed and treated.

“Get on your feet! He can’t do this to us. I refuse to let that be the last word on the matter.”

“Um… Elizabeth,” Heartly whispered, “I think you need to let this go. If you don’t, then we’ll all end up dead. Murdock wasn’t speaking from anger. He was serious.”

“How did it go with Reyes?” Mei Lee asked Murdock, once he returned.

“Not well.” He exhaled loudly. “I let her and her men go. I told them to go home, and I told her I’ll not recommend any newbies go to her group.” He shrugged.

“What was her reaction?”

“I don’t know yet. I left after telling her to go home. Whatever her reaction is, we all need to be on our toes.” He looked to the pods. “It’s time for me to give my spiel… again.”

Mei Lee watched her husband plod back to the barrier. She could see how the stress of the situation was wearing on him. He’s exhausted. After ten years of fighting with others, he’s getting worn out.

“We need to be on our toes,” Mei Lee flashed to all that could hear her thoughts. “Reyes and her cohorts are now an unknown element. We have to be ready for any repercussions.”

“What is the threat level?” Irene Harris asked.

“Assume their group is the highest possible threat to all of us,” Murdock replied.

Before Murdock started his spiel again, he called for Benteen.

“Line up your people. I want them to give their name to my associate,” he motioned toward Declan, “and then our medico will assess them.” He pointed at Annie. “If they get out of line, my people have my permission to take them down… hard. Get me?”

Benteen nodded and ran off to corral the rest of his pod-mates, and got them cued close to Declan, with himself at the head of the line.

“Next!” Declan motioned the first person in the cue, forward. “Name?”

“Charles Benteen.”

“You’re the leader, yeah?” Declan asked as he scribed Benteen’s name onto the clay tablet with the chisel-shaped stick.

“So I’m told,” Benteen whispered.

“I want you to go over there and see Annie. If she clears you, come back to help keep your fellows in line. Try not to upset her. She doesn’t like hurting anyone, but she will, quicker than you can imagine. Next,” Declan called to the next person in line.

Things progressed quietly for the first fifty of the first pod.

“Name?” Declan said, without looking up.

“Curtis Griffen.”

“Middle initial?” Declan’s heart pounded.

“D.”

“I have a problem,” Declan flashed to Annie. “This may be my brother, but he doesn’t recognize me.”

“You have changed,” Emily replied. “You’ve filled out nicely.”

“I’ll hold him aside for Mei Lee,” Annie flashed back.

“Go see Annie. Next.”

While Curtis was walking to Annie’s position, which was away from the rest, for patient privacy, Annie flashed Mei Lee about the situation. By the time Annie finished with Curtis’ exam, Mei Lee came over to him.

“Come with me,” she said.

“Why?” Curtis balked. “I din’t do nothin’!”

“Shut your pie-hole!” Mei Lee said. “Nobody said you did. Just do what you’re told. You’ll have your chance to lodge any complaints.” She herded Curtis to where Kathy Watkins was sitting. “Sit here and wait for my husband.”

“What’s goin’ on?” Curtis asked Watkins, after Mei Lee left.

“How the hell would I know? I think these people are all crazy.”

Curtis shrugged. “I woul’n’t know. Jus’ got here.”

“No s**t, Sherlock! I was here before you exited the pod!”

“I was just tryin’ ta conversate. No need to get pissy.”

“Can you move over? A mile or two should be sufficient.”

Curtis gave up trying to talk to Watkins, and lay back, closing his eyes to avoid further conversation with her.

“Hey, Cee Dee, want to help me process more clay?” Declan tapped the bottom of Curtis’ foot with his own.

He had run out of clay after the third pod, and needed more.

“Huh?” Curtis tried to focus. He had fallen asleep, and hearing the pet name his brother used to use caused him confusion. “How d’ya know what m’brother used to call me?” he said, groggily, as he got to his feet.

“How is that worthless brother of yours? Seen him lately?”

“Not for a while. Don’ know what happened to him.”

“How are your sisters?” Declan dug clay and put it on a hide.

Curtis scowled. “How d’ya know so damn much about me?”

Declan chuckled. “I know you didn’t stop sucking your thumb until you were six.”

Curtis grabbed the much more substantial Declan and tried to shake him, which was ineffective, as he was too weak to do much.

“You tell me right now how you know so much about me!” He tried to be stern.

“Or what, little brother? What do you think you can do? You’re weak as a kitten.”

Curtis moved backward. “What’d you call me?”

“You heard me. I said you were weak as a kitten.”

“No, before that.”

Declan laughed. “Have I changed so much? You used to call me Dee Cee, and I called you Cee Dee. You called me Dee Cee because you knew I hated my middle name. I still do.”

Curtis stood back, eyes wide. “Declan?”

Declan held out his arms, palm up. “That’s me! Now, let’s get this done.” He turned to his task of collecting clay.

Both brothers dragged the hide loaded with clay back to the cart bed, where Declan was doing his scribe work.

“Go get some pork. It’ll help you get over the grogginess.” Declan smiled.

“He is my brother,” Declan flashed.

It stunned Curtis. I haven’t seen my brother in years, and now here he is. He walked over to the fire. As he got closer, a huge woman came over. She’s six-six, at least, and built like a tank.

“Hello, Curtis,” she said, sweetly. “I’m Emily, your sister-in-law.” She pulled a six-inch knife and sliced through the cooked pork, then handed him the knife. “Use the knife to stick the meat and eat it that way, or you can use your fingers. We don’t carry plates when we’re out and about.” She smiled at him.

“Uh… thanks, Emily. I’m a little stunned by all this.”

“That’s understandable, given the circumstances.” Emily chuckled. “When you’re more emotionally steady, I’ll introduce you to your nieces and nephew.”

Nieces? Nephew? I can’t believe Declan landed anyone, let alone someone so large and so nice. I always thought he’d end up with a skinny screecher. He chuckled before biting into the meat.

Once Declan was back with wet clay, the line proceeded.

“Are you okay?” Murdock asked his friend, bending in to make their conversation private.

“I’ll be fine,” Declan said, between the individuals filing past.

“Andrew?”

Declan looked up and saw an older man, maybe late fifties, coming toward Murdock.

“Andy Murdock! It is you!”

The man grabbed Murdock’s hand and pumped it. “You old so and so! I thought you were dead! That’s what they told me, at any rate. And yet here you are!”

With difficulty, and without injuring the man, Murdock extricated his hand.

“I’m sorry, sir, but you have me mistaken for someone else. I don’t recognize you.”