The Mojave

"A deputy? With these nails?" Yolanda held up her carefully manicured hand, threw back her head and laughed, then flashed a complicit smile at Lilly. "Oh honey, my rough-and-tumble days are long behind me." She didn't want to shame these women for the disparity between her glamorous appearance and their road-worn clothes and borderline malnourishment, but rather hint at the possibilities that Sanctuary held for them.

"No, I'm what I suppose you'd call a busyboy. I keep people busy and keep bodies together. It helps stick Sanctuary together, you know? And I don't doubt your ethic, ma'am - " here she nodded at the elder woman " - I don't think y'all should be worried about work right now. Why don't you two head on off to the kitchens - it's the big metal-sheet building about four down on this side - and see if there's a late breakfast or an early lunch to be had. Tell them I sent you, and Doc G and I will keep an eye on this one for you."

A short while later, Yolanda emerged from the hospital, squinting as the sun upped its punishing glare as it neared midday. She waved as two girls ran past, shrieking and laughing, each holding one end of a length of red ribbon. Amazing what passed for toys in these difficult days. Dust swirled up in their wake. The sooner we get that irrigation project finished, the better, Yolanda thought.

She took a deep breath, trying to suppress her annoyance at Doctor Gutierrez. Sure, she could see patient confidentiality still had a place in the world today, and no, she wouldn't like it if just about anyone could find out her private business by asking. But couldn't the doctor see this was no mere snooping? There wasn't just the issues of a spread of disease and an unwanted, possibly contested pregnancy. Did John Callum really want a town where prostitution was acceptable? Did he not see the damage that could to to morale? And what's more, if a character like Gary Lane could get away with this, what else would he attempt?

In the doorway to Freedom Incarnate, Yolanda primped her hair and smoothed her dress down on her hips. As her eyes adjusted to the gloom, she picked out Gary Lane standing by the bar, seemingly in conversation with a customer. She stepped towards them, her high heels click-clacking in the sudden silence.

Lilly and her mother nodded after Yolanda explained her position, and when food was mentioned, as if on cue Lilly stomach growled. She placed both her hands on her stomach slightly embarrassed. Her mother, shook her head "I'm gonna stay here Lil's if you're hungry you go on ahead, I'll catch after your sister comes to."

Lilly looked at her mother, she had always had a soft spot for Holly, not that she showed favoritism it was just that Holly was the baby. And once Holly truly grew up, that meant that both her girls weren't her little babies any more, it was like her mother was holding on to that for dear life. She felt like she had already lost that with Lilly being so independent, and very often taking charge of tough situations. Despite feeling a little down that her mother chose to stay, Lilly nodded.

"I'll bring ya something back okay Mamma?", she said with a little bit of concern for her mother.

Her mother nodded and the turned her attention back to Holly. Lilly slipped through the front door and headed for the what she thought was the kitchens as she walked along she realized she had turned the wrong way and was now lost. There wasn't anything around her but what looked like living quarters. She was just about to turn around and go back when she almost ran right into three men who had just come around the corner between a couple of buildings. One was a smaller man with red hair and a short beard, another was a behemoth of a man that towered over Lilly like a giant, and the last was a shorter black man with a thick large beard. She stopped before she crashed into them, and swallowed nervously, they looked like a group of men that she didn't want to interact with.

"Would you look at this one boys, another one. I swear to God if Callum keeps letting every needy little waif in here we're going to all wake up to another bandit raid with our throats cut.", the red haired man looked Lilly up and down. "At least this ones easy on the eyes.", the giant guy chuckled a bit and then moved on around Lilly. She heard them going on about the guy they had just taught a 'lesson' that they left behind the barracks.

As they made their way out of sight, Lilly sighed with relief but she wondered what they meant by the man they were talking about. Curiosity got the best of her, and besides if those three had been teaching anyone a lesson it wasn't a good thing. She turned the corner in between the two building that the men had emerged from before. She came up behind a guy that looked like he had been hurt. She was just grateful to find a living person and not a dead body or something.

"Hey.... you all right?", she asked, "I saw those men come out of here and well it was obvious they weren't friendly." she walked up to the young guy, and placed her hand on his shoulder. "You need the Doc or anything? I made the wrong turn down here on my way to the kitchen... I guess its a good thing I did now.... My names Lilly by the way, just came through the gate this morning. My mother and sister are at the clinic, at least I know where that is."

As soon as Yolanda left, John brought his head down into his hands and sighed exasperatedly. This job was going to be the death of him.

"I'm too old for this," he muttered to himself. How did the politicians do it? The men in their seventies and eighties. He was still four years away from seventy and he wasn't sure how much more he could take of it.

For a while, he sat in his office in silent contemplation. After the first few minutes, he really lost track of the time, but he did come to a couple decisions.

First, he would not be taking Mr. Lane. He wanted this meeting to be as friendly as possible. Whether or not Lane would be disposed to being shrewd and harsh in a situation like that, John wasn't completely sure, but he didn't want to take that chance.

Second, he had to speak to Finley regarding this situation with Susana and Lane at Freedom Incarnate. At the very least, the sheriff had to be informed. It was an open secret that Finley disliked Gary and his establishment; he had made his feelings clear to John several times while it was just being built. If he had his way, he would shut the whole place down, or evict Lane, at the very least.

Finally, John stood up, and exited the room. On the other side of the door, Zoey was seated at her desk, reading a book. When she saw John approach, she put the book down, hurriedly.

"Oh! Mister Callum! Sorry, I--"

"It's alright. Was that Mister Tatum I heard earlier?"

"Yes, sir."

"What did he want?"

"Something about a twinkle twinkle. He said it's a tool of some kind."

"Anything else?"

"Just that he was going to go see the Spider."

That was probably Gary Lane. Ollie wanted something and he would be going to Lane to try and get it.

"Thank you. One other thing, Zoey."

"Hmm?" she intoned.

"I'd like you to try and find a Teddy Daclaveon, and Barbara Bowery."

"Yes, sir. Should I tell them what for?"

"If they ask, tell them that I will be discussing it with them in person."

"Alright."

"Have them wait in here if I'm not back by then. I'm going to go take a walk."

With that, John took his hat off the rack and pushed his way out of the door.
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Finley sat patiently, allowing her to finish, "Did you see Jack with Susana, or either of these two men at the bar?"

"No, but Jack told me-" she started, but stopped once the sheriff held up his hand.

"Okay," he said, looking from Marina to the other three now, "Thank you." He then turned his attention in Jack's direction. "Jack?"

Jack was silent. He wasn't even looking at the sheriff, or Marina, or anybody. After a long silence, Finley spoke up again, "Jack, please."

He was still silent.

Finally, the sheriff rose to his feet and put his hands on his desk as he looked down to Jack, his eyes narrowed. "Do you know what's going on here? This is a serious offense. I want to help you, but it's hard if you don't even speak up for yourself."

Jack looked up and finally spoke, prompting the sheriff to sit back down.

"I shouldn't have done it, I know," he began, "I'm sorry."

The sheriff sighed, "Just tell me what happened."

"It's just like Marina said. I was at Freedom Incarnate, and I was with Susana."

Finley knew about Susana and her mother. He knew that the young woman had a certain reputation around town. When he first heard of it, his conscience told him to go straight down to Freedom Incarnate, lock its dubious owner up, and escort Susana out here and back to her mother. But, he couldn't. Callum allowed Freedom Incarnate to be built and to exist, and everything that went on within its walls was technically not illegal. Many of the town's citizens seemed to be of the mind that the place, no matter what went on inside, to be a necessary evil. That may have been true, but there had to be a line somewhere.

"We didn't-" Jack continued, stammering a bit, "We just talked, I swear."

"Is that all?" Finley asked.

"Well, I--" Jack began, only to stop himself.

"What is it, Jack?"

"I gave her Sarah's old necklace."

Finley raised his eyebrows in surprise, but urged Jack to continue on, "Anything else you did with her?"

"No."

"What happened next?"

"I stayed at Freedom Incarnate after that. I was there all night. These two-" Jack said, motioning to Dan and Elias, "-were there, too. When I left, they followed me, stared harassing me. They asked me how she was, how fast I got off, and when I'd be coming back."

Dan scoffed, "Asshole. You still pulled a fucking gun on us."

"I know!" Jack exclaimed, "I know! I'm sorry."

Dan shook his head, his face turned into a scowl, "Whatever," he muttered, "Asshole."

The sheriff then turned his attention to Dan and Elias, "So, is what he's saying true?"

"Yeah, but, I mean, I wouldn't say we were harassing him. We were just joking. We didn't mean nothing by it. If we'd have known he was going to pull that shit, we wouldn't have done it."

"He says you were harassing him."

"That's how he saw it, I guess. Can't say I agree with him."

"That doesn't matter," Finley snapped back, impatient at Dan's flippant tone, "You two are leaving here with a warning. If I hear any more complaints about you, then I'm going to punish you further. Understood?"

Dan sighed and nodded, "Yeah."

"Good, now get out of here."

The pair stood up and scooted their way past the chairs and out the door. Finley was sure he'd heard the older of the two mutter something like "Asshole" on his way out, but he ignored it. It was then, once they'd left, that the sheriff noticed the look Marina was passing his way.

"Don't give me that look. It's worse than they were expecting, and there's not much else I can do. We'll be keeping an eye on them." Finley then redirected the conversation, focusing now on Jack again, "Now, about Jack. I know that things have been rough for you lately and you've been facing a lot of stress, but I can't just pretend this didn't happen. A lot of people here have had it rough, but I can't give you preferential treatment." It wasn't fair to the rest of the people of Sanctuary. Plus, it would only add fuel to the fires of certain citizens that believed the city's government was corrupt.

He continued, standing up, "I don't know that you can stay here. I doubt Callum would allow it. But, I can't send you out into the desert alone to fend for yourself. Not in good conscience. I'm going to recommend that you be conscripted with the Partisans at Fort Defiance. I know some people there, including Commander Briggs. He'll be happy to have you."

"In any case, I'll be speaking with Callum about this. He might be more lenient. One way or another, I'll let you know. I just thought I should tell you what I'm thinking."

After a moment or two of silence, Finley finished, "I'm sorry it came to this."

"Hey.... you all right?", she asked, "I saw those men come out of here and well it was obvious they weren't friendly." she walked up to the young guy, and placed her hand on his shoulder. "You need the Doc or anything? I made the wrong turn down here on my way to the kitchen... I guess its a good thing I did now.... My names Lilly by the way, just came through the gate this morning. My mother and sister are at the clinic, at least I know where that is."

Lazarus was relieved to find someone that actually seemed to care about his well-being. He had never been much of a ladies man. A girl's hand on his shoulder would have made him a nervous wreck years ago, but war had a way of pushing aside minor stress. She asked if he was alright. He had taken two big hits to the abdomen, Thornton had made impact with his ribs a little. Lazarus lifted his shirt up, a bruise forming around his lower left ribs.

"Bruises don't usually form this quick. I've probably got a sprained or cracked rib." Every time he breathed there was minor pain shooting from his left side. Her hand came off his shoulder and he looked down at her, standing almost a whole foot taller. Suddenly aware that he had just revealed his wounds when the girl may not have seen what caused it, he panicked.

"H-Hey, please don't tell anyone about this. I'll deal with it." He rolled his shirt back down, shooting a nervous glance at the direction McAllister had gone. "I could definitely go for the kitchen. I'm Lazarus by the way." He extended his hand in greeting.

The guy couldn't have been much older than she was, maybe a bit younger, and on closer examination he looked like he was in allot of pain as he tried to stand. He was quite a bit taller than her but that wasn't unusual, most guys were taller than her. At least he wasn't mortally wounded, by the looks of those hoodlums Lilly wouldn't put it past them to beat someone to a bloody pulp then leave them to die in an ally. However when the guy lifted his shirt up it made Lilly wince to see the painful bruises forming on his torso.

"My God, you should really go see the Doc about this." she could tell his breathing was already labored, from the injuries.

When he made the comment about his ribs being bruised or even cracked she looked up at him again with a panicked look.

"No, I'm serious if they are cracked and you move wrong you could collapse a lung or something. Come on lets go now..." she gently put her hand onto his arm to try to lead him in the direction she had come from.

But he stopped and gave a worried look in the direction that asshole and his goons had gone. And then he asked Lilly not to say anything as he rolled his shirt back down over his injuries. She sighed knowing why he didn't want anyone to know, especially the doctor. If word got back to those guys, that he had told anyone in authority around here, they might come back and do something far worse the beat him up. She nodded letting him know that his secret was safe with her.

She walked along side him as they headed out of the alley, Lilly noticed his strained way of walking probably doing his best to get through the pain in his ribs. She gave a smile when he told her his name and shook his offered hand.

"Nice to meet you Lazarus, that's not you're everyday run of the mill name you got there." she tried to make small talk as the headed towards the kitchens. Maybe it would help take his mind off the pain he was probably experiencing.

As they walked toward the kitchen they talked about a lot of random things. How they both got to Sanctuary, which for Lilly was very recent. Lazarus was sorry he couldn't help her get more acquainted, but he had been keeping to himself. She tried to convince him to see the doctor but he was having none of it. Moments later they were in line at the kitchen, being served a thin gruel that sufficed for oatmeal. Fruit and nuts were served on the side. It was no extravagant meal, but it had nutritional value.

"So, Lilly, do you think you and your family are going to stay in Sanctuary? I know it is kind of a stupid question, but you would be surprised that some people actually move on. Whether they think there is somewhere better out there, they don't like the climate, or they just prefer keeping to themselves."

After going around and around with Lazarus, she finally gave up trying to get him to go see the Doc about his ribs. If there was one thing she learned while they were living with her grandfather, it was that men were stubborn, especially when it came to things like an injury or their health. But she also understood that he didn't want those goons to try to come back and finish him off either. She sat next to him at a make shift cafeteria table, made of old oil drums, plywood, and rope, with a blue tarp table cloth. When he asked if her family planned to stay she looked down at the "oatmeal".

"Well... yeah. The weather isn't a problem. We're from Texas so heat don't bother us much, but... we really have nowhere else to go. Definitely not gonna go back to liv'n in the woods with a crazy old man that was beginning to think we were all under the control of the aliens. Especially an old man with access to twenty years worth of hording guns and ammunition. Granted you could have the same sort of thing happen here, but at least there are some good people to rely on here." she looked up at him after taking another bite.

"What about you? Are you going to stay?"
((Sorry if this doesn't make any sense, I just haven't had the time to make fit together, so I just separated each part with Lazarus or Lilly in a different color. I just couldn't wrap my mind around how to make the colab work right. Lilly=purple, Lazarus=green))

Theo had received his water ration from the kitchen when he heard someone yelling his name from a few buildings down. It was Zoey, John Callum's assistant. Many people could slide by unnoticed, but not anyone in Callum's inner circle. She had another female in tow, Barb was her name if he was right in his recollection. He uncapped the waterskin, taking a swig as he strolled over to the women.

"How can I help?"

"You are Teddy correct?"

"I'm a man of many names but that one works. I was mainly called that as a child, I prefer to go with Theo or Ted." He smiled as he said it, not caring what anyone called him.

"Callum would like to see you." He raised his eyebrows.

"Well by all means, lets go see the man." Ted brought up the caboose of their three person line as they trudged across town to Callum's office. "Any idea what this is about?"

"I'd prefer to leave that up to John to tell you." Zoey snapped back politely, Barbara quiet as they continued. He wondered what was in store for him.
-------
David sent his companions off to their respective homes, arriving at his own doorstep. He stopped for a moment, ensuring his tie was straight and his collar was clean. His wife may be blind, but he still wanted to look good for her. McAllister stepped into his dwelling.

"Linda! Justine! I'm home." His daughter came rushing out from her room to him, smile gleaming. David snatched her out of the air, spinning her around. Justine giggled with laughter as she twirled in the air. He sat her back on the ground to avoid making her dizzy. Linda was a little slower, but she had their small abode mapped out in her mind easily now, navigating it without a sense of sight. David made it a little easier on her, meeting his wife halfway.

He gave her a quick peck on the cheek and a warm embrace. "I missed you guys. What have you been up to today?" Justine looked at the ground, sullen.

Linda laughed. "Well, she didn't want to, but we did some sewing. Clothes don't get mass produced out of factories and she is a growing girl, making clothes to fit her is important." David turned to his daughter, dropping to one knee.

"Did you give your mom a hard time today?"

Justine smiled, "Maybe a little." David and Linda both started laughing, with Justine joining in. Linda found her way to their sofa, taking a seat. David was still next to Justine.

"What did you want to do?"

"I want to go learn to shoot the bow! Some man is teaching most of the kids how to do it." David frowned.

"Now Justine, you can leave all that fighting nonsense to the boys! You don't have to partake in any of that."

His daughter looked at him as if he were an alien. "But Daddy, we all need to fight, right?" Linda was silent from the couch, leaving this topic to David.

"Well honey . . . babies come from women right?"

She nodded.

"If all the women go out and fight with the men, then they get hurt, how are more babies going to be born?"

His daughter didn't have an answer for him. "I just think bows would be funner than sewing!" David took her hands in his.

"Maybe if you practice sewing enough, you can go to some of those bow training sessions."

"Really?!" David did not want to say yes.

"Yes, of course darling." Justine went back to her room, ready to sew up a storm. David joined Linda on the couch, laying his head in her lap. She ran her hands through his hair. Then she ran her fingertips over his face.

"We're getting older David. She does need to be able to protect herself." He was silent for a solid minute.

"You know just as well as me I'm a stubborn man. I can't change overnight, not even with aliens out there." They dropped the topic for the rest of the night.

[We need to churn out some quick posts and get things moving so no one loses faith!]

The sheriff reclined in his chair as Marina and Jack left his office and then ran his hand over his head once. He then pushed himself up to his feet and headed towards the door. As he neared the door, it swung open to reveal one of his deputies, an enthusiastic young man named Brendan. He was a little clumsy and a little overweight and Finley had to straighten him out on occasion, but he meant well, and he was good at his job, all in all.

"Sheriff!"

"Careful," the sheriff said, stepping back half a step as the door blew air into his face.

"Oh, sorry!"

"What is it?"

"Miss Gunn is with Doctor Gutierrez in her office, and they're with some new people."

Finley pressed his fingers into the bridge of his nose and sighed, "Alright. Go find Walter and talk to them. Can you handle it?"

"Yeah, of course." Brendan's face turned to that of concern as he looked to the sheriff, "Are you alright?"

"Fine. I just need to take a break."

"Okay. We'll take care of it."

"Thanks," the sheriff said, patting Brendan on the back, earning him a smile from the chubby young man.

Finley trekked across town to the building that he called home. His mother, Sharise, and Deandra, the woman who was bearing his child, also lived there.

The latter was seated in the kitchen area. She stood and waddled over to him, raising up on her toes to give him a kiss, which he returned with less than full effort.

"What's wrong?" she asked, sitting down next to him when he took a seat on the nearby couch.

"It's a pain in the ass being sheriff, you know that?"

Dee looked into his eyes, not humored by his poor attempt at a joke.

"I've got to have a talk with Callum," Finley admitted after seeing her face.

"About what?"

"Jack. Gary."

Dee then simply nodded. She knew that he didn't like to talk about work, and the private affairs that the town often came to him with. He was grateful that she knew his position.

Gently, she put an arm around him and he tilted his head so it was resting on hers. Then he closed his eyes.
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Callum hadn't returned when Zoey had led Theo and Barbara back to the mayor's building. She took a seat at her desk and smiled to the pair, "You can sit down," she said, motioning to the chairs nearby, "I'm sure he'll be back soon enough."

And sure enough, just minutes later, the aging mayor stepped in through the door, hung his hat up once again, and turned to greet the two sitting down, "Ah, there you are. Please, go into my office." Then, he turned to Zoey, "Thank you."

He closed the door behind him and took a seat, the other two doing the same immediately afterwards.

"Barbara," he said, looking to the woman, who nodded.

"Teddy."

"I prefer to go by Theo or Ted."

"Very well, Ted. I'll get straight to it," Callum announced, placing his hands together in front of him. "We have some visitors from Garland, the nearby settlement founded by Robert Garland. One of these visitors is his son, Michael, who has told me that his father wants to meet me. For what, I don't know, but it could prove advantageous for both of our settlements. I have spoken with Miss Gunn, and you both come highly recommended."

First, he looked to Barbara, "You for your negotiating ability. I don't predict any sort of hostility, but it doesn't hurt to have someone else there as well."

Then, he looked to Theo, "And you for your combat skills. As I said, I don't predict any sort of hostility while in Garland, but the trek is a potentially dangerous one, and even with Michael Garland's bodyguards present, I would feel more comfortable with someone from town around."

"Obviously, the decision is ultimately in your hands, but I would be greatly indebted to you both, especially if this meeting goes well. What do you say?"