"Yes, that's fresh, water." I waved them over to the outflow al. "This is the overflow from our water produ. We thought we might help turn this yon into a ke or a river one day." They washed their hands and them moved a bit upstream to drink. Ha, not their first rodeo. I watched them enjoy it, savor it, like the fi of wio them this water was a treasure, beyond price.

  "Now that you know how to find our home, I ask that you not go up the mountain. owerful automated defenses, and I'd like us to all stay friendly, okay." Maybe I should increase the defehe history of my world had shown that people clearly were horrible at resisting the temptation of short term gains over long term sustainability. I had my suspis that it would prove to be an eveer problem here. Desperate people couldn't afford the luxury of thinking about the long term.

  "You have our thanks and our word." Amanda said it like a . The little bit of info I could dig up online about the Aldecaldos had paihem as mostly trustworthy. I decided to extend some trust first, and prayed that I wasn't being a fool.

  "But wait! There's more." I pulled one of the backpacks full of fruit out of the car, "Aow, and I'll give you this pack of fresh fruit." Sally practically ripped the pack out of my hands. She had it open in no time, and rooted through it. Her fierce demeaner was both intriguing and annoying.

  "What are these? I've never seen fruit like this." She looked up at me like I was trig her. Instead of answering right away, I pulled out another pack, I grabbed a golden e, and started peeling it. I took a bite and ehe tart fvor.

  "We have experimented a bit, but you'll find they're healthy and quite filling. Added bonus, they st lohan normal fruit as well." To be fair, the Valley's fruit didn't need a sales pitch. I just wao make a good impression.

  "Why would you give us this." She actually looked flicted. I was a little disappointed, but they had probably been burned before.

  "Because I like to share with my friends. And I'd like you to be my friends." A took another bite of my e. Juid refreshing.

  "Hell kid, I'll be your friend." The uy spoke up, "I'm Non by the way." He gave a jaunty wave. He looked like he'd been around the block a time or two. If it wasn't for the shadows haunting his eyes I'd say he was someone's kindly grand pa. The well worn holster that cradled his revolver, spoke of his skills.

  "Ryan." I returned his wave.

  Sally looked sheepish, "Sorry, free usually isn't free." True words.

  "I get you. Look at it this way, I'm buying goodwill. Trying to smooth the way for the more tricky stuff down the road." I gave her a wink. I winced internally, that was me. But her damned eyes were distrag.

  She gave a smirk iurn, "Alright. Mr. Goodwill. I'll be keeping my eyes on you." She cocked her hip at me and raised her eyebrow. Was that a challenge? I was certainly ied in finding out.

  "Let's take it slow for now." Amanda said it sternly, but with a huge smile. She also did the hand on the hip thing. Okay, maybe I don't know what that means. I had flu reading girls my whole life.

  I shook my head to clear out the ridiculous thoughts, "Anyway, I have lumber. Every few weeks, I'll have more. Obviously, we 't be selling all of it in NC, we'd flood the market in a couple of months." I shrugged, "However, I have no real es in the area, or the world. So I turn to you, the frie option I've met thus far." I offered them a smile, "Later, we even expand to include some of our other projects, The alloy you see here in my ons, and my Pr-Drones. You'll find they are... quite uhat erhaps the lo sihing I'd said since I got here, it hurt my throat.

  Amanda sidered my words. She pulled out a teen, poured it out. Rinsed and then filled it iream. The other followed suit. Again there was the air of to it. Yet, I was thinking I was an idiot, for not getting teens from the pany Store while I could. Let's just keep that off my face for now.

  "We've been looking for steady work. And a safe pp. roup is just one branch of the Aldecaldos, a family, a , and a nation unto ourselves. We ride and die together. We remember our friends and bury our enemies. Help us and we will help you."

  My smile must have looked truly brilliant. These sounded like my kind of people. "If you knoce out here that fits your needs, not only I make it safer. Given enough time, I make it a home. I have been looking to expand, and help things up out here." I gestured with a wide sweep taking in all of the wastend, "If we have a deal, and if everything works out, I'll show you some tricks that will really blow your minds."

  I shook Amanda's hand firmly. "Let's get this lumber loaded. What's the current market value of wood anyway?"

  Without missing a beat Sally chimed in, "125 an ounce." I ran the numbers in my head, "About 1.5 million or mht here. What we realistically unload it at?"

  Sally ughed, "About 70 an ouhe Fixer will want a det profit."

  "So about 800 grand to split. A bit over 300 grand for your folks. That a good haul for you?"

  "That's six months of supplies and parts." Amanda looked pleased. She seemed to reaother decision, "We finish this deal, and then we see about expanding our retionship." Her eyes flicked over to Sally for a moment. I couldn't say what she was thinking, but Sally seemed to pick up on what her Mother meant. Her grin was a devastating blow to my lonely heart.

  We loaded the 4X4s onto the ftbed, then made sure to cover the pile with a couple of tarps before g it all down with ratchet straps. Amanda set our travel order. Her thehen Non and Sally would bring up the rear. We got moving but took our time, keeping ara eye out for trouble. Everythi smoothly until we got to the main freeway and turned west. Other then being scouted by a few messed up vehicles in the distanothing seemed off.

  We eventually pulled into a garage. DaKota. I had walked by it... how long had it been now? 10 days? It had seemed aba the time. Still seemed that way now. But then the garage roll doors opened up and a few hard looking people came out.

  While Non backed the trailer into one of the garage bays, Amanda introduced me to Dakota herself. A dy that looked like she had traveled every hard road there ever was. They hugged, with a genuine affe for each other. Theher Sally into her arms, again with a long running familiarity that was obvious. These folks had been through a lot together.

  Wheime to introduce me came I got a firm handshake and, "You remind me of a prairie dog I saw o lead me to a cache of ons. That was a good day." After she had stared at me for almost a full minute. I couldn't tell if she was trying to intimidate me or read my soul. A real character this one.

  Sally walked up with, "You should let him heal you. It'll feel great." I sputtered for a few mi that, while they all ughed. She really wasn't going to let that part go. Sometimes, I thought it was a real shame that it didn't seem to do the same things for me.

  "Maybe aime, Medie Man." With that Dakota went ba the garage, to start running down ers for oods.

  Non with the help of the two hard looking guys was unhooking the trailer. I noticed that there were more e cables between the vehicle and the trailer than I was used to. Something to poke about with ter.

  "She said it will take a few days to move it all, so the money will be ing in then." Amanda stig to the practical. "In the meantime, why don't you e to the camp. Tomorrow we show you a pce we have been scouting out for a new site." She gave me the smallest of smiles.

  Sally was smiling and nodding, "You meet everyone, and maybe we have some fun." Sally spped me on the shoulder, it stung. Oh yeah, cyberarms.

  A few mier, we were all headed south.

  After traveling a while we turned onto a road headed more toward the west. The evening was rolling in, the sun headed to it's rest. We kept going, the drive being a wele period of meditation for me. Radio off, window rolled down, the rapidly cooling evening air rushing past. Looking up I saw the stars had peeked out, including the artificial ones. Pced above by our manic desire to seek the beyond. I too, would like to see what's out there one day.

  The desert felt lonely, yet peaceful. There was no oraveling these backways but us. Just us, and the wind.

  After far too short a time we began to slow. Lights were visible ahead, led between a cluster of hills. We slowed to a stop while Amanda honked a series of quick taps on her horn. I noticed that the honks were very muted, so the sound would couldn't carry very far. A returning series of simirly muted honks, and we slowly tinued. A camp came into view. 5 rge Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Trucks (HEMTT) were arranged in a rge circle. Each carried a small building on it. A few smaller MRAPS parked ihat circle. Most of the light came from these vehicles. Turning the night nearly into day.

  Withier circle of trucks were tents of all shapes and sizes. Areas full of benches and tables, where dozens of people sat around talkiing, ughing. The were several rge fire pits where various cooking activities occurred. We parked o a cluster of standard vehicles just outside the outer camp circle. I saw a few of the Galena's try cousins the Gecko and several Maaws. There were even a couple of Mizutani Shion Coyotes. Quite a few people were w on some of these hard used vehicles. They had small mobile light setups and tool boxes and parts crates close by.

  Exiting my car, I could already hear Amanda, Sally and Non receiving greetings. I smiled softly, the family setting was a wonderful thing. I'd sometimes fotten that in all the fri with my parents over the years. I asked Barry to watch the Galena while the rest of the Probes would hover nearby to an keep an eye on me, maybe patrol the area. I stopped at my trunk to grab a couple of backpacks. O over my shoulder, while I carried the other in my left hand. Pulling a silver apple out to munch. I walked over to where Amanda was still talking with the folks tinkering with their cars.

  "We'll be able to get all the parts our rides need, soon enough. Then we look to getting some better iron and e." She was talking a shuy, a grease monkey born, if I'd ever seen one. Overalls stained from years of repair and maintenance work. His smile was as dark as his hair, and his eyes burned with a desire to make his cars, his babies, better. Yeah, my kind of dude.

  Sally reached over and snagged a blue mango from my backpack, "Guzman, this is Ryahe one providing our new opportunity." I waved with the apple in my hand and offered the backpa. His eyebrows went up and he pulled out a red banana. He looked at it in surprise then bae. I nodded, aur. Enough said.

  Amanda lead the way further into the camp. She and Sally introduced me around, and not that long after, I was sitting on one of the benches, with a beer in hand and a pte of tacos in front of me. To tell the truth, most of the new names would need a sed or third exposure to take. Yet it was o meet so many people in a good way. To share a moment. I had handed off the other backpack to one of the older teens to distribute. They set the pack dowo the cooking area for who ever wahem.

  There was a calm but vibrant energy in the air. The gruff but friendly people here living simple lives, partially free of the siess hanging over the city folk. Then, I was being regaled with the story of a raid on a Militech voy. How Sally had flipped her trud had to be towed back, her blush told me it was true. "It was my first raid, I was nervous, and that rock came outa nowhere." I patted her hand.

  I felt a burning gre trying to bore deep into my skull. I turhat way to see Lynx trying to kill me with his eyes. Didn't work, but damned if he didn't give it his all. I gri him and gave it extra teeth. I took a casual sip of beer to show him how much his opinio to me.

  "Don't let him bother you. He's from a different tribe, trying to find a wife with us." Sally said quietly. "He's had his sights on me, but I'm not ied."

  "Oh?" I turo look into her eyes. I gave her the old questioning eyebrow trick.

  She ughed at me. "Yeah, I'm not ready to settle down with anyone just yet. Plus he doesn't get along with Megan." I hadn't met Mega, but I suddenly wao get on her good side. Damn, I loved staring into this dy's eyes. way too much. That she let me, was a wist for on my life.

  "Gotta have your fun while you , right?" Now where had I heard that before? ht, first girl I tried to date back when I was ba trade school. That was her attempt to let me down easy. I hoped this wasn't going to be a repeat of that moment.

  Sally gave me a wink. Not too long after that a impromptu music festival started up. A lively mix of instruments and gehen dang broke out and Sally hauled me out for a whirl. These folks liked a mix of Line, Square and Salsa dang and I erfectly okay with that. Sally and I had a few passes, feeling each other out. Getting used to how we both moved. The music sped up and we followed. I led her through a foxtrot and then into a pseudo tango. She was a delight to move with, easy to lead, strong and graceful. The piece stopped and so did we. We stared deep into each other's eyes, while taking deep breaths to calm down.

  Then a nice soft voiced girl named Kori wanted a round. Then the illustriously lush and curvy Megan, who I hoped I made a good impression with. Even Amanda came to me for a turn or two. Soon I had danced with most of the dies in the camp. We had all shared a few ughs and small stories of better days.

  Finally the paced slowed and Sally was in my arms again. We were not so much dang anymore as simply swaying together, sharing spad warmth. She murmured hings into my ear, and I whispered of dreams I had thought lost. After the music stopped and most folks started seeking their beds, we went for a walk outside the camp. Found a d id out a bo stare up at the stars together. We didn't say much, we didn't o.

  Truth be told I etrified ihis was the best date I'd ever had and I was terrified I'd screw it up. But I tried to remember that it was best to go with the flow, not to push. I took a deep breath a all my old worries go.

  We dozed off together uhe night sky and the watchful ss of Fix and Scuff.