Chapter 14: Contact


A cool breeze brushed through the grassy field, swaying the parched blades. The clear, night sky seemed to stretch on forever, a billion radiant stars impossible to count in a lifetime. The huge oak tree casted a large, black shadow under their glow, and hidden under its outstretched, overlapping limbs was a yellow tent.

The tenants listened to the frogs, the cicadas, and the crickets. They watched the soft glow of fireflies dance across the tall blades of grass. All they had in their tent was a bunch of blankets, some pillows, and a couple of flashlights, and a radio. It's all they needed.

The girls giggled, laying halfway outside the opening of the tent to stargaze. Tuffs of silver clouds slowly rolled across the sky but didn't obscure their view.

"There's the north star!" Mary exclaimed. "And there, not far away. The Big Dipper."

"Actually, the Big Dipper is part of Ursa Major," Sarah explained. "The handle is the head and neck of the bear, and the cup is his chest. Follow the bottom of the box down. There's his legs."

Mary squinted. "Doesn't look like a bear to me." She grinned and looked over at her baby sister. "You're such a nerd." And nudged her.

Sarah shrugged, but also smiled. "Yeah, so?"

She may have teased her sister about being smarter, but she treasured her for being the way that she was. Smart, curious, eager to discover and explore. They shared that drive for adventure and achievement. Sarah was smarter though, shier around people, more inclined to think things through and come up with better solutions.

There were times that Mary was envious of Sarah. Especially her big heart and willingness to forgive, the way she did her best to remain positive, no matter the situation. But more than anything, Mary was proud of her.

"The world's gonna have to watch out for you, sis," Mary said. "It's not ready for all the greatness you have to offer."

Sarah blushed. "Quit it, Emmy. You're just saying that."

"Course I'm not! Hey, you're gonna help me through college, right? I'll need my whiz sis around to be able to pass."

They were still too young for college, thirteen and eleven. But they dreamed of the day it would come, to be able to say goodbye to their broken home and set sail for a new life, and all the wonders in store.

"Will we even get to go to college? Aren't we too poor for that?"

"That's what scholarships and grants are for. We got this, Sarah!" She winked at her sister and it earned her a wide grin. "So, what do you want to be anyway?"

"I don't know…lots of things."

"Well, name one. One that speaks to your heart, right now. In this moment. I wanna know."

Sarah thought long and hard, chewing on her lip. The summer song of crickets, frogs, and cicadas continued around them, undisturbed. The moon and stars were so bright tonight they didn't need lights, although most of the lights were still on in the nearby trailer park behind them.

"A doctor."

"That's awesome. You'd be so great at that!"

"Think so?"

"I know so! Duh!"

Sarah's smile slowly fell and she pulled a blanket over her shoulders to shield herself from the cool night wind. "There's one thing I want to be more than that though."

Mary was curious, fishing her way under the blanket with her sister as they still sat at the tent's opening to look at the stars. "What's that?"

"A mom."

"A mom?"

"Yeah. I want to be a better mom than…Mom. I want to love them and hold them and take them places and laugh. I want to do things with them, silly things, go on adventures. I want to watch them grow up and…be there." Sarah sighed. "Like it used to be."

Before Mary could say anything, a loud crash sounded behind them, loud, angry voices disrupting the night. They looked through the screen tent window behind them to the nearest trailer down the way, their trailer. A man and a woman fought and yelled and threw things at each other on the other side of dirty blinds inside the trailer.

Sarah scooted closer to Mary and the two young girls tried to ignore the sounds. Mary reached over and turned on the small radio they brought with them, a staticky tune filtering out to distract them.

Mary wrapped an arm around Sarah's shoulder and they squeezed in close under the blanket, eyes to the sky to promising stars.

"You'll be great at it," Mary told her.

A long pause and then her little sister spoke. "Thanks, Emmy. I think you'd be a great mom, too."

A shooting star blazed across the sky and they gasped at the blue and white light, luminous and breathtaking.

"Make a wish, Emmy!"

And so, Mary made a wish on that shooting star. Soon she would find out that her wish would not come true. But she would never know that her sister's did…


How long had it been? It already felt like years, but upon looking at her clock in the bedroom it had only been a few days. The Deputy was going insane from lack of interaction.

How the hell can he do this?! No wonder he's nuts!

Mary needed to get out of this room. How Joseph was able to thrive in isolation was beyond her. She was an extrovert through and through and needed contact.

No…I refuse to give him anything after what he pulled!

Besides the agonizingly slow passage of time alone in her room, the Deputy was also going crazy over the possibility of conceiving. She had done all she could, scrubbed every nook and cranny that mattered with vigor, and now the only way to tell would be time. Mary kept telling herself there was no way that Joseph was able to knock her up on the first try.

Not a chance in hell. Nobody has such a good aim! Especially when shooting from the hip.

Mary cringed inwardly at the mental image.

Anyway...just you wait, in a few weeks I will be shoving it in your face, you delusional dick!

...okay, pity points for alliteration, whatever. But he really was!

Cursing him out in her mind and denying any and all possibility of a pregnancy with all she had still didn't help her nerves though.

When Mary could no longer take the hunger literally eating at her, she reluctantly left the confines and safety of her room. She paused halfway out the door, listening. The bunker was quiet, just the rustle of old pipes and a faint humming from the generators to be heard.

The Deputy tiptoed towards the den, as though the concrete floor was made of squeaky boards. She watched every step, like a secret agent on a reconnaissance mission where getting caught meant ultimate failure. Upon reaching the door to the den, the Deputy peeked inside, eyes darting around.

There was no one in there. The kitchen light was on and clashed with the blue light from the fish tank. The only movement was that of the fish swimming around in their aquarium, minding their own business.

"Looking for me?"

"AHH!"

The Deputy jumped out of her skin, whirling around to face the Father lurking behind her. With arms folded and one questioning eyebrow raised, he seemed to be waiting on her next move. Mary glared daggers at him, hoping to strike him down like the past five hundred times before. But...nothing. In fact, he seemed to be immune. Shame.

"Mary, we need to-"

She slapped her hands over her ears. "La la la laaaaa! Can't hear you!"

"Real mature."

"What?"

He glared at her. "Listen, you and I should-"

"Well, would you look at the time. It's I don't give a damn thirty. Time for dinner!"

Mary turned her back on him and went into the den. Joseph didn't say anything but watched her the entire time she cooked. When she sat down at the table to finally eat, her stomach complaining loudly from going so long without eating, he sat down across from her. The Deputy bristled, but kept her face down on her food, eating in fuming silence.

"John once told me you could hold a grudge for even longer than him. He wasn't wrong."

"Your dearest baby brother was right about a lot of things. Maybe you should've listened to him more. You think I'm pissed? You haven't seen anything yet," Mary snapped.

"You shouldn't let it consume you. Cast it aside, as I did. We only have each other now. The clean slate and forgiveness I gave you are still open and will remain."

There he went trying to manipulate her again. Mary chewed her food extra harshly and swallowed, pointing a fork at him that she would've preferred to stab into a certain body part of his.

"Forgiveness? After what you did?"

Joseph sighed. "You misconstrue my actions, Mary. What happened between us was natural and intended, whether I knew of our future or not. I didn't plan for it to happen, at least not then. My only intention was to truly and wholly forgive you. What came after was in our hearts."

This man had a way with words. No, persuasion. Mary shook her head, not looking at him, eating more of her meal in tense silence.

After a long moment, she said, "You still took advantage of it…of me. You know, the problem is that sleeping together is like squeezing toothpaste out of the tub; you can try as hard as you might, but going back to the way things were before is as impossible as getting the toothpaste back inside the tub. You screwed this up."

Mary scrunched up her face.

"Okay, maybe that wasn't the best analogy to pick, but...you get what I mean."

"'Let he who is without sin cast the first stone'. You knew just as well as I did of the risks involved in our union. And you still accepted me. And I didn't take advantage of anything. I simply realized that this was where God's next plan would begin."

Mary pushed her plate away and laughed bitterly. "Do you hear yourself? You're crazy…and a liar."

"And what exactly have I lied about? Everything I predicted came to pass, did it not? Despite how unlikely you and your friends thought it would be. Even amidst the atrocities my brothers and I have done, we always stood with the truth He showed me, saving as many souls as possible. But all of the people that called me a liar...where are they now?"

Mary lowered her eyes.

"I preach only the truth, spoken directly from the Lord. Whether I want it to happen or not, I must obey Him. When He first showed me that I had to keep you alive after all you've done, I was angry. I laughed at the obscenity of it! But I obeyed. Even though I still wanted to kill you. And He continued showing me more and more of what you would become, because you were meant for something greater and He had forgiven you. You play a pivotal role in the new world, Mary. Not just by becoming my wife and mother of my children, but by your soul and all of the hardships you've endured. Only you. It was only ever you. And I realize that now."

Mary looked up at him then, shocked. Her heart dropped like a dead weight in her belly and she almost had flashbacks to Jacob's trials.

"You and I were chosen, Mary. It's time to dig the log out of your eye before pointing out the speck in someone else's."

Matthew 7:5, she quickly thought and snorted. Although the Father was right to call her out that she needed to look at her own sins and faults before attacking others for theirs, he was wrong about having a speck in his eye. She may have had a log, but Joseph had a whole damn forest.

But his words of her being important in the new world in more ways than one...they sounded so certain. Joseph always seemed positive and confident in his preaching, but there was something different about this prediction, and it sprouted some kind of ember within her, yearning to grow.

He had been right on everything so far, yet she was adamant he had to be wrong about them…about her conceiving. The Father had to be wrong about something. Still, she understood what he was getting at and sighed.

"Fine, if that's what you believe," she muttered. "We're both shitty people, somehow "chosen" by God to lead the new world. I still think you're delusional. But…I'll consider calling a truce. Once I've figured out what to think of this whole mess...might take a while, considering the size of it..." When she saw him smile, she quickly added, "This does not mean I've forgiven you for what you've done. This is simply for coexistence. And don't get any ideas because it ain't happening. Once we know for sure that I'm not pregnant, then we can start discussing how to move forward."

"You'll have to come to terms that you are."

"You want me to toss that truce out the window?" she growled.

Joseph raised his hands in compliance. "I guess you will have to come to those terms on your own."

"Just be grateful I'm willing to think about sharing the same space with you without attempted murder."

A long bout of silence settled between them. Only the hum of the fish tank could be heard. Mary took a long drink of her water, avoiding eye contact with her bunker mate.

She hated this. It was worse than before her and Joseph started getting along. She had actually started to enjoy her new life when they were getting close. Now she felt nothing but bitterness at being used. Loneliness again. She didn't know what to do with herself or how to pass the time. She worried…

The new year was just a couple of days away, but Mary wouldn't be drinking or celebrating. The world was dead. Her friends and family were dead and she was trapped underground with a megalomaniac. Let's not dwell on the fact that she had actually started warming up to him and feeling something bordering on affection for him before it all came tumbling down.

Quit worrying, her inner voice said. Nothing's going to happen. You aren't pregnant. Joseph is wrong. He's gotta be wrong this time. You aren't going to be his wife or have his children. He'll realize he's insane and the both of you will coexist until it's time to part ways in an apocalyptic wasteland.

And then, suddenly it dawned on her and the Deputy spat out some water. "Wait…children?! As in…more than one?!"

Joseph wiped his arm with a grimace, some of her water and spittle having sprayed across the table. Mary had been so worked up over her potentially conceiving, that she didn't even realize what Joseph claimed to be written in their shared futures.

"Yes," he stated simply. "Children, as in the plural form of child."

"How many are we supposed to have?" she asked. "In your crazy, made-up delusions, I mean. Come on, let's hear it, Nostradamus. I need a laugh."

Joseph studied her for a quiet moment. "If you are adamant that I am wrong, then why stress about it?"

"Just…humor me."

The Father leaned back in his chair, unconvinced. "Three. That I know of."

Three?! He's definitely insane.

"You've got to be shitting me."

"No. A girl and two boys. Exactly what you've taken from me."

Right…totally insane. I'mma head out...

"Sure, that's not creepy or coo-coo at all."

Joseph's lips barely curved upright. "If you are so certain of not conceiving, you shouldn't have any worries. We'll find out soon enough whether I'm crazy or not."

She rolled her eyes. "Pretty sure I know that you're nuts now. Don't need to wait any longer to know that. This is a pretty twisted way to get over your siblings, Joseph. By fantasizing something as far-fetched as that."

His glare caught her off guard. "I've forgiven you for their deaths, but the pain is still there. I'm not over my siblings. Not even close. Just like you aren't over Sarah."

She snapped her eyes at him then, tensing, and they held each other's gaze in strained silence in an invisible battle of wills. And he motioned at her with the rosary laced hand, knowing he had her full attention now.

"We do not "get over" the loss of loved ones, Mary. We heal through time and forgiveness and in seeking solace with the Lord. And we carry on, doing our best to keep them alive within ourselves, remembering what they taught us and how they made us grow."

Tears bit at her eyes, but the Deputy refused to let them release, keeping her glare, despite the hurt in her heart over Sarah. Joseph's face softened though, his pride breaking away for his sympathetic side, one of his few virtues.

"Our children will not be them. But it is God's way of showing that you and I have truly forgiven one another and our pasts. It will be because of them that we will be able to grow and change into what the new world needs us to be. And we will never have to be alone again."

She hated and yet strangely admired the way this man could form words; heartfelt, encouraging, and soothing. It was a haunting reminder on why so many people flocked to him and damn near worshipped him, impelled and bewitched and willing to die for him.

It sounded great. A promise of peace, enrichment, and freedom. Not just from the bunker, but from their pasts and tribulations. A future full of acceptance, fulfillment, and love. But it came from the best salesman on the planet, always twisting words to his advantage.

Mary couldn't see anything good coming from them. They were both bad people and had done terrible things to each other and others. She had bought into his promise of a good life and forgiveness down here and in the "new world" before, but now only doubt filled her heart. Now it only seemed as though they survived the bombs together as punishment, destined to slowly waste away for their crimes.

Mary didn't deserve any of the things Joseph promised. And neither did he. So why would God reward them?


After tossing and turning for over an hour, Joseph finally gave up and sat up in bed. He rubbed his face, feeling the familiar ache creeping into his skull. The prophet hadn't got much sleep in the days following Christmas. It wasn't his usual phase of insomnia. Stress mostly. Despite the Voice telling him everything would work out in the end, he still felt bad for the fallout between him and Mary.

He really had not intended it to happen the way that it did, but she wouldn't believe him. And he didn't blame her. He had done so many bad things in his life, all in the name of the Lord who had become angry and disappointed in His children. But he wholeheartedly believed that he had done all those transgressions for the greater good.

They sometimes upset him, but he never lost focus on what God needed him to do next. Mary was different though. He was hung on it, and he knew there was no righting it until she had no choice but to accept that their daughter was growing inside of her.

Wincing and grabbing the back of his head, the cult leader rose and left his room, wearing only a pair of sweatpants. He walked through the silent bunker hallway into the infirmary to get some painkillers.

The infirmary, now cleaned up and organized after Mary's meltdown, was lit by a small night-light on one wall, and it was enough for him to see without turning the ceiling light on. Joseph knew just where his pain pills were and got a couple before leaving for the den.

He looked at Mary's bedroom door as he passed, closed and nothing but silence on the other side. Slipping into the den to wash down his pills with a drink of water, he stopped short in the doorway.

Mary was asleep on the sofa. The Father peered at her for a curious moment, wondering why she had let herself pass out here. He quietly strolled into the kitchen and got his glass of water. He watched her as he popped the pills and washed them down.

The blue light from the aquarium spilled across her slumbering form like an opening to a play, entrancing the audience like she was some kind of modern Sleeping Beauty.

Joseph approached the dozing Deputy, standing over her. He studied her, admiring her relaxed face that had been contorted lately from worry and anger. She was so beautiful. A heavenly creature trapped in both a concrete cage and a cage of her own making, desperate to get out, and only he would be able to free her. But first she had to let him.

He smiled tenderly down at her. He grabbed up the blanket laying over the nearby recliner and gently laid it out over her curled body, tucking her in.

He brushed his knuckles softly over her temple after making sure she wouldn't catch a cold again.

"Sleep well, Mary. You needn't worry...the Lord himself watches over you."

Soon the Father left her be and went back to his room, for now ignoring the faint pounding in his head.


It was officially a few days into the first year of the end of the world, and Mary was about to rip her hair out. At this rate, she would absolutely lose it before they hit their seven year mark, or whenever they were supposed to get the hell out of here.

She had been too stressed to "celebrate" New Year's, but it wasn't as though there was much to celebrate for anyway. Things were civil between her and Joseph, having accepted a truce for now, and that was forcing it. She tolerated him at most, and barely talked to him, avoiding anything to do with what happened between them or the possibility that she may be pregnant. She also ignored his watchful eyes on her, as though he was gauging any sort of changes for his fallacy of her becoming pregnant with his child.

Mary felt the same as before their temporary "error of judgement" that had been Christmas night. It reassured her everything was going to be okay, although the little voice in the back of her head still warned her it was still too early for anything.

In the mix of doing chores, she unfortunately found herself wondering about the horrors of what would happen if she did in fact become pregnant. The Deputy refused to even think about the factors of childbirth and medical risks. Mary knew if Joseph was actually right (again), she would be tied to him forever and she just didn't know what to think of that.

The Deputy had always wanted to eventually settle down, marry, and have a family - but not this way. Not hiding underground from the end of the world. Not with three children fathered by a Delphic cult leader who thought he was the next messiah. She had always pictured meeting another law officer with her beliefs and passion for justice, or maybe a handsome veterinarian, and they would have lots of pets. Definitely dogs and cats. Maybe horses and goats. And yes, even fish! But she had always only pictured herself having one or maybe two children.

But three? With the Father? Her children would be demons, if the Seeds were anything to go by. With her luck at least one of them would fancy filleting people like their uncle...

Her father did always say that God had a twisted sense of humor though. And with all that had happened since arriving in Hope County, well, the Deputy believed him now.

Best not think about it. Don't jinx yourself…

Mary snorted. Yeah, as if.

Once she was finished cleaning the communications room, she turned off the record player. The old rock tunes died and the freshly cleaned room became quiet. Her boredom soon returned. There was only so much cleaning and chores she could do, after all.

Not yet ready to give in to talk to her bunker mate, she decided to sit down at the radio system. It had been over a week since she had tried reaching out. She noticed the radio was off and couldn't remember if she had turned it off or not.

The Deputy turned it on and started running through the channels in boredom, not expecting anything as usual. She was met with the predicted silence or buzzing static, but not much else.

"If anyone is out there, please respond. This is Deputy Mary Samson of the Hope County Sheriff's Department, currently taking refuge in Dutch Roosevelt's bunker."

She waited, having called out to all channels available, just like usual. And though she wasn't expecting a response as always, it still hurt and depressed her knowing that she and Joseph could really be the only ones left in Hope County.

She sat for five solid minutes in bleak silence. Sighing in aggravation, the Deputy stood and was about to hit the off switch when a strange pulse of static came through the speaker. She paused.

That was a weird interference…

And then a beep. The green light was blinking. She gaped, frozen in disbelief. Someone was actually responding! There was another life out there besides them! She felt lightheaded, heart pounding from excitement. Her fingers twitched but she pushed the button to call up the channel that responded.

"H-Hello?" she stammered.

"EMMY! Holy shit, girl! Didn't think we'd ever hear from you again!"

"SHARKY?!" Mary squealed disbelievingly. "Oh my God! You're alive?!"

"Hell yeah, I'm alive, Shorty! Although, let me tell ya, it was not a good time gettin' to this shelter with balls of fire rainin' from the sky like some goddamn start to a blockbuster flick. And I burned my ass, no shit! I still can't feel part of my left butt cheek. Oh, oh, oh, hold on! Let me wake the others."

"Others?" Mary was nearly bouncing in front of the radio, ecstatic at the prospect of more survivors.

"Hurky, wake up, we got Dep! Alive and well!"

Hurk Jr.! Her two stupidest, most loyal friends had made it!

"Emmy? That really you?" that distinct redneck twang came through and she hopped and laughed.

"Yeah, it's me, you fucking idiot! It's so good to hear your voice! Where're you guys at?"

"We're in Daddy's old bunker at the Drubman Fort. Plenty of food, booze, and room to party for the next decade down here. Where you at, girl?"

Before the Deputy could answer, Hurk's voice hollered out so loud, it rattled the speaker and made her wince.

"MOMMA COM'ERE! EMMY GIRL'S STILL ALIVE!"

"Addie too?" Mary asked, rubbing one ear.

"Oh yeah," Sharky said. "Us, Aunty Addie, Uncle Hurk Sr. and Xander man, are all down here."

"How the hell have you guys not killed each other yet?" Mary laughed.

"Sharky stashed a shit ton of weed, and I ain't gonna lie, I think it's the only thing keepin' us from turnin' this place into the next Fight Club. Though that'd be kinda cool if you ask me."

"Dude, Hurky, that would actually be wicked insane."

They both yelped and there was a staticky crash. Mary frowned, worried she had lost them, until a third familiar voice met her ears and she couldn't believe that the whole Drubman clan had actually made it.

"Emmy, sweetheart?!" Adelaide yelled. "You there?"

"I'm here, Addie! How are you doing?"

"About to lose my fucking mind with all these idiots! So good to hear your voice, sugar. We had trouble with our radio on this end for the longest time. Sharky finally fixed it."

"Fixed it? I made a miracle happen, thank you!"

"So, where are you holing up at, Em?" Hurk Jr. asked.

"Dutch's bunker."

"Oh, how is he?" Addie asked. "Wake the old grouch up and get him over here!"

Mary frowned, swallowing hard. "He…uh…he didn't make it."

There was a long silence on the other end.

"But…he never left that bunker," Sharky mumbled.

"Oh honey, we're sorry to hear that," Addie replied.

"Did your other Deputy amigos make it?" Hurk Jr. asked.

Mary was quiet. She was so excited to hear from her friends again, she didn't realize what all she would have to tell them. Now she was terrified. What would they think of her situation?

"No…we got into a wreck before getting to the bunker. They didn't make it either."

"Do you have anyone? Are you all alone, Emmy?" Sharky asked, sounding concerned.

She released a shaky breath, weakly smiling even though they couldn't see it. "No…I have one other survivor here with me."

"Please don't tell me it's that tinfoil hat nerd who thinks aliens are listenin' in on him because hoo doggie would I feel bad for you," Hurk Jr. said.

"I can't even imagine being stuck alone with someone that crazy. Like, yowzers, blow my fuckin' brains out right now."

"Oh, I'm stuck with crazy alright," Mary said with a deep sigh.

"Goddam! MERLE, ARE YOU IN THERE?" Addie yelled.

Mary covered the speaker with a wince. "No…not Merle."

"Then who?"

"The actual king of crazy…"

Thick silence was her response and the Deputy couldn't be sure whether her dense friends weren't keen on her hint or if they were stunned into silence. She gulped and waited.

Addie proved to be the quicker one as usual. "Joseph Seed?! You lucky bitch! Oh, how I envy you being alone with that fuckin' dreamboat. He can port his ship in my harbor any time."

Mary cringed at the thought.

"Ew. Momma. Seriously. I'm gonna hurl up my Pringles, quit it!"

"Damn, Shorty. Got the short 'n ugly end of the stick, eh?" Sharky asked. "Bunkin' down with Broseph! Didn't think the bastard made it."

"Well…technically he ain't Broseph no more considerin' Dep killed 'em all. Now he's…Nobroseph."

The cousins broke out in a fit of snorting laughter from Hurk's stupid joke.

"Seriously though, Em, how have you two not killed each other yet?" Sharky asked, still recovering from his snickering.

"He still tryin' to get you to join his "end of the world" cult?" Hurk added. "Joke's on him, the world already ended."

Mary facepalmed. "Hurk…Joseph preached nonstop about it. I think he fucking knows the world ended."

"Good point, amiga. And so he ended up being right all along. How crazy is that, man?"

"Don't be an idiot, cuz. Nobroseph is now trying to get her to join his "after the end of the world" cult. Which, obviously, isn't as gnarly and epic as Hurk's Gate."

"Damn straight. I mean, we're kinda short on the monkeys at the moment, but once we get outta here, monkeys galore, man. And booze. Runnin' around buck-naked in the new world. Like a giant goddamn step for mankind towards bein' more in tune with nature and all that shit."

"Both of you are fucking idiots," Addie groaned.

Mary chuckled. God, had she missed these knuckleheads.

"Well, Shorty, is everything…alright? Are you doin' okay? He ain't like…conditioning you or some shit is he?"

Mary was touched. Sharky always looked after her. He may not have been the smartest tool in the shed, but she could always rely on him to have her back. He could never be taken at face value, there was so much underneath that was uniquely…Sharky.

"Nah," she said with a forced smile. "We're getting along alright. Moving on from the past and slowly finding common ground. After all, we have to rely on each other down here. There's days we still want to kill each other, but we're civil...for the most part."

"Gotta hand it to him," Hurk Jr. interjected. "Cult Daddy's sure being easy-going with being roomies with his family's killer…whether they deserved it or not. I'm quite surprised, man. And relieved of course. Emmy, I'm even surprised in you, but I guess you gotta do what you gotta do to survive."

"Of course he's gonna bunk down with a hot young lady for the next several years!" Addie scoffed. "The man ain't stupid! Emmy, sweetheart, you have to tell me how good of a ride he is. I gotta know...for research purposes...you know what I mean, hun!"

Her heart exploded into a frenzy and Mary panicked. "W-What?! Addie, what the hell?! I h-haven't! I mean, no!"

Jeez, stop it, Emmy! Ever heard of 'The lady doth protest too much'? You're blabbing! Shut it.

There was no way she was going to tell them the truth! Never! Even though an honest answer for Adelaide would probably make the older woman squeal in delight.

"Oh, sure, honey. But it'll happen eventually. A man and a woman locked underground alone together, for who knows how long? Yeah, it's gonna happen. Laws of nature and all that. I'm sure Joseph's already thought of it. Hell, probably planned it if I have a hunch of how he works."

You have no idea, Addie…

"Who knows what's going on in his head, Addie..."

"Don't worry, sweetheart. No one will judge you, given the circumstances. Some of us will be pretty damn jealous actually…"

"I won't be jealous in the slightest," Sharky drawled. "I mean, I will, but not of you fucking Joseph, but of you fucking Joseph. T-That is to say, I mean, what I'm tryin' to say is-"

"Goddamn, cuz, spit it out, man. You're a cringefest right now."

Mary smiled. "Thanks, Sharky. I'm flattered."

"I will march across the radioactive wasteland and grow an extra head, three nipples and some toes on my chin to shove his prayer beads up his back door if he even looks at you wrong...just sayin'."

"Why would you go on foot when it's the perfect time to go Mad Max up there, man? Grab some metal and spikes and go all out, ride or die in style."

"That is actually a great idea, Hurky. I wonder if my truck made it through the bombs. Definitely strappin' a flamethrower to the hood. And I always wanted, like, them crazy spikes on the wheels, but like, in gold and super shiny."

"Homie, it's the end of the world, you ain't gonna be blingin' man."

Aaaand she lost them. Shaking her head, Mary cleared her throat. "It's so good to hear from you guys, it really is. But I'm gonna sign off for bed. Talk tomorrow?"

"Sure, sugar. I'm happy to have someone else to talk to that isn't a complete moron. You get some rest, hun. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, amiga! Talk to ya tomorrow."

"Goodnight, Shorty. Take care of yourself."

Mary squeezed the mic, softly smiling. "Goodnight, my friends."

The Deputy put the radio on standby, unable to wipe the triumphant grin off her face. Feeling overwhelmed by joy, she remained sitting for a few minutes, going over what happened. She couldn't believe it: her friends were alive! And she wondered if more of them possibly could've made it...if the Drubmans survived, maybe others did, too! Kim, Nick, Carmina...I hope you're okay...if you're still there, I'll find you!

It relieved her to know that she would have more people than just Joseph to talk to. She may not have been able to see or touch them, but hearing their voices, knowing they had her back was enough. Knowing they were alive and they could talk greatly boosted her sanity and her mood.

Joseph had been wrong about them being the only ones…which meant he had to be wrong about her getting pregnant.

...right?


A/N: Sorry for the delay in the newest chapter, but we hope you all enjoyed it! So the Drubmans are alive and well and now Mary has someone else to talk to besides Joseph! We still don't have answers about whether her being pregnant or not, but that will come shortly. It's a step forward and two steps back with Joseph and our sassy Deputy, but maybe they'll find harmony eventually lol.

Big shout out as always to my sister from another mister, co-creator and beta reader, Ravenprincess, for being such a great friend and big help! Not just with Broken Haven but with all my fanfics! :D

We appreciate all of our readers, thank you! Til next time! ;3