RIVER FLOWS NORTH — PART 8

Troy walked alongside Henry, pulling away from the siblings, talking about what dead he'd seen, what he knew about the area, what he knew about the group at the trailers and if they'd scavenged other areas and where the lake's water supply came from and how long he thought it would last.

Henry didn't seem to see his questions as prying and good-naturedly answered them one by one. Information Otto stored for later use.

After a while, and when the path became a tad trickier, the conversation drifted and Troy was able to bestow Nick and Alicia with consideration again. From the look on both their faces, they'd had another talk.

Why did they keep doing that to themselves? Why couldn't they just let go?

When they reached the outskirts of the ranch, Henry gestured for the youth to stay back, to let him go ahead for a second and to wait. He didn't want to spook his friends by having all four of them all come up on them without warning.

Troy gave a nod and watched him walk across an expanse of grass that was green and lush in places, a far cry from the near-desert surroundings that had covered the ranch.

There was fencing, doubled up with the usual, a truck Troy knew used to carry feed as they'd used a lot of the same brand, and a couple of added trailer homes set out beside another house. The set up was crude but from what Troy could tell – it looked structured. At least in part. He could see a couple of weaknesses here and there.

He averted his gaze and fixated on the two beside him.

"You sure you really want to give Fido away?"

Nick shrugged and glanced to Alicia. "If it's best for him, if there's food and shelter, then he's better off there. All we can offer is a nomad lifestyle and all that comes with it – no consistency."

"Nick's right," Alicia said, watching Henry's disappearing from view as he rounded what appeared to be the main house. "We can't properly care for him. And we'd always have to worry."

The horse tugged out of her grasp to pick at the grass at their feet.

"I'd worry," she amended, not automatically assuming the same went for Troy. Though he had shown some uncharacteristic consideration for the creature since they found it. "It's for the best."

Whatever plans Troy'd had about using the horse as an anchor to stay in a certain place for a few days or even weeks fell through, but maybe that was okay?

Maybe the horse wasn't needed.

They'd been walking for almost forty minutes or so and hadn't come upon any dead.

Henry spoke to the man at the entrance, gestured to the group — probably the horse — repeating whatever he was saying to another woman who'd joined, and then eventually signaled for the three to go over.

"Looks like we're being summoned," Troy muttered, starting ahead of the two, prepared to take whatever hits might come, smiling as they approached.

"This is Troy, Alicia and her brother Nick," Henry said, introducing them to the couple. Mother and son, if the resemblance was anything to go by.

"If you'd be so kind as to give your weapons to my son, you're free to come in."

Nick exchanged looks with Alicia. It resembled Otto's ranch, painfully so. But it was a logical request. Anyone who'd been at this survival awhile would have that code at their home.

He pulled his knife out of the sheath and held it out, handle to them. The young guy took it, the woman smiled a little.

"My name's Rosemary, and this is Cole," she introduced. "We're glad to see new friendly faces. We haven't been that lucky lately. My husband George and a few others should return soon with the cattle. We shall see about your horse then, if that's all right? Meanwhile, there's some tea and a pie."

Alicia was always hesitant to give up her weapons, but she understood the need for their request. Mutual trust was needed if they were going to work together. And, because of the horse, she supposed, in a way, they would be.

She reached into her boot to grab her knife, handing it over to Cole after Nick did, and met Rosemary's gaze with a small smile.

"That'd be great. Thank you. Is there anywhere I can put him while we wait?" She gestured to the horse at her side.

"One of the paddocks is available," Cole said. "I can take him there. Get him some hay and water."

He looked to his mother rather than Alicia for confirmation. Rosemary gave a nod of approval, and Cole moved to take the horse off Alicia's hands as the woman gestured for them to follow her.

Henry made no move to give off his own rifle so Troy assumed the weapon exchange was a mere show meant for them three.

He got it. They had the power, this was their home and they dictated it as so.

He removed the gun from his waist and handed it over. Cole gathered them to his chest and then handed them over to someone else who'd come to join the party.

They smiled but didn't introduce themselves, moving to set the collected weapons in a bucket resting upon a hay bale that outlined the perimeter as extra defense or provided post seating.

Whatever it was, in part Troy almost wished he'd thought of it. But hay wasn't easy to come by where they were.

While they walked toward the main house, Rosemary told them they had a few families living on the ranch now, including the original founding family members, which she was a part of. She shared that the new group in the trailers by the lake had arrived about three weeks ago and had been disrespectful to any property or boundaries, attempting to steal their cattle and shooting two of their cows in the process. There was no debating with those people, for they believed the current state of the world gave them freedom to do as they pleased and take whatever there was that they deem up for the taking, no ownership questioned. Henry had been the ranchers' friend, and they would be taking him in if he decided to move from the cabin.

"Will you be living in that cabin now?" Cole asked as they all sat at their big table sipping hot tea. "I mean, you came for it, right? That gang's gonna be a pain, though. Just sayin."

"They ain't goin' to leave, I foresee that much," Henry agreed, chewing on his cake.

"We came here because Jake believed it would be safe," Alicia revealed, cradling her cup with both hands. "He was planning to come here himself, but… things got in the way."

Rosemary continued to cut the apple pie after giving Henry the first portion, carefully scooping out pieces on plates and making Cole hand them out. Alicia didn't immediately dig into hers, even if it was damn tempting. This was another rare treat. Last one in a while, she reckoned, so she wanted it to last.

"We haven't really decided what to do yet. Couldn't make any solid decisions before we saw the cabin itself. Might not have been habitable after all this time."

She exchanged a look with Nick, choosing not to divulge that both of them were reluctant to stay with a dangerous mob so close by. They hadn't discussed it with Troy yet, and this wouldn't be the best platform to start.

Troy took the pie as it was offered to him, considering, and set it down in front of him, waiting until her son tucked in before helping himself to a bite.

"Had I not stuck around as I did, I don't believe that it would be," Henry said. "Those ruffians are dismantling that place cabin by cabin and soon there will be nothing for them to take and they'll simply burn it down."

Troy couldn't see that as a smart move because even without food, four walls and a roof over your head was enticement enough to want to stick around and make it work. Especially in an area where the dead hadn't taken over.

"What about the lake? Does it have fish?" he asked.

"A lot. Rosemary and I have a deal in place. I provide her with fish as often as I deem necessary and she gives me either eggs or whatever else she can spare to keep me going for the week."

Before he could extend them the deal or ask to take over were they to claim the cabin, Rosemary interjected, "How's the pie?"

"It's magnificent," Nick praised honestly, and took a sip of tea to wash it down. "It's been forever and a day since we had a pie, especially one so good. Thank you."

She beamed. "I'm glad you like it. The season's been generous with apples."

"Ye have the best pie in the county," Henry said. "And the best cider."

"Oh, almost forgot," Rosemary said, getting up, and walked out. She returned in a minute with three huge bottles filled with dark yellow liquid. Nick assumed it was the cider. "Since now you're with guests," she said, setting the bottles on the table before Henry.

"Gosh, thank you, Rosy," Henry grinned. "I'm almost through the one from last week."

They sat for another hour while waiting for her husband and company to come back from the fields. Rosemary expressed her concern about everyone who was stuck out there in the world surviving while they thanked God every day for their home and the things they had.

When George came back, they were introduced to him, their elder son Matthew and the head of another family residing here, Clayton.

George was extremely pleased with the horse after the check-up of his teeth and state. He said the steed was about four years old and good for breeding and cowboy duties.

"A horse's a perfect asset to a ranch," George said, stroking the animal's neck. "And this one's in good shape. A bit thinner, but that's fixable. If you mean to give him to us, that means we going to be friends." He grinned at them. "If you stay around in the cabin, need any help – you're always welcome in our house. And surely for visits. If winter gets too tough, we can find you shelter and food – for some labor input, of course. That's the currency these days, which works. There's always something to do around the farm to put some food on the tables for dinner. So you just know, guys, if anything."

They thanked, smiled and repeated how they didn't really know whether they'd stay.

"Well, if you happen around here some other times, just know the invitation stays. We know it's tough out there, so yeah. And if you find another horse," he laughed. They did, too. The guy seemed okay.

But then again, Jeremiah was a cowboy dream of a daddy figure himself at the start. Nick wasn't into falling for a pretty picture, anymore. Though, he did like this one. There was that.

The ranch-life seemed so idyllic compared to everything else they'd seen out there, and despite Alicia's terror of repeating their past mistakes, it was easy to be lulled into a false sense of security by these nice people who welcomed them with open arms.

And yet, reality came seeping back in as Alicia helped Rosemary with the dishes after dinner. George had taken Nick, Troy, and Henry to the guesthouse they'd borrow for the night, and Cole and Matthew left to check on the animals one last time before bed. In the kitchen, it was just the two of them.

Rosemary had heated up some water and was washing the plates and cutlery, while Alicia was on drying-duty, patting everything dry with a dish towel and little by little putting everything away in the cupboards.

"If you do decide to stay, I feel I must warn you," Rosemary said after a few minutes of dull small talk. "Those brutes down by the lake will come to pay you all a visit sooner or later."

Alicia nodded, wary but feeling as though that particular point had already been made clear. It was why Alicia was reluctant to stay.

"You're a very pretty girl, Alicia," the woman continued.

Alicia didn't thank her because, honestly, the way she said it didn't exactly make it sound like a compliment.

"And that's a very dangerous thing. Especially these days."

Alicia paused her work to look at the older woman, not liking the direction this conversation was headed. "What are you saying?"

Rosemary sighed, trying to choose her words carefully.

"I'm saying, if I had a daughter, there's no way in hell I'd ever let her out of my sight. Not with those thugs around. I'm saying… please be careful."

Alicia swallowed, slowly returning to the plate she was rubbing dry. "Did something happen with any of the women here?"

The woman shook her head. "No. Thank God. But we have better protection than most. And the men, even my George, bless him, they tend to forget what it's like for us gals. They think guns and the undead are the worst that can happen."

She shot the girl a significant look.

"But we know better."

It was getting dark rapidly as they were thinking of going back, and the Thomas family offered them to stay the night in one of their guest houses that was still empty. It had two beds, but they had sleeping bags to share. Given the threat in the trailers – even though Henry kept grumbling they'd be fine – Troy and Nick decided to play it safe.

They treated the guests to a fried chicken and potatoes dinner and showed them to the guesthouse. It was simple, just one room with a fireplace and two beds. Troy and Nick claimed the sleeping bags and the floor. Henry sipped some cider and hit the sack while the youth lingered outside on the porch. The ranch seemed vast, the sky was full of stars, and it was nice to not be hungry for a change.

Troy had that spark in his eye. Nick read it as longing and doubted he had it wrong.

"You want all that back, don't you?" he asked unnecessarily, lighting a cigarette, and sat down on the porch.

Alicia left the main house feeling a little unnerved. It wasn't that the idea of such a threat hadn't occurred to her before. She'd just never truly been given a reason to examine it further.

She approached the guesthouse slowly, eyeing the stars up above as she walked, trying to enjoy the beautiful show they were putting on. She could see the barest outline of Troy and Nick out on the porch, one of them (she assumed Nick) holding a lit cigarette glowing dimly in the dark.

There was a diplomatic air to this ranch that had never been present at Otto's own despite its rustic setting and security. Jeremiah was in charge and that was it. He said what went and what didn't, and Troy imposed the rules. There was no leniency or negotiation with outside fractions. A lot of people had stumbled upon them in time, those from town, locals that Jake had gone to school with and some Troy'd seen from arbitrary trips into town for supplies. He'd never known them by name and nor did he trust them.

He didn't trust these people either, finding their cozy step up to be too idyllic. Nothing like that existed. Nor did it before.

Troy was envious, though, and nostalgic. His ranch hadn't been perfect, but it was structured, and he'd worked at it every day to keep it from deteriorating, and he believed that, had he not brought Madison in, it would still be there.

He'd seen her out there, blond hair, motherly fussing, and immediately latched on like a desperate child who'd just gotten lucky with an esteemed toy. He'd been blinded. He should have known better.

He should have killed Walker and his people and been done with it, and sent Madison on her way.

The end.

Only it didn't pan out that way, and here he was, sitting on a stranger's porch, a close replica of what his own had looked like, and with no idea where he'd be next week.

It took Troy a minute, but he slowly nodded in response to Nick's question.

"I do. It's all I knew. It's all I know. You don't? I know the ranch wasn't exactly home to you, but for a while there, while you were taking over Russell's place you seemed to be resigned to sticking down roots."

Nick chuckled softly, taking a drag, thinking about the implication.

"I have thought about it," he confessed. "A lot. I don't know, Troy. It's like I've been trying to rather resign myself to those roots than actually wanting to do it. That place before yours, in Baja, and the colony after that where I met Luciana - those have been too much pain. I wasn't ready for a repetition and got it, anyway."

Alicia climbed the stairs to the front porch in time to hear the last of Nick's sentence. It was enough that she could understand the context of their conversation, but she didn't interrupt. Instead, she gestured for her brother to share his pack of cigarettes and perched on the railing with his lighter once he handed it to her.

Troy shadowed Alicia with his eyes as she joined them, unconcerned with having her hear their conversation or interject. He had nothing to hide.

"And what do you think was the opposing object in all those instances? Did you do something wrong? You say all these places repeated a pattern of destruction, but maybe it was you, your habits and way of dealing."

Nick heaved a sigh, painful inside his chest, and looked up at the stars.

"The place in Baja wasn't my fault directly – I wasn't even there when it fell. The second place had its unstable situation with the drug gang before I came around. All I did was buy them a little time, and then helped convince people to leave. Otherwise, they'd be dead. Including me, if I chose to stay. That danger was a result of their leader's doing. My doing was that I brought them right to you where they were shot at and killed for experiments. So you tell me about my ways of dealing."

"And what, you feel like it was your fault for trying to seek safety for your people? For trying to find a safe space? Get real, Nick. None of that was your fault. It was just unlucky."

And that was the truth of it, and he couldn't predict that Troy'd be there for any other reason than to help. He still had faith in people, and Troy supposed, in theory, he'd killed that last shred of Nick's belief.

Nick shrugged, exhaling the smoke.

"There's always wondering going on in your mind about what you coulda done differently. You can run from it, shut it down, put it on the shelf in your mind and lock it someplace, but at some moment, it gets out, seeps through the cracks in your mental barriers and starts gnawing at your brain.

"Bad luck's not all of it. It never is."

"Yeah, if it's not just bad luck, what else it is? Don't tell me you believe its karma or my coming upon your people as fate's way of kicking you in the balls for your past drug habits. It's bullshit. You couldn't have foreseen that shit coming and no one could expect you to. However, if you did, what other choice was there? What could you have done differently that you didn't already do?"

Troy wasn't asking to make him feel guilty or anything, he was curious as to why Nick was holding onto something he couldn't control.

"I don't know, Troy," Nick said, throwing his hands up, then dropped the cigarette butt on the ground and stomped it out. "I coulda led them away, just somewhere, until there was a place. Or, actually, they wouldn't have left and woulda died there protecting their home from those bastards. But at least, it'd be something meaningful to them. Maybe that was the best way, and I made it worse, hardly saving anyone."

Even Luciana survived by luck. Or thanks to Jeremiah who let Nick take her in. Nick didn't want to bring it all up again. He wanted to leave it behind. It had to stay in the past.

He snatched the pack back from Alicia and lit another cigarette.

Alicia frowned, taking a drag of her cigarette as Nick snatched the pack back. He and Luciana had never really told the whole story of how and why they'd migrated to the border, but Alicia'd pieced together a few things here and there. None of it mattered much at this moment other than the fact that her brother was hurting. For both of the Clarks, guilt had the power to paralyze.

"You're not at fault for what happened in Baja," she said. "That was all Daniel and Mom. Maybe even Strand for pissing them all off in the first place.

"Luciana and her people… you couldn't have known what would happen. You gave those people a chance, Nick. It's not your fault a bunch of psychopaths were playing border patrol. You did the best you could in an impossible situation."

She paused, gaze on her feet as she took another drag.

"Just like me, right?" It's what he'd been trying to tell her about the cellar. "As for laying down roots? It's not gonna work. Not the way the world is now."

A small smile ticked at the corner of Troy's mouth at the casual mention of psychopaths at the border, and then dimmed in respect to the seriousness of what she was saying.

"You should listen to your sister. None of what happened to them or at those places were your fault. They're happenstance and a feature of this new world. But Alicia is wrong in saying that it isn't going to work, that it doesn't work, that laying down roots isn't possible. It is. I had that, I could have continued to have it and this place—this setup—is evidence of that. You just have to stop going into these places and scenarios with the expectation that it's going to fail. You have to believe in what you do and what you did."

Troy had. It was when he started questioning himself, started opening himself up to another's influence that it changed for him, and things panned out differently.

Troy wasn't going to lecture them, though, and wasn't expecting any more of an answer on it.

"So, what's the plan for tomorrow? Are we going back alone or taking old man Henry with us?"

"We never came anywhere with an expectation of failure," Nick stated, and took a drag. "It's not the expectation. It's not just luck. It's just how it is – nothing lasts."

He thought about it while taking another drag, holding it, and releasing a puff of smoke.

"We don't decide for Henry – he's his own man. And yeah, we going back to the cabin and then… I don't know. I'm not sure whether it's smart to stay there even for a night with those people at the lake."

Alicia hummed in agreement with her brother, finishing the cigarette and putting it out with the sole of her boot, careful to pick it up so she could dispose of it later.

"Would you like to stay?" she asked Troy, eyeing him curiously. It wasn't a Nick and Alicia versus Troy thing. She just genuinely wanted to know his thoughts on the matter.

Troy still didn't agree with Nick in regards to his view that nothing lasted. It wasn't true despite what Troy'd experienced. That was on Troy and a series of bad choices. He'd save the push for another day.

Nick wasn't ready, and, if Troy was honest, neither was he.

"I think that we should," he said. "If not indefinitely, than for a few days. You two still have a bit of healing to do and we have food and shelter. A checkmark in all the boxes. The trailer dudes might not even know we're here. We can keep it that way. We hide the jeep, lay low, the horse is already taken care of so he won't be a problem in giving us away and we stay around Jake's place until the two of you are ready to move on."

"Don't play that wounded card, we're not even close to the shape you're describing," Nick said, unable to hold back an amused smile. Troy was so eager to stay it was getting ridiculous. Nick understood his needs, but there were things they couldn't turn their backs to and ignore for as long as they liked. "Whether we hide the Jeep or not isn't gonna make us safer. Those people are not safe. Not even because of things others say about them – but because WE don't know anything, we haven't seen anything with our own eyes, and simply judging by other people's opinions is not safe, either. They could be worse. Or they could be better. Either way, what we don't know can kill us. So I would vote for making the stay as short as possible. Taking risks that can be avoided is not a smart way."

"Considering they apparently shoot other people's livestock and try to take what doesn't belong to them by force, I'm not all that eager to stick around either," Alicia admitted, wrapping one arm around the post next to her for support. Besides, her little chat with Rosemary hadn't exactly made the possibility of staying more enticing.

"So, what's the endgame, Clarks?" Troy asked. "I get that you're both fucked up and have emotional healing to do but you can't go through this life solely with the purpose of existing day to day. As we've established, nowhere is safe and there are people like that trailer trash everywhere. You really think they're the only group that you have to worry about? That if you keep moving you aren't going to stumble upon another? And another? We're already hiding and by moving from place to place you're only making it worse and harder on yourselves. On all of us. You want to stay off the Proctors' radar until they actually think you're dead, we're dead, don't you think this'll be the best place to do that? That we stand less chance of running into his people off the grid?"

Nick threw the cigarette butt down and stepped on it.

"I know it's hard on you, I get it. It's not what you're used to at all. But you want me to do something I find impossible to do right now - I can't make plans. I can't think long term and make promises to you. I'm not ready for staying in one place. I haven't found that place yet. This ranch is not it. I can feel it in my gut it's not safe. I'm not gonna go against my gut again, not when Alicia is with me.

"I liked that trading post in Mexicali. I wanted to stay awhile. I really did. But since that also went to hell, I've lost that feeling. This place - although looking too good to be true - is not it. If you feel this is it for you, I'm not gonna drag you away."

Troy was right about one thing — nowhere was safe, and searching for that one special place that could be had been their downfall in the past. It was a nice idea, in theory, to settle down and create something of their own, to try and make life better. Worth living. But Alicia had also learned that as soon as you had something worthy, people would kill to take it from you.

"If these people are as bad as Henry and Rosemary say, then by staying here we're only setting ourselves up for another turf-war. Is it really worth it?"

Nick's reason for wanting to stay at the arena was something else entirely, although Troy doubted he was ready to admit it to himself. None of it had to do with safety. He'd said as much that night over and over and over again.

He hadn't gone into depth on the why, and despite Troy's raging headache the next day and accompanying nausea, it wasn't hard to figure out the cause. Madison smothered him, and Nick was desperate for a guilt-free way out that would keep her from hunting him down as she did in the past. He'd even convinced himself it wasn't for the drugs that were readily available and he'd quickly started working for, but for the connection he and Troy could prove to have on the inside for his mother. He'd even said as much to her face.

A bold-faced lie. Not his first but certainly his last.

"I'm not staying, if you're not staying," Troy stated unwaveringly. That wasn't even a tenth of what he was suggesting or have been trying to get at when he brought up the debate. "You're really asking me if water, a dependable food source, and safety is worth it, Alicia? I get that you two aren't eager to get into a fisticuffs – it is what it is. But is that the way you expect us to do it now? To avoid ever altercation that might come up and fight for nothing? Someone takes our stuff we just hand it over?"

Nick drew more air into his damaged lungs, feeling exhausted by having to swim around in all those dilemmas before he really felt there was something solid to talk about.

"Of course not," Alicia responded to Troy's question, about to elaborate when a female form appeared out of the darkness.

Nick had no chance to even try to humor him, either. A figure was approaching, a basket in her hand. She reminded him of Alicia's friend from the Broke Jaw – the Trimbol girl.

"Hey, guys," she smiled, approaching. "I see you're not sleeping yet. I brought you a little something here, our home-warming gift to appreciate the fact that you're good people, and we don't get enough of those."

She put the basket at the base of the stairs and revealed a thermos mug and a plate with three pie slices.

"Nothing brings good sleep like a nice snack before bed, huh," she remarked. "My dad's big on that saying."

She gave the plate to Troy and put the thermos mug on the stair between them and took the basket off the ground.

"I better go tuck myself in, so… see ya at breakfast?"

They thanked her; she beamed, her teeth glistening in the poor moonlight.

"I'm Katie, by the way."

She wiggled her fingers in a bye and walked away, humming something, her basket rocking at her thigh.

She was about Alicia's age, or so Alicia assumed from what could see of her, and she was bringing treats. Alicia wasn't sure if it was given merely out of the kindness of their hearts or if they just really wanted them to stay in the area. Alicia supposed to them it wouldn't hurt to have allies against their ongoing feud with the lake-people.

"That's just… too nice," Nick said, smiling with irony.

"Yeah," Alicia murmured in the wake of her brother's statement, slipping off her perch on the railing to fetch the thermos mug Katie had left behind. She opened it and sniffed, warm steam rising to fan at her face.

"Mulled wine?" she guessed once she withdrew, allowing herself a small sip, careful not to burn her tongue. She offered the mug to the other two.

"It's one thing to fight in self-defense. To protect what we have. It's another to go after what we want despite knowing it's likely to get us or someone else hurt."

Similarities between Gretchen and Katie dropping off the basket of goodies like little red didn't go unobserved to Troy, and while she lingered, he found himself unable to meet her gaze.

The night he'd caught up to the Trimbols after they'd abandoned the ranch, it had never been his aim to kill them.

To kill her.

He'd liked her well enough and all he wanted was the answers from his friend that Troy believed he deserved. It had just happened. Troy'd tried to talk to Mike on his own (which came up while Mike tended to his father's horses as he usually did before bed) and before Troy knew it, things escalated into a frenzy of accusations, Troy'd pulled a trigger, and he'd choked up blood and was screaming bloody murder.

Vernon had come running. Then his wife and daughter. At the time, Troy hadn't thought twice, picking them off in a blur of hazy ferocity. He hadn't even realized what he'd done until the horses snapped him out of the red.

There had been no way to take the horses or anything else to the farm, so he'd left them, assuming they were too far out to be found and that eventually, they'd just become another sinful memory.

And they were.

Like Jake.

He dug into the slice of pie the girl had given him with his fingers and nodded his agreement with Nick, polishing it off in less than a minute, setting aside the plate on the stairs, washing it down with the mulled wine.

Troy swiped the back of his hand against his mouth to clear of it crumbs, offering the mug the back to whoever wanted to take the next sip. "Someone is always going to get hurt, Alicia. Nothing you do is going to change or minimalize that. There is a literal walking plague out there picking off the living. And they keep growing. And they will continue to grow until we've wiped each other out or they have. There is only one inevitable goal in this life anymore. One sure fact. You will die, and you will come back. How long that takes is up to you and how determined you are to fight for it. I'm not saying we have to go in guns blazing and on the offensive but should they happen upon us while we're staying at the cabin, we should at least be able to shoot back. Where do we draw the line on what is ours to protect and what we surrender?"

As Troy spoke, riding his favorite horse of tactics and art of war, Nick lost all possible appetite for any pie or wine. He lit another cigarette, feeling like his very soul was tired of all this, be it theory or practice.

"It's pretty simple for me – there's nothing of mine around here, so I got no lines to draw."

Alicia took the mug back from Troy when he offered it, seeing as Nick declined.

"The cabin is yours by law," Alicia told Troy, taking a long sip, enjoying the warmth the spiced beverage provided her. "But the law doesn't apply anymore. And Henry's been living there for, what, three years now? Four? The supplies Jake spoke of are long gone. Everything that remains is Henry's. That leaves us in much the same position we were in when we got here."

They'd gain a cabin, but also a feud that might turn lethal. And she wanted no part of it. Her gaze fell to the mug in her hand as silence briefly settled on their group. She rubbed her thumb across the smooth surface, murmuring.

"Disposing of the dead is inevitable. But the living… I'm tired of all the killing."

She took one last sip and pushed the mug into her brother's hand on her way to the door.

"I'm gonna head to bed. Are you sure neither of you don't want it?" The bed, that was. Nick would deny it even if he did. He always put her first, and she doubted she'd be able to make him stop that. But she didn't demand any special treatment from Troy, and he had as much of a right to that bed as she did.

"I'll take it," Troy supplied, turning to offer her a sickeningly well-mannered smile. They were the ones looking to move around from place to place without the creature comforts – why the hell not? Nick wouldn't take it although he was the one that most needed it. "I suggest you lay your sleeping bag between the two beds. Houses like these generally don't have a sealed floor and the cold seeps in like a bitch. You'll have a tough night otherwise."

He stood up and stretched lightly.

"I'm going to take one last walk around, fertilize a bush or something and then hit the hay myself."

He bent to pick up the plate, setting it aside on the railing out of the way so that Katie could collect it the following day, and slowly started his trek in search of a bit of privacy.

Nick set his jaw at Troy's stunt, but didn't say anything. Alicia hardly needed Nick to make her feel like a damsel if she tried to get rid of any hint of special treatment. He wasn't going to stick his opinions between those two stubborn showcases.

The feeling of wariness didn't leave him. It was some subtle chill under his skin, something that kept pulling at his nerves.

Something was off.

"This house is almost on the edge of their property," he murmured, looking ahead across the field. "So damn quiet. They're all spooked by the trailer people, but how come they don't patrol their land at night?"

He glanced back at Alicia, squinting wistfully.

"If they did, someone woulda passed here. It's weird."

Meeting Nick's gaze, Alicia shrugged. "Maybe they did pass and we just didn't see them in the dark? They could have come with Katie."

And Alicia hadn't seen her until she was only a few feet away.

"You worried?" she asked, hand on the door handle.

"You could say that," Nick responded. He felt safer when they slept in the car, and here it was just strangely vulnerable. He felt like a sitting duck but couldn't explain it. And that was borderline paranoid. Alicia didn't have to worry about things he couldn't prove. "Go sleep. And take the damn bed."

Alicia squinted at her brother, unsure whether it was wise to leave him alone with all his worries. But as he encouraged her to do just that, she realized how tired she was. Today hadn't been nearly as exhausting as the day before, but she still longed for a good night's sleep.

"Make me," she said grinning, a direct quotation from their childhood fights when he would shout at her to go away whenever she decided to hang out with him and his older friends. She opened the door and headed inside, careful not to wake a sleeping Henry as she claimed one of the sleeping bags and, per Troy's advice, settled down on the floor between the two beds. She fell asleep shortly after.

Troy'd made use of the open air facilities and then walked along the edge of the fencing, listening for the dead and humbly enjoying the sounds of the animals nearby.

Nature's music.

He could also do with a bit of System of a Down or Breaking Benjamin.

He slowly made his way back.

"You should get some sleep," he said as he approached Nick, observing that Nick didn't appear to be ready to move and join his sister who was already gone.

"Don't worry about me, I'll be in fine."

Nick shifted on the stair to let him pass, and lit another cigarette. He wished they were back at El Bazaar. Even a crazy night there was peaceful compared to this battleground. Strife was buzzing in the ground beneath his feet, like some weird effect of drugs he hadn't taken.

He turned to Troy before Otto walked inside: "Have you seen anyone out there? Ranchers on a watch shift?"

Troy nodded and intended to leave Nick to his peace when his voice and query made him stop, eyes immediately going to the surroundings all shadowed in black.

There wasn't a light on in the cabin Rosemary had entertained them in, either. It seemed as if everyone had turned in. It was just them – the new, younger lot – that were still up.

"No," he answered, strolling back toward the railing where the plate still sat, still eyeing the scenery and seeing nothing suspect. "Why? Your sixth sense buzzing?"

"You tell me: have you ever let everyone on the ranch go to bed while Walker was out there?"

"Hell, no. The militia would be patrolling the fencing all night and all day in shifts. But that's Broke Jaw. These people are different. Pacifists. I don't even recall seeing any class one weapons in Rosemary's house. Only Henry had an open and displayed rifle."

"For people aware of the trailers group being bad news and ready to steal their cows, it's a bit too pacifistic."

"This coming from part two of the 'we don't want to hurt' anyone brigade? Shouldn't you be ecstatic instead of suspicious?" Troy asked, raising a brow, letting the sarcasm drift between them before folding his arms and setting them on the railing. "You're trying to hint at something, Nick. Tell me. You think these people are wolves in sheep's clothing or that maybe something happened to them?"

"I think there should be at least two people keeping watch during the night," Nick reasoned. "And we haven't seen them do it. Doesn't mean they're not there, but I just find it strange. And I'm not hinting on anything, I just wouldn't like to be killed in my sleep if some siege starts while we're here by accident. Just think about it: the trailer people don't leave for a reason. And if they intend to stay, that means they either have a plan or are cooking one. And it's not a friendly neighbors scheme."

He shrugged, taking a drag.

"Or I'm just paranoid and miss a shot of tequila to put me to sleep. You go in, I'll be there in five."

"There's a voice in your head for a reason, you should make a point of listening to it more often," Troy stated, weariness pulling in like an old friend to take over and cloud his thinking.

He'd have offered to take a look around the ranch and make sure that everything was okay so that Nick'd be able to sleep soundly tonight but Troy just didn't have the energy. As if it had been zapped from him all at once just at the thought. He'd felt similar the night before.

Although hesitant to leave Nick outside when he was feeling mistrustful, Troy accepted that he'd be in in five minutes, and started inside, surprised to see that Alicia had once again taken his advice, and eased himself onto the open mattress face first, falling asleep almost instantly.