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He stood suddenly, making the glasses on the table rattle, and leaned over so that our faces were inches apart. I could smell the wine on his breath.

“You don’t necessarily demand riches, though I can tell you don’t mind them,” Julius said, his hand wrapping around my wrist. “But you demand information, and in some ways, dear girl, that’s a far heftier price.”

I held his gaze, not daring to blink. I felt as though he could see through me, and I was determined not to flinch. If he found me lacking, he didn’t show it. After a pregnant pause, he returned to his seat as though nothing had happened, right as the server reappeared with dessert.

It was a chocolate cake, which I’d only ever had once in my life at the Cave. Despite the rich flavour, it felt like ash in my mouth.

“All this flattery has been excellent practice for the speech you’ll be giving tomorrow evening,” Julius said as the server departed. “There’ll be a televised dinner for the most honoured members of society here at the Delta, and you will be attending. It’ll be your debut as the Sole Survivor.”

I gulped. “I hope this means you’re giving me a speech.”

His eyes flashed. “Certainly. I’d never dream of letting you go off-script.”

Sensing that he would answer no more questions from me, I sat back in my chair, wondering just what sort of man I’d made a bargain with.

Chapter 10

John

The tunnel was every bit as shitty as I imagined: dark, damp, and so short that I had to bend down to avoid hitting my head. It smelled like death, probably because it was full of dead rodents. I could only guess that when they gassed the tunnels, the poor mice paid the price.

My millionth clue that the place was a deathtrap was when my flashlight landed on a spout near the ceiling that sort of resembled a showerhead. I assumed that was where they funneled gas into the tunnel.

Luckily, after following the trail of our flashlights for what felt like forever, the tunnel ended in a solid wall, with the ceiling sloping upward to an opening. A rope ladder that had definitely seen better days hung down, and despite the opening, it was still pitch black. When I passed my flashlight over it, there was a heavy panel covering the trap door.

“They don’t leave it open,” Ayanna said as she started to climb, ahead of me.

I hauled my ass up after her. “So, what? We knock?”

“Yep,” she answered casually, and a disbelieving laugh burst from me. “We have people coming back and forth at all hours, so we make sure someone’s nearby to hear it.”

Sure enough, when she reached the top, Ayanna banged loudly against the cover with her gun in an obvious pattern. A few seconds later, the cover shifted, and a big, bearded White Rose soldier appeared, aiming his gun down the chute. When he saw Ayanna, though, he immediately lowered it and offered her a hand to help her up.

He looked at me with a lot more suspicion as I climbed out of the tunnel. We were standing in a tent, but it had nothing in it except the tunnel entrance. My guess was that it was to stop the Delta military from watching who was coming and when, especially because the only exit was a door that obviously led into a building, not outside.

“Who’s this?”

“Hector, this is John,” Ayanna said, an authority to her voice. “He’s a new recruit.”

I pulled off the gas mask. I wasn’t crazy about having to wear it, and gulped down the fresh air. Hector didn’t look impressed as he cut Ayanna a harsh look.

“I’ve never seen this motherfucker in my life,” he rumbled at her. “Tell me you’re not dumb enough to enlist a Wastelander!”

“Nice to meet you too, asshole,” I muttered under my breath.

“For your information,” Ayanna shot back, “this Wastelander is the best shot I’ve ever seen in my life, bar none. He’s going to be key to future operations, so I expect you and everyone else to get on board, right fucking now.”

Hector sneered at me. “What’s in it for him?”

I sighed, resigning myself to having to explain, but Ayanna cut in sharply.

“We’re helping him find someone that the scumbags at the top abducted for information. Given your history, you should understand his struggle.”

Hector flinched but then said, in disbelief, “They’re fucking kidnapping Wastelanders now, too? Why the hell would they do that?”

Ayanna shrugged, not correcting his assumption. “Why do they do any of what they do, Hector? It’s not something anyone with an ounce of empathy can understand. They’ve proven that over and over.”

That seemed to get through to him, because he huffed and gave me a nod of acknowledgement, though he still didn’t say shit to me directly. It wasn’t great, but it was something, I guessed.