Brooke crossed her arms and studied Jon’s eyes. “Why?”
“Because I’m going to go there and kill the asshole who burned my cabin down.”
One of the men with Brooke, a younger guy in his twenties, laughed. Jon drew his pistol and pointed it at the guy’s head.
“What’s funny?”
“Whoa,” the young guy said, raising his hands. “What the fuck, dude?”
Brooke stepped between her companion and the gun, again staring into Jon’s eyes. “Put the gun down. Please.”
Jon looked at her for a moment before lowering the gun and returning it to its holster again.
“Jesus Christ,” the young guy said, glancing at the man standing next to him. “You believe this shit, Terrence? Why are we even—”
“Shut up, Max,” Brooke said. “This man just lost his house. Cut him some slack.”
“Yeah, no shit,” Terrence said to Max.
Max scoffed, then put his hands up again as he turned around and walked away. Heading back down the driveway, he cursed under his breath.
“Sorry, man,” Terrence said. “He’s basically still a damn kid.”
“It’s okay,” Jon said.
“He was laughing because what you said is crazy,” Brooke said.
“They’ve got like a mini-army at that place,” Terrence said. “They’ll tear you to fuckin’ pieces if you go storming in there like the Punisher or some shit.”
“I just need to find one man,” Jon said.
“Yeah, and what does he look like?” Brooke asked.
Jon looked back at her for a moment before sighing and bowing his head to avert her gaze. He put his hands on his hips and observed his cabin, which continued to burn.
“I don’t have much purpose anymore,” he said. “That son of a bitch destroyed all that I had left.”
“We all have a purpose,” Brooke said. “Houses can be rebuilt, and so can our lives, even if they feel like they’ve been burned to the ground.”
Jon glanced at her for a moment before staring off again.
“Come back with us,” Brooke said. “We’ve got a car down in the street we drove here. You can follow us. At least you’ll have a place to stay for the night. You can get some rest tonight, and we’ll tell you what we know about the Vultures in the morning.”
What choice did he have? Jon had wanted to remain a nomad, but he had nowhere else to go. And, worst case, he would have a place to sleep that night and could get some information about the bastards who’d burned down his cabin.
He nodded. “Let’s go. I’ll follow you.”
Jon had started to go to his bike when Brooke put her hands up.
“Hold on, I think before we up and out of here that I’d like to know your name.”
Jon paused. “Right. It’s Jon. Jon South.”
She stuck out her hand and Jon shook it. Smiling, Brooke said, “Good to finally meet you, Jon South.”
They arrived at Hope’s Dawn ten minutes later. He stopped behind the vehicle when they arrived at the gate. Brooke stuck her head out the window.
“Jess, it’s us,” Brooke said to the woman guarding the gate. “Open up. And we’ve got someone with us.”
Jess, the guard, pulled the sliding chain-link gate open, and Terrence pulled forward through it. Jon followed.
The gate shut behind them, and Terrence pulled the car into the grass on his left next to a box truck. Jon parked his bike beside the car, turning off the loud engine and then dismounting. Brooke was the first of the three to get out of the car, and she walked over to Jon.
Before she could say anything, Max got out of the back seat and slammed the door. He stared at Jon as he marched away towards a cluster of tents.
Jon scoffed. “He’s sure got something up his ass.”
“He’s just young,” Brooke said. “He didn’t understand the world before, and now that the world is gone, he’s really lost.”
“Not sure any of us really understand the world.”
Brooke nodded. “Come on. I’ll show you where you can sleep for the night. You can leave your bike here. It’ll be safe.”
She started down the middle of the dirt path. They had built the camp in a rural area, away from the area’s main road. There were a total of four homes, all of them duplexes. The first settlers had taken those homes, but as the camp grew in population, others began living in tents outside. Brooke stopped in front of a tent sitting in the corner of one of the yards. She turned to face him and gestured toward the tent.
“It’s not a five-star hotel, but it’s a place to rest your head.”
Pulling back the opening, Brooke went into the tent and held it open for Jon.
The tent had plenty of room for Jon to move around in. There was even a little table with a candle and a box of matches sitting next to it. The bed was simply a bedroll on the ground, complete with a thin pillow that had seen better days.
Brooke shrugged. “Like I said, it’s a place to sleep.”
“It’s fine,” Jon said. “Thank you.”
“No problem. If you decide to stay, we should be able to—”
“I won’t be staying long.”
“Okay,” Brooke muttered after a brief moment of silence.
“Tomorrow, I’ll go out and try to find myself a new place to live. It shouldn’t take me more than a day or two.”
“Well, you’re welcome to stay as long as you want. You need to know that.”
“You don’t want me around, but I appreciate it. All I would do is bring trouble to your camp.”
Brooke nodded. “If you need anything, I stay in the left side of the house across the street. The number is 114.”
“Thanks. I just plan on getting some sleep. Long night.”
Brooke nodded again and opened the tent entrance. She walked halfway out before turning around to face him again.
“You know, Jon... the people here could use change. Sometimes change means trouble, and that’s just the way it is. Something for you to keep in mind.”
Jon stared at her, unsure of what to say in response. He pursed his lips and decided to
