A few days after Mia’s party, Nick Rider showed us a list of available work. When it came to what you could and couldn’t do, the options were pretty limited. Stone, Ell, Mia, Monica, and I all crammed into a small room and went over these options—Chewy hadn’t tagged along, but was napping back at the barracks in a big comfy dog bed surrounded by about a zillion toys. He was quite partial to a fuzzy penguin whose squeaker he’d already ripped out—but I digress.
Nick had placed a folder on the table, opened it, riffled through the papers, found one, and then listed off the open positions. I’ll spare you the boring details, but Ell went on to work at the hospital due to her nurse training. Mia was off the hook for now, technically on maternity leave, but I could tell she leaned toward a kitchen job because her and Debbie got along real well. Their relationship seemed on track to become very mother-and-daughter-like.
When it came to my decision, Nick suggested I join the Scavengers, or Scavs for short. There were six in total, but had originally been seven. It wasn’t a job in high demand, that was for sure. The chance of death was greater than that of, say, working in the library, but then again, the chances of dying were always great during the apocalypse.
“Dangerous, yeah, but there’s honor in it,” Nick said. “We watch out for one another in the City, you all know that, but the Scavs really have each other’s backs. I just went on a supply run with them not too long ago. Most of the work is conflict-free. In and out, and then back home.”
Yeah, I thought, but death likes to follow me around. That’s the problem.
“A guy like you,” Nick went on, “who’s brave, smart, and competent, would be a great asset.” He leaned forward and spoke in a low voice. “And between us, you’ll only ever work once or twice a month. We’re pretty well stocked up here.”
I considered this, but only for the briefest of moments, because of Ell. She had stared daggers at me before, but the stare she hit me with then burned hot enough to melt all the snow within a five-mile radius to boiling water.
I shook my head at Nick. “I’m sorry. What else do you got?”
He chewed his lower lip and looked down at the table. “Not much else. Nothing as exciting as that, at least.”
“I don’t need exciting,” I said. “I’ve had enough excitement over the last few months to get me through a hundred lifetimes.”
“That’s what she said,” Stone muttered, and then promptly zipped his lips when Ell’s burning stare fell on him.
“Understandable.” Nick went through the pages again, squinting at the small print. “Well, we could always use more watchmen, especially during the late hours. Not too many folks want to switch around their schedules.”
“That doesn’t matter much anymore,” Stone said. He was leaning on the bookcase on the right-hand wall. “No sun to wake up too. You might as well sleep all the time.”
Mia yawned, covering her mouth. “Speakin’ of, a nap sounds pretty darn good right about now.”
“Well,” Nick continued, “sleeping on the job is obviously a big no-no. The watchtowers have heat, but they aren’t too toasty. You work in pairs to combat falling asleep, so you’d never be alone.”
I thought about it. As far as jobs went, a watchman job didn’t sound too bad. I glanced at Ell. Her eyes had softened, and I took that as a sign of approval, which was a good sign.
“I’ll take it.”
“Okay, I’ll sign you up,” Nick said. He turned to Stone. “How about you, fella? Anything tickling your fancy?”
“That’s what—” Stone began. We all let out an annoyed groan and he stopped mid-sentence. “Gosh, you guys got no sense of humor.” He tapped his chin. “Any more open watchman spots? I’d be fine with taking the graveyard shift.”
A prickle of unease settled in my stomach. I didn’t like that term, especially these days.
Nick’s eyebrows rose toward his receding hairline, and his eyes drifted toward Stone’s crutches. “Yeah? Stairs won’t be a problem for you?”
Stone frowned. “You kidding me?” He let out a humorless chuckle. “I trekked through miles of snow to get here, man. You think a few steps are gonna stop me? Get real, Nicky-boy.”
“All right, my apologies. I’m just making sure.”
“No sweat, brother. I’ve been dealing with it all my adult life.”
This was true. Subtly, people always brought attention to his disability. He’d be walking into a store and some Good Samaritan would rush ahead and open the door for him, or someone nearby would see Stone drop something and go out of their way to pick it up. Not rude or anything like that, true, but in the case of the latter, most of these “helpful” people almost always talked down to him like he was a child. He wasn’t completely crippled or helpless, and he didn’t like it when others treated him like it.
A moment of silence passed, and then Nick cleared his throat. “Okay, Stone, you got it.” He stuffed the papers back in the folder, closed it, and clapped. “It’s settled. I’ll get in touch with the heads of your respective departments.” He stood, his rolling chair squeaking over the linoleum, and he extended a hand. We all shook with him. “I expect you’ll be starting soon. And Mia, I know motherhood is a full-time job in and of itself, but I want you to keep some of the positions we have here in mind. Everyone must pull their own weight.”
Mia flashed an OK sign, and
