Liz saw that she had struck a chord as the crowd glanced at one another. Liz then turned to Jane, who was glowering at her.
“I think today was a perfect example of learning to trust,” Liz said. “Because without trust, there can be no foundation, and without a strong foundation, our community will fall apart.”
Despite the odds and the Hail Mary longshot Liz had thrown, somehow, people were buying into what she was saying. She hoped that people would simply be so relieved that the food wasn’t missing that they would be more open to forgiving a small misunderstanding.
It turned out she was right.
But there was at least one person in the crowd who wasn’t excited about the news. And Jane Percy decided to capitalize on the moment before she lost all of her momenta.
“I think that was a terrible exercise to run,” Jane said. “You had the entire community up in arms. I’m not sure that’s the kind of leadership I want to see around here.”
And with that one phrase, Liz finally understood what Jane was up to. She was trying to get the community to turn against them so they could step in and start running things. It was a clever plan, but Jane had underestimated Liz.
“Ben and I never said that we were the sole people in charge,” Liz said. “Everybody who stays here plays an active role in our survival. The only way that any of this works is if we all work together.”
“I completely agree,” Jane said. “But it seems to me, the balance of power in this community is centered around you and your family.” She turned around and faced the crowd. “The Rikers have all the keys to every resource in the community, and they control the one commodity that all of us can’t live without. They have the weapons, they have nice accommodations, and they make all the schedules. Don’t you think it’s time we all have a bigger say in how this place is run?”
The crowd returned to Jane’s side, and Liz suddenly found herself in a political battle. She had no intention of losing this place, but she also had no intention of becoming a dictator. The moment she started waving her gun around, she would lose that trust she had spoken so highly of moments before.
“I think everybody having a more active say is more than fair,” Liz said. “So why don’t we put it to a vote?” Liz stepped forward, choosing to go all-in against Jane here and now. “This evening, we will have a meeting in the mess hall, and everybody in the community will speak their peace about who they think should be running this place.”
Liz turned to Jane, waiting to see if she had any type of rebuke. When Jane nodded, Liz knew that they had a lot of work ahead of them. But first and foremost was getting the food out of her portable and back into the mess hall.
12
Ben and Jackson hung back in the woods for another twenty minutes, watching the trailer where they believed the scientist had been taken. He was on the edge of the trailer park, which would at least make it easy to get in and out quickly; whether or not they would do that without raising the alarm remained to be seen.
“What do you think they’re doing to him in there?” Ben asked.
Jackson shook his head. “I’m sure they’re not sitting around and singing ‘Kumbaya.’” He raised the small pair of binoculars he brought with him. “Those newspapers were a good idea. I can’t see a damn thing.” He lowered the binoculars. “What I wouldn’t give for some heat vision goggles right about now.”
“Nothing like doing things analog,” Ben said. “You ready to go over the plan one more time?”
Jackson nodded. “I go in first, and then you follow, clearing my left side. We take them quickly and without firearms, if possible. From there, we bound and gag our scientist so he doesn’t make a fuss and then retreat toward the trailer with the schematics to gather the intelligence. Then we toss this baby into the portable on our way out.” He raised his hand, holding a large grenade. “Boom.”
With the plan in place, all they had to do now was execute it. Easier said than done.
“Let’s get into position,” Ben said.
The pair moved stealthily through the woods remaining out of sight from the guards who were still circling the perimeter. They knew the moment anybody raised the alarm, all hell would break loose. And despite their plan, there was no guarantee of success.
From what reconnaissance they managed to obtain, they saw no guards posted outside the trailer where they believed the scientist was taken. But they knew there were still at least two men inside. Nobody had come in or out since the scientist was brought in.
They waited a few more minutes for the next round of guards to pass the backside of the trailer’s perimeter, and once they were clear, Jackson nodded for them to proceed.
They approached the door, silent as the night, but Ben could have sworn that his heart was hammering so loud that it was going to give away their position. But he kept his composure, knowing that any wrong move could be his last, and with so much at stake, there was no room for error.
Jackson held up his hand and counted down from five. Once he reached zero and formed a fist, he quickly opened the door, and their plan was thrust into action.
The moment the door was open, they caught the attention of the two guards inside. They only waited a few seconds before they reached for their weapons, but it was enough time for Ben and Jackson to have
