Into Shadow Read online

“I told them that we’d run into each other sometimes when I was living rough, that’s all. Anything else going on is completely unrelated.”

  He glared down at me, and I had to restrain myself from smacking his obnoxious face. “That had better be it, you little…”

  “There’s no need to threaten me, Mateo. I have no plans other than to ignore your existence. You leave me alone, and I’ll leave you alone, okay?” I left the room without waiting for his response, slamming the door behind me.

  I stomped down the hall still fuming and muttering to myself as I thought of better things I should have said to Mateo. I was so wrapped up in my angry thoughts that I didn’t even notice someone walking up beside me. I jumped in surprise when a hand touched my elbow and I whirled, hands poised to strike out.

  “Whoa!” Lucas exclaimed, putting his hands in the air and taking a step back. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”

  “Sorry,” I said. “I was off in my own world, I guess.” I smiled up at him, shaking off my foul mood. “What can I do for you?”

  “Walk with me,” he suggested. “I thought I’d take you up to the guard room. Sharra is short on guards for patrol duty today, so she wondered if you were ready to take on a patrol route.”

  “Yes!” I exclaimed. “I am so ready to get back to being useful!”

  Lucas chuckled, “Feeling a bit bored, are you?”

  “It was really nice to relax for the first couple of days, but now I’m ready to be busy again.”

  “Well, I think I can guarantee that patrol will keep your boredom under control. It’s more likely to be a bit too exciting. Guards on patrol are injured too often for anyone’s liking, which is why Sharra is often shorthanded. Stay on your toes, please. I’d hate to have you get hurt.”

  As we talked Lucas led me to a small conference room on the second floor. It had large windows that looked over the bleak gray wreckage of the city with the snow-capped mountains looming formidably in the distance. A battered square table in the corner had seating for four and was piled with papers and books. The definite focal point of the room was the east wall, which was covered with a huge map of the city. Judging by the logo in the corner of the big signboard, the map had once been on display at the Denver Chamber of Commerce. It had now been repurposed to track the various packs in the area. A thin wash of color had been applied in some areas, apparently to color-code sections of the city. I looked at the map with great interest, wanting to get a clearer picture of my position in the ruined city.

  Sharra walked over as I inspected the map and explained. “Blue areas mark Liberty territory and then other packs are marked in other colors.”

  I could see that the center of the downtown area was all held by Liberty. It was a sizeable territory. The packs around us were quite a bit smaller. There were also quite a few areas marked in sullen red. I tapped my finger on a red section nearly surrounded by Liberty blue. “What’s this?” I asked.

  “Wild territory,” Sharra told me. “It’s a section that is still hazardous. That particular spot has some dangerous plant life, venomous and carnivorous and thoroughly unfriendly. But we can’t wipe it out without also destroying some plants that are good for healing. So we just keep people clear of it.”

  “Don’t worry,” she assured me. “You won’t go out on patrol on your own at first. We try to always send guards in pairs, so your partner will teach you what you need to know about the territory.”

  A short rap on the doorjamb caused us both to turn and look at the man who had just entered the conference room. Like the guards I’d met earlier, the short, stocky man in the doorway was dressed in black leather. A sleeveless leather vest revealed weathered, freckled skin and seriously muscular arms and shoulders. A peaked and brimless leather cap covered most of his head, showing just a few graying red curls around the edges. Black leather pants and knee-high black boots completed the look. Though he was not much bigger than me, he was intimidating.

  “Red, meet Red.” Sharra snickered at her own joke, then performed more formal introductions. “Mac, this is Poppy, who I like to call Red. Poppy, this is Mac, who is also known as Red. Mac is grub captain. He oversees the gardens we have set up on the roofs of several buildings and the greenhouses in the downtown area. The domesticated food animals are stabled a few blocks over and Mac makes sure they’re taken care of. He’s also in charge of the hunting details that go out looking for wild game. Mac, Poppy is going to be on guard detail. Can we get her outfitted for that?”

  Turning to me she explained, “Mac and his partner cleared out a big leather clothing warehouse a few years back. They outfit all the guards and hunters."

  "Leather isn't just stylish, it's practical too," Mac said cheerfully. He had the slightest hint of an accent, perhaps European? I wasn’t certain; I just knew it was not a U.S., Mexican, Canadian, or French-Canadian accent, all of which were very familiar to my ears.

  "Of course, it's not real leather. Even forty years ago when the city was bombed they didn't use real leather anymore. But this stuff is better than the real thing. Sheds water like a duck and strong enough to act like low-level body armor. Also provides some protection from road rash if you spill your bike, sharp objects like knives and animal teeth, and the occasional projectile whether falling or thrown.”

  "Rain, road rash, attacking animals, and people throwing knives," I said thoughtfully. "You’re making guard duty sound like quite an experience.”

  “Don’t forget the man-eating plants,” Sharra reminded me cheerfully before sending me off with Mac to be properly outfitted for guard duty.

  An hour later I had several new additions to my wardrobe. The options in my size were rather limited, but Mac had found several pairs of leather pants, including my new favorites: a snakeskin pattern studded liberally with tiny metal rivets. They would be perfect matched with a black tank or tee and topped with a slim-fitting leather jacket that would provide more protection than the vests I had been wearing.

  After putting away my new items, I returned to the guard room. It was time to report for my first patrol and I was equal parts nervous and excited. I wiped damp palms on my pants before entering the room, automatically straightening my back and concealing my feelings behind a calm expression. If nothing else, my time as First Lady had definitely taught me how to give the impression of calm confidence, even when I felt exactly the opposite.

  Sharra looked up as I entered the guard room. “Hey, Red,” she greeted me. Gabe and Len were standing with her at the map on the wall. Ever the gentlemen, they grunted to acknowledge my presence before returning their attention to the map. She outlined an area on the east side of downtown with her index finger; it was mostly blue but edged with red areas on the outer boundaries. Thinking back to Sharra’s orientation earlier, I knew that meant that the area was mostly controlled by the Liberty pack but bordered by stretches of wild territory that were dangerous to enter.

  Gabe and Len headed out the door, I assumed to patrol the area they’d been discussing with Sharra. Len gave me a short nod as he passed; Gabe didn’t bother.

  “Friendly,” I commented after they’d cleared the door. Sharra chuckled.

  “They’re men of few words,” she agreed. “They’ll warm up a little when they get to know you. Still won’t say a lot though.”

  “So they’re off to patrol that section you were pointing at?” I asked. When she nodded I continued, “And what does that involve exactly? What do we do when we’re on patrol?”

  “Basically just walk the beat,” Sharra told me. She motioned to me to take a seat at the table and joined me to continue explaining. “We have our territory pretty well cleared of dangers, but it doesn’t stay that way for long unless we keep an eye on things. So you’ll take a mag-lev bike to get to the patrol area, then park it and walk the blocks of your patrol looking for anything out of place.”

  “Any animals should be categorized as dangerous or harmless and should also be considered as possible food. Dangerous anima
ls include things like wild dogs, bears, cougars - anything big enough with sharp teeth or claws really. Dogs and cougars you’d want to drive away from our territory. Easiest to do by hopping on the bikes and herding them away – they don’t like the bikes or the noise if you yell. We’ll give you a staff; use that to poke at them and keep them at a good distance. And as a last resort you’ll have a stunner. We’re not able to recharge those very easily, so try not to use that unless it’s a life or death situation.”

  “Bears are dangerous but also good eating, so we don’t drive them away. Deer, moose, antelope, raccoons, large birds; all of those are on the menu, too. If you come across any of them, make a mental note of where you saw it and report it to the hunters as soon as you’re back from patrol. They’ll send a group out to search the area and bring in the meat. Anything not large enough to be food or dangerous enough to drive away you can pretty much ignore. That would be things like rats, small birds, squirrels, or prairie dogs. And on the list of things to just avoid are Shadows and packs of feral cats. If you come across them, you just get out of sight and let them pass you by. As you’ve seen, fighting a Shadow is not a winning proposition.”

  “Cats?” I asked incredulously. “We drive away cougars and we hunt bears, but we run from kitty cats?”

  “Not kitty cats,” Marcii said seriously, chiming in on our conversation from her spot at the other end of the table. “These are packs of predators with seriously sharp teeth and claws. Most of the cats in these packs are at least 20 pounds of muscle and mean as spit. Picture a dozen or more cats as big as Roomie. They’ll work together as a group to bring down their prey; they just swarm over the target and attack any vulnerable area until they bring it down. I’ve seen a pack of cats take down an antelope. And you can’t fight them off like you can the dog packs. Dogs pretty much stay on the ground where you can reach them to hit and kick. The cats can also come at you from above, and they’re flexible and agile enough that it’s hard to get a solid hit on them.”

  “A dog pack will break and run if you hurt or scare it enough,” Sharra added. “The cats will just keep coming as long as there’s one still moving. And they can’t be herded outside boundaries. They’ll just scatter and regroup – possibly now angry and targeting you. So yes, we leave the kitty cats alone.”

  “Got it,” I agreed, shaken at the idea of swarming attack cats.

  “Give me a minute here, Poppy.” Sharra excused herself as Nathan entered the room. He threw me a friendly wink as he joined Sharra and Marcii at the map wall. Sharra assigned each of them to a solo patrol in different parts of the city. They both waved at me as they headed out the door.

  I was a bit disappointed. I’d hoped to be paired with one of them for my first patrol. They were friendly and both seemed tough and competent which struck me as a good combination. Maybe I’m going out with Sharra, I consoled myself. She would be a great partner also.

  Sharra came back to the table where I waited and picked up where she had left off. “We covered animals, but you’ll also run into people out there. Challenge anyone you find in our territory and encourage them to leave – peacefully. You might have to offer stronger encouragement for some, which is where those fighting skills of yours could come in handy. Squatters sometimes come in and try to set up their own patch in our area because it’s patrolled and safer than a lot of other areas. They have to leave, but tell them they can come to the downtown bus depot on the night of the full moon and request membership in the pack. If they’re seeking emergency shelter, you can choose to take them to headquarters to see Lucas for an immediate decision.” She smiled at me, “That was basically my plan for you until Eddie and his pals interfered.”

  I smiled back, glad that I had found my way to this group. They had put together a good society here. It was much better than anything I could have ever imagined for anyone scratching out a life in the ruins of an abandoned city.

  “You’re more likely to run into Lurkers and Vultures. Lurkers target people and are willing to cosh someone on the head and take everything from them, right down to the clothes on their backs and the shoes on their feet. Vultures scavenge places looking for trade goods which is what we do ourselves; but it’s our territory so that’s allowed. Vultures are sneaking into someone else’s territory and trying to find anything of value. Both of them should be escorted out of our borders immediately.”

  “That’s the basics,” she said, standing again. “The rest is pretty much on-the-job training.”

  I nodded, anxious to get out on my first patrol and see things for myself. “Who am I partnering with?” I asked, careful to keep my voice casual so I didn’t show my nervousness at the thought of going out with a stranger.

  Sharra made a face, “I was going to take you out myself,” she said, “but I’ve been called into a council meeting that I can’t miss. I’m going to send you out with Mateo instead.” She paused, obviously not quite sure of her next words. “I’m sorry; I know you two don’t really get along. I’d send you with someone else, but I needed everyone elsewhere. Mateo’s usual partner turned up sick tonight and is up on medical, and Mateo’s section is one that really needs two people because it can be a little iffy. That pretty much just leaves you at this point. I know it’s not ideal, but like I say, Mateo’s section needs two people on patrol and you need to get out on the beat…”

  “It’s fine,” I told Sharra. “This certainly won’t be the first time I’ve dealt with some jerk who thinks I’m incompetent because I’m a girl – and a small one at that.”

  “He’s not really a jerk,” Sharra protested. “Not once you get to know…” she trailed off awkwardly. “Cha! Ok, yeah, he’s a jerk. Even once you get to know him. But he’s good on patrol, so you can learn from him.”

  “I’ll be fine,” I promised again. We both looked up as the door to the guard room banged open and Mateo swaggered into the room. He had left his hair down tonight, and it framed his handsome face in shining wings. He’d recently grown a thin mustache that defined his upper lip nicely. He really was quite attractive, except for the sneer twisting his full lips as he looked me up and down, his chocolate brown eyes cool and assessing.

  “So I am on babysitting duty, I see?” he said to Sharra, turning his back on me. “We must really be needing new recruits if we are using children now. There are better uses for my time than taking this one on a field trip; find someone else for this nonsense.”

  Sharra opened her mouth to speak, but I wasn’t going to make her fight my battles. I walked around the table to face him as I responded. “Marvi, I get to patrol with the resident comedian.” I drawled. “But just FYI, that particular bit is pretty tired. I mean, calling me a child just because I’m short? That’s far from original. Besides,” I added, “you certainly didn’t seem to think of me as a kid the last time we were out in the city together.”

  As I spoke, I stepped in close to Mateo and licked my lips a little as I stared up into his face. I shifted my shoulders a little in that maneuver all girls know, subtly pressing my arms into the sides of my breasts so they pushed up and out a little, swelling gently above the deep scooped neck of my black tank. Being several inches taller than me, Mateo had a great view of my generous cleavage as I leaned into him. His eyes were a little glazed and his lips parted slightly as he stared avidly at the sight before him. Sharra cleared her throat and he startled, tearing his eyes away from my impressive breasts. His voice was a touch hoarse when he said,

  “No, certainly not a child. I was just making a joke.”

  “Well, good,” I said briskly, straightening away from him and running a quick hand through my hair to refresh the spikes. “Now that we have that settled, why don’t we talk about our patrol?”

  “Of course,” he said smoothly. “I’m looking forward to patrolling with you. We can get to know each other a little better.” His eyes were glittering eagerly as he looked me up and down with a different intent this time, obviously thinking I had changed my attitude si
nce he last tried to get friendly.

  “Cha,” I said, wrinkling my nose in mock regret. “That’s really not going to happen. It just wouldn’t be professional to ‘get to know’ my partner that way. Sorry.”

  He was thrown off balance by the sudden change in direction, just as I intended, and said nothing as Sharra motioned us over to the map. She tapped an area at the south end of Liberty territory. It was bounded by Wolf pack on the west, but the southern and eastern borders were wild territory. The section also had a large center area highlighted in red.

  “This is your section tonight,” Sharra told us. “This western edge bumps up against Big Eddie’s patch. Even though we don’t particularly like each other, our packs have never been hostile; we just kind of cordially ignore each other. After the incident with Eddie and the Shadow, it’s kind of hit or miss. If the guard on patrol for Wolf is a friend of Eddie’s, he’s probably holding a grudge. Rivers is Eddie’s second-in-command and his supporters are friendly to us. So just stay on your toes in case the guards there decide they don’t like you and feel like fighting. This center section,” she pointed to the red zone, “should be avoided. Take note of the cross streets so you don’t wander in there.”

  “What are we avoiding?” I asked.

  “We aren’t sure,” Sharra admitted.

  “The last two teams to go exploring in that section never returned,” Mateo told me. “They simply disappeared, never to be seen again. And another man is in medical now. He has been unconscious since his patrol partner discovered him lying just inside the red zone last week. Perhaps you think this will be a fun adventure? That you will shimmy out there in your sexy black leather and play at being the tough girl? This is dangerous business, little princess, not a game for you to play at. You must be ready for the real world if you think to come with me, because I do not have time to come to your rescue when things get frightening. Perhaps you should reconsider,” he suggested smoothly, stroking a hand down my arm and letting it drift over to cup the curve of my hip intimately. “There are much more pleasurable ways we can spend our time together, querida. Give up this idea of playing guard and when I return we can discuss our options.”