Book 3 Chapter 16: Priceless Treasure

Book 3 Chapter 16: Priceless Treasure

The younger Murphy sighed, hung his head, stood up from the counter, and went back behind one of the shelves to awkwardly shuffle around ammunition and firearms. Murphy walked straight back behind the counter and took his usual place, returning the comforting air of familiarity that had been missing from the store since Id entered it.

Arriving with Bill, now Murphy, was Rose, the mayor of Jasper. She looked me up and down. Well, if it isnt tall, dark and deadly. Weve missed you around here, thought your ass mayve kicked the bucket.

Almost, I replied, earning me a crooked smile from the woman.

Rose moved over to counter and gave Bill a full faced kiss, which he returned with enthusiasm.

I felt my brows raise involuntarily.

See you tomorrow Bill.

Bill grunted and pointed at the sign.

Ill call you whatever I like, Im fucking you after all.

Bill shrugged.

Rose turned to leave and noticed my expression, and gave me a wink. I like a man that dont talk much, what can I say, she said, then walked out the door whistling the tune to an old waster limerick as she left.

I managed to recover my composure and walk up to the counter. Murphy.

He nodded at me. Donovan.

I have a lot of points I need to unload, and wanted to see if you found anything from my list.Read latest chapters at novelhall.com Only

Murphy nodded. Let me find it. He walked away, off into a side passage of the store that opened into what looked like a small closet. Unlike the now clean and organized main portion of the store, the closet was cluttered, messy, and impossible to parse visually. It appeared that Murphy had preserved at least some of his former store. He filled a crate with objects from all over the closet, seemingly without any system of organization beyond his own mind, then he returned to the counter and placed the crate in front of me. He looked around the rest of his shop, and I saw, for the first time in our long cooperation, embarrassment creep onto his face, recognizable even behind his thick mirrored shades.

I swung back to my boat to drop off the excess goods Id gotten from Murphy before I started on the road toward the Black Woods. My points total had been notably depleted, but in spite of that I was happy with what Id gotten in exchange. I felt a brief temptation to sit and read for some time before leaving, but I had more important work to do. Id actually left the book in my boat as I knew Id be moving non-stop until I could get back to the fight. Thered be time to read when the war was done and the Remnants squashed out. I even felt some guilt for the brief hour Id spent in Jasper, but knew that heading in the Black Woods, underequipped would be foolish, and could potentially waste far more than time.

The roads in this area were well worn and I recognized tracks that told me that Horde patrols had been there far more frequently in the past. Normally, riding a motorcycle alone was a death sentence. The noise attracted raiders on the best of days, and the attention of radded out beasts on the worst of them. I no longer had concern about either of those groups, so I rode alone, but I was still very used to encountering them. This time though, the trip was quiet. I heard no stray gunshots or bestial roars, and I didnt feel vibrations in the ground indicating anything monstrous beneath it waiting to swallow me up.

At one point I did come onto the remains of an old raider hideout. It was riddled with bullets from all sides. Corpses were on the ground in front of it, riddled with bullet holes, chunks of flesh missing where scavengers had picked the bodies clean. The Khan, when Id last seen him, had seemed keen on cleaning house of any threats to his dominion within Horde territory. It seems hed been very thorough in doing so. At this rate the roads would be safe even for the average waster.

From my perspective, it made the trip dull, if fast. I had grown used to interruptions and attacks in my travels and so my awareness was cranked up during the entire trip, not allowing myself to daydream or move without paying active attention. It took more than a day of riding, which included stops to refuel using the gas cans I had attached to the bike, before I reached the edge of the Black Woods. The only thing that broke the monotony was the system message I received while pouring gasoline.

Advanced Rebuild America System has Reached 100,000 Citizens!

The Presidential Election can now begin!

Any citizen can be made a candidate with 1,000 nominations!

5,000 nominations to qualify for the first debate!

10,000 Nominations to qualify for the second debate!

Voting will take place the week after the second debate!

Thank you Citizen, for participating in this great democracy!

I finished fueling, and re-packed my gas can. It looked like between the Undertakers that had gotten the advanced system from me, and the Remnants the Advanced R.A.S. had spread quickly. I hadnt heard any more specifics from the Honored Dead regarding what their plan was for it, but I had confidence that they had one.

When I finally reached the entrance to the Black Woods, I turned off my bike for a moment and stood looking at it. Where once there was dense forest, uninviting and dangerous, now I saw a cleared road leading deeper inside. In some ways that was scarier, as if some dark force was now inviting me into the danger rather than me needing to seek it out myself. I shook my head and turned my bike back on. The thought of my new book was clearly causing me to think too fantastically.