Deadland's Harvest (part 2 of the Deadland Saga)

Pride (Chapter 10)

PRIDE:The First Deadly Sin

Thirty-one hours later

Wes and I pulled to a stop behind the first Humvee at the bridge crossing over the Mississippi and into Illinois. Even with having all the roadblocks mapped and only two small herds to detour around, it had taken over eight hours to make the journey. I would've preferred to have flown over, but our scouting party and supplies would have required a plane three times the size of the 172. So, we'd loaded up two Humvees and drove the route mapped for convoy to make sure it would work.

Tyler, Griz, Jase, and Nate climbed out of the Humvee in front of us while Tack stayed on the back of their Humvee to man the .30 cal machine gun. He scanned the area while Tyler and Griz talked between themselves by the river.

When Wes reached for the door, I stopped him. "We're not supposed to leave the truck unless Tyler gives us the all-clear."

Tyler's Humvee was the lead vehicle, while ours was jam-packed with tools, food, and weapons. It was our job to secure the boat, and we wanted to make sure we had all the gear we needed to get the job done.

Tyler had to lead this mission since he needed to be here to meet with Sorenson's people. Clutch had wanted to lead this mission, but his legs weren't strong enough to handle the stairs on the boat. He could stand now—thanks to the swelling finally going down enough and with the help of crutches. I loved seeing signs of the old Clutch return in his face. The glint had come back to his eyes, and his expressions were more alert now. It was like he'd been half asleep and was coming back to wakefulness. Walking was still beyond his reach, but it wouldn't be much longer with how hard he was working at it. He had a renewed energy in everything now.

I think even Tyler wished we had Clutch's experience on this trip. Clutch had been in plenty of situations in the Army before the outbreak, while Tyler, Griz, Nate, and Tack were much younger. Aside from Griz, who had also been in the Army, none of the other soldiers at Camp Fox had seen action before the outbreak.

Even from a wheelchair, Clutch was Camp Fox's strongest leader. Tyler was trusted and loved, but Clutch was obeyed. No one argued with him, which made it all the more important he stayed behind to lead the convoy. If anyone could relocate sixty people and all our livestock across a zed-infested state smoothly, it was Clutch.

He wasn't thrilled that Tyler had asked Jase and me to come on the mission. Tyler had said he needed Jase's limber speed for scouting the barges, and my small size for squeezing through tight spaces, but I knew it was really Tyler's way of showing Clutch who was in charge...and to piss him off even more.

That Clutch had freaked out when we'd arrived home a day late with my face cut up was an understatement. He was downright livid at Tyler, even though it wasn't Tyler's fault. He'd blamed Tyler since he was in charge when my clumsy accident happened. Clutch had jumped from his wheelchair faster than anyone expected and tackled Tyler. Jase, Griz, and Tack had to tear them apart to prevent a fight.

Yeah, this mission had come at the right time. The pair needed space, and a couple hundred miles was just about perfect. Except that Clutch wanted Jase and me with him and not with Tyler right now. But even he knew that the safety of Camp Fox came first, and if Tyler said he needed us, then we had to trust his judgment. If something happened to either of us on this trip, I would dread being in Tyler's shoes.

This morning, even though he was still pissed about having to be separated again so soon, Clutch had acknowledged that he trusted Tack and Griz second only to himself when it came to looking out for Jase and me. It was the first time he openly admitted that someone besides the three of us had earned his faith.