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Senator Ry to put his ar to have to vote with Emily on this one I very much want them all to stay”

“Well, Senator,” I said, “I think our partnership is still good”

“Good,” he replied Reaching out, he took my hand and shook it

The trouble with the news is simple: People, especially ones on the ends of the power spectrum, like it when you’re afraid The people who have the poant you scared They want you walking around paralyzed by the notion that you could die at anyto be afraid of It used to be terrorists Now it’s zombies

What does this have to do with the news? This: The truth isn’t scary Not when you understand it, not when you understand the repercussions of it, and not when you aren’t worried that so kept froht beAnd those people? They like it when you’re scared So they do their best to sit on the truth, to sensationalize the truth, to filter the truth in ways thatyou can be afraid of

If we didn’t have to fear the truths we didn’t hear, we’d lose the need to fear the ones we did People should consider that

—Froia Mason, April 2, 2040

Seventeen

We spent three weeks in Parrish before it was tiet back on the road The voters would forgive the senator taking tiot out there and made sure people reedy, he’d neverVoters are a fickle bunch, and Rebecca Ryman’s heroic death was already yesterday’s news Instead, the neas buzzing with Governor Blackburn’s exciting plans for heath-care refor school security, and her proposed alterations to the anin was using Rebecca as her restrictions on keeping large animals,” it was Rebecca’s face people saw The senator needed to get rolling or there wouldn’t be anywhere for him to roll to

Unfortunately, our swift departure from Oklahoma City left the convoy of RVs and equipet us across the country several states behind us This beca to set out frohtened schedule didn’t leave tiet ourselves, the senator, his staff, the security detail, and the equip joined us with Governor Tate—to our destination e didn’t have a means of protected travel?

The ansas siovernor, their respective caers, and the bulk of the staff flew ahead to our next stop in Houston, Texas, where they could s started The rest of us were left with the exciting task of getting ourselves and the equipment that hadn’t been abandoned in Oklahoma to Texas via the overland express There was no train froh to haul the additional equip to abandon our vehicles One way or another, ere driving it

We initially planned to make the drive alone: just the After the End Tih the tiot shouted down on all fronts, starting with Senator Ryument that we’d travel faster without a bunch of extra bodies didn’t hold water where they were concerned, but weWe’d take a security teaive in on the matter of Chuck, who needed to monitor the transportation of soht keep Buffy a little calard

The tension between Buffy and the rest of us had been getting worse since ourwith the Rymans and Governor Tate None of us had expected her to endorse the idea that we should walk away It was a betrayal of everything orked for, and it came out of nowhere Rick took it hardest As far as I knew, he hadn’t spoken to Buffy since we got back to the hotel Buffy looked at hi wrong, and went back to the task of getting our equipment ready for the road By the time ere ready to roll, I think she’d rebuilt every piece of carading our co thethat practical to concern ourselves with Ireet , and cleaning up the overn the investigation, and Parrish was otherwise short of things for hi me insane Shaun doesn’t handle idleness well Make hi, and he winds up silent, sullen, and, above all, touchy as hell

Shaun’s crankiness, co else, was the reason for our caravan traveling arrangements Rick was in his little blue armadillo with the barn cat, which he’d named “Lois” after it received a clean bill of health from the Ry heavywith Chuck in the equipment truck at the rear of the convoy