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Please don’t let anything happen to Peter or any of the others while I’reetedI knew exactly hoi felt and that just made me even more sad

The trip to the ranch ay more treacherous than I had expected it to be Mandy said it was the fastest route, but I er one had she explained e’d be walking through

I saw no less than fifteen gators, and I lost count of the snakes at twenty We even walked around a few of the monster pythons I’d read about in the news before the world had fallen apart - pets people had released into the hen they no longer wanted the prettyorthat being big also meant slow

The landscape was a mix of ays and dry land, soether and soround beneath it The closer we got to the ranch, the less waterand the more it started to look like the area around Haven

It was fully dark by the tiate Mandy let out a birdcall that was quickly answered by someone inside the barbed-wire fence that circled the periot closer I was struck by how much it looked like a prison They even had a watchtower

"Who goes?" asked a fa just a little happier than she had earlier

"Rob, it’s me and Bodo," I said

"Oh, hell yeah! You made it!"

"Yeah, we did" I wasn’t as excited about it as he was probably expecting me to be, but it wasn’t possible to be too happy with the memories of Kowi and Jason at the front ofwhen I got close enough, holding out a hand towards Bodo "Welcolad you’re both here"

Bodo shook his hand and nodded his head "We are glad to be here Out in da ators"

"Nice security systeh the gate

"So, what’s the status?" I asked, waiting for hi hi We’ve got a ss The trick is going to be getting everything down to Haven"

"Howwith us?" I asked

"About half," said Rob

"Wow," said Mandy, sounding surprised "Really? I thought it would be more, actually"

"Yeah, well, more wanted to come but we convinced them to stay for now We need to be sure we have the manpower at the ranch to keep the canners off We don’t really have the swa the ranches and farms understaffed"

"That makes sense," I said "Maybe we could work out soo back and forth for different periods If they want Or they could just stay in one place It makes no difference to me"

"Everyone just needs to be happy," said Rob "That’s the goal, right?"

"Yes Security first, happiness a very close second" I smiled at Rob’s enthusiash a day as we had, but he was full of energy No as I going to burst his bubble and tell hi to change anything

Rob sent a few birdcalls out ahead of us and soon ere joined by a group of kids A them were Trip and Paci Both of thereeted htly "The last stand of the Miccosukee and Creek tribes" He stepped back and turned his attention to Trip

"Welco my hand firmly He looked like he wanted to say more, but he didn’t He just stood more stiffly and puffed his chest out a little

Bodo walked up and held his hand out at Paci

Paci didn’t hesitate; he shook Bodo’s hand and smiled "Welcoht bow, sealing the formality of the process It was almost funny, but at the sas would ever not be weird a the three of us

"I hear we have soh soe hut It was connected to several others and covered in the standard thatched roof As people saw us coreet us Trip led the way into the third hut froesturing to the food that rested in bowls on a long, narrow tablebowl of the usual Miccosukee fare - grilled vegetables, mystery meats and hunks of fresh bread The bread wassince I’d had any that wasn’t rock hard

I was halfway into ht for sore eyes," she exclaiive ot littler or soood Miccosukee food in a while I guess"

"Well you need to get yourself some cooks over there or soonna disappear"

"Peter would never let that happen What’s neith you?"

"Well, I still only got one arled Apparently, LaShay had , which was probably good Better than having it be a stigood with this one I got left"