I pushed open the heavy wooden door to the executive suite.

The space inside took my breath for a second. It was easily the most beautiful room I had ever seen. A genuine pre-catastrophe family suite, built for people who once believed comfort was a birthright.

Soaring ceilings with ornate but cracked moldings. Large windows draped in heavy, faded velvet curtains that still held hints of deep crimson. Plush sofas arranged around a low central table. Actual wooden furniture that wasn’t falling apart. A faint scent of old polish and dust hung in the air, mixed with the distant smell of the city outside.

The entire team was already seated when I walked in. They had clearly been deep in conversation, the kind that stops abruptly when the wrong person enters

"Abram," General Sinn said, his voice cutting through the silence the moment he saw me.

I closed the door behind me and moved to the open spot beside Mercury on one of the long sofas. May and Sherry sat across from me, while the others occupied chairs and the second couch. Late afternoon light filtered through the tall windows.

The mission timeline had already been broken the moment Major’s people blocked the road. Everything Sinn, Bala and Doctor Reed had calculated was running on assumptions that no longer applied.

"Are they going to clear the road?" Sinn asked.

"There’s a complication," I said, settling back. "Major wants to use our vehicles. He wants to ride with us to the city and come back with a real, sustainable food supply for his people."

"What the hell," Sinn growled. "I thought this was supposed to be a short stop."

My bad. Should have led with that.

"A short stop out here can mean death," Sherry said quietly but firmly. "This is the outside, sir."

Sinn’s scarred face remained mostly unreadable, but I saw the muscle in his jaw flex. He turned his full attention to me.

"Let me guess," he said. "Your suggestion."

"The outside—"

"Just answer."

"Yes," I admitted. "It was the only way they were going to let us live."

Sinn exhaled slowly through his nose. "What’s the plan now?"

I had been thinking about it since Major and I parted downstairs.

"While we eat, someone quietly removes the roadblocks. We look for a clean window to leave. Or I talk to him again. He’s not unreasonable."

"Kill them all," Code said from his seat near the window. His voice was calm, almost eager, long hair partially covering the dangerous glint in his eyes.

Sinn went quiet. The expression of a man who had removed himself from the conversation while still sitting in it.

"We can win a fight," I said. "But these people have weapons and they’ve survived out here longer than most. There’s a way we leave without losing anyone."

Sherry looked at me. She understood both sides of it. She knew I hadn’t fully left the outside and she wasn’t asking me to.

"I support peaceful means," Mercury said. "These are people. If there’s a better way, we take it."

"We’ve already lost enough," Harmione said. "I’m not burning anyone who doesn’t need burning."

"Votes," Sherry said, reading the room. "Who wants a violent exit."

Oddo, Code and Owen raised their hands. Three against. The math worked without counting further.

"I’m fine either way," May said, crossing her leg, which meant she had already run the probabilities and was comfortable with the outcome.

"Come on," Code pushed. "I’ll cut throats in a minute. Red here burns the rest and we’re done in five." He gestured at Harmione.

He wasn’t wrong about the capability. He was wrong about what these people were.

I thought about Jenn. Eight years old when Major found her. Nineteen now, dreaming about walls opening for everyone.

"General," Sherry said. "Your call."

"Abram’s plan," Sinn said.

Mixed reactions. Nobody argued. An order was an order.

"We go down and eat," I said.

Everyone rose. Sinn remained seated a second longer.

"Code," he said quietly. "Stay."

Code sank back into his chair. The rest of us filed out into the corridor, leaving the two of them behind.

***

I walked downstairs with Sherry on my right, May and Harmione behind us, Mercury after them, Oddo and Owen at the back having apparently reached a temporary ceasefire.

"Did you bring extra clothes?" I asked Sherry quietly.

Sherry gave me a long, incredulous side-eye, one eyebrow arched. "I did. Don’t tell me you need my skirts."

"A dress actually," I said. "and some undies."

"Bro." She nearly laughed out loud, then caught herself. "Seriously?" 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"Yeah."

Sherry studied me for a moment, something soft and knowing in her expression. "You have a new friend in this building."

"Can’t disagree."

"Alright," she said, shaking her head with a small smile. "I’ll sort it. I have a spare set that should fit her."

***

The ground floor had been rearranged. Big tables, ten chairs each, the specific organization of people who had done communal meals long enough to have a system.

One modest piece of bread and one bowl of thin bean soup at every place. The smell of cooked beans and baked flatbread filled the air, simple but rich to people who rarely saw either.

Major sat at the head like a king in his decaying castle, red bandana slightly crooked, gray vest open. His coiled mustache twitched with satisfaction as he surveyed the room.

I took the seat to his right. Sherry settled gracefully beside me, her shoulder brushing mine. Mercury, May, and Harmione sat across the table, while Owen claimed the far end directly opposite Major.

"Abram of Goth!" Major announced again, clearly enjoying the way the name rolled off his tongue. He then turned and noticed Owen properly.

"Wow," he said, eyes widening. "That head catches the light something special. Like a full moon in the desert."

Mercury completely lost it. The loud, unrestrained laugh she’d been holding since the roadblock finally exploded out of her, shoulders shaking. Even Sherry had to press her lips together to keep from smiling too obviously. Owen’s expression remained flat, but his jaw tightened.

From the stairs, Sinn and Code appeared, whatever had been said between them now filed away. The meal was ready. Everyone was seated.

Whatever Sinn told Code, I thought, looking at them both, I hope it was enough.