Marcus's face went pale. Just as he was about to argue, Leah raised a hand to stop him.
Then Leah's next words made him feel as if he had been thrown into an ice pit.
"Second," she said, her gaze stabbing into Marcus like an icicle, "you and that young man named Leo stay behind as our 'guests' while we transport the supplies."
"What?! Hostages?!" Marcus cried out, his body trembling with anger.
"That's right." Leah's tone left no room for negotiation. "Our supplies have to be moved in batches.
Until our first group returns, you and Leo stay here.
This is insurance for the safety of the people we leave behind, and to make sure you don't try to storm the warehouse after we leave, or follow us back to our base."
She paused, letting the weight of her words settle. "As long as the transport goes smoothly and you keep your end of the agreement, you and Leo will leave unharmed. But if you make any move at all..."
Leah did not finish, but her icy eyes said everything.
Behind her, Carver cracked his neck at just the right moment, making a faint clicking sound filled with threat.
Marcus froze where he stood, torn apart inside.
Putting down their weapons was already a huge risk. Staying behind as hostages meant handing their lives completely over to the other side.
He looked back toward the woods and saw the anxious, uneasy eyes of his companions. He could also imagine the people back at camp, waiting for them to bring back hope.
"Think about your people," Leah said again, her voice carrying a nearly cruel kind of logic.
"Trade the temporary freedom of two people for supplies and medicine that can keep dozens alive.
For you, that isn't a losing deal.
Or you can choose to take your people, pick up your weapons, and try to rob us right now. Gamble with all of your lives."
She tilted her head slightly toward the fully prepared team behind her. "The choice is yours."
Time passed second by second, each one stretching like a century.
Marcus trembled all over. He looked back toward the woods. His people had heard Leah too, and their faces were full of anger, fear, and hesitation.
Putting down their weapons meant placing their lives in the other side's hands.
Refusing meant giving up the supplies that could save them, and possibly starting a fight they had no chance of winning.
The pressure crashed down on Marcus's shoulders like a mountain.
At last, as if all the strength had drained out of him, Marcus's shoulders sagged.
He faced the woods and shouted hoarsely, each word forced out with difficulty. "Put them down! Everyone, put your weapons down..."
The woods immediately broke into an uproar, voices of protest and fear rising one after another.
But after Marcus ordered them again, a hunting rifle was finally set down carefully in the snow. Then a second. A third.
Then came the crude spears and machetes.
At the tunnel entrance, the Rock Fortress team watched the other group's humiliated, unwilling eyes and the weapons slowly being lowered, each of them feeling something different.
Daryl watched in silence, a trace of sympathy in him. But after quietly glancing at Leah's expression, he kept his finger on his crossbow.
Once everyone had put down their weapons, Marcus sighed and called toward the woods, "Leo, you... you come out with me!"
The young man named Leo was deathly pale, his eyes red.
But he did not run. Under the worried eyes of his companions, he shuffled out step by step and stood beside Marcus, trembling slightly from fear and the cold.
"A smart choice, Marcus," Leah said with a slight nod. "Hank!"
"Here!" Hank stepped forward.
Leah ordered, "Have someone move five boxes of biscuits and one basic medical kit over there. Put them in the open space between us. Move fast."
Her gaze swept over Marcus and Leo. "You and your team stay here. Guard the warehouse, and guard our 'guests.'
Do not let them near the weapons or the warehouse entrance. If there's any unusual movement..."
Leah's eyes said enough.
"Understood!" Hank answered in a low voice and immediately began setting up defensive positions.
Bossie and Jenson disappeared into the woods to look for better sniping and scouting positions.
Five Guard Corps soldiers spread out, keeping a close watch on Marcus's disarmed people and the direction of the woods.
The handover that followed took place in suffocating silence.
When Marcus's people received the life-saving supplies, there was not much joy on their faces. Only a heavy, complicated silence.
They lifted the supplies, picked up the melee weapons they were allowed to take back, gave Marcus and Leo a long look, then disappeared even faster into the depths of the snow-filled woods.
This time, they were truly leaving.
"Merle, Daryl, collect their firearms. Jonathan, Carver, everyone else, start moving the first batch of priority supplies right now.
Move quickly. We need to get back to base as soon as possible and bring support!"
Leah turned and pointed at the firearms the group had been ordered to leave behind in the snow, then began directing the loading with sharp efficiency.
Box after box of biscuits, bundle after bundle of blankets, and precious medical supplies were quickly carried out and loaded onto the sleds and transport vehicles they had brought.
Marcus and Leo were ordered to sit beneath a rock that blocked the wind but offered no cover, watched by two armed team members.
Marcus's face was gray as he stared at the busy Rock Fortress team and the mountain of supplies with complicated eyes.
Leo kept his head down, his shoulders shaking, whether from the cold or lingering fear was impossible to tell.
Between trips, Daryl's gaze occasionally swept toward the two men under guard, especially the young Leo.
There was sympathy in his eyes, but he also understood that Leah's decision was the best option.
Once the first batch of supplies had been loaded, Leah made one final check of the defensive positions for those staying behind, then walked up to Hank and spoke quietly.
"Be careful. Their people may still be wandering nearby. Hold this place until we get back."
"Don't worry, Leah." Hank patted the rifle in his hands. "The warehouse and the 'guests' will both be fine."
Leah nodded. Her gaze passed one last time over the dejected Marcus and the frightened Leo, then she turned away cleanly.
"Move out! Back to Rock Fortress!"
The convoy and sled team slowly started through the wind and snow, heading toward the base.
At the tunnel entrance, only Hank's squad remained, along with the two hostages kept as "insurance."
...
At the abandoned logging camp, the cold wind howled with a low, mournful whine.
Calling this place a community was too generous. It was more like a temporary refuge wrapped in despair.
The camp sat beside a half-frozen creek, built around a few long-ruined wooden cabins and a massive sawmill building with part of its roof already collapsed.
Around the perimeter was a crude fence barely pieced together from roughly chopped logs and the wreckage of abandoned vehicles.
In many places, the gaps were wide enough for a person to crawl through. At most, it offered a little comfort to the mind and could stop the occasional stray walker.
It was only slightly better than Shane's quarry camp back then.