Chapter 87: Return
Afternoon. Scorching sunlight shone on Buffalo Pass above.
Discarded pitch-black vehicle frames were placed in a pile, barely able to block the entire Buffalo Pass.
A tall heavy truck stopped not far away. A large camping umbrella sat on the truck roof, able to shade most of the sunlight. Below the camping umbrella were chairs and a table.
Merle lay askew on a camping chair, picking up a peach from the small table beside him.
He casually bit into it. The refreshing juice seeped into his heart. Merle ate while humming.
Beside Merle stood a respectful, refined-looking young man.
"Toby, want to eat some?"
Merle pushed the fruit basket on the table, indicating the young man Toby could try some.
Toby smiled and stepped forward, taking a peach from the basket. "Thank you, boss."
Biting into the sweet peach, Toby closed his eyes enjoying that peach's sweet taste.
Opening his eyes, Toby looked at the peach.
It had truly been too long since eating fruit. The ranch's fruit production was very limited. Even he, a combat squad backbone member, didn't have a quota.
In no time at all, Toby finished the entire peach.
Below the heavy truck were several more members of Merle's squad. They shouldered guns, occasionally looking up. Glimpsing Toby eating the peach, they secretly swallowed.
Not far away was another group of people. Their clothing was much dirtier. Each one had a dim complexion and withered yellow hair—clearly their living conditions were very average.
They were people from Leon's ranch. Among them was a burly man whose mental state looked much better.
That was Ford's trusted subordinate, a Leon ranch senior member—Wayne.
Their gazes were undisguised, staring directly at Merle on the heavy truck and the peaches on the table.
In the entire valley, there were almost no places producing grain, much less vegetables and fruit.
Such fresh fruit—Leon's ranch didn't have it either.
Wayne also looked at Merle, thinking whether he should go directly find Merle now and inform Merle of Boss Ford's desire to pledge allegiance.
The companions surrounding him—the stench from their bodies was nauseating. Wayne frowned and stepped back several paces.
Forget it. Wait until there are fewer people, then go find Merle.
Wayne wasn't certain whether people on his side would have different intentions. Better to be safe.
It's just that the peach in Merle's hand really looked delicious.
Wayne turned around, wiped away drool, then shouted loudly at his subordinates: "What are you looking at? Hurry and guard the post properly. What if a walker herd comes from outside?"
Immediately one subordinate laughed and turned his head to say to Wayne: "Boss Wayne, Buffalo Pass hasn't had walkers pass through for a long time, much less people. Rest a bit more, rest a bit more."
Wayne had no good expression. He went up with a kick, directly kicking that subordinate to the ground.
However, Wayne also knew what he said was right. He didn't use heavy force, just drove them away: "All of you get on the wall and look. Don't stand here stupidly."
Under Wayne's driving, several subordinates dragged their feet, slowly climbing the high wall made of abandoned vehicles.
The abandoned vehicles had many positions to climb. Several subordinates quickly climbed the high wall. One subordinate complained irritably: "What's good to see coming up here? Could someone really come?"
He complained endlessly. The other few casually agreed.
Cursing the boss while working was very normal behavior.
But before they'd said two sentences, several people's eyes widened, staring blankly at the scene before them.
Wayne wasn't looking at them. His gaze rested on Merle as he took small steps toward Merle's team's direction.
After walking two steps, Wayne heard his subordinates' exclamations.
"Boss Wayne! Boss Wayne!"
"Yelling, yelling, what are you yelling about?" Wayne angrily turned around, about to curse at the high wall.
When he saw clearly the panicked expression on his subordinate's face, Wayne's heart thumped. He quickly drew his sidearm.
"People are coming!"
Merle's side's reaction was also quick. When combat team members saw several people freeze on the high wall, they'd already raised guns and approached the high wall.
Merle abruptly stood up, tossed what was in his hands toward Toby, flipped down from the heavy truck, and received a long gun a team member handed over.
He stretched out both arms. Team members naturally helped him put on a bulletproof vest.
Merle looked at several team members who'd already approached the high wall and shouted: "What did you see?"
"Boss, outside is a convoy. They have many vehicles, and... they seem to be armored vehicles or something."
Merle's pupils contracted. Armored vehicles?
That meant either military background forces, or people who'd robbed military forces. Both possibilities weren't easy to provoke.
Merle looked at Wayne. The two met eyes and simultaneously strode toward the high wall.
Following the high wall, the two quickly climbed up.
Merle's subordinate team members followed Merle's footsteps, guarding beside him.
After climbing the high wall, Merle took out binoculars and looked.
In the distance, yellow sand rolled up. Vaguely within the yellow sand you could see many army-green armored vehicles roaring forward.
Thick armor, bulletproof glass, plus collision beams with blood traces—at a glance you knew they'd be hard to penetrate.
Merle's brow furrowed tightly. He turned around and said to a team member: "Now, quickly use the walkie-talkie to contact the boss. Tell him a convoy with military background has come to Buffalo Pass."
"Yes." That team member understood the situation was serious. He flipped down the high wall and quickly ran toward the heavy truck to find the walkie-talkie.
Merle turned back, just meeting Wayne's eyes.
Wayne said: "This bunch isn't easy to provoke. Do we fight or yield?"
Wayne was very clear that with his own ranch's strength, even exhausting all ammunition, they couldn't beat this group's currently displayed strength.
Just the several armored vehicles and the coldly gleaming heavy machine guns on the armored vehicles—Wayne didn't think the ranch's people could withstand them.
Plus Caesar and them, perhaps the problem wasn't big. So this matter should be led by Merle.
Merle pondered for a moment and said: "First let's see what this group really wants to do."
What Merle hadn't expected was that Wayne, just like his little brother, quickly said: "I think so too. Let's wait and see first."
Merle looked at Wayne with surprise.
He'd thought that in Black Pine Valley's situation, Leon ranch people should have great hostility toward him.
Could it be... they want to join the ranch?
A guess rose in Merle's mind. But there was also no time to think more. That group of armored vehicles quickly reached below the wall.
The people on the armored vehicles seemed to have no vigilance. They brazenly drove all the armored vehicles below the wall, not considering trenches or similar traps at all.
Merle adjusted his eyebrows. Before he could speak to test them—
The lead armored vehicle—several doors simultaneously opened. Several "soldiers" carrying guns and ammunition walked out.