Pete and Mitch's expressions clearly changed.
They had heard about yesterday's minor altercation. They knew a female officer had shown up and defused the situation, but they didn't know the details.
"She talked to me alone," Tara said, carefully choosing her words. She wanted to get the point across without making it sound like she was somehow special. "It wasn't an interrogation.
"She... she listened to me talk about Lilly. She didn't promise anything, but she said there are opportunities here to earn points by working. We can use them for better treatment, and maybe someday... even become full-fledged members of the base."
"Anyone can make empty promises!" Pete scoffed, instinctively skeptical.
"I know." Tara nodded. "That's why she didn't tell us to trust her right away."
Mitch pursed his lips. "Oh, yeah? And then what? She warned us to behave?"
"No!" Tara shot back at once, as though he had insulted something sacred. "She's really nice! Really... really gentle! She even said she could help find a doctor to check on Lilly!"
The words came pouring out of Tara as she recounted yesterday's conversation with Calista along with her own interpretation of it, peppering the story with completely subjective claims like, "She really is different," and, "I think she'll keep her word."
Pete and Mitch were left somewhat bewildered.
Pete gave her a suspicious look. "Hey, that's it? A few words and you believe her? You went to the police academy. Didn't they teach you anything? In the apocalypse, pretty words are worth less than anything."
"They weren't just pretty words!" Tara protested. "She doesn't have any of those shady motives. I think she means it.
"Besides, she's one of the top leaders here. She's in charge of everything, and she's so beautiful. Why would she need to lie to me?
"What do I even have that's worth lying about? If we refused to cooperate, she could just shoot us!"
Listening from the side, Alisha almost wanted to cover her face, but when she saw how utterly serious, even stubborn, Tara looked, her heart softened again.
That was simply the kind of person Tara was. Once she decided to trust someone, she did it wholeheartedly, without reservation.
Mitch, on the other hand, was amused by Tara's reasoning and let out a derisive snort. "So because she's pretty, she can't lie? What kind of logic is that?"
"She just wouldn't! I'm really good at judging people." Tara lifted her chin, her eyes filled with absolute certainty. "Just look around. This is an entire secure industrial park!
"That female commander runs a base this big, but she still took the time to meet with me and listen to what I've been through... She has to be a good person!"
Tara's reasoning was so simple and direct that it was almost laughable:
Good order → good leader → Calista is good (and pretty) → Calista's words can be trusted.
Yet that simple, wholehearted faith of hers was strangely infectious, enough to leave Pete and Mitch silent for a moment.
Pete and Mitch exchanged a glance.
Neither of them was exactly some calculating raider.
Back then, they really had been completely out of ammunition and supplies. They had only planned to scare the other side with the tank, grab what they could, and get out. Who could have known the people they picked on would be so strong that everything would blow up in their faces?
Of course, they did not buy Tara's childish reasoning about being "good at judging people" or Calista "being pretty." But the fact that this place was restoring industrial production was undeniable.
Mitch scratched his head and looked at his older brother. "Pete, this place... it's actually pretty decent. If we really can survive and get officially accepted, we could settle down here..."
Thinking about his experience driving and maintaining tanks, he found himself tempted.
Pete did not answer immediately. He leaned against the wall and looked toward the orderly buildings beyond the quarantine zone.
Everything he had seen and heard over the past few days mingled with what Tara and Alisha had told him.
There was no question about Rock Fortress's strength or level of organization. Fighting against a force like this would obviously be foolish, but placing their lives entirely in someone else's hands was hardly reassuring either.
Pete's biggest concerns were their current status as prisoners and their personal safety. Still, the "points" and "opportunities" Tara had described sounded like an actual way forward. That was better than sitting around waiting to die or fantasizing that they would simply be released.
And while Tara was naive, she was not unobservant. The excitement and trust she showed came straight from the heart. It did not look fake.
Maybe... that female officer really was different.
"Even if the opportunity she mentioned is real," Pete finally said after some thought, "the rules are definitely going to be strict.
"If we want to earn their trust, we'll have to work for it. Maybe even risk our lives.
"And at the end of the day, we're still prisoners. Outsiders.
"We'll have to be extra careful and make sure we don't cross any lines.
"And those points you mentioned... how do they calculate them? What kind of work do we have to do? We don't know any of that yet."
"I know!" Seeing their resistance weaken, Tara's eyes grew even brighter. "But if we stay here, at least we know what the dangers are, and the rules are laid out clearly. What happens if we leave? We go back to wandering around outside with walkers everywhere, just like before?"
She glanced toward where the silent Lilly was. "I have Lilly to take care of. I can't live like that anymore. Alisha agrees. We're going to do our best and give this a chance.
"I think... you two should see how it goes too. You have experience, and Mitch has technical skills. They definitely need people like you here. You might be worth even more to them than I am.
"I... I can work too. I'm pretty strong! If we do our best, stay out of trouble, and prove ourselves, they'll notice eventually!"
She had already slipped naturally into the mindset of trying to prove herself.
And this time, she had a point.
Pete and Mitch exchanged another glance.
As soldiers, their greatest assets were their military skills and experience. Most survivors who had made it this far had killed their share of walkers, but they were fairly sure not everyone knew how to drive a tank.
In an organized community, specialized skills like theirs really were more valuable than simple physical labor.
Pete looked at Tara, brimming with enthusiasm as though she could already see a bright future ahead. Some of his lingering doubts faded.
At the very least, the group needed a little hope, even if that hope was somewhat naive.
"All right, all right." Pete waved a hand, tacitly giving in. "We'll do it your way and see how things go. But Tara, don't get your hopes too high. In a world like this..."
He had been about to say something discouraging, but when Tara's face instantly lit up, he swallowed the rest.
"Mm-hmm!" Tara nodded vigorously before turning to Mitch. "What about you, Mitch?"
Mitch shrugged. "Sounds fine."
And just like that, pushed along by Tara's enthusiasm, they reached a rough initial agreement.
"As for what happens later..." Pete paused. "We'll take it one step at a time.
"But Tara, if you get another chance to talk to that officer, or if you hear anything, let us know."
That was practically an acknowledgment of Tara's role as an informal line of communication between their loose little group of prisoners and Rock Fortress's leadership.
"I will," Tara promised solemnly.
That evening, Tara could hardly wait to share the good news with Alisha.
"Pete and Mitch agreed to give it a try too!"
She leaned close to Alisha's ear. "Alisha, if we work hard, we'll definitely earn enough points! Then maybe we can trade them for a little room with a window. Somewhere quieter..."
She was already imagining the details.
Alisha listened to Tara chatter, smiling silently as she pulled her closer.
And Tara fell asleep feeling completely content, wrapped in the bright future she had imagined for herself.
...
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