Chapter 13

Peregrine

“This is your .. third training week?” Thelma queried.

“Yes,” Miranda confirmed. “Y’know, the first time I thought I’d be scared. And I was. But what really got thru to me was the sense of togetherness, of genuine pleasure at seeing everyone. After that, I always look forward to this week. I know I could get hurt but it’s very unlikely, not with so many friends around to watch out for me.”

“Absolutely,” Thelma nodded. “My first time here, I thought I’d be paralyzed with fear but everyone was so gentle an’ understanding. I won’t say they held my hand the entire week but I always knew someone was watching my back.” She stretched and cast an eye over the compound. “First night is always ‘their’ night so we get a chance to kick back an’ relax a little.”

“Their?” Miranda queried.

“Trueborns. Us married conscripts can take a back seat.”

“And see that the camp is how it should be.”

“For sure. They will be tired an’ hungry when they get back in the morning.” Thelma paused for a moment. “That’s the other thing we have to get used to – switching over to night ops. Oh, I know, we go training at night, but that’s only the spirit. The body is getting its full eight hours of beauty sleep – something else the guys don’t ever have to worry about. And, yeah, when we have work to do that’s usually at night as well but it’s over fast and the rest of the night’s our own. A whole week of all night operations in the flesh .. something else. It’s still a wrench for me, even after all this time. You’d think I’d be used to it. We should try to get some sleep today so we’re not wiped by tomorrow night.”

Miranda Gabrielli glanced at her mother-in-law. “Did Ox ever have a really good friend?”

“Apart from me? No, not what I’d call really close. Why?”

Miranda shrugged slightly. “Reuben.”

“Ah.” Thelma nodded slowly. “Well, there’s a story. Those two didn’t exactly grow up together – we were in the city an’ Red an’ Freda lived in Bakersfield but those boys hit it off at training week first time Perry came here. He was three, Reuben was seven. And, if the truth be told, Reuben needed Perry. Three years before, Freda didn’t come an’ none of us could blame her. Red had been killed only a few weeks prior to training week. Poor woman was completely traumatized. But she came the year after an’ hasn’t missed one since. Mostly, she did it for the boy and for the same reasons you like coming here – companionship, camaraderie. She felt safe. Reuben, of course, had to muck in an’ help. So did Perry when he was old enough. Reuben had a very .. restricted childhood. All the trueborns do, but Reuben more than usual. Perry helped him open up an’ be a kid, and Reuben made sure Perry was looked after. After that, they got together whenever they could. Ox would take Perry down to Bakersfield to see his friend an’ Freda would travel up to the city with Reuben. They’ve been tight ever since. They used to go play in the forest together, that kinda thing. Now they’re older .. Perry’s a stabilizing force. Was a time before Perry met you that we were all a little concerned about Reuben. He still has his moments but, on the whole, he’s okay. Now .. why’d you ask? Is he causing trouble?”

“No. Not exactly trouble. It’s just .. Perry an’ I have been married three an’ a half years now and .. Reuben’s at our house nearly every day. We’re trying to make a home, trying to start a family an’ that isn’t easy, not with everything else I have to learn an’ practice, an’ Reuben is always there, cutting into whatever free time we have together. Perry doesn’t say why, an’ I don’t like to ask. I just wondered if it was usual. Apart from family units, like you an’ Ox, me an’ Perry, we seem to be loners who only meet up here every April. I guess, hearing what happened to Reuben, losing his father so young .. I shouldn’t gripe.”

“If you feel he’s intruding, fix some evenings when it is okay for him to call round an’ make him stick to ’em. If he turns up any other time, you don’t let him in. It isn’t unreasonable, Miranda. Does he still train with Perry?”

She nodded. “Not every night but .. three or four nights a week, yeah.”

“Is that affecting your training?”

“I don’t think so. Perry’s very good.”

Thelma leaned forward. “Has he ever made a pass at you?”

Miranda’s eyes widened. “Never. I’d never allow it an’ Perry sure wouldn’t. Any friendship would end, instantly. Why?”

“Reuben’s thirty six now. He’s never married. There could be a little envy in there. A little resentment too. You’ve taken Perry away from him. Reuben’s the kind to stir up a little trouble as a payback. Nothing major because he knows you two are together forever but he could try something small, try to get back into the group, make your twosome a threesome. An’ you know that three’s a crowd, especially when you’re trying to make me a grandmother.”

“I’ll watch out for it, Thelma, and thanks for the tip. So far, Reuben’s been .. a minor pest just cos he always seems to be in our house. He says it’s convenient.”

“So’s a public toilet, but we don’t choose to live there all the time,” Thelma remarked and Miranda laughed. “You ever feel like you an’ Perry need time out, you come stay with us in Tiburon. One day .. that house is gonna be yours anyway. We’ll keep Reuben outta your hair.”

*****

Peregrine waited for his friend so they could walk to the Hotel de la Mil Penas together. Ox had already gone on ahead with a few of the other older Flamefalls to scout it out. Ox was fifty nine now and looking very good for his age. He was still as thickset as ever, still as laid back. Peregrine had passed his thirty first birthday and he was more than happy with his life. He had a beautiful, vivacious wife, a home in a very select part of the city, and, soon he hoped, a child to love and raise and train the way Ox had raised him.

There was just one small cloud on the horizon. Reuben Meyer. Reuben was still his best friend. They still hung out together. But the friendship had cooled by maybe a couple of degrees. Peregrine could pinpoint the exact moment it had started – it was when he had announced that Miranda Whittenham of the Payroll Department had said yes to his proposal. Reuben hadn’t tried to talk him out of it because that would have definitely caused a rift between them, but he had looked disappointed for a moment or two. It was as if he could see it was the end of a very special stage in his life. It had cooled again when Peregrine hadn’t asked Reuben to be at the marriage ceremony. Flamefall weddings were different. They were private. They didn’t have bridesmaids or groomsmen or even a best man. It was just the couple and Michael to officiate. The ceremony was witnessed by the most powerful observer of all time – God – so they didn’t need anyone else to be there. So Peregrine had done nothing unusual in not asking Reuben to attend. But Reuben had looked disappointed when he’d found out it was a done deal. The couple had gone on honeymoon for a week, alone, and Reuben had been forced to accept that his special friendship with Peregrine was in the past. Now he had to share him.

Since then, he’d cut back on his visits but he was there nearly every day. Miranda was too nice a woman to complain about it but it was causing a little bit of friction. Peregrine was too nice a guy to tell his friend to get lost.

“You set?” Reuben asked.

“Yeah. You?”

“Raring to go.”

They set off along the dusty trail, their minds half on the night’s work, half on other things. If Ox had known that, he would have shouted.

How do I get him to back off a little, Peregrine wondered. Rube will always be my friend, and he should know that. I’d never turn him away. But .. when the kids arrive, I’m gonna be real busy. Surely, Reuben knows that too. Is that why he’s always around? Never gives me any time to make love with my wife – which is necessary for the conception of babies. I can’t believe he’d be that selfish. We’re not tied at the hip, just .. friends. If he would only marry, even if he didn’t have kids of his own, he’d be a lot easier to live with.

What Reuben was thinking as they walked along the trail, Peregrine didn’t know. He did know that, in some minor way, Reuben had changed following his Thanksgiving visit to Red seven years before. Something inside him had done something – maybe shriveled and died, or possibly had been born. Even after all this interval, Peregrine wasn’t sure if it was good or bad. Reuben had been as normal as Peregrine before the visit. After, while he was still the same guy to look at and talk with, there was some .. quality in his eyes which hadn’t been there before. Reuben’s voice hadn’t changed but Peregrine felt he wasn’t as open as he had been with what he said.

Well, Rube did want to clear the air with his Dad. I don’t suppose it was done by magic. They had to have talked to each other. Maybe Red said something which didn’t sit right or didn’t say something he should have. But I know they’ve been meeting every year so it can’t have been all that bad. If it isn’t peace between them, at least it’s a truce.

And I’m married now. I really shouldn’t expect things to be the same as they used to be. I seem to want it both ways .. and I know I can’t have it both ways. Make the best of it, Perry, he told himself. Live with it.

“Hey, guys, nice of you to show up!” Ox called.

“We got plenty of time. It isn’t sunset yet,” Peregrine countered.

“You wanna be in there, scouting the area, when it appears?” Ox inquired genially. “I don’t think so. We’d have to wait a good long time before we could scrape you off the sand. Squashed flatter than a pancake.”

Peregrine grinned at his father. “I thought that’s why all you old farts had gone on ahead – to scout it out so that us young’uns can get in there an’ do all the work while you take it easy.”

“I see. So that’s what marriage has done for you, is it? Made you forget to respect your elders an’ betters.”

“No, sir. It’s reminded me how precious you all are but, if you can’t take a joke, you are missing out on a whole lotta life.”

Ox grinned and switched his attention to the other arrival. “Reuben, you set?”

“Absolutely, sir.” Reuben was watching the middle distance and he now looked round at Ox. “This week’s very important to me. It’s good to touch base with everyone, catch up on all the news. But … ” He shook his head. “I was thinking … ”

“Uh huh?” Ox invited.

“The guests in there have no idea of the time, the season, the year. But the things who run it .. they must know. Training week is the same week in April, regular as clockwork. Don’t they expect us?”

“Maybe they do,” Ox nodded.

“I was thinking that, if they do, we go in at a tactical disadvantage. There’s no element of surprise. If we changed the week each year .. we’d get it back.”

“Nice thinking,” Ox commented. “But have you thought that maybe we want them to know?”

Reuben frowned. “Why? It only complicates things. The best plan is, usually, the simplest plan. Not so much to go wrong.”

“And it makes it more difficult for us,” Ox replied. “This is training week. It isn’t meant to be a picnic barbecue an’ beer party. But we’ll discuss your idea back at the compound. Moving it forward a week would catch ’em off balance. Move it back a week or two .. they’d have a bit longer to prepare for us. Either way, it’d keep the experience fresh.” He smiled. “This year though, it’s a little late to change anything.”

“Yes, sir. I understand.”

Ox moved away to consult with his contemporaries. Reuben leaned toward Peregrine.

“One thing I didn’t mention was it’s nice to tell the Legacy to butt out for one week of the year,” he murmured. “This week is like taking a shower. We wash off twelve months of their influence an’ get to be ourselves for seven whole days. Then it’s back to being stepped on an’ pulled up an’ worn down again.”

Peregrine glanced at him. “I thought you’d come to terms with Legacy rules.”

“I have. I don’t have to like working under ’em, do I?” he countered. “And you do have to admit, it is very satisfying telling ’em they’re on their own this week.”

“It makes a change, I guess. I don’t know if I feel satisfied. I don’t see the arrangement as a point scoring exercise, Rube. Never have. We walk the same path, more or less. It makes sense to me to be around to help them out. If we didn’t .. we’d probably have to work a lot harder.”

“How d’you figure that?” Reuben frowned.

“They do all the legwork, all the running around. All we have to do is check their facts then go in.” Peregrine shrugged. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying I want an easy life. But this week is a good example. This week, we’re Flamefalls, pure an’ simple. And just look at how many briefing sessions we have to attend. How much fieldwork we have to do before we can get inside. I say that, if the Legacy gives us rules to work by, we make them work just as hard, maybe even harder, for us. Then it’s fair.”

“Fair means squat to us.”

“A fair exchange of labor then,” Peregrine corrected. “C’mon, lighten up. The Legacy’s been around a long time and, for most of that, we’ve worked with them. Chewing it over ain’t gonna give you any peace. Just accept it.” He shivered slightly. “Sun’s going down. Won’t be long now.”

*****

Thelma was waiting at the entrance to the Flamefall camp at dawn the next morning. She’d managed to snatch a few hours sleep late the previous afternoon and had then sat awake all night. Miranda had tried to stay awake with her but she’d surrendered about three thirty that morning.

She saw them walking back along the trail and she frowned. Some were limping. Some were being supported. Thelma turned to rouse those sleeping and to alert the mess tent and hospital tent for imminent customers, then she set off to meet them, thinking trueborns were sometimes way too stubborn for their own good.

As she drew near, she saw that one of the walking wounded was Ox. “What the hell happened to you?” she exclaimed, angry and anxious.

“First up, no one was killed last night. As for me, I tripped coming down the main stairs,” he replied. “Wrenched my ankle something fierce.”

“Sure it isn’t broken?”

“Could be but I was in a hurry. Didn’t wanna get trapped inside, did I? All those good looking women just waiting for a good time with a great looking guy like me. Hell, I would’ve been swamped with offers.”

Thelma raised a skeptical eyebrow and Ox laughed then winced and grimaced. “Hospital tent for you an’ we’ll see if you go back again tonight. You may have to sit it out,” she remarked.

“Nah, I’ll be fine. They don’t call me Ox for nothing.”

“That’s true enough but you aren’t as young as you used to be. I’m not just here as decoration,” she warned. “If I say you sit it out, guess what, buster.”

Other wives and husbands were coming out too, shaking heads in patient exasperation. Peregrine had survived unscathed but Reuben had a tear in his shirt beneath which was a long scratch. It was already puffy with infection. As the trueborns headed toward their temporary home, the others carried out walking triage.

“How did this happen?” Thelma asked, inspecting the wound on Reuben’s back.

“Clumsy, I guess,” he answered.

“He stopped to help me up,” Ox corrected. “Paid for it too. War wound.”

“Hospital tent,” Thelma ordered. “Then chow an’ then sleep. In that sequence. This needs to be seen to, Reuben. It’s inflamed.”

“Yes, ma’am,” he breathed. “Does feel sore.”

Miranda was turning out to be a competent warrior but she excelled at healing. She was already in the hospital tent, waiting with the others when Ox and Reuben came in.

“Before you ask, Perry’s just fine,” Ox announced, sitting down awkwardly on a camp bed. “This can wait. Reuben’s got an infected scratch.”

Miranda gave him an ice pack from the cooler. “Put this on your ankle. I’ll be right back.” She turned to the next bed. Reuben had sat facing away from her and had already shrugged out of his shirt. Miranda frowned at the wound. “It’ll need to be cleaned out. It’s gonna hurt. Need some help here!”

Reuben lay down and let the healers get on with it. He never once cried out.

At the tent entrance, Peregrine stood and felt guilty twice over. His father had been hurt – not seriously, true, but it had happened – and he hadn’t been there to prevent it. And his best friend had been there to help Ox to safety and had been more seriously wounded as a result.

“It isn’t your fault,” Thelma murmured, coming to his side. “Don’t start second guessing yourself, Perry.”

“But – ”

“When this happened, where were you?” It was a question, not an accusation.

“Coming down the backstairs with a couple of the guests who’d decided to make a break for it. I got them out an’ went over the wall.”

“So you were nowhere near your father when he tripped on the main stairs. Why should you feel guilty? If you’d been there an’ pushed him to hurry up or you’d run past an’ left him there, sure, feel bad about it. You were doing the good thing, Perry. Your Dad’s gonna be fine. Training week is about learning an’ he’s learned a good lesson. Next time, he’ll be a bit more cautious an’ watch where he’s going.”

“What about Rube? Will he make it?”

“He’s young, strong, and it’s only a scratch. Yes, it’s infected but look at how many are working on him. He’s learned a lesson as well. If anyone should be feeling guilty, it’s the ones who weren’t watching his back. You can be sure they’ve learned something too.” She drew in a breath, her head rearing and her eyes narrowing. “An’ so have I.”

He glanced round. “What? You weren’t there.”

“That’s what I’ve learned. This first night is trueborn night .. it’s a load of bullshit. From next year, it’s gonna be a full team assault from the get go. And I would like to see the trueborn who tells me no.” She looked at him. “Go get your breakfast and some sleep. One thing’s for sure – you are going in again tonight.”

*****

Peregrine choked down bacon and eggs and washed it down with coffee. The caffeine wouldn’t keep him awake – he was bone weary after a night of fighting. He went to the dorm tent and stretched out on the nearest empty camp bed. His eyes felt weighted with lead and they closed without any conscious thought or effort. But sleep refused to come.

After a while, he heard a soft sound and he rolled his head toward it, his eyelids inching open to a slit.

“It’s okay,” Miranda whispered. “Your Dad’s ankle was just wrenched and he’s fine. Nothing to stop him going back again tonight .. except your Mom’s against it. Reuben’s back’s gonna be sore for a while but the infection’s out an’ the wound’s been closed. He’ll sit out tonight and we’ll assess him again tomorrow.” She smiled. “Go back to sleep.”

Peregrine stretched a hand toward her and she took it. After that, he slept soundly.

*****

“You’ll be okay on your own?” Peregrine asked.

“I’m not on my own. Your Dad’s here,” Reuben replied.

“You know what I mean. Without .. me.”

Reuben glanced up. “You’re not my keeper, Perry, you’re my friend. I get on okay with your Dad. We can talk over my idea. Go be with Miranda. She’s still new to this. She needs you.”

Peregrine felt hurt. Rejected. And it was strange because Reuben had spoken nothing but the truth. It wasn’t whining or elaborated. It was just the straight truth. Yet, maybe, there was something in his voice, some weary and resigned acceptance of the facts. Life had changed for Peregrine and Reuben had been forced into it as well. But the hurt came from what wasn’t said – she needs you, I don’t.

We can’t stay kids forever, Peregrine thought sadly. It’d be nice but it isn’t possible.

“Well, take it easy. You could be okay for tomorrow night. You couldn’t see that scratch, Rube. It was nasty. Not deep but long.”

“I felt it happen. I know how bad it was. Was, Perry. It’s getting easier every hour. I’ll sleep some an’ heal myself. When I wake, I’ll be fighting fit. You can’t get rid of me that fast.” Reuben smiled. “Go on, get outta here. And don’t think about me while you’re gone. I don’t want you getting hurt. You take care of your wife, get her home safe.”

Peregrine nodded. “Okay. I’ll check in on you when I get back.”

Reuben waved and retraced his steps across the compound. Peregrine sighed and slowly shook his head. This injury on top of everything else … He didn’t have a good feeling about it.

“Perry? You set?” Miranda called.

He looked up and smiled. He couldn’t help it. Miranda just made it happen. She flipped some hidden switch inside his body. Reuben faded momentarily into the background of his thoughts.

“Course I am,” he replied.

They walked together. It was still an hour to sunset so they had time to spare and they didn’t march to the site of the hotel. They did walk hand in hand.

“How is he?” she asked, her voice low.

“Reuben? It’s hard to say,” Peregrine replied. “I know you’ll find this difficult to believe, sweetheart, but, since we got married, Rube’s kinda distanced himself. He has issues with his Dad. They meet more now than they did before, yet I don’t think there’s peace between them. He isn’t like I am with my Dad. I got a problem, I need to talk, I have something to celebrate, I can go to my Dad and know he’ll give me good advice, he’ll listen, he’ll celebrate with me. Rube can’t do that. I don’t know why. I don’t know what they talk about when they meet but, every time he comes back, he .. isn’t himself for a few days. It’s like .. Red’s torn a piece out of him and Reuben has to heal. So the guy’s pretty much a loner. Can’t talk to his Dad, doesn’t talk as much to me. Maybe this injury will do him good because he’s there with Ox an’ my Dad can get anyone to talk. Did I ever tell you about the time he talked to vampires an’ convinced their leader to live an honest, useful life in the community?”

Miranda nodded. “Yes, Perry. You’ve told me and Ox has told me. He told it better.”

“He was there,” Peregrine shrugged. “If my Dad wasn’t a Flamefall, he’d make a brilliant salesman.”

“Thelma explained about Reuben, his childhood,” Miranda went on. “I’m glad you’re his friend.”

“You don’t feel irritated that he’s always there?”

She hesitated. “I did and .. it’s wrong for me to feel that. The kid had a tough break. He may have been able to see his Dad afterward but losing your father at the age of four … that had to be tough. It got me thinking.”

Peregrine’s heart sank a little. “It doesn’t mean I’ll die when our child is so small.”

“Nothing’s guaranteed, right?” she remarked and he had to agree. “Look, I married you knowing all the risks an’ responsibilities, and I know I did the good thing,” Miranda continued. “I don’t regret any of my choices. But .. I have to be honest. I can’t lie to you, even if I wanted to an’ I don’t. I have a lot still to learn. I don’t want to be scared of the challenge of raising our kids alone, Perry. To have confidence in doing that, I need a lot more experience. So maybe it’d be wiser to postpone starting a family.” She saw the hurt in his eyes. “Just for a few more years. I need to know what I’m doing an’, right now, I feel like I’m wading thru quicksand. A child, now .. I couldn’t devote the time to it. And that isn’t fair, right or good.”

Peregrine nodded. “You’re right. I shouldn’t force the issue. I’m .. impatient to start because I’ve lived this life for thirty one years. I don’t know the outcome to every situation but I know how to do the job in just about every instance. But you’re still new to it an’ the learning curve is sharp. You’re right. I’m disappointed but I’ll get over it. We can put it off a few more years. Whenever you’re ready is good enough for me.”

“And, maybe, in that time, Reuben will find himself a soul mate as well. I hope he does,” Miranda remarked. “He deserves to be loved. But, until then, he’s always welcome at our house.”

Peregrine halted and kissed her. “Thank you. I appreciate it even if he never does.”

*****

“You eaten?” Ox demanded.

Reuben nodded. “I’m okay to last the night. God, I hate the desert. Too hot in the day, too cold at night. Why did they choose this place, Ox? Do you know?”

“Before my time,” Ox replied. “But not much before my time .. an’ that makes me feel ancient.”

“You’re not old.” Reuben smiled quickly. “You were born with a young attitude. No matter how many years you stack up, you’ll always be young. Perry’s damn lucky. My Dad was born old, an’ it shows.”

“Red’s not that bad,” Ox responded loyally. “He’s just a stickler for the rules an’ that ain’t so bad either. Rules have served us well over the decades an’ centuries.”

“Sure, I know that. But .. you live an’ breathe the rules, so does Perry. You don’t preach them, do you? They’re in the background, like a .. a framework everything fits in. You let them pervade your life an’ they’re second nature. Red .. doesn’t have to think about them as such but .. to him, they are so rigid. It’s a noose around his neck. He’s so scared of breaking a rule that he doesn’t live.”

“He’s dead, Reuben. He can’t exactly break the rules now.”

“I know! And that’s what’s so crazy! He did his time, paid the ultimate price, an’ he never really lived. And, now he’s dead, he’s still got the same attitude. I go visit him a few times every year and, every time I’m there, I hear the same lecture as I did when I was three. He uses different words and puts the messages in a different order but it’s still the same. Rules reign supreme to him, no matter which side of the veil he happens to be on and what’s good for Red Meyer is good enough for his son. I’m sick of it, Ox.”

For a long moment, Ox was silent and simply studied the younger man. Then he leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees. He looked concerned.

“Reuben, you ever tell your father how you feel about this?” he asked.

“Why’d you wanna know?”

“Don’t go all defensive on me,” Ox scolded. “I ask because .. you’re not a bad guy. You talk to me about what screws you up, makes you mad – and, believe me, we all have triggers, we all have something to press that button. I just wonder why you don’t talk to your Dad in the same way.”

Reuben thought about it. “Y’know, I have. I remember saying the words. And I remember seeing his face go blank. Just wiped of expression, just for a second. Then he changed the subject.”

“So what did you do?”

“What could I do?” Reuben asked. “When my Dad doesn’t want to discuss, he doesn’t discuss.” He lapsed into silence, staring into the distance and shaking his head. “It’s as if .. I’m not permitted to feel. He knows I’m thirty six, hell, we even have a beer together, but .. emotionally, I’m still a kid who has to do what he says because he knows best. You know I work hard, I have the discipline, that I have ideas worthy of being heard, at least. I can talk with you because .. you listen. He doesn’t. He lets me talk and then says something totally unrelated. It’s frustrating, Ox. I made peace with my Mom an’ we get along great now. But Red .. sometimes I wonder why I bother going to see him.”

“Why do you go?”

“Because he’s my Dad. And, I guess, there’s a piece of me which hopes that, one day, he’ll give me time, hear me out, actually listen to me. If he did that, I could tolerate the lectures. I mean,” he grinned, “you recommend certain courses of action and I do what you say.”

“Because it’s me?” Ox queried.

“Because you let me ask questions about it. You listen to my concerns and my suggestions. Even if you shoot ’em down, you tell me why you’re doing it. You don’t just ignore me. I got no problems being told what to do. I just .. don’t like being ignored. That makes me feel like .. why did they bother having me?”

“So .. you don’t really have a problem with the rules?” Ox commented.

“No, I don't. Not ours. Legacy rules .. they’re different. I find them restricting but I’ve never made a secret of that. I like the people in the San Francisco house. I admire the work they do. I resent being given my orders from some place right over the other side of the Atlantic. Orders. Go there, do that. If I ask why, what’s the problem, they just repeat the orders. If they asked me … ” He shook his head again. “It seems so arrogant.”

Ox nodded. “You gotta face the facts, son. We might be older but the Legacy’s bigger than us. Way back when, we must’ve decided to let them tell us what to do. Maybe it was because the alternative was total war between us. In return, we make sure they stick to their rules. They don’t stop us taking down evil if we find it an’ they didn’t know it was there. They can’t stop us doing that. But, yeah, I guess they are arrogant over in London.” He paused. “So .. what you’re saying is .. you got no problem doing what you’re told if it’s one of us telling you but you resent it if it’s the Legacy.”

Reuben shook his head. “No, I don’t mean that. I resent being told, period. I’m one of those guys who wants more information. Now, if you told me I have to quit training week, pack an’ go home, I’d wanna know why. I’d argue it out with you. I wouldn’t just obey cos it’s an order. You explain your reasons, I’d certainly consider it, I may even do it, but I’d have to be satisfied it was the right and good thing to do.”

“Fair comment. If I was told the same thing, I’d argue it out too. But .. what if it’s a combat situation? I order you in and you could face having your ass handed to you. Could be Perry’s pinned down an’ needs some urgent help. Would you argue that?”

Reuben hesitated. “No. That’s different.”

“Why? It’s still an order.”

“I can see why it’s been given.”

“What if the Legacy gave you the same order cos one of their guys had gotten himself in some serious shit?”

“I can see why they’d tell me to go in.”

“So if you can see the reason why, there’s no problem.”

“That’s right.”

Ox nodded. “Okay. My advice – an’ you can ignore it if you want – is, next time you go visit your Dad an’ he changes the subject, you just keep on plugging away. Tell him what you’ve told me. You want him to listen to you. If he does, you listen to his lecture. If he doesn’t, tell him he doesn’t deserve to have you as a son an’ that, when he’s ready to listen, he can come find you. Then leave him to think about it.”

Reuben stared at him. “Me say that to Red Meyer? He’ll accuse me of rebellion again.”

“Reuben, a seventeen year old who says that, yeah, that’s rebelling. A thirty six year old guy .. no. It’s a reasonable request.”

“Sounds good to me,” Reuben accepted.

“You’re a good guy, Reuben. A little mixed up an’ confused but, hell, we’ve all been there at some point. You gotta get a grip on being given orders. Resent it as much as you like but you have to obey. Afterward, that’s when you can ask your questions an’ make your comments. Learn to accept that the Legacy is often in possession of more facts than they pass on to you. Going into everything before you put a foot out the door wastes precious time, maybe time someone doesn’t have. Comes down to faith. You gotta trust ’em.”

“An’ what if they’ve gotten it wrong?” Reuben demanded.

“You got eyes an’ ears, you can tell if evil’s present. Doesn’t take two seconds to assess a situation. If they’ve gotten it wrong, you keep the weapons securely locked away and you just defend them. You don’t sit at home an’ let ’em learn bitter lessons cos their perception of what is and isn’t evil isn’t as well defined as ours.”

Ox regarded him steadily until Reuben nodded.

“The reason they chose the desert,” Ox finally related, “is because the desert’s where we began. Training week means we can be ourselves. Training week here means we touch base with our ancestors. Kinda completes the circle.”

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