Smoked - Mari Mancusi Page 0,27
know, our problems are far from over,” she reminded them sternly. “In fact, in some ways, we’re back to where we started. The government is presumably still looking for Emmy. Much of the world wants her dead. We’ve got a good setup here now, to be sure. But we can’t expect to stay here undiscovered forever.”
“And then there’s the issue of feeding her,” Trin’s father piped in. “The more she grows, the more she’s going to need to eat. We have a stockpile for her that we built up over the last two months. But once that’s gone, it’s going to be difficult to replenish our supply to keep up with her appetite.”
“What we need is, like, a ranch!” cried one of the younger Potentials. “We could grow cows and other livestock for her to eat. Then we wouldn’t have to be hunting all the time and gathering roadkill.”
A few of the others voiced approval at this idea, but Trinity’s father only shook his head. “We don’t have the funds to purchase a ranch,” he reminded them. “And it’s not like anyone here would be approved for a bank loan.”
“What about…like, an abandoned tropical island?” asked another of the Potentials. “There wouldn’t be any people there, so Emmy could fly around to her heart’s content, hunting wild boar and whatever else might be native.”
Trinity sighed. “Even assuming such an island exists outside of Jurassic Park movies and Lost reruns, we’d have no way to get there. Unless someone here has a dragon-sized yacht they haven’t bothered to mention?”
She watched as their eager faces fell. Sometimes it was hard to remember how young they all were. How young she still was herself. In a normal world, they’d be dealing with homework and homecoming, parents, teachers, and friends. They shouldn’t have to have the world’s weight on their shoulders like this.
“Look,” she said. “We can stay here as long as possible, try to get Emmy’s strength up at least, and, of course, her spirits. In the meantime, I want some of you to be scouting out possible future home bases. Preferably places with lots of game. When we need to make another move, whether it’s because we’ve run out of food or we’ve been spotted by the government, I want to be ready.”
She pulled out her list of assignments, preparing to dole them out. But a voice broke out from the crowd before she could speak again.
“So, what, you just want us to keep running forever then? Is that your big master plan?”
Trinity frowned as she caught sight of Rashida, now standing in the back of the room, arms crossed over her chest. “Excuse me?” she asked, irritation washing over her. Seriously, she did not need this, today of all days.
She knew Connor liked Rashida. He thought she was smart and resourceful. And he was constantly reminding Trin that if it weren’t for Rashida and her team of Potentials, they never would have gotten Emmy back. Still, sometimes it was hard to get over the fact that the girl had once tried to kill her, not to mention turned Caleb and Scarlet over to the enemy. If it wasn’t for Rashida, Emmy never would have been caught by the Dracken. And Caleb would be with them now in mind instead of just body. Sure, the girl had switched sides, and Trin was pretty sure she was Team Dragon all the way. But the constant asserting of her opinion in every situation was wearing on her nerves.
“We want to know your long-term plan here,” Rashida called out. “I mean, you’ve tried hiding out before. Didn’t exactly go all that well if I remember right.”
Trinity felt a blush rise to her cheeks. “No. It didn’t. But there were some extenuating circumstances if you remember.” After all, who could have predicted Emmy sneaking away to heal Scarlet and Scarlet putting it on the Internet?
Rashida gave her a smug look. “Face it, Trinity Foxx. There’s always the threat of an extenuating circumstance. Especially now. After all, Emmy’s not exactly the world’s best-kept secret at this point. We’ve all seen the FreeEmmy.com website. Like it or not, she’s now an Internet sensation. Everyone’s talking about her.”
“That’ll die down,” Trinity protested, furious at having to defend herself like this. “Like it did before. People are only riled up because of the recent sightings. It’ll calm down again.”
“Which is exactly what the government wants,” Rashida argued, like a pit bull who didn’t want to give up her bone. “I