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people
where to go.
    “What
if the rumors about secession are true?”
    “No
idea. I hope not.” According to the latest broadcasts from NWG news channels, a
few Asian, Oceanic, and European territory leaders were in talks revolving
around the notion of seceding from the NWG and joining the CAG. Sammy couldn’t
fathom that. He saw no difference between secession and surrender.
    They
followed the underground signs to the mess hall where breakfast was served
cafeteria-style in an old high school. Sammy grabbed two trays and got in line
with Jeffie. The number of people living in the two cities of the
resistance—Glasgow and Saint Marie—seemed to grow every day. He recognized some
of the men and women that he and the other Betas worked with in the
surveillance center for the last seven days. A few of them waved, and he
returned the gesture.
    The
line for food was long, winding along the southern side of the old cafeteria.
Walls had been knocked out to expand the room to seat hundreds of people at a
time. Families of all ages and sizes sat at long tables. Judging from the
smells and what Sammy could see on nearby plates, breakfast was French toast.
    A
couple in their early twenties stood in front of Jeffie and Sammy in the line
and struck up a casual conversation with them just as Thomas Byron entered. Thomas
scanned the room until he found Sammy and made his way toward him. Sammy was
glad for the interruption. He didn’t feel like talking to strangers while so
many other depressing thoughts occupied his mind.
    “Morning,
you two,” Thomas said. He wore a bright smile and regarded them with something
like a twinkle in his eye. “Everything going all right?”
    “Yeah,”
Sammy and Jeffie both said.
    “Did
you watch the speech?”
    They
both answered that they had.
    “Me,
too. I don’t remember wading through that much crap since I was a kid helping
my father with the horses.”
    Sammy
forced a smile for Thomas. “Listen, Sammy, I’d like you to be on the leadership
council starting tomorrow. I’d have invited you sooner, but I had to get enough
people on my side. And some of them are darn stubborn. More than me. Well,
maybe not, but, anyway, I need you to be up to speed with what’s going on and
get your input.”
    “Just
me or all the Betas?”
    Thomas
glanced at Jeffie. “Uh … just you.”
    “Why
not the others?”
    “Just
you. Do you want in or not?”
    “Yeah,
but—”
    “Great!”
Thomas placed one of his big hands on Sammy’s shoulder. “Come find me after
breakfast so we can talk.” He left to join Lara at the back of the line.
    “Leadership
council, huh?” the husband of the couple in front of Sammy asked. “Was that
expected?”
    Sammy
shrugged, wondering what was going on inside Thomas’ head. For the last week,
the Betas had been assigned to surveillance duty and kept out of the loop as to
the resistance’s plans. Direct questions as to the future had always been met
with indirect responses. Sammy hadn’t understood why, and still didn’t. After
all, he’d helped coordinate the resistance’s efforts when he’d lived in Wichita
for those few months earlier in the year.
    “It
is pretty cool,” Jeffie told the couple, smiling at Sammy. “That’s my
boyfriend. He is a genius.”
    The
married couple laughed.
    “No,
I’m serious,” Jeffie insisted. “He’s like an Albert Einstein-type genius.”
    “Jeffie,”
Sammy grinned in embarrassment, “please don’t ever say that again.”
    The
man and woman turned away as though they suddenly found the conversation
awkward and not worth pursuing. Jeffie looked up at Sammy.
    “Aw,
look how red your face is!” she teased.
    Sammy
rolled his eyes. “And for future reference, I’m way smarter than Albert
Einstein.”
    When
they got their food, they found seats with Brickert, Natalia, Kawai,
Strawberry, and Hefani. Sammy told them what Thomas had asked.
    Brickert
responded first. “Sounds like Thomas wants to clue us in on the big