When Logan came out through the gate again, he was pushing a wheelbarrow full of bags.
"Jason, Mr. Gale didn't come out again—he said he had some things to take care of. These bags contain grains and vegetables grown by his people. You must take them!" Logan said, a little embarrassed by Gale's behavior.
"Well, I should apologize since I agreed to come to your shelter."
Jason waved his hands indifferently, then moved beside Logan in a familiar way and laughed heartily.
"Haha, don't worry about it. I only brought you back this time because I really liked you."
Jason's voice was so loud that even Logan's eardrums felt a bit uncomfortable. He looked at Jason suspiciously, wondering why he was speaking so loudly.
However, he soon noticed Jason's eyes subtly scanning the city wall. Logan wasn't stupid—he understood immediately what Jason was trying to do.
So he repeated in a loud voice, and then heard a whisper in his ear: "Logan, your friend Gale's behavior is a little strange… Do you recognize those men who came out after that old man?"
Negan glanced at Daryl and shook his head, then told Logan to stay strong before murmuring quietly, "Take this, kid—it's always on. We'll hear everything the intercom picks up. I want you to have a good talk with that old man, Gale."
"If there's any problem, don't forget to contact us, understand? Gale's community must have some kind of issue. If that interferes with our plan to take the whole city, we have to deal with it before problems arise."
Logan was still the kind of person who wanted to believe in those who helped selflessly. In his mind, Jason's group should've been worried after spending so much time outside, which made them cautious men. Smiling happily, he accepted the radio, and after a signal, the group began loading the food bags into the Humvees.
"Be careful on the road!"
Logan stood at the community gate and waved as he watched the two armored vehicles drive farther and farther away, eventually disappearing from sight.
However, without Logan realizing it, the two armored vehicles stopped not far from Gale's community. Everyone in Jason's group listened carefully to the conversation coming through the radio.
Before Negan could even start speaking conspiratorially, Logan's voice came through the intercom.
"Mr. Gale…"
"Come in, boy. Sit down."
After Gale's voice was heard, there was the sound of a chair scraping, followed by Logan's voice.
"Sir, why do I feel like your behavior is a little strange? Have you always been like this?"
After a brief silence, Gale's old, weary voice came through: "I don't blame you. You must be upset that I didn't accept those people earlier. I understand—they're the ones who saved you. But you don't understand this place's current situation. I did it for their own good."
"What do you mean?"
"Trust me, you don't want to know about this right now. Now that you're back, you should get some rest. It wasn't easy for you out there, but they're strong—they'll survive."
"Well, Logan, don't think about this matter anymore. You only need to know that I support you—not just for their sake, but for ours as well. That's why we're no longer in contact with them…"
"But they said there's also a very large settlement and that they plan to take this city. That's a base with armored vehicles, and their armed force must be strong. Isn't that something that could help us?"
"Let me make this clear to you. Snow and the others who were with him arrived a few months ago. At that time, there were fewer than three hundred people in our shelter, yet they managed to take control of the entire community with just that small number—and all thanks to their leader."
"Could it be they threatened everyone by force?"
"Haha, if that were the case, things would've been much easier for us. Snow—the man who claims to be just a guard—is actually the leader of those who arrived half a year ago. I heard he used to be a mobster before the world ended."
"When they came here, I couldn't bear to see them without a home, so I let them stay. For a long time, they were actually very decent people—often helping others. But one day, two months later, Snow suddenly came to me and said he wanted to take over this community."
"They went behind my back and contacted almost everyone. The conditions they offered were the reason no one could refuse their leadership."
"What kind of condition?"
"A vaccine!"
"What?"
Jason and the others, who had been listening silently, suddenly lifted their heads, each seeing the same look of shock in the others' eyes.
Vaccines weren't rare in their own base. At present, their base could produce them in mass quantities. As research deepened, production efficiency only kept increasing—but that was only true for them.
For someone else to have a vaccine—that was truly something worth paying attention to. After all, their own vaccine only provided immunity from turning into a walker after death.
That was already a monumental breakthrough—allowing people who once lived in despair to see hope again. If development could be scaled up, then once all walkers were eliminated, as long as no one was directly bitten, they would eventually all disappear.
Even now, there was a direct vaccine production line. Later, once Tyler managed to gain control of a satellite, they even planned to consider sending vaccines to other countries.
That would not only expand their organization's influence but also its global presence. But that was still just an idea for the future—many things needed to be considered first.
No one expected that on their mission to take Birmingham, they'd encounter all of this—and, even more shocking, the appearance of vaccines.
If it was true, it would be wonderful. But if it was false, then those vaccines might have come from their base. If that were the case, someone must have leaked—or was currently leaking—the vaccines in secret. That was possible since vaccine production was ongoing, though only the necessary amount was being made.
The number of vaccines was supposed to match the number of people admitted into their organization—or at least, that was the order Jason had given.
If vaccines from their base were being smuggled out, someone in the lab must have been working with an outsider. But Jason believed that the lab's strict control and security measures wouldn't allow such an opportunity.
Besides, for what purpose would they even do that?
The research staff in the lab enjoyed the highest privileges in the organization—they had all the food and clothing they needed. He didn't believe the outside world could offer them anything worth risking that for.
Therefore, there had to be something hidden behind these vaccines that appeared in this settlement—and something told him it might be connected to the Fireflies.
Could it be a lie—or the truth?