Evening had arrived. With the fading light came the need for shelter and serious discussion, so we'd settled inside one of the many abandoned houses that dotted this residential area. We'd chosen carefully—selecting the cleanest property we could find, one with a living room spacious enough to accommodate a significant number of people comfortably and allow for proper conversation without everyone being cramped shoulder-to-shoulder.
We needed to talk. Really talk, with everyone focused and present.
The meeting had actually been at my insistence, though in truth it would have been necessary regardless of my personal stake in the outcome. Margaret and her community desperately needed to know everything we'd learned during our reconnaissance trip to Atlantic City—every detail about the existing settlement, the territorial boundaries, the leadership structure, the potential threats. Information was survival in this new world.
