Nathan Jones - First Winter

Since the ragged men obviously had no intention of continuing forward, and they didn’t seem to have any leaders or representatives to send, Matt started down the road to get within shouting distance. He had a megaphone with him, but he didn’t want to be that impersonal, and he also wanted to be able to hear the refugees’ response to what he said.

He also had body armor and a helmet on, which he was grateful for as he got farther and farther from the support of his friends and neighbors lined up behind him. That vulnerability was mostly an illusion, since he was still within a hundred yards of his people and there were plenty of awfully good shooters among the defenders and volunteers. He was well covered and had a clear line of retreat if things went south.

Still, Matt couldn’t help but think of John Anderson, who’d been Mayor before Catherine, way back at the beginning when the Gulf burned. The man had gone out to confront Razor and his mob of 50 gang members as they swarmed into Aspen Hill to attack the town storehouse, and had wound up getting shot in the head for his troubles.

He sincerely hoped Trev was right and there weren’t any weapons down there. Or if there were, that his gear would protect him.

A small huddle of men separated from the group and tentatively edged forward. None spoke, so Matt called out. “Did you come from the refugee camp?”

One of the men nervously shouted back. “Yeah. We’re being sent to some place called Aspen Hill. They agreed to take us in.”

That seemed to confirm what Chauncey had told him. Matt thought a few choice epithets for Rogers as he raised his voice even louder. “I’m afraid there’s been a miscommunication. I’m the Mayor of Aspen Hill, and I was told nothing of any refugees being sent to us.”

There were murmurs of dismay and the beginnings of irritation from the refugees. They’d come a long way with no supplies, and had been depending on finding a welcoming refuge at the end of their hike. “If you didn’t know we were coming how did you have an army ready for us?” the self-appointed spokesman demanded suspiciously.

Matt shrugged and told the truth. “Good lookouts and being prepared to respond quickly.”

There wasn’t much the man could say to that, and most of the bluster went out of him. “So what now?” he asked.

Matt took a breath. “Aspen Hill doesn’t have the resources to take you in, or even provide you with food to help you get back to the refugee camp.” He was about to add “I’m sorry” and forcefully restrained himself.

Catherine had made it pretty clear that in a leadership position he should never use that term in commiseration or to empathize, since it could too easily be received as an admission of guilt or liability. Unless he, and by association the town he represented, had actually done something he needed to apologize for, those words should never leave his mouth.

Besides, there were other ways to express commiseration. “You have our deepest sympathy for your situation, and our prayers go with you. But the mistake was on the military’s end and they’ll have to fix it. We’ve already radioed them and let them know of your situation so they can send help, which will hopefully be quick in coming. Until then I suggest you turn around and start back.”

“How?” another man demanded angrily. “We were told it was going to be less than a day’s hike to where we were going, and help would be waiting for us. It’s going to be dark soon and we have barely any tents and no food. Some of us don’t even have blankets or sleeping bags, or even warm clothing. We could freeze to death out here!”

Every instinct screamed for Matt to again sympathize but remain firm. He thought a few more curses Roger’s way, hoping the man saw some reckoning for this. “Give me a second,” he called. It didn’t feel good to turn his back on so many angry men, but he tried to keep his posture confident as he started back up the hill to confer with the town leaders.

There weren’t many of the main ones here. Chauncey was back in town, Lucas, Ben, and Scott were out trying to get help from Colonel Grimes, which was all the more important. But Catherine, Carol Clarkson, Tam Raymond, and Terry were all there. He gathered them around, along with Lewis, Trev, Rick, and Gutierrez, and presented the plight of the refugees.

Catherine immediately shook her head. “The town’s problems with refugees just after the Gulf burned started when we gave them water and weren’t strict enough about insisting they leave. Any gesture we make here could become an excuse for them to hang around and cause problems. We could have a dozen more Razors to deal with if we’re not careful.”

Terry cut in equally vehemently. “This isn’t just about perception. It doesn’t have to be too cold before you need to start worrying about hypothermia, and at this time of year up here in the mountains at night we’re well past that point, and probably would be even without the nuclear winter effect. If those men are forced to camp right here on the road with inadequate shelter people could die.”

The former Mayor shrugged grimly. “Everything’s a matter of life and death these days. They can huddle together for warmth and share whatever tents and blankets they have. It’s not ideal, but we cannot let them think they’ll get anything from us. We need them to turn around and leave, the sooner the better. Our responsibility is to the town.”

Matt again had a new appreciation for Anderson, who’d called Trev and Lewis unChristian for insisting they couldn’t afford to share any food with the refugees last fall. The cousins had been right, but even so it was a painful decision to make.

Where was the line when you refused a helping hand to a fellow human being due to self interest? For some there was no line, they wouldn’t do it ever, and those people were usually held in contempt. Then again, those who gave everything they had tended to quickly become in desperate need of help themselves, and did little good for the world.

What a mess. He could see why Catherine had finally stepped down from this position, after so long buckling under the burden of carrying all the responsibility for the town and making these sorts of no-win decisions.

“How about fires?” he asked. “We’ve got plenty of people with hatchets and even a few axes, and we’ve got more than enough helping hands to gather deadfall. We can at least make sure they have as comfortable a night as possible under the circumstances, and we wouldn’t be giving them anything but our time.”

Everyone was nodding thoughtfully, but it was obvious Catherine didn’t like even that. “I think it’ll still give them the wrong message about leaving.”

Matt bit back a sigh. “From the looks of things we’re probably going to all have to camp here ourselves to keep an eye on them and make sure they leave in the morning. We can be kind tonight, and stern tomorrow.”

Trev nodded. “I like it. Sort of a “we did what we could to help you, but now look at all these guns and see we mean business, so please go back the way you came.”

“Besides,” Lewis added. “If we handle this right it’ll make us look better than if we turned them away completely. Even if we’re in the right we still have to consider how everyone else will view us. Moral considerations aside, if some of the refugees died of the cold people would probably lay the blame on us instead of on Rogers.”

That was a good point, even if Matt didn’t like the pragmatism. He wanted to do things because they were right, not because of public image. Still, having that be a side benefit of kindness couldn’t be a bad thing. “All right, it looks like we’re having a campout.” He turned and started back towards the refugees.