Chapter 3

Alex was shoving the last of his supplies into his pack when he heard the moans and shuffling of Warren, squeezing his way through the tight hallway.

“I swear I’m going to get stuck down here one of these days. Can you imagine? Dying right next to a big pile of food. I’d be the laughingstock of the community, not that anyone would know about it, of course,” Warren finished under his breath.

“You’re not talking me out of it.” Alex pulled a large box from the top shelf and rested it next to his pack. He opened the top and pulled out sealed bags of seeds. Warren snatched the bag off the table and clutched it to his chest.

“No, I’m not letting you take these,” Warren said.

“They’re not yours to keep,” Alex replied, yanking the bag out of his grip.

“Alex, you’re not thinking straight. These are non-GMO seeds. Once they figure out how to fix the soil, these are going to be a gold mine. Or if one of us gets in trouble, these are our get-out-of-jail-free cards!”

“I’m not taking all of the seeds. Just some of them.”

“Oh, well, in that case, please! Go right ahead! You don’t think they’re going to question you about where you got them? Hmm? Or why you didn’t turn them in once the regulations started? ‘Oh, gee whiz, Mr. Gordon, I totally forgot I had these and wanted to turn them over to you out of the kindness of my heart. I had them stored in my secret basement with the rest of my illegal food.’”

“Warren, enough,” Alex said, cutting into his rant.

Alex stuffed a bag of seeds into his pack then returned the rest to the top shelf. His pack smacked against Warren as he passed him. Warren climbed up out of the hole after Alex, who didn’t bother putting the seal back down to cover his tracks.

“So you’re going to demand to get both of them back?” Warren asked.

“That’s the plan.”

Clouds shielded the moonlight, so he would have good cover through the night. He’d be able to make it to Topeka by morning, and after just going through an inspection, the sentries wouldn’t be on high alert for a few days. Once he was in Topeka, his seeds would be all he needed to get Gordon Reath’s attention.