Troy reached out to take the Motorola while the others slunk back into what shadows the half built cabin could provide.

At the back of the cabin Alexi just settled down near a large bolder at the edge of the backyard when he realized all eyes where on something going on at the front of the cabin.

Troy caught the motorolla and hit the talk button.

He turned his Appalachian drawl up to 9 and spoke, "This's Troy. Who'm I talkin' to?"

Alexei decided to settle in and listen carefully to the motorola conversation. That would tell him plenty about this group's motivations, especially the talk right AFTER the phone call when he told his allies what he really felt...

A gruff voice replied, "This is Catch Nail."

Troy's eyebrow's shot up. Catch Nail, Floyd Earl Hogan, was the notorious co-founder of the MC. Hogan had escaped from the US Marshall's transporting him to trial eleven days prior to the dead rising. He had the usual 1%-er resume; murder, arson, extortion, narcotics trafficking, narcotics distribution, illegal firearms manufacture, murder for hire, auto theft, receiving stolen goods, and a partridge in a pear tree.

He had was supposed to have been gunned down in one of the early clashes between the defenders of Ringgold and the Crows. The sheriff had claimed it had been the source of the two parties agreeing to avoid one another months back. Troy wasn't so sure of that if this was indeed Catch Nail.

"My man tells me you are stragglers." The gruff man said. "Is Ringgold open to new management? If I kill the dead will anyone dispute my claim to the town? I don't want to kill you people if I don't have to. Will I?"

Not far away, straining to here, Alexi determined two things immediately. The first was that there was a rather brutal and complex history between the people in the cabin and those on the radio. The second was that he had truly stumbled into the heart of Dixie judging by the slow draws and exaggerated vowels.

Among the survivors in the shadows of the cabin, people seemed captivated and terrified all at once. The adults passed the name, Catch Nail, between them with much anxiety.

Troy put aside the fact that this man was supposed to be dead and stuck to the matter at hand.

"This is a courtesy call not a negotiation. Someone organized a group of exiles and armed them from the world war two museum. They made a move on the town using the dead as a weapon."

"It worked."

"I shot their bossman though both lungs and burned his ass alive.I don't know if he was a solo act. I'll get the rest of them sooner or later. Any of those mutherfuckers you get is a favor I owe you."

"Zack's got Ringgold now. The citizens are evacuating. If you can take it back it's yours as far as I'm concerned. I'll shake your hand and buy you a beer the next time I see you."

He paused for a second and took a breath.

"Mandatory disclaimer. You and me have got no beef. None. I don't give a fuck what you did before everything went to shit. You protect your people, I protect mine. But..."

"You make a move on any of the citizens while they're...evacuating and I'll put a bullet through your head from so far away you'll have to dig up the Goddamn Postmaster General to find out what the fuck happened."

"I will likewise leave your people the hell alone or expect similar just more biker flavored."

"We good?"
This message was last edited by the player at 02:54, Tue 05 May 2020.

Pike laughed. So did Catch Nail over the radio.

"Agreed." The gruff voice replied. "Pike, guide them through our lines if they need it. Everyone is listening so no one will stop or they'll answer for it."

There was a very short pause, Catch Nail said something to the side Troy didn't catch.

"I agree with my Master-at-Arms here." Catch Nail continued. "If you and your people want, there's room here. We could use a few more hard-asses."

The man before him seemed agreeable, but Alexei still waited, to see if soon as he was off the radio, the large man before him would mention betrayal.

He was more than willing to join 'a hard-ass', but he had to make sure. Prematurely revealing himself would be terrible.

To Troy his own voice sounded like someone else talking but he was sure it was the best way to communicate with the Crows.

"I appreciate the offer but I'll likely be moving on from here. I'll ask what these people want to do and Pike here can guide them back if that's what they want to do."

"There is one more thing. Once these folks are as safe as I can make 'em I'll be hunting down two shitheads that kidnapped a girl. Just me and maybe one or two others."

"Two young guys in camo with World War Two guns and a hot girl in handcuffs. It'd be a hell of a party but they didn't ask her first. If your guys pick 'em up I'll owe you a favor. I need the girl back though."

"I hear you." Catch Nail said. "Keep the radio. I will see to it Pike gets another one. If you find her let me know. If you come across us do the same. I'll give you forty-eight hours of freedom around here, after that we'll have to renegotiate your survival strategy."

Pike's eyes bulged and he mouthed words 'oh damn'.

Hearing that, Alexei was satisfied. This man was no evil bastard, he was trying to help people, even though his priorities clearly lie elsewhere.

Standing up, still crouched, he approached quietly, until he was within a few feet. Holding his free hand up, palms forward, he approached the large man once he was done with his conversation, his other hand still holding his medical pack at his side,

"Hello." he said softly, so as not to startle the man too badly, his accent thick. He knew better than to say much more, as the man would probably have plenty to say. Being quiet was one of Alexei's better strengths.

Troy pocketed the handheld radio and then watched with a quizzical look on his face as the crouching man covered the open ground of the cabin's yard until he was only a few feet away. His hand was already resting on the M3 but the guy's attitude didn't seem threatening, just sort of odd.



Smiling Troy raised an eyebrow and asked, "Do you need to talk to Mr. Pike here or are you looking for a Moose and Squirrel?"

He waited a second...

"Just kiddin'. What can I do for ya?"