Bloodlands by Christine Cody Page A

standing, there was nothing physically repulsive about Stamp, who seemed well kempt and proper. It was more of a curdle to the blood that the kid brought on, and Gabriel could understand her reluctance to engage him.
    If Stamp’s employees were Text-blind to body language, the boss himself sure wasn’t. He read Zel’s message loud and clear but didn’t make issue of it, as he tn offered his hand to Sammy.
    But the Mexican angled his body away from Stamp.
    That seemed to do it, causing the kid’s gaze to darken even more as he drew back his hand, almost like it was a weapon about to be holstered.
    “This is how it’ll be, then,” he said, his arms curved at his sides in stiff rejection.
    The old man piped up from his corner of the room. “Maybe you’d have gotten a different version of hello if your men had seen fit to stay away in the first place.”
    Stamp faced the oldster again, as if interested in his sparkiness. Meanwhile, the three employees loitered near the door, their arms crossed over their chests. They were assessing Gabriel and his head bandages, and he returned their stares with an outward composition that didn’t quite match the creeping heat of his vision.
    Had one of them harassed Annie, just as Chompers had done to Mariah over the visz screen last night?
    Had one of them chased Annie away?
    In particular, Gabriel watched Chompers, whose trophy teeth clanked around his ankles as he shifted position. He was watching Gabriel right back with a strenuous curiosity. But Gabriel knew that the guy hadn’t gotten a good gander at him in the dark last night, so he wasn’t in the process of recognizing him. However, Gabriel did fear that the thug might be able to recall Gabriel’s whispered threats, which had suggested that Chompers leave before he got torn apart.
    Shit. See what happened when he tried to sway somebody?
    Still, scaring off Chompers last night had actually been worth it in the end, with the thug fleeing Mariah’s home.
    “Sir,” Stamp finally said to the old man. “I don’t think you realize that I’m not after anything you own. Not unless you count company. I’ve found it isolating out here, and being a hub boy, I’m not used to it, even though I’m all too happy to get away from the masses.”
    “Is that so?” the oldster said.
    Stamp nodded. “Like you, I’m out here to just exist like nature meant us to, without all those abominations you find in the hubs.” His mouth curled up at one side—an unsaid, bitter reminiscence. But then he smoothed himself out again. “I’ll admit to you that my men need a firmer hand. I’m not used to employing anyone, seeing as I always made my way solo before now. I apologize for this tough start. But I’m also here to tell you that I don’t take kindly to the way the people around here have been dealing with the temporary waywardness of those on my payroll. If you give us the opportunity, we can be nice enough. I brought them out here to teach them better. I’m even gearing up to teach them polite language. I tell them that speaking Old American is the first step in becoming the entrepreneurs and successes we can all be.” He jerked his chin toward Whale Hide, as if the man’s smiliness provided all the example anyone might require of their intended goodwill.
    The oldster glanced at Zel and Sammy, who were still keeping to themselves.
    Then Stamp’s olive branch seemed to snap. “I should add that, unfortunately, one of my men was picked off the night before last. We found his remains under the circle of some carrion feeders, and I’m also here to see if there’s anything I need to do about it.”
    It was as if someone had aimed a bullet at the ceiling, silent debris raining down as Zel, Sammy, and Chaplin went taut.
    But not the old man. “Death is a risk of living out here in what remains of nature. By leaving the hubs, you’ve just bought yourself a stake in the ultimate craps game, so you might want to inform your boys that