"After two days on the road, I'm exhausted, so I went ahead and started without you. Hope that's okay?" Godfrey snorted a couple of times, fuming inside that Lisa hadn't waited so he could make a dramatic entrance. He'd planned to stroll in late and look suave, but she'd already kicked off the banquet. So he forced out a sarcastic line. "How could I possibly mind? Of course, you come first, Ms. Eland." Lisa smiled and nodded, syrupy sweet. "Mm. How thoughtful of you." Godfrey was speechless. He seriously wanted to punch her. Lisa came from a martial-arts background; she wasn't just capable herself—she had senior students and friends backing her up. After the apocalypse hit, she and her crew stuck together, fighting their way through one disaster after another. Thanks to her brains and leadership, she became the heart of the group. Over two and a half years, she had kept them alive, recruited more people, and turned that little band into a real gang. She'd gone from being plain Lisa to Ms. Eland, leader of the Grayhound Sect, conducting raids, gathering supplies, and building power. Godfrey had been one of the juniors who rose with her. But as the gang grew and supplies piled up, the two old friends started drifting apart. With more members came old-school men who couldn't stomach taking orders from a woman and quietly sided with Godfrey, stirring friction between the two.The peace was only skin-deep. Godfrey lifted his glass, squinted, and said, "Lisa, I heard you got hurt?" He raised his cup with a pointed look toward the stage. "If leading the charge is too much for you, maybe let me handle it." Those silent guys on the right suddenly found their voices. "Yeah—leave the dangerous stuff to the men!" "Ms. Eland, you've been gone for two days. You should rest. Let Mr. Olson lead us to war!" "Tend to the kid and your injuries; let us men do the fighting!" Lisa hated that kind of gender jab. She watched them coolly and didn't respond. She'd clawed her way up as a single mom with a toddler; it had been brutal. Their situation wasn't glamorous, not like these people assumed. Godfrey and his crew had always eyed her position, waiting for a chance to take it. Otherwise, as the leader of the gang, she wouldn't have risked going out to scout. She only took Joe because things were unstable, and leaving him alone would've been dangerous. Plus, she wanted her son to toughen up, so his future would be a little smoother. No matter how loud the room got, Lisa just sipped her wine and stayed calm. Godfrey sure can plot things out. I did the risky recon, and he hopes to swoop in and take the credit. If he leads the raid, he'll likely throw my people under the bus first and weaken me. Of course, she'd thought about that too. When she found out there were guns at Villa 2, she figured she could use these wannabe rebels as cannon fodder, burning through the enemy's ammo—two birds with one stone. Her silence made the left-side loyalists react instantly; they shouted back across the hall. "The intel came from Ms. Eland. She should lead!" "Exactly! Ms. Eland's the one who found this. Who are you to claim command?" Philbert even stared Godfrey down and jabbed, "You lot don't know who's really in charge!" Godfrey flushed. "Philbert, what's that supposed to mean?!" Philbert didn't flinch. "Mr. Deputy, what did I say?" He stressed the word 'deputy' like a taunt, and Godfrey's rage flared. Godfrey took a few strained breaths, then shot a sharp look at Lisa. "Ms. Eland, what do you think?" He used a formal tone, but there was no respect in it. Lisa smiled lightly. "Philbert's not great with words. Godfrey, you worry too much; it's just a scraped arm. Nothing serious." She swept the room with her eyes. "It won't stop me from leading." Godfrey stared at her for a long beat. "Oh? Really? Fine, if it's nothing serious." He signaled his men, and one of them stood. "Ms. Eland, don't push it. We saw the blood through the bandage when you came back—how can it be nothing?" "Yeah, and Greenhaven Mountain has guns. For your own safety, hand over the command to Mr. Olson!"