Chapter 134 Dinner’s on Me


    Bennie had never belonged at the negotiation table with Theresa. Not from the start.


    She said he wouldn’t get a single grain of food, and she had every right to say so. He had no moral standing, no logical argument, and definitely no power to back himself up.


    Morally? She had saved their lives.


    Logically? She wasn’t even on his team. Hell, he was the one who kicked her off yesterday.


    And in terms of strength? Not even worth mentioning.


    For the first time in his charmed, smooth-sailing life, Bennie had run into a wall he couldn’t climb over.


    Boy, was he crushed-absolutely, unapologetically crushed by Theresa Hall.


    “I get it,” he muttered, eyes locked on hers, voice low and stiff.


    Theresa let out a quietugh. Well, look at that. Learning fast. Tucking his tail between his legs already. No wonder he is considered smart. He knows how to weigh risk and reward in a heartbeat.


    She stepped off his chest. “You can go.”


    Bennie hauled himself up from the dirt, face tight with frustration. His people were released too. Their weapons, however, were confiscated-already carted off to Theresa’s side as a reward for disarming them.


    Not one of them dared ask for their weapons back.


    He gave her onest, hard look, then turned and led his people back to their vehicle. They drove off without another word.


    The moment they were gone, the entire area seemed to breathe easier.


    Theresa was still busy directing Kyle to start handing out provisions to K1 Camp. The dust cloud rising from the supply dump was thick, but no one minded. The smaller teams all pulled their trucks into the nearby field, setting up camp for the night. It was alreadyte, and no one had the energy to drive farther.


    Lucas walked over, quiet at first, then asked Theresa, “Aren’t you worried about ticking off Hope Camp like that?”


    Theresa nced up at him, thenughed. “You’ve got it backward. Shouldn’t you be asking if Hope Camp’s worried about pissing me off? He came at me. Now he’s screwed.”


    He fell silent.


    In this new world-the age of camps-survival didn’t follow the rules of old governments or democracies. It ran like a tribe. Power ruled. The strong called the shots.


    And Theresa? She was strong.


    That gave her every right to wipe the floor with Hope Camp. The stronger she showed herself to be, the more people would think twice before crossing her.


    If she were weak, Hope Camp would have rolled right over her. This wasn’t some fairytale world where stepping back created peace. Give them an inch, and they would take ten miles.


    But today? She had made sure Hope Camp knew exactly where she stood-and how hard she could hit.


    Especially with a camp like Hope Camp, the type that put profit before everything else. They needed to walk away thinking Theresa was vtile, dangerous, and absolutely not to be messed with. No way would theye chasing trouble after that.


    Plus, geography was on her side. Thend was crawling with zombies, and Hope Camp was over 60 miles away. They would be idiots to drag themselves all that way just to settle a grudge, and lose more than they gained doing it.


    Still, Theresa had already decided: wherever Hope Camp showed up, she would be there too. First in, fists up.


    Yep. She was petty. A world-ss grudge-holder. She would log it, date it, ande back 100 yearster to collect.


    Lucas looked over and saw the gleam in her eyes-the kind one got afternding a perfect punch.


    He couldn’t help but grin, too.


    He could never pull off what she just did. And yet… he loved that about her.


    ‘Come eat,” he said. “Graham’s heating up some food.”


    ‘Nah, your food’s depressing,” Theresa waved him off. “I’m in a great mood. Dinner’s on me.”


    She wasn’t just being generous. Graham and the others had backed her up instantly when things got tense -guns out, no hesitation.


    She never forgot a grudge, but she would never forget a favor either.


    She called Kyle back to cook spaghetti. Then she dug through her stash-instant noodles, pre-prepared meal kits, sausages. Everything hit the pot.


    Soon, the scent of bubbling noodles and salty broth filled the air, rolling out in clouds of steam.


    Theresa and everyone from the KI Camp sat around in a circle, each with a giant bowl of instant noodles. Thick wheat noodles topped with meat, sausages, and extra vor packets from the meal kits.


    Before the apocalypse, this kind of thing was just gas station food. Now?


    Now it was heaven.


    The smell alone-especially the noodles-was enough to make one’s mouth water.


    It was close to 11 p.m. Everyone had been running on adrenaline all day. Fighting, driving, barely surviving. Now, with bowls in their hands, warm steam on their faces, and no threats nearby, it felt like luxury.


    A real feast, especially after weeks of nd, boiled pickled vegetables and watered-down soup back in their


    own camps.


    Here, the oily, rich broth clung to the noodles like liquid gold. That first slurp of salty, greasy, glorious spaghetti sent sparks flying. Most of K1 Camp looked ready to ascend to noodle nirvana.


    Graham and the others crowded close to Theresa, calling her “Theresa” with affection thick as honey.


    The four smaller camps watched from a distance, chewing whatever dried rations or in noodles they had. Some had instant noodles too, but nowhere near as generous with the toppings, and definitely nowhere near as joyful.


    Everyst one of them swallowed hard.