Tobias shot him a panicked look before lowering his head enough for his hat to hide his face.
“I can ride in the back with you,” Tolya said.
Joe shook his head and patted a hand against his leg. “This clothing fits in with riding in the back of a pickup. Your clothing does not—at least while we’re in the human town.” Once they left Bennett, it wouldn’t matter, and he thought Tobias would feel less threatened if there was only one Sanguinati riding up front with him.
“You are more familiar with the customs in this part of Thaisia.” Tolya got in and pulled the passenger door shut.
Joe jumped into the back and settled in the remaining space. Lots of books. More than he’d expected Simon and Vlad to send to the humans. Then he noticed his name on two of the boxes and happily realized they had sent books for the terra indigene settlement too.
Tobias came around and closed the tailgate. “Mr. Wolfgard . . .”
“They aren’t going to feed on you,” Joe said, then added silently, At least not while you’re driving.
Tobias got behind the wheel and drove to the gas station. As he pulled in, Joe studied the human males who were gathered around watching a man in overalls tape a hand-printed sign above the pumps.
<Your human is angry,> Tolya said. <I don’t understand all that he’s saying—he speaks differently from the humans in Toland—but I understand some of the swearwords mixed in with the rest.>
As soon as Tobias pulled up to the pumps and shut off the truck, Joe vaulted over the tailgate and came around to stop Tobias from biting the man with overalls. Or punching him. Punching was more likely, since Tobias had strong hands from ranch work but small teeth.
“What kind of crap is this?” Tobias demanded. “You doubled the price of gas when you saw us coming?”
“Supply and demand,” Overalls said, giving Tobias a nasty smile. The smile slipped away when Tolya opened the passenger door and stepped out of the pickup, but Overalls focused on Tobias. “You should know about supply and demand.”
“We do,” Tolya said so pleasantly it made Joe shiver. Then the Sanguinati gave Tobias a look that warned the human not to make trouble. “Since you had to make the trip on our behalf, I will pay for the gasoline.” He took a wallet out of his suit coat, then held up two fifty-dollar bills as he focused on Overalls. “So that you know we can pay.”
Wanting to get away from the town and this pack of humans who seemed ready to attack, Joe opened the gas cap and snapped, “Tobias.” Then to Tolya, <Letting them change the price because we wanted some gas is no different from letting smaller predators run you off a kill before your own pack has fed. If you pay them this time, they’ll keep making the Prairie Gold humans pay more.>
<Not for long.>
The ominous words made him uneasy, but the scent in the air—there and gone as the wind shifted—was more disturbing.
“What they’re doing isn’t right,” Tobias said as he started to pump the gas.
Joe growled at him because this wasn’t the time or place to discuss human meanness or greed—not when the Elders were so close to the town their scent was in the air.
Tobias filled the tank, Tolya paid for the gas, and they drove away as the pack of men made what Joe assumed were insulting comments.
<Do you need any food?> Joe asked Tolya.
<No, thank you. We ate on the train.>
As soon as they crossed the Bennett town line, Tobias pulled over and Nyx and Tolya got out. Joe, riding in the bed of the pickup, removed his shirt, then pulled off his shoes.
“I need to be Wolf.” He stood up and unbuckled his belt.
“Wait a minute,” Tobias protested.
Joe shook his head. “I need to be Wolf.” He pushed the jeans down his legs and stepped out of them, kicking them aside before he shifted into a form that felt natural and had sharper senses. He gave his fur a good shake, then sat down and looked at Tobias, who had turned his back to the truck.
“We can continue now,” Tolya said politely.
Tobias looked over his shoulder, then turned to face them. “I’ve got things to say.”
When he didn’t continue, Tolya said, “We are listening.” Then to Joe, <He is angry, but I think he fears punishment.>
That was Joe’s opinion too. <I want to hear why he’s angry.>
Tolya relayed the message.
“They expected us,” Tobias said. “Maybe they knew the fuel truck hadn’t reached Prairie Gold yesterday, and anyone coming up to Bennett would be looking to buy gas. You could afford to pay that price today, and I do appreciate it. But tomorrow the price might double again, and what’s the next person coming to town supposed to do? Gamble they’ll have enough fuel to get home because they can’t afford to pay those prices? Hope the fuel truck will have made the delivery to our gas station?”
“I can assist Joe in finding out why the fuel truck didn’t arrive in your town,” Tolya said. “Between us, we should be able to find a more reliable vendor—in other words, an oil refinery that belongs to the terra indigene and is run by Intuits.”
Tobias blinked. “There are such places?”
“One or two. Enough to ensure that Intuit villages have what they need for essential transportation and machinery. Production is limited, but I think we can arrange for your town to be supplied that way from now on.”
Joe tried not to growl. Had Tolya come to Prairie Gold to take his place as the leader of the terra indigene settlement? If that was the case, he should have been told, since he’d been selected as the new leader here less than a month ago. Although having a terra indigene around who knew about these human things like refineries would be useful. He had been among the terra indigene who could pass for human, and he’d had some human-centric education, so he could deal with humans on behalf of his own kind. But unlike Simon, he had never wanted to run a Courtyard or even live in one.
“We understand about supply and demand, Mr. Walker,” Tolya said. “When there is a glut of prey, predators come in from other territories to hunt and feed. There is enough for all of us, and our young survive and grow strong and, in their turn, learn to hunt. When the prey becomes thin, predators travel back to their own territories, or else they end up fighting among themselves for a share of the kill. Not all of their young survive, nor do the weakest among them. Eventually Namid’s balance is restored, and there is enough food for both predators and prey.”
Tobias swallowed hard. “So you’re saying there’s a glut of prey in Bennett?”
“I’m saying Bennett isn’t the concern of the terra indigene located in Prairie Gold,” Tolya replied. “Shall we continue?”
Tobias slipped into the driver’s seat and started the truck. Nyx slipped out and flowed over the side of the truck, settling in back next to Joe, while Tolya sat up front with Tobias.
<The humans in Bennett are the concern of the Prairie Gold pack,> Joe told Tolya. <We’re supposed to keep watch and collect the payment for the land the humans leased around here. That includes the ranches as well as that town.>
<If they break the agreements, the Others can reclaim the land and force them to leave—isn’t that so?> Tolya countered.
<Yes.> Joe didn’t like the trail the Sanguinati was following.
<Perhaps you should allow them this kind of petty meanness, let the humans’ own actions prove they should not be allowed to remain here.>
<But the Intuits have been promised protection from other kinds of humans in exchange for skills we do not wish to learn but know are needed,> Joe argued. <Letting those humans raise the price of gasoline until Intuits can’t afford it isn’t protecting them.>
Tolya said nothing for a minute. <I have always lived around larger human cities, so this part of Thaisia is very new to me. I felt something in Bennett that I recognized as terra indigene but had never encountered before.>
<Elders. The terra indigene who live in and watch over the wild country. They don’t usually come that close to a human town.>