“Me neither,” Edison Leonard said. “I’ve been thinking I’ll go back to Michigan for a while, and get in touch with Reggie Varga. If she can get me fresh ID and a real passport, things might work out for me yet.”

Wolf said, “You might want to give it a little time before you make a move.”

“I thought this place was safe,” Leonard said. “No police know about it yet, and all that.”

“All true,” Wolf said. “It’s safe. The last place we were was Oklahoma five years ago. We all went our separate ways, and now we’re back together. We’re in a quiet regrouping and rebuilding phase now. This land was owned by the uncle of one of our members. We pooled our money and bought a plot right in the middle of a lot of land he owns, so there won’t be any neighbors for a very long time.”

“Then maybe we should stay for a while.”

“I think that’s the safest,” said Wolf.

“How long should we stay?” Leonard asked.

“I can’t tell what the people in Weldonville know about us. They could have surveillance footage of our cars coming into town or leaving. If they do, they might be able to pick us out on the recordings from Interstate 70 or U.S. 24. That would bring them pretty close—to Kansas City.”

“Do you think they have it?”

“I don’t know. But it never hurts to be careful. We can’t trade in those two cars or report anything about them to any DMV or insurance company. Eventually they’ll have to be chopped or driven off a cliff in a remote place.”

“I suppose you’re right,” said Lonny Mann. “Leaving here is going to be a lot of trouble.”

“And it’s not a good idea to rush it,” said Leonard.

Lee Wolf sighed. “If you’ll be here a while, then you’ll want to make yourselves indispensable members of society.”

“What does that mean?”

“I don’t know what your financial situation is after only two years out of prison, but if you have money, share some of it as soon as possible—buy supplies, ammo, and so on. When there’s work to be done, be first in line to help.”

“Anything else?”

“Watch them closely. If they think you’re not helping and food gets scarce, you’ll have about one more day here. If you do something they don’t like, you’ll have less.”

31

Leah drove from town to town throughout the Ozark region, exploring. There was Bentonville, Arkansas, a built-up, sophisticated place because it was where Walmart had its headquarters, and money had a way of overflowing into its surroundings. There was Eureka Springs, which was partly like a museum, with its two nineteenth-century hotels and steep streets, and partly like an art colony. She visited Fayetteville and the University of Arkansas, Huntsville, Rogers, Siloam Springs, and Springdale.