Page 104 of Wolf Roulette

“You gave my family a truth that has healed our aching hearts. There’s very little this old woman wouldn’t do for you. I did want to say that it’s very unlikely the council can spend more money on your airport than is necessary. If you want my advice, you and the head team should pursue negotiations with the tribe for the site in Timber without delay. If the pack is adverse, then we’ll need to come up with a more solid reason for choosing another site. But it will be a hard sell.”

Right. “That’s good to know,” I said grimly.

“Miss Thana?” one of the locals asked when I left the stage.

“How can I help you?”

The younger man flushed and shook my extended hand. “I work with The Valley Vine. I’d love to run an article on your airport if that’s okay with you?”

We had a paper? “Sure.”

Chantel rested a hand on my shoulder. “The Ni Tiaki and council will need to approve the article prior to printing, Otto.”

He bobbed his head several times. “Of course. If I take a picture then, Miss Thana, and perhaps get a statement after?”

17

“Trixie.” I placed my study notes and antique laptop into my bag. Half of my last assignment was completed to mediocre standard. “You wanted to see me.”

The petite woman had endless energy that always inspired me to keep going. People like Nathan and Stanley were necessary to challenge my choices. Trixie did, too, but she and Roderick offered a positivity that balanced the other members. Valerie aside, Herc formed one solid head team.

She sat opposite me. “We’ve never lost possession of Sandstone. With Timber in pack control, too, I’m concerned that the numbers of unemployed Ni Tiaki relying on tribe funds will drain our reserves.”

Crap.“What do the current numbers look like?”

She opened her folder and passed over a paper. “The figure at the top is the current fund balance. Currently, we’re paying out $355,000 each week to match 100 percent of the stewards’ previous earnings.”

The tribe was rich, but that was a huge ongoing cost. “How long can we keep that up?”

“I spoke with Stanley. He expects that after three months, the depletion of our reserves will affect the strength of our position in Grids.”

Management of finances was a big part of my ability to approve new strategies each week and also how much equipment we could replace.

I studied the second graph on the paper. “This is what happens if we win Timber tomorrow night?”

“Yes.” She passed over a second paper. “Timber will help, but it doesn’t bring in as much income as either Sandstone or Iron. Even if we win tomorrow, Stanley believes we should cut the wages of unemployed Sandstone stewards to 80 percent to give us the ability to continue as is in the game for a year.”

Yikes.“If we don’t win?”

“He recommends a 60 percent reduction in wages for workers in Timber and Sandstone.”

Our community was more about contributing to the whole, so the tribe worked for low hourly rates as it was. Labourers earned around five hundred dollars a week. 60 percent took that figure down to three hundred. “Would their rent rate be reduced too?”

Each cabin came with a fifty dollar a week maintenance cost. That would take some stewards down to two hundred and fifty a week. Fine for a household with multiple workers and no children. Not so fine for everyone else.

“We could figure something out, I’m sure.”

I nodded. “How soon after Timber will we need to move on this?”

“Sooner the better.”

“Let’s meet on Thursday morning at 11:00 a.m. to discuss our options. Ask Stanley to attend, too, please.”

Trixie nodded and left.

I rubbed my temples

We couldnotafford to gamble with tribe money. With my childhood experiences alone, that path was a resounding no, but losing financial security would affect my plans for Clay and Water big time. I wanted to win quickly, but there was no guarantee of that.

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