Promised Land by Laura Lascarso

No Rabids, no crime, and no nonsense.

So claims Brother Larry, the enigmatic leader of Promised Land, an agrarian community where Cipher, Joshua, and their found family of survivors can finally lay down arms and find a moment of respite. But the rules in Promised Land don’t sit well with Cipher, namely the no locked doors policy that seems to be met with wholehearted acceptance by what Brother Larry affectionately calls, “the Fellowship.”
When Brother Larry decides to take Cipher on as his apprentice, it offers Cipher the opportunity to conduct his own reconnaissance. While Joshua and the others are slowly seduced by three square meals a day and the normalcy of everyday life, Cipher channels his paranoia into discovering all that he can about Promised Land. What does it take to keep the townspeople in line? Who is this mysterious Council pulling all the strings?
And while Joshua and the others begin to blossom in their newfound home, Cipher finds himself falling back onto his old bad habits of self-isolation and addiction. If fear and adrenaline are what have kept him alive so far, how can assimilate into a peaceful society and still keep his family safe?