The rush through the Kill Road continued.
And then, the Shieldbearers eventually drew even, now only a car-length off.
Their leader cut a look across the lanes, a measured and acknowledging look, not asking. He lifted his shield an inch as a stray round sizzled past Ethan's ear.
The pane took the heat; Ethan nodded once in gratitude but the man didn't nod back. He had two civilians tucked behind him and a world that wanted their blood; he didn't trust them yet.
Behind both cohorts, the Scavenger Pack ghosted.
When beasts lunged for Ethan's group, the scavengers slipped past. When holes opened in the Shieldbearers' wake, the scavengers darted through with the timing of rats who had learned a city's shutters.
One, a narrow-shouldered man with eyes like bottle glass, glanced at Ethan and smiled without humor. Then he vanished behind a wreck.
