All Roads End Here by David Moody

Author:David Moody
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: St. Martin's Press

22

He’s onto them.

The speed of the military transport vehicle has dropped now they’ve entered the camp proper. As ever the roads are heaving with refugees and it’s impossible to drive much faster than walking speed. Matt drops back as he follows the CDF transport. They’re probably not interested in him, probably not even aware he’s behind them, but he’s not taking any risks. The stakes have been raised high now. There are live Haters in the camp. These people are playing with fire.

Matt expects the transport to follow the well-worn route back to the compound they started out from this morning, but it doesn’t. Instead the driver keeps going, slowing down to a crawl as the density of the crowds around them continues to increase. There are as many people in the road as there are on the litter-strewn pavements, maybe even more. Matt knows it’s going to be like this everywhere from here on in and he abandons the jeep, pocketing the keys. He continues on foot, knowing it’s a damn sight easier to stay hidden this way. He’s just another face among thousands.

It’s hard to keep moving, though. The hordes of refugees are fractious. There’s no real purpose to their movements, little direction. Some drift one way, some the other. Some stand still or sit on the curb, blocking the way and slowing him down. It’s infuriating, but it matters little as the CDF vehicle’s progress is being equally impeded.

People protest when he tries to overtake, then complain when he doesn’t and he holds them up. He frequently loses sight of the armored beast he’s following, but if he can’t see the vehicle itself, he can see the gap it’s plowed through the reluctant crowds. Matt puts in a short burst of speed to catch up as the transport takes an unexpected sharp left turn. The driver stops in front of a metal gate in an otherwise featureless wall. There’s a loud blast on the horn then the gate opens slowly inward.

I’ve come this far … can’t stop now.

Matt runs up to the wall and presses himself flat against it. Still dressed in his standard-issue soldier-like garb, he times his move to perfection and slips in alongside the military transport, keeping low and crouching in its shadow. No one sees him. No one knows he’s there. The gate closes and he ducks down behind a pile of spare tires, wedging himself into a narrow gap. Over on the far side of a cluttered courtyard space he can see Jayce and Franklin casually leaning against the familiar battered Transit van, watching the proceedings. They more than likely think he’s dead, and that’s probably a good thing. He knew it from the start, but the fact he was clearly expendable angers him. There was never any question of looking for him when it all went to shit out in the wasteland just now.

The back of the armored truck is opened and the two Haters are dragged out. A man and a woman.

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