Chapter 13 · Five Ways In

The convoy split at dawn.

I watched through the scope as five trails of dust peeled off from the main road, arcing wide around Iron Gate like fingers closing into a fist. They weren't coming straight at us. They were boxing us in.

"How many?" Cole was beside me on the wall, rifle already up.

"Thirty trucks. Maybe more." I lowered the scope. "Hammer's not taking chances this time."

Leah climbed up behind us, medical kit slung across her back. "We lighting the perimeter?"

"Not yet." I scanned the horizon again. Five approach vectors. If we lit the tripwires now, they'd see the gaps and punch through. "Wait until they commit."

Cole's jaw tightened. He didn't argue. Three weeks ago he would've. Now he just checked his magazine and settled into position.

I hated that I'd taught him that.

The wind picked up, carrying smoke from the village we'd torched two days back. Scorched earth between us and Hammer's supply line. He was pissed. This was payback.

"Evie." Leah pointed south. "That's not Hammer's colors."

I swung the scope. She was right. The southern column flew green flags, not red. That was Vega's crew. West looked like Sawyer's mercs. North—