Chapter 229 - 29
The air in the radio station was thick—no mist, no smoke, just pressure. The kind that made your ears buzz and your thoughts crawl.
Everyone was awake. No one spoke loudly. Leo clung to Zara’s hip, head buried against her collarbone. She rubbed small, slow circles into his back like she could anchor him to something safer than this.
Winter stood at the window, his eyes locked on the line of matte-painted trucks just beyond the treeline. Clean vehicles. No rust. Tires barely worn. And the men—
Zara didn’t need to see them clearly to know they weren’t scavengers.
"This is Captain Elias Rivas of the Coalition Forces," came a voice over loudspeaker, booming from the largest truck like a hammer dropped on glass. "You are inside a restricted perimeter. All civilians are to exit the building with their hands visible. Comply immediately or force will be used."
The air turned brittle. No one moved.
"Coalition?" Naomi repeated, squinting through the boarded window. "That can’t be right. Did any of them stay active after the apocalypse?"
"Unless someone rebranded the name," Winter said, jaw tight.
"They’ve got radio comms," Ima called from the hallway. "And regulated vehicles. Not scavenged. Those aren’t random mercs."
"No," Zara murmured, still rocking Leo, "they’re organized."
"These aren’t run-down highway patrol remnants," Mike added under his breath. "These bastards are military."