The general resolved the situation, and everyone dispersed.
I didn't wait to watch it happen. The moment the crowd began to loosen, I turned and walked in the opposite direction, keeping my head down, because the best outcome available is getting out of this street and back to my room without another thing happening tonight.
I didn't look for Devon or Evelyn.
I didn't want to see either of them.
Exhaustion clung to me like a second skin. My body ached in places I hadn't even noticed before, my stomach twisting painfully with hunger. But worse than that, far worse, I just wanted to be somewhere safe.
Somewhere quiet.
Somewhere that didn't feel like it was closing in on me.
I just wanted Kate.
I spotted a food stall at the edge of the village, slightly removed from the remaining clusters of people. The food was free — one of Safe Land's few actual mercies — so I grabbed a bag of potato rolls, tucked it under my arm, and moved.
