Rogues of Overwatch

The flames fanned out of Oliver’s eyes, bursting free of their tiny exits. Wild and unpredictable, they swarmed the entire road in a blazing fury that warmed Mark’s skin. Oliver bowed his head, setting his gaze straight at the Jeep. Screams and shouts filled the air, all drowned out by the whoosh! of the fire.

  “Did you get them?” Lionel asked, craning his neck, searching through his window. “Did you get them?”

  “You tell me,” he said.

  Oliver closed his eyes, and the fire vanished as suddenly as it had appeared. The last of the flames twisted into smoke in the sky. The Jeep was charred on its side, but intact and off the road. Sylvia yelled somebody’s name and cocked her gun as Lydia steered. When Mark listened closely, it sounded like “Dilbert!”

  “Get us closer!” Lionel said. “Ram them hard.”

  Oliver climbed over the seats to the dead bodies in the back. Mark obeyed Lionel and pulled to the right, ignoring Sylvia’s gunfire and slamming into her car. Crunching metal boomed as they collided. He pushed them farther off the road and toward an approaching steep valley. Bullets struck the SUV, smashing holes in windows, zipping through Lionel, or embedding into the side. Some broke the windshield, showering Mark in large chunks. He jumped and jerked the vehicle to the side, then remembered his invulnerability. As long as I live, I’ll never get used to that.

  “Almost got them,” Lionel said. “Hit them again and hold it there. I’ll take care of the rest.”

  Mark did so and overtook them, forcing the Jeep at an angle. Lionel positioned himself at the window, waiting for the opportune moment.

  Suddenly, Lydia crawled into the backseat of the Jeep. She grabbed the bars of the bare roof of their car and stood on the door. Then she pushed back, swung her feet out, and stomped the SUV. She grunted and kicked their vehicle off the Jeep.

  The force threw the SUV horizontally, and Sylvia turned, her tires dangerously close to the valley. She drove onto the road, speeding off. “After her!” Lionel yelled.

  Oliver rejoined Mark up front, armed with an officer’s pistol. The SUV gained on the Jeep, bumping into its rear. “Get on the side,” Oliver said, cocking the gun.

  “You can’t see!” Mark said.

  “I can a little when I open my eyes.” There was no escape for the others this time. The right side of the road dropped into the deep valley, and the SUV blocked the left lane. He aimed and opened his eyes, shooting next to the mass of flames covering the Jeep. He traded gunfire with Sylvia, and they barely missed each other. Oliver took shelter behind the door and kept the fire going, blocking Sylvia’s view.

  In the commotion, Mark heard a loud engine pass by. He stuck his head out the window. It sounded like a plane and was getting closer. Where—?

  The plane flew over the chase, touching down on the straight road ahead and taxiing. The rumble and wake rattled everyone in the SUV. They were so shocked by the sight that they didn’t realize that the Jeep, its wheels on fire and heavily blackened, was driving ahead to the plane’s open cargo hold.

  “Drive faster!” Lionel shouted.

  * * *