An uneasy silence sat between the two of them as the van passed the sign welcoming them to Marion, a small town twenty miles south of Dillon. Alex had never visited. Her entire time in South Carolina had been spent exclusively on the few streets that separated her apartment from the Pit, and she looked at the buildings as they entered. It was identical to Dillon, with the wide roads lined with businesses, all of them closed with the shutters down. Foot traffic was completely absent, and beyond the odd lorry that meandered down the high street, the entire town was eerily silent. Sinclair guided the van through a few abandoned streets before pulling up opposite a large car park. A lone street light bathed the entrance to the car park in light, but the facility behind it was hidden in shadow. A large, chain-link fence ran around the sides, before they too were enveloped by the darkness.

‘This is the place,’ Sinclair said calmly, killing the engine. Alex shot him a puzzled look, and he calmly pulled a cigarette to his lips, struck a match, and set it alight. He rolled the window slightly and let the smoke drift through the gap and into the night sky. Alex followed suit, her nerves craving a calming nicotine fix, and the two of them smoked in silence. As the time passed, Alex felt her apprehension build and just as she was about to question Sinclair’s intel, the roar of a motorcycle grew louder and sure enough, the hulking figure of Sykes appeared at the end of the road. Alex and Sinclair sat in the darkness, watching as the maniacal Death Rider slowed his powerful motorcycle to a crawl, before turning and disappearing into a side alley.

‘What’s he doing?’ Alex asked, but before Sykes could answer, a black van rolled past them, turning sharply into the car park and disappearing into the dark.

Both of them sat in silence, staring at the shadows beyond.

A flash of light erupted somewhere within the car park, followed by the unmistakable roar of a gunshot.

‘Fuck,’ Sinclair exclaimed, unclipping his seat belt and throwing his door open. ‘Stay here.’

Before Alex could remonstrate, Sinclair slammed his door shut and, keeping as low as he could, he rushed across the street to the entrance, his hand dipping into his blazer and returning with his pistol. As Alex watched on, Sinclair disappeared into the dark.

* * *

‘What the fuck is going on?’ Alan said to himself. Sam knew the question wasn’t directed at him, so he ignored it and did his best to absorb as much as he could from the surroundings. The town of Marion was identikit to Dillon, and Sam hated his lack of preparedness. He knew coming to America, searching for Alex, was going to be risky. There was no plan of action, as he didn’t know what to expect.