A part of me wanted to converse with Coil’s men and get to know them.  Another part of me, a larger part, told me that I shouldn’t.  I had to convey power and confidence.

I suppose so, yeah. Though a friendly boss can be quite effective too, being respected is important either way.

I wasn’t sure I could do that while making small talk.  With much the same reasoning, I’d chosen not to help with the loading of the truck.

That’s fair. I don’t think Taylor is all that great at small talk anyway, so doing so confidently could be difficult.

The men Coil had sent me were dressed up in the same outfits worn by the cleanup crews I’d seen around the city, picking up debris, trash and dead things.

Neat. Seems like a fairly solid cover if needed.

They wore heavy plastic one-piece bodysuits, made of a material I compared to those heavy-duty industrial rubber gloves that my dad kept under the sink, each in blue and yellow.

Swedish bees!

The suits were loose-fitting, and only the upper halves of their faces were visible behind the clear plastic goggles they wore.

The goggles do nothing to dissuade me from thinking about bees.

Their mouths were hidden by the filters intended to prevent mold, dust and airborne pathogens from getting into the worker’s lungs.

Seems like a pretty decent getup for the workers.

The interior was loaded with the supply crates that I’d had Coil’s guys load into the vehicle.  Each set was strapped together and tied down to the floor and sides of the truck with belts.

Supply crates, huh? Maybe Skitter’s aiming for a more benevolent sort of control over her territory, a sort of Robin Hood deal where she steals from the good guys on behalf of the civilians who can’t compete with the villains to get supplies?

There wasn’t much room for the seven of us in the back, and we’d been forced to sit on the crates with little legroom.

Doesn’t sound particularly comfortable.

Another option is that they’re trying to lure out the Merchants by passing as a supply vehicle, but if that were the case, why would she bring actual supplies and soldiers without weapons?

I mean, maybe she’s very confident in her own abilities and doesn’t want anyone to get shot, Merchant or not, but it seems naïve not to ask for gunmen if she’s actually expecting a conflict. Naïve is not a word I’d generally use to describe Taylor.

Water sprayed in the truck’s wake as we cut a path through the flooded streets.

At a certain point, you gotta start questioning whether a car is still a car or if it’s more accurate to call it a boat.

We haven’t quite reached that point yet, fortunately. Especially fortunate since it only works with the few cars that, y’know, float.

It was a military vehicle.  I wasn’t one to know much about cars, and I knew even less about stuff like military vehicles, so I couldn’t put a name to the truck that was carting me and eight of Coil’s workers through the Docks.

Right there with ya.

It was like a sturdy pickup truck, but the rear section was wider and it was hidden beneath a green tarp that had been stretched over a framework of metal bars.

Well, at least the description sounds sort of familiar.

The tires were massive, with deep treads allowing the truck to navigate all but the most cracked sections of road where Leviathan had brought the underground pipes and drains through the surface.

Nice.

That’s better. Less windows involved.

Hi! Welcome back to the livebabble! Tonight, we’re going out with Skitter and her borrowed goons to lay claim to some territory, whatever that actually entails. Chances are we’ll also run into the Merchants by the end of the chapter, though I don’t think Skitter actually intends to.

I don’t think there is much more to say here, so without further ado, let’s dive into it!

wait, no