"I shot them," Malone said.
"You--" The major's finger tightened on the trigger of his gun.
"Now wait a minute," Malone said. "I said they were in military
uniforms. I didn't say they were soldiers."
"But--"
"Three enlisted men carrying M-1 rifles?" Malone said. "When the M-1's
out of date? And a captain with his bars on sideways? No, major.
Those were renegades. Looters of some kind; they wanted to kill me and
get the car and any valuables I happened to have."
The major, very slowly, relaxed his grip on the gun and his arm fell
to his side. "You did the smart thing, Mr. Malone," he said.
"And I've got to go on doing it," Malone said. "I'm in a hurry."
He noticed a newspaper fluttering at the side of the road, not too
near the cars. Somehow it made everything seem even more lonely and
strange. The headlines fluttered into sight: