Something flashed through the thick, hot late afternoon air, a red-hot trail streaking towards the small group of riders and Scrimshaw cried out, his body bucking as the heavy impact struck him with tremendous power. Even before he slipped from his saddle, the sound of the gunshot rang out across the vast, empty landscape.
Grimes reacted first, mouth open in a wide, terrified gape. Screaming out his beloved master"s name, he jumped down, tried and failed to catch Scrimshaw before he hit the dirt, then broke into a series of bleats and howls that rang out like the cries of a stricken beast across the plain.
Scrimshaw lay on his back, blinking up into the sky, as bewilderment, followed by shock, seized him in a vice-like grip. “Oh Christ,” he breathed.
“Hold on, Mr Scrimshaw, sir,” said G
