As soon as they got into the hallway, Dale saw the tail of the lead guard disappear around a bend, and realized that they were leapfrogging him somewhere. He wasn't entirely familiar with the process of bodyguarding, but got the impression that the first guard was making sure that the way was clear, the four guards were to protect him if somebody got past the first, and the final guard would keep a rear position, making certain nobody came up behind them. They weren't subtle, but if they had a good enough reputation, they wouldn't want to be.  That begged the question of what they were supposed to be protecting him from.