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“We have to zip-line across.”
Dani’s jaw drops. “You can’t be serious!”
I pull my jacket off, forcing myself to move through the pain radiating through my shoulder. “You’ve done it before, Dani.”
“Umm… no, I haven’t!”
“Yes, you have! Remember?” I sit down on the building’s edge next to the nearest wire and twist my jacket into a taut rope around it. “The big climactic chase scene in Night Trials, Part 2.”
“That was a stunt girl!”
“Dani—”I grab her hand and pull her down to me, forcing her to straddle my waist. “Just hold on to me and don’t let go.”
“Oh, fuck…”she whispers, wrapping her arms and legs around me.
“Dani, it’ll be okay—”
She buries her face in my red shoulder. “Oh, fuck fuck—”
“Don’t look down.” I say it to myself more than her before sliding off the building’s edge.
As we hit the air, the helicopter explodes.
Dani shrieks. Her nails pierce my skin and my entire body seethes with pain. The gunshot wound threatens to drop us both to the ground, but I hold on tighter, focusing on her life in my hands.
The explosive force fires us across to the next building, knocking into the large lanterns as we go. I brace for impact against the glass and twist us around so my back hits it first instead of hers.
We crash through the window and my hands give up. Glass shards dig into my back as we tumble onto the floor. A rush of pain and exhaustion overwhelms my senses. I settle against the carpet, barely able to breathe.
“Fox!”
Dani screams my name again, or… I think it’s her. Her head is silhouetted by a raging fire. Flame and smoke fill the sky above the other tower and innocent screams echo from the ground below us.
“Dani…”
She pulls at my jacket, urging me to get up. I see the red smear on her face. “You’re bleeding…” I say.
“I think it’s yours,” she says, wiping it off her cheek.
“Oh, okay…” I settle back against the floor.
“Fox, come on!”
I glance around the empty hotel suite. It’s almost an exact mirror image of Boxcar’s room. I guess that’s how these twin buildings were designed—
“Fox!”
I blink out of my trance. “I’m okay.” I sit up slowly, expecting to feel more pain, but I guess I’ve gone numb. “Are you hurt?”
“A little,” she says, her eyes still locked on me.
I turn over onto my knees and stand straight up. “Come on…”
She follows me out into the hallway. “Fox…”
My knees buckle and I lean on the wall with one hand. “We need to get moving…” I look at the ugly wallpaper and try to ignore the red trails my fingers leave behind.
Dani takes my arm. “Fox, stop.”
