Clay stays directly beside me while Gabriel leads with a flashlight stolen from Mason’s tactical pack.
The beam cuts through dripping darkness ahead of us.
Ancient stone walls.
Flooded tracks.
Old transport rails disappearing deeper underground beneath Bucharest.
My pulse stutters violently.
Because I know these tunnels.
Oh God.
I know them.
Russ moves carefully behind Gabriel, rifle raised while Lucas keeps watch at the rear despite blood soaking through the bandage around his shoulder.
Nobody talks much.
The silence feels wrong down here.
Heavy.
Like the earth itself remembers what happened beneath this city.
Water drips steadily from overhead pipes.
Somewhere far behind us, church bells continue ringing through the storm.
Then suddenly—
I stop walking.
Clay notices instantly.
“Hannah?”
I stare toward the left tunnel branching into darkness.
My stomach twists so violently I almost double over.
“No…”
Gabriel turns sharply.
“What?”
My voice barely works.
“That way.”
Everybody goes still.
The flashlight beam shifts toward the side tunnel.
Old steel doors line the corridor beyond it.
