“One more by the fence,” I whisper. “Let’s go.”
We move fast in sync. I don’t feel the cold anymore. Just the heat of purpose and memory.
When we reconvene with Dakota and Noah, three guards are down, stashed in silence, and the path to the central container is wide open.
“The lock’s digital,” Noah murmurs. “Should only take me sixty seconds to crack it.”
Dakota crouches beside him, gun drawn, gaze sweeping the shadows. “We don’t have long.”
I keep watch, eyes peeled for movement, fingers twitching at my side. Every clang of metal, every whisper of wind feels like it could be a trap.
“Got it,” Noah hisses. The door creaks open.
Inside, it isn’t weapons we see first—it’s rows of boxes, each marked with red ink, some partially opened. Then, a voice crackles through a portable comm unit on the floor.
“They’re inside,” a man says, “right on schedule.”
Dakota freezes. “It’s a setup.”
All hell breaks loose.
Gunfire erupts outside, echoing off the steel walls. Noah dives for cover, and Luca shoves me behind a crate as bullets punch through the container’s exterior.
“Ambush!” Dakota yells from the doorway, returning fire. “They were waiting for us!”
Of course they were. I mentally berate myself for not seeing through Daniel’s ruse. We should’ve anticipated this.
I shake my head; there’s no time for that. I scramble to my feet and press my hand to my ear. “Pull out!” I yell. “Fall back to the north fence. Secondary exit! We’ll cover you!”
“Copy!” Luca calls back. He grabs Noah by the arm and hauls him toward the exit.
Dakota and I are the last ones out, running low, dodging gunfire that sparks off the containers around us. My lungs burn. My mind is already flipping through escape routes.
“We’ve got to split up,” Noah calls out, “Get Isobel out, we’ll lead them away.”
“Got it.” Dakota nudges me, and we take off running. We make our way to a corridor, hoping to make our way through the building and out the other side.
We cut through the shadows, stepping around rusted chains and crates. The warehouse creaks with age and secrets. Lights flicker above, casting long, fractured shadows across the steelgrates.
That’s when I feel it. That weight in my gut. The whisper of danger brushes the back of my neck.
A prick, then coldness running through my body.
I turn around.
“What...?” my voice trails off.
The world tilts. My body weighs a thousand pounds. Darkness dots across my vision.
Dakota’s eyes. Cold and hard. Her face is completely blank.
“Take her. Tell him I’ll be there soon.” Her voice distorts in my ears.
What’s happening?
Then everything goes black.
I’m cold.The air smells like mildew and iron. A damp stone floor presses against my cheek. Every inch of my body throbs, especially my side. Each shallow breath is like dragging glass through my lungs. I don’t open my eyes, just letting the pain wash over me. Trying to gather my bearings. To remember… My eyes fly open. A groan tears from my throat as I roll onto my side. Chains clink around my wrists. I tug at them. They’re not too tight, but it’s enough to limit me. My vision swims before settling.
