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Another shot hit the side of the car, near the fuel tank.
"Someone thinks this is a movie," Ice said derisively. "The fuel tank isn't going to explode unless— Fuck." He grabbed my hand and yanked me down the street.
The pavement bit into my feet, but I glanced back to see a shadow flick open a cigarette lighter and throw it in the direction of the car.
At first, nothing happened. Then the first trickle from the ruptured fuel tank touched the road and dribbled towards the lighter. The moment they met, the liquid caught fire. It flashed and burnt high enough to reach the fuel tank.
It ignited the fuel around the outside of it, then the fuel inside the car.
Ice shoved me down onto the pavement and threw his body over mine as the car exploded.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Kennedy
My face hit the road. I grunted in pain as I grazed my cheek and the side of my chin.
I screwed my eyes shut and threw my arms over my head. A rush of heat poured over us, accompanied by shards of metal and glass. Bits of car rained down on us.
My ears rang from the sound of the explosion, but somewhere in the back of my mind I acknowledged the fact that I was somehow still alive.
Ice's breath in my ear confirmed he was too.
What about Mannix and Ares?
My heart raced. I was sweating profusely. All I could do was lie still and wait.
It would suck to make it this far only to stand up too soon and get hit by a flying engine. Okay, a smaller car part was much more likely, but that would suck just as hard.
"Beautiful?" Ice murmured. "You okay?"
"Yeah. You?" My eyes felt glued shut, but I managed to force them open. The road looked like a war zone. Bits of car were scattered everywhere. The road where it sat was singed black. Most of the cars around it were smashed up. Shattered windscreens, blasted paint, deep dents.
Fuck.
"Kinda." He peeled himself up off me and looked around, dazed. "We need to get out of here."
"You're hurt." His suit jacket and shirt were in shreds. Where the fabric was torn, he was bleeding.
He glanced down and grinned. "I'm going to have some epic fucking scars. But we really need to get out of here, or we won't live to see them."
Who else but him would be impressed by being injured?
He pushed himself to his feet and gripped my arm to pull me to mine.
My ears still rang, making balancing a challenge.
"Ares and Mannix…"
"They'll find us." He slid his hand down my arm to lace his fingers in mine and pull me away from the wreckage.
At some point, I'd lost the gun, but I still had my phone and the USB stick in my hand. I would have preferred the gun right now.
We staggered a few metres until we reached the grass. It wasn't until we hit the softer surface that I realised how sore my feet were. They were bleeding too.
I paused and leaned against Ice long enough to tug a piece of metal out of my ankle. I winced as it slid free and reminded myself to get a tetanus shot when I got the chance.
I glanced back over my shoulder to see upright shadows moving towards the site of the explosion. Fuel on the road still burned, the smoke made the shapes dance and writhe like ghosts. They must have stood back when the car blew up, but now they were searching for us again.
