smoke thick and acrid. The building groaned around me, each sound a threat. I moved care

ful prompts. Caution: Structural integri

what was left of the VIP lounge. Dust hung

allen marble column, looking surprisingly intact

ut definitely not dying. "Thank G

medical training taki

a sprain, maybe a minor fracture.

phone, which was clutched in her hand, screen barely

king to som

nd breathless than it had been with me. "Ava's here, but the whole ceiling is about to

area around her, while damaged, was more stabl

he doorway I' d entered, was definitely l

rting resources. To her. Away from potentially

oe, hold on! I'm sending the primary team to your exact location. Th

she quickly hid when she spoke back into th

ooded through me. She w

ice boomed from the other side of the debris nea

ts after they' d cleared a path to her, his face a mask of concern. He

t even gl

ing above the doorway I was ne

voice, from somewhere fa

was t

y head, my shoulde

an' s voice, cooing at Chloe. "

ed. It was Julian. His v

there? What'

inned my leg. Blood was

e weak. "I'm... I'm trapped. The west cor

hear Chloe in the backgroun

trauma right now. She almost died. This isn't the time for your dramatic

hun

ng up

le I was bleeding out, trappe

nsciousness: Rejection number one hundred registered. Target: Julian Vance. Me

hund

don