Naomi got released earlier than she expected.
No explanation. No dramatic warning. Just a soldier unlocking the holding room door and jerking his head toward the corridor like she was trash finally being taken out.
The cold hit her almost immediately after she stepped outside.
Night had swallowed most of the sector already. Floodlights hung over the streets in harsh white cones, soldiers drifting through them with rifles hanging off tactical vests while civilians kept their heads low and their mouths shut.
Naomi walked without direction.
Her shoulders hurt.
Her jaw hurt.
Everything fucking hurt.
But none of it sat heavier than the image stuck in her head.
Adrian being dragged away.
Not fighting anymore.
That part bothered her most.
The kid fought everything.
People. Circumstances. Himself.
Seeing him stop felt wrong in a way she couldn't explain.
A can rolled into her boot.
She kicked it down the sidewalk without thinking.
"Watch your shit."
