[Jake's POV]
The extraction was loud, violent, and perfectly executed.
We didn't sneak out of the Van der Meer estate. We tore our way out. By the time Nia's encrypted signal brought the armored SUVs crashing through the north service gates, the estate's security grid was in absolute shambles. Darius carried the unconscious, bleeding body of Charles Bancroft over one massive shoulder, tossing him into the trunk of the trailing vehicle like a sack of ruined expensive suits.
I didn't look back at the Dutch stone mansion as we pulled away. I only looked at the woman sitting beside me.
Sofia was exhausted, her white blouse stained with her own blood and the grime of the Ash Vault, but she was alive. The heavy wool blanket was wrapped tightly around her shoulders. The adrenaline of the chapel was finally fading, leaving behind the raw, physical toll of what Dr. Vale and the Ash Room had put her through.
