By the time they got back inside, the house no longer felt like shelter.
It felt used.
Sarai smelled it first.
Blood.
Metallic, thick, still fresh enough to cling to the air even with the windows cracked and Odessa already moving through the rooms with ruthless efficiency. The bodies had been dragged out of the main hallway, but the streaks remained—dark smears across the floor, broken glass catching the light in sharp, ugly fragments.
Sarai stopped just inside the doorway.
"…yeah," she said under her breath. "We're not staying here."
"We're not," Virek replied.
He moved past her, already reaching for the sink, turning the water on without hesitation. The red washed from his hands in thin streams, swirling down the drain like it had somewhere better to be.
Sarai watched him for a second too long.
The tear in his sleeve had darkened, blood seeping through the fabric in a slow, steady spread.
"You're still bleeding," she said.
"It's fine."
"No," she snapped, stepping forward. "We are not doing that right now."
He glanced at her.
She pointed toward the chair. "Sit."
A pause.
Then—he did.
That alone told her how serious things were.
Sarai grabbed a towel, then stopped halfway to the cabinet and looked around. "Where is the actual medical stuff, because I know this house is not out here surviving attacks with a roll of paper towels."
Odessa didn't even look up. "Second cabinet, left panel."
Sarai found it immediately.
Of course it was organized.
Of course it was stocked.
She grabbed what she needed and came back to him, her movements faster now, sharper.
"Hold still," she said, already pushing his sleeve up.
The cut wasn't shallow.
Not deep enough to be immediately dangerous, but enough to matter. The skin had split clean, blood still welling slowly from the line of it.
Sarai sucked her teeth. "Yeah, I hate this."
"It's not severe."
"Stop minimizing things that involve your actual body," she said, pressing the cloth against it.
He didn't flinch.
That annoyed her.
"You're not even reacting," she added.
"It doesn't require it."
"That is not how pain works."
"It is for me."
She looked up at him. "You hear yourself, right?"
"Yes."
"And you still choose to say things like that."
"Yes."
Sarai shook her head, but her hands stayed steady as she cleaned the wound, wiping away the blood in careful passes.
Up close, she could see more than she wanted to.
The controlled tension in his shoulders.
The way his breathing stayed even despite the injury.
The faint shift in his jaw when she pressed a little harder than necessary.
"You felt that," she said immediately.
"No."
She narrowed her eyes. "You're a liar."
"I'm not."
"You are," she said, leaning in slightly. "You just don't admit it."
His gaze dropped to her face.
Then to her mouth.
Then back to her eyes.
"That's not lying," he said quietly. "That's choosing not to respond."
Sarai paused.
"…you're very irritating."
"I know."
She finished cleaning the cut and reached for the bandage, her movements slower now, more deliberate.
The adrenaline hadn't left her system yet.
It was still there, humming under her skin, making everything feel sharper than it should.
"You could've gotten hit worse," she said.
"I didn't."
"That's not the point."
"It is."
She pressed the bandage into place, smoothing it down more carefully than she needed to.
"No," she said, softer now. "The point is you didn't hesitate."
He watched her.
"I never do," he said.
"I know," she replied.
That was the problem.
Sarai stepped back, her hands dropping to her sides.
For a second, neither of them moved.
Then—
Elias's voice cut through the room.
"They're not done."
Everything snapped back into place.
Sarai turned. "What now?"
"Two vehicles," Elias said, already moving toward the console. "They didn't leave after losing contact. They're circling."
Odessa swore under her breath. "They're pushing."
Virek stood immediately.
"Time?" he asked.
"Less than three minutes," Elias replied.
Sarai threw her hands up. "Oh my God, do these people not believe in taking a loss and going home?"
"No," Virek said. "They don't."
He grabbed his jacket, ignoring the fresh bandage entirely.
Sarai pointed at him. "If that opens back up, I'm not fixing it again while bullets are flying."
"It won't."
"You keep saying that."
"And I keep being right."
"That is not reassuring!"
Nyla appeared in the doorway, already grabbing her bag. "Okay, I officially hate this location."
"We're leaving," Odessa said.
"Obviously," Nyla shot back.
Virek looked at Sarai. "Stay on me."
"I'm already on you," she said, grabbing her bag. "We've established this."
They moved fast.
No hesitation.
No wasted motion.
Out the back this time.
The air outside had shifted.
Not quiet anymore.
Waiting.
Sarai heard the first engine before she saw anything, low and approaching fast from the road beyond the trees.
"That's not subtle," she muttered.
"They're not trying to be," Virek replied.
They reached the vehicle just as the first car broke through the tree line.
Black.
Fast.
Too fast.
"Get in," Virek said.
Sarai didn't argue.
She climbed in, slamming the door shut just as the engine roared to life beneath them.
The second car followed seconds later.
"Of course there's two," Sarai said, grabbing the handle above the door.
Virek reversed hard, tires kicking dirt and gravel before he spun the wheel and shot forward down the narrow road.
The first shot hit the rear panel.
Loud.
Close.
Sarai flinched. "Oh, they're serious."
"Yes."
"That was rhetorical!"
Another shot.
Closer this time.
Glass cracked somewhere behind them.
Sarai twisted in her seat. "They're gaining."
"I know."
"Do you have a plan?"
"Yes."
"That would be a great time to share it!"
He didn't answer.
Instead, he accelerated.
The road curved sharply ahead, barely wide enough for one car, trees pressing close on both sides like they were trying to close in on them.
Virek didn't slow.
Sarai's stomach dropped. "Oh, we're doing this."
They hit the turn hard.
The car behind them didn't handle it as cleanly, sliding slightly wide before correcting.
"They're still on us," she said.
"I know."
Another shot.
This one hit the side mirror, shattering it completely.
Glass sprayed inward.
Sarai ducked instinctively. "Okay, now I'm mad."
"Good."
"That is not helpful!"
"Watch the road behind us," he said.
Sarai blinked. "Excuse me?"
"Tell me what they're doing."
She turned, heart pounding, forcing herself to focus past the adrenaline.
"Front car's closer," she said. "Second one's holding back."
"Spacing?"
"About two car lengths… maybe three—wait—no, they're tightening."
"Good."
"How is that good?!"
He didn't answer.
Instead, he swerved suddenly, cutting off onto a narrower path that barely looked like a road.
Sarai grabbed the handle tighter. "That is not a road!"
"It is now."
The terrain shifted instantly.
Uneven.
Rough.
The car jolted hard over roots and dips, the suspension groaning under the impact.
Behind them, one of the vehicles hesitated.
The other didn't.
"They're still coming," Sarai said, breath tight.
"I expected that."
"That doesn't make it better!"
The car lurched again.
Then—
Virek slammed the brakes.
Hard.
Sarai jerked forward. "What are you—"
"Hold on."
He yanked the wheel.
Reversed sharply.
Then cut sideways just enough to throw the pursuing car off its line.
The first vehicle overcorrected.
Hit a dip too fast.
The front end dipped—
Then slammed into a tree with a sickening crunch of metal and glass.
Sarai's eyes widened. "Oh—"
The second car tried to pull around.
Virek didn't give it time.
He accelerated again, cutting past the wreck before the driver could recover.
"Go go go go—" Sarai muttered under her breath.
"I am."
The second car followed, but slower now.
More cautious.
"Did we lose them?" she asked.
"Not yet."
"Great."
They burst back onto a wider stretch of road, the car stabilizing just enough for Sarai to breathe again.
Behind them—
distance.
Not much.
But enough.
"They're falling back," she said.
"For now."
Sarai leaned her head back against the seat, chest rising and falling hard.
"…okay," she said. "I need a minute."
"You have one."
"That is not enough time to process what just happened."
"It's what you get."
She turned her head toward him, still breathing hard.
"…you're insane."
"No."
"You absolutely are."
He glanced at her briefly.
"You kept up," he said.
That hit.
Again.
Sarai blinked, then let out a short laugh despite everything.
"…yeah," she said. "Apparently I did."
The road stretched out ahead of them.
The danger hadn't disappeared.
Not really.
But for the first time since it started—
they had space.
Sarai looked at him.
Really looked.
Blood on his sleeve.
Focus still sharp.
Hands steady on the wheel.
And something else now.
Something that hadn't been there before.
"…this is your life," she said quietly.
"Yes."
She nodded once.
Then leaned back into the seat.
"…okay," she said. "Then I guess I'm in it now."
He didn't answer.
He didn't need to.