“Ethan!” he shouts again. “Don’t be stupid. There’s nowhere for you to go. You’re trapped in there.” He pauses. “Look, I’m willing to be reasonable here. But you need to work with me.”
“I don’t think he’s going to open the door,” I tell Kaine, having to work not to flinch away when he turns to me.
“Why not? That would be stupid. Very fucking stupid.”
“He’s been trained on certain protocols designed to keep the vaccinations safe. I’m sure this is all part of his meticulous training.” I want them to go away. Hopefully, when they realize that they’re not going to access the cold storage, they’ll do just that.
“Fuck.” Kaine slams his hand against the door one more time. Then he takes a step back, his expression darkening. “Fine. You want to do this the hard way? We’ll do it the hard way.”
He turns to me, and the look in his eyes makes my blood run cold.
“You,” he says. “Call him. Tell him to open the door.”
I shake my head. “I don’t think—”
“I wasn’t asking.” He grabs my arm, pulling me toward the window. “Tell him to get his ass out here now.”
I lean closer to the door, my voice shaking. “Ethan? It’s Wren. Can you hear me?” I look through the small window.
For a long moment, nothing. Then I see his shadow shift. He’s listening.
“Ethan, please. Just…just do what they want. It’s going to be okay. Give them access to the vaccinations, and we can all go home.” I’m not sure I buy that, but what can I do?
“Try harder,” Kaine says behind me, his hand tightening on my arm.
I’m going to have bruises tomorrow if he keeps this up.
“Please,” I try again. “They just want the vaccinations. That’s all. Just let them in and—”
“No can do, Wren,” Ethan’s voice comes through the door, muffled but clear enough. “I’m sorry, but I will never open this door, and that’s final.”
Relief floods through me even as fear tightens around my chest. He’s okay. He’s alive.
But he’s also not budging.
Kaine shoves me out of the way, putting his face in the window.
“Ethan,” he calls out, his voice harder now. “I have hostages. I’m sure they’re your friends. Do you want their blood on your hands? Because that’s what’s going to happen if you don’t open this door.”
Shit! Shit! Shit!
Adrenaline floods my system, and my heart goes wild inside me.
“I’m sorry,” Ethan says in a soft voice. “But I can’t.” His voice cracks a little.
“You can’t?” Kaine laughs, but there’s no humor in it. “You can’t or you won’t? I think you won’t, and it’s pissing me off.”
“I’m sorry, Wren,” Ethan repeats. It sounds like he’s crying.
Kaine’s face twists with rage. Without warning, he wrenches my arm behind my back, twisting it up between my shoulder blades.
Pain explodes through my shoulder. White-hot and searing. I cry out before I can stop myself, the sound torn from my throat.
“How about now?” Kaine shouts at the door. “You hear that, Ethan? That’s the sound of me hurting your coworker. Want to hear it again?”
“Don’t!” I gasp, trying to pull away. But his grip is iron.
He twists my arm higher, and I scream. I can’t help it. The pain is too much. It feels like my shoulder is going to dislocate. Like my arm is going to snap in two. He eases off, and I gasp with relief.
