Nico’s fingers tightened around the jacket so hard the knuckles went white. His breath hitched in a tiny sound that broke like glass.
For a second, I thought he wouldn’t answer.
Then he whispered, voice trembling,“Dos más. En… en otros contenedores.” Two more. In… in other containers.
Grace inhaled sharply then she translated, but she didn’t let it show on her face. She kept steady, grounding him.“¿Sabes dónde?”Do you know where?
He nodded. A fast, frightened motion. He pointed—weakly—toward the far end of the stack outside.
Bones’ eyes went flat and lethal. “Voodoo. Mark the direction. Alphabet—start scanning container logs within that grid. We’re finding them. Grace—let him know.”
“Already on it,” Alphabet said. His voice had lost every trace of humor. “And Lunchbox… you’re gonna be pissed.”
I already was.
“Nico,”she said softly,“vamos a sacar a tus amigos también, ¿sí?” We’re going to get your friends out too, okay?
Nico blinked hard, tears threatening but clinging to the edges. Then he whispered,“Por favor… rápido.” Please… fast.
That did it.
Whatever fragile thread of restraint I had snapped clean.
Grace reached out, finally letting her hand rest lightly on Nico’s arm. He flinched—then melted into the contact like he’d been starving for it. Goblin shifted closer, nose bumping Nico’s knee gently, and the kid's fingers disappeared into the dog’s fur like he needed something alive to hold onto.
“All right,” Bones said, his voice steel-wrapped. “Here’s the plan.”
He pointed at Voodoo. “You stay with Grace and Nico. Keep them hidden. No one comes near that door.”
Voodoo nodded once, jaw locked.
“Lunchbox,” Bones said, turning to me, “you’re with me.”
My knuckles cracked on instinct. “Good. I need to hit something.”
Bones didn’t smile—not really—but the corner of his mouth twitched. “You will.”
Grace looked up at us, eyes shining with fury and fear and something else—determination sharpened to a blade.
“Just bring them back,” she said quietly. “All of them.”
“We will,” I promised. No hesitation. No uncertainty.
Because this wasn’t a mission anymore. This wasn’t recon, or intel gathering, or even payback.
This was extraction.
This was rescue.
Bones moved to the door. I followed, crowbar back in hand, blood humming like a live wire.
Behind me, Grace’s voice drifted soft, comforting, protective.“Nico, cariño… estás a salvo ahora. Nos tienes a nosotros.” You’re safe now. You have us.
For the first time since we found him, the kid’s breathing eased. Bones jerked his chin toward the container wall, silent command to get moving. Time to tear this port apart. Because there were two more kids out there. God help anyone standing between us and them.
He pushed out of the container first, all shadows and lethal calm. I followed, crowbar in hand, the metal still vibrating like it wanted another fight. The air outside hit colder, sharper. The stacked steel walls made it feel like we’d stepped out of a tomb and straight into another.
Bones didn’t speak—he didn’t need to. I fell into stride beside him, matching his angle, pacing low and fast through the narrow corridor between container towers.
