Diesel's arms are around me. I'm pressed against his chest, my hand over the wound in his side, pressing hard. His blood seeps through my fingers, warm and wrong.
He's still upright, still holding me, running on something that won't last.
Daniels is behind us. I don't look back.
Diesel goes rigid.
"Someone's coming."
I don't hear anything. But he's already moving—pulling away from me, forcing himself to his feet. He makes it halfway and doubles over, hand braced on his knee, blood dripping from his side onto the floor.
"Diesel—" I scramble up, reach for him.
He shakes his head and pushes through it, straightening on a ragged exhale, tendons straining in his neck.
A shadow falls across the doorway.
He shoves me behind him before I can draw breath. One arm barring me back, his broken body between me and whatever's coming. His hands curl into fists. The beast hasn't left his eyes.
Footsteps pound on the stairs now, heavy and fast.
"Stay behind me." His voice is a growl.
"You've been shot twice."
"Stay. Behind. Me."
The footsteps reach the landing. Diesel shifts his weight, ready to charge.
Ash appears in the destroyed doorway.
Diesel doesn't stand down. Not immediately. His body stays coiled, fists raised, until Ash holds up both hands.
"It's us, brother. Just us."
Something loosens in Diesel's spine. He stays on his feet, stays between me and the door, but the killing tension bleeds out of him.
Ash's eyes move from Diesel to me to Daniels' body. He takes it all in—the blood, the broken door, what's left of the man on the floor.
"An orc against a human." Diesel's voice is rough but steady. "You know how this goes, Ash."
"First we keep you breathing." Ash holds his gaze. "We'll handle the rest once you're stable."
"Clear," he calls over his shoulder.
Crow pushes past him first, eyes sweeping the room—Diesel, me, Daniels' body. His face goes hard.
Maya's right behind him, medical bag in hand. She stops. Just for a second—her eyes on what's left of Daniels, on the blood. Then her jaw sets and she's moving toward us.
She reaches for Diesel first.
"Eden." His voice cuts through, sharp, something feral in his eyes. "Check her first."
"You're the one bleeding out—"
"Check. Her. First."
Maya's expression hardens, but she turns to me, hands reaching for my face, my arms, searching for wounds.
