“That’s why we’re leaving,” she answered me calmly.
We slipped through the secondary door as bullets pinged off the metal frame.
The hallway beyond was narrow and dark, lined with wiring conduit and storage crates. Katya moved fast, checking corners, and sweeping her weapon back and forth.
We darted into a side room full of metal shelves and tools. Above us was a rusty maintenance hatch. I gave Katya a boost. Shepushed the panel open and climbed up. Heavy boots thundered closer.
“Hurry,” she hissed.
I jumped, grabbed the edge, and pulled myself into the cramped duct. She slid the panel quietly back into place just as three guards burst into the room below.
Katya held her finger to her lips.
Through the slats, we watched them sweep the room, weapons drawn, tossing crates aside. One of them fired a round into the ceiling. Dust rained down around us, coating my arms.
Katya’s breath warmed my cheek in the tight space. She placed her hand over my mouth briefly when one of the guards paused directly below, listening.
After a long moment, the men moved on.
When it was clear, we crawled carefully through the duct system. Katya was quick and sure-footed, counting turns under her breath. She stopped at an intersection, listened, then took the left path without hesitation.
“You sure?” I asked.
“Yes,” she said. “The main stairwell is here.”
We reached a grate and peered down. The stairwell was abandoned. Hopefully, the soldiers had been redirected elsewhere.
Katya pointed. “Drop.”
We did. I landed first, then caught her as she jumped and there was a brief, electric second when her breath brushed my jaw.
Then we were moving again.
We took the stairs up two at a time, climbing until we reached another reinforced door. Katya tested it. She sighed in relief to find it unlocked.
She cracked it open.
The secondary control room was empty.
She entered, immediately moving to the computer terminal. “If we can unlock an exit and open the outer gates, we can get to the tarmac before they regroup.”
I stood by the door, covering her.
She typed rapidly, bypassing systems as if she had been born inside them.
“Got it,” she said. “Main gate is open. East entrance is disabled. And I’ve triggered a temporary block on internal comms. They’ll have to shout to each other to coordinate.”
“Good.”
Katya wiped a strand of hair from her face. “We should go.”
Footsteps were already echoing again through the halls.
I took one last glance around the room, met her eyes, and nodded. “After you.”
We left the control room together and ran away from the chaos of the compound.
“They’re routing personnel to the west wing,” she said breathlessly. “They think we’re headed for the main stairwell.”
