Red lights strobe across the walls. A voice booms over the intercom in Tilkan and Standard.Breach. Detainment level. All units engage.
“Shit,” I mutter.
Kairo doesn’t flinch. She lifts her chin higher.
“Took you long enough.”
I kneel in front of her, hands working fast on the bindings. Ben stares at me with wide eyes. “You’re real,” he whispers. “You came.”
“I said I would,” I murmur. “You okay, little man?”
He nods once, fierce.
I unlock Kairo’s cuffs. Her wrists are raw. I press my forehead to hers, just for a second.
“We’re getting out,” I say.
Her voice is hoarse but steady. “You came alone?”
I nod.
She doesn’t ask anything else. Just grabs Ben’s hand and says, “Then let’s go.”
CHAPTER 39
KAIRO
The first gunshot is a thundercrack.
The wall behind me sizzles and cracks open like a lightning strike just barely missed its mark. The second shot chews into the metal frame above the cell door. Sparks rain down.
Jav’s already moving.
“Down!” he shouts.
I grab Ben and hit the floor hard, shielding him with my body. The door bursts open with a roar, and Jav storms in like a ghost set on fire—armor streaked with soot, blade in one hand, blaster in the other.
He kicks the door closed behind him, crouches low, and fires two rounds. Sharp screams follow.
Ben whimpers. “I’m scared, Mommy.”
“I know, baby,” I whisper, brushing his hair back. “But we’re getting out. You trust me?”
He nods, tears glinting in his lashes.
Jav tosses me a blaster. “Safety’s off. Hold low, squeeze smooth. Aim for the kneecaps unless you’ve got the shot.”
I catch it without thinking. It’s heavier than I expect—warm, like it’s already been used.
“Where’s the exit?” I ask, already standing, Ben clutched tight against me.
“South tunnel. Fastest shot to the ridge. Garkin’s got a rendezvous ship hovering low.”
More shots rattle through the compound. Red strobes pulse across the walls, bathing the hall in panic light.
Jav glances at me, and something passes between us. This isn’t a rescue. It’s a warzone. And we’re in it together now.
“Stay on my six,” he growls.
