I scream, spinning, and slam the gun into whoever's behind me. It connects with something—face, shoulder, I don't know—and there's a grunt of pain. The grip loosens.
I wrench free and keep running, but my feet tangle in something, and I feel myself falling before I hit the ground hard. The impact drives the air from my lungs, and the gun flies from my hand, disappearing into the snow.
No. No, no, no?—
I scramble toward the drift on my hands and knees, searching frantically, when a boot catches me in the ribs, hard.
Pain explodes through my side. I curl up instinctively, gasping.
"Got her!" The voice above me is triumphant. "She's here!"
Hands grab me, hauling me up. I fight, clawing at the face in front of me, his eyes, anything I can reach. My nails rake acrossskin, and he swears, but his grip doesn't loosen this time. They were expecting a fight.
"Fucking bitch—" He backhands me across the face, and stars explode across my vision. My ears ring, and I taste blood. But I don't stop fighting, clawing and kicking and biting every time any part of one of them comes near me. I can't stop.
If I stop, I'll go back in that basement. Back in the dark. Back to being nothing.
I drive my knee up, aiming for the groin of the man holding me. He twists, and I hit his thigh instead, but it's enough to make him stagger.
"Hold her still!" Another voice, another set of hands grabbing my arms. There are two of them now, pinning me against a tree. I thrash, kicking, biting. My teeth find flesh, and I bite down hard. Someone screams.
"Crazy bitch!"
A fist slams into my stomach, and all the air leaves my lungs in a rush. I can't breathe. Can't?—
"Iosef's going to be real happy to see you again," one of them says, his face close to mine. His breath is hot and smells of tobacco. "Maybe he'll let us have some fun first. What do you think, boys?"
The others laugh. That sound. That fucking sound. It makes my teeth grind together, makes me see red. I don’t care what they do. I just want them to hurt before it’s all over.
He leans in as if he’s going to kiss me, and I spit blood in his face.
The man jerks back and wipes it away slowly, his expression darkening. "You're going to regret that,” he hisses, his jaw clenching as his hand closes around my throat.
I can't breathe. Can't scream. The world is starting to go gray at the edges. I feel him lean into me, and there’s something hard against my thigh. I wonder if he’s going to fuck me while hechokes me to death, then tell Iosef they found my body out in the woods. If this is how I’m going to die.
At least it’s not in that compound,I think to myself as my thoughts blur.At least it was out here, fighting. At least I fought. At least I?—
The gunshot is so loud it shocks me out of my thoughts, my ears ringing as the hands around my throat go slack. The man's eyes go wide, confused, and then he falls forward, collapsing against me as he slides down the tree, dead weight against my body.
There’s so much blood. It's hot against my skin, soaking through my clothes—I scream, shoving at him, trying to get the body away from me as I slip in the snow and my hands slip in the blood. I can't keep my footing. Can't?—
I feel a pair of strong hands lock around my arms, pulling me free. Instinctively, I lash out, clawing and kicking at whoever has grabbed me now. I scream, snapping my teeth as I wrench in the hands that?—
"Svetlana! It's me!"
Kazimir.
His voice cuts through the panic.
I stop fighting, gasping, and shaking all over. There's blood all over me. I can’t stop shaking.
"Are you hurt?" His hands touch my face, my shoulders, checking for injuries, and I’m too shocked to pull away. "Svetlana, look at me. Are you hurt?" He leans in, his pale eyes wide with concern.
I can't answer. Can't form words. I feel like I’ve locked up completely, everything that kept me going up until this point freezing inside of me.
"We need to move." His voice is hard now, and there’s a distinct edge of anger to it. "The others heard those shots. They're coming."
"I can't—I can't—" I’m trembling so hard my teeth are chattering. I feel like I’m about to come apart at the seams.
