Ellie climbs in beside me immediately.
Her hand finds mine.
Her fingers wrap tightly around mine, warm and steady.
That’s the only thing I focus on.
The warmth of her skin.
The pressure of her grip.
The car lurches forward, speeding toward the estate.
And as the darkness keeps pulling at the edges of my consciousness, I hold onto that one small anchor.
Ellie’s hand in mine.
I drift in and out, the world fading and returning in fragments.
But every time I surface, her fingers are still there.
By the time we reach the estate, my vision is swimming.
Voices echo around me as the car doors open and hands reach in to lift me out.
“Careful—”
“Watch his side.”
“Move.”
The cold night air hits my face for a moment before the lights inside the house swallow us again.
Everything feels distant.
Muffled.
But I recognize one voice clearly.
The doctor.
“He’s lost a lot of blood,” he says sharply as they carry me into one of the medical rooms inside the estate. “The bullet has lodged dangerously close to vital tissue.”
I hear Ellie inhale sharply beside me.
“He needs a hospital,” the doctor continues. “Immediately.”
“No.”
The word leaves my mouth before anyone can answer.
The room falls silent for a second.
I force my eyes open despite the heaviness pulling at them.
“No hospital,” I repeat, my voice rough but firm.
The doctor looks frustrated. “Mr. Rusnak, this is not—”
