Page 76 of Bound By Thorns
I stood there, frozen, staring at the door like it held all the answers, like Logan might walk back in and make sense of everything. But the door stayed closed, and the blood on my hands began to feel heavier, stickier.
He left. Heleftme.
I wanted to scream at him, towards him, for him. I didn’t care. I wanted my Logan by my side.
My heart constricted, every beat a loud thump against my chest as if trying to escape the confines of my ribcage.
“Fuck,” Kabir mumbled, resigned.
I swallowed the lump in my throat, steadying my breath, focusing on the task at hand.
Zarek’s voice cut through the tense air. “Team 3, Gunner is securing your exit. Move out, single file.”
Leora, always brave, was the first to step out. The moment the door swung open, the distant crack of gunfire froze me in place. Logan was out there, in the thick of it. Each burst of gunfire was a stark reminder that he was still fighting, still drawing breath.
Kabir was next, clutching the crucial Crazon device. As the one with the most vital equipment, he needed all the cover we could give. My heart pounded as I followed close behind, stepping into the uncertain corridor, my senses heightened, listening for the next round of shots, praying each one wasn’t Logan’s last.
The main hall was a grim tableau, strewn with the bodies of Logan’s relentless advance. As we emerged, the echoes of gunfire had shifted, now distant, towards the helipad entrance. Peering through the chaos, I could just make out fragments of the helicopter—our lifeline—Zane had prepared for our escape.
The cacophony of gunfire and shouts swirled around me. Leora and Kabir flanked me, their movements sharp and precise as we darted through.
As we reached the exterior, the cool air of the helipad slapped against my face, snapping me back to the immediacy of our escape. Zane was already there, the helicopter’s blades whipping a furious torrent around us, drowning out the lesser sounds of the battlefield. Zane covered them with his shower of bullets as Leora and Kabir ducked into the helicopter, their bodies momentarily silhouetted against the harsh lights.
Just as I turned to follow, a force yanked me back by the collar of my vest. The world tilted dangerously as my back slammed against the cold concrete. My eyes met those of Tyka—his grip iron, his face a mask of vengeance. Anger flared in his eyes, igniting my fury that had simmered since my escape from Ravenrock.
“Thought you could just fly away, Kaylan?” Tyka’s voice was a venomous hiss as his hands tightened around my throat, stealing the air from my lungs. My gaze shifted towards two men readying an RPG for the helicopter.
“Go, go,go!!!” I managed to scream, my voice hoarse and desperate. From the corner of my eye, I saw the helicopter lift, dodging the RPG that screamed past, its tail a comet. Kabir and Leora were now out of immediate danger. I focused back on Tyka, my survival instincts peaking.
I tried to push him off myself and snaked my hands around his throat in retaliation. As my grip tightened, Tyka’s loosened only slightly enough to give me a window of opportunity. I threw a punch across his jaw and got out of his hold entirely.
Suddenly, Logan was there, his presence slicing through the tension. He tackled Tyka, his fists and elbows blurs of motion. But Tyka was relentless, his own training evident as he parried and struck back with equal viciousness. Their guns now skittered across the floor of the helipad. The fight teetered on the edge of the helipad. I aimed my gun at their fight, unable to find a clear opening without hurting Logan.
With a blow emanating finality, Logan threw an unforgiving punch to his temple and Tyka went down.
A misstep, and I saw Logan stumble backward from the edge, his silhouette framed against the void. His fingers grasped the edge of the helipad, his body dangling precariously. I lunged forward, my hands clasping his in a grip tight enough to bruise just as his slipped from the edge.
“Hold on!” I shouted, my voice raw with fear. I saw the shallow swimming pool below him as his entire frame dangled, approximately five floors down. The fall would be fatal.
I didn’t know it then, but that moment started the longest twenty seconds of my life.
“Chaos,” Logan grunted in resignation.
“No! Climb the fuck up!” I screamed. “Youclimb!”
His hands slipped further from mine as he had nothing but my forearms to latch on to. He could easily climb up. I knew it.
But he also didn’t want to hurt me in the process or risk me falling with him.
His weight pulled me down, hurting my ribs, the magazines in my vest digging into my skin.
I knew I couldn’t hold on any longer.
This isn’t happening!
“Baby, it’s okay,” Logan pleaded.
“No!” I roared. My voice, unrecognizable.
