Chapter 6

Hart let out a bitter laugh.

"I really underestimated you," he said. "I never thought you'd be this sharp. I taught you every survival rule myself, and you turned every single one back on me."

He narrowed his eyes. "But how did you know I was gonna make a move on you?"

Dominic's gaze flicked to the bag at Hart's side.

"You already know the answer," Dominic said evenly. "Everyone in this prison is afraid of me now. There's nothing that happens here that I don't hear about.

"Two weeks ago, you had someone sneak in a dagger and a bottle of concentrated sulfuric acid."

Hart stiffened.

"Th-that doesn't prove anything."

Dominic didn't raise his voice.

"I couldn't figure out why you needed sulfuric acid," he said. "But when you showed up with that bag and tried to escape with me, it clicked.

"You planned to use the acid to destroy my body and make it unidentifiable. That way, you can pass it off as yours and disappear.

"In other words, your helping me was just laying the groundwork for your own escape. Am I right?"

Hart's face drained of color. His voice shook.

"Th-that's just speculation."

Dominic nodded.

"You're right. It is. But you taught me to always prepare for the worst. If there's even a chance, you plan for it.

"And the facts proved me right."

As Dominic spoke, he pulled off his prison uniform.

Hart's eyes widened.

Strapped beneath the fabric were layers of raw meat, packed tightly over Dominic's torso. The padding over his heart was especially thick.

No wonder the stab had felt real. Hart hadn't doubted it for a second.

He had never imagined the blade had sunk into the meat Dominic had prepared in advance.

"I put this together ahead of time," Dominic said calmly. "Just in case you tried something.

"And that bag I threw earlier? It was full of flour from the kitchen. I didn't know if I could overpower you, so I needed a way to blind you. At least that gave me a chance to live."

Hart froze. Then he laughed, low and bitter.

"You really are something," he said hoarsely. "Someone like you can really go far. I don't mind losing to you."

He shook his head faintly. "After scheming my whole life, I never thought I'd be defeated by a kid. Guess life really is unpredictable…"

Blood seeped from the corner of his mouth. His body twitched a few times, then went still.

Dominic didn't move. He stood there, staring at Hart's body, motionless.

After a long moment, he picked up a metal rod from the ground and used it to drag Hart's bag closer.

Inside were a few scattered items and two books.

Dominic pulled out several glass bottles filled with liquid.

He uncapped one and poured it directly over Hart's body.

The corpse suddenly jerked, then lunged forward.

Hart had been playing dead, waiting for Dominic to let his guard down and step closer so he could kill him in one move.

But Dominic never approached. Instead, he poured concentrated sulfuric acid over Hart's body, forcing him to react early.

As if he had expected it all along, Dominic immediately hurled the bottle in his hand.

Hart panicked and fumbled as he tried to block the bottle of concentrated sulfuric acid.

The bottle was knocked aside and flew into the grass not far away.

Seizing that opening, Dominic charged forward and drove the metal rod straight into Hart's chest.

Hart let out a raw, animalistic roar.

He grabbed Dominic by the throat, his fingers clamping down like iron. He snarled, "Even if I die, I'm taking you down with me! Go to hell!"

The pressure crushed the air from Dominic's lungs. Even with his strength, he couldn't pry Hart's hands loose.

With no other option, Dominic wrapped his arms around him and leapt into the river.

The freezing water swallowed them whole.

Hart thrashed violently, still choking Dominic, desperate to break the surface.

Dominic locked his grip and forced Hart under.

Hart was strong, terrifyingly so. Even wounded, he could overpower Dominic.

If Hart surfaced, Dominic would die.

All Dominic could do now was endure, seeing who could hold their breath longer.

They struggled beneath the water for what felt like forever. No matter how wildly Hart fought, Dominic held on, burning every last ounce of strength to keep him submerged.

Eventually, age and blood loss caught up to Hart. His movements slowed, then stopped.

Dominic seized the chance, lifted his head above water, and took a huge gulp of air.

Even though he inhaled a lot of water into his lungs, he kept coughing while forcing Hart down.

About six minutes passed. When Hart went completely limp, Dominic finally released him.

He pulled the dagger from Hart's abdomen and stabbed him several more times in vital spots, only stopping once he was certain Hart was truly dead.

After dragging Hart's body to the riverbank, Dominic collapsed, gasping for breath.

After a while, a beam of light flashed in the distance, snapping Dominic back to reality.

He turned quickly and saw searchlights lighting up in the direction of the prison.

His expression changed instantly. He knew the escape had been discovered, and a search was coming.

He looked around, thought for a moment, and made a decision.

He rolled Hart over, stripped off Hart's prison uniform, and put it on himself.

Then he dressed Hart's body in his own clothes.

He found the remaining sulfuric acid and poured it over the corpse.

The acid ate through flesh and fabric, leaving the body unrecognizable.

After erasing every trace he could, Dominic shoved the body into the fast-moving river and watched it disappear downstream.

Dominic looked at the approaching searchlights, but he didn't run.

Instead, he took a steady breath, grabbed Hart's bag, and crawled back into the sewer, retracing his path inside.

Less than five minutes later, several vehicles screeched to a halt near the sewer exit.

Thomas jumped out with his men. One look at the scene made their faces change.

"They escaped through the sewer," Thomas snapped. "They can't have gone far. They're definitely nearby.

"Call for backup and search the river. Sweep the entire area."

The guards scattered immediately.

One of them glanced at the sewer entrance. "Captain… should we send someone in there to check?"

Thomas shot him a look. "Are you insane? They already got out. Why would they crawl back in?

"That sewer's half full of sewage. It's freezing, and it stinks like hell. If it were you, would you go in? If you're so eager, go ahead."

The guard waved his hands frantically. Just standing near the entrance made his stomach churn. There was no chance he was going inside.