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âWhere do you think you're taking him?â the hoarse voice grunted âfamiliar and terrifying. âBursted!â Junior whispered, blinking up to Nevena , whose grip only tightened around his wheelchair handleâteeth chattering. âBack up plan?â Nevena blinked hard, her ribs screaming, she didn't have any. "No" she hushed. The figure stepped forward, the low overhead light catching the sharp outline of a jaw, a badge on a chain. "I asked a question?" The voice is sharper nowâboot echoing closer. Silence hung thick around Nevena and Junior. Her fingers just white-knuckled on the wheelchair. "Ma'am...I might have to call the whole security on you" Vargo growled. Nevena remembered him. The security in charge of the pediatrics ward. "Sorry Sir" she apologized slowly, voice thin but steady. "I was just taking him out for some fresh air". âAir?â Vargo questioned in disbelief, voice flat. âYeahâjust some fresh air, nothing elseâ Junior cut in with a shrug. âWe don't have any plans up our sleeves.â Nevenaâs breath snagged. She softly pinched him , hoping to stop him before he said something elseâand jeopardize their whole chance. But Junior didnât react to her pinch. âAt 12:11 AM Superstar? Vargo blinked at him suspiciously, arms crossed âYou sure your vitals are up for that?â "I think so," Junior shrugged again. âHospital's antiseptic got me weird. So we didn't check for time.â The silence stretched between them as Vargo tried to sink in with their story. "In that caseâcan I see your discharge squat?" he tilted his head. Junior nodded, pulling it out from under his wheels. Vargo glanced at the paper. âHmm... not bad. Guess you're stable enough.â "I told ya", Junior countered, flicking his fingers at Vargo with confidence. Vargo gave a mix of reluctant grunt and smile, then waved lazily at Nevena. "How are you related to him?" He asked. "Ummm...about tha..t" she stuttered sheepishly. "I'm his car..e..give..r" "What?" Vargo blinked, tilting his headâher accent unmistakeable. "Nanny" Junior cut in sharply. "Nannyâ?" He sized her demeanorâhoodie sleeves up, which covered most of her face. "Yes Sir" Nevena gasped, trembling softly. "Okay then" Vargo replied along with a nod, his tone laced with doubt. âYouâve got fifteen minutesâYour Mother hasnât signed the squat yet, so don't go farâstay close to the lot.â âSureâThank you Sirâ Junior and Nevena chorused. Vargo stood, watching as their wheels creaked softly toward the exit. "That kid is more hyperactiveâthan the last time I checked". They made it to the exit. The cool night air hitting Nevena like a baptism. Her lungs filled up sharp and fast. Junior looked up at the sky, stars stretched above them, indigo and endless. A sincere smile cracked out his face, like it was the first time heâd ever seen stars. He turned to look at Nevena, teeth chattering as the wind hit them. "Best friendâwe made it" âYes,â she giggled, shoving the hoodie sleeves up and glancing around for a cab. âBuckle upâIâm committing a felony with a minor, so activelyâwe need a getaway ride â Her vision swam over the busy main road, then settled back on Junior. She pushed forward, towering over him. "Still time to turn around, My friend." she murmured. Junior blinked at her. "Still time to complete my abduction." For a long moment, neither of them said a word. Then she looked over, finally letting herself laugh âYouâre crazyâa whole loose nut.â Junior grinned at her remark. âYou aren't completely innocentâkinda badass.â "No" Nevena argued âI think Iâm stupid Instead.â "No I think ..Badass" Junior countered. They continued their argument, until they reached the hospital's pedestrian pavement. âââ Maverick ðððððððð {ðððððð ððððð}12:30 AMâââ "Talk to me, Lowell." Breanna's voice cracked as she crouched beside his hospital bed. "What the hell happenedâMartinez?" "Martinez?" Lowell coughed, choking on blood. His voiceâwet and raspyâtrembled as he repeated the name. His body was heavily bruised and misshapen, bearing his own share of wounds from the fight. "Yes... Martinez. Back at the train," Breanna gasped, dropping to her knees to hear him better. He painstakingly turned to her with one swollen eye and let out a bitter chuckle. "You winged him just enough," he snarled. "I thought I could finally restrain him... but he looked me in the eye and saidâ" He broke off, choking on his own spit. His consciousness flickering. The cardiac monitor spiked into chaos, the room filling with shrill, sporadic beeps. Breannaâs eyes darted to the doctor in panic. "What's happening?" she asked, voice rising. Already moving, the doctor snapped instructions to the nurses, then turned to her briefly. "Ma'am, please excuse us," he said firmly. "We're losing him." Fear immediately gripped Breanna. If anything happened to Lowell, she was finishedâcourt-martialed for sure. She had embarked on this mission without official clearance, and now he was slipping into death. Grabbing his hand, she yanked it. "LowellâLowell, stay with me. You can do this." The doctor injected something into Lowellâs IV. Slowly, the cardiac monitor began to settle, its rhythm returning to normal. His eyelids fluttered. He began again, voice low and strained. "I tried to cuff him... after you shot him." "But he looked at me and said... heâd rather be a martyr than a witness." His eyes closed again, exhaustion overtaking him. "Really?" Breanna chuckled sadly. "Heâd rather be bones than a traitor." She shook her head. "For a moment, I thought he saluted like a hero, that he was innocent... with that damn departing salute of his." She slowly stepped out of Lowellâs room, eyes dryâhands clenched tight and face unreadableâstone. The door whispered shut behind her, sealing in the echoes of beeping monitors and the bitter rasp of Lowell's broken Air pipe. She moved quickly, taking the elevator down to the third floor. The pediatrics floor corridor reeked of sterile silence, broken only by the beep of the elevator and the rhythmic thudding of her boots against the linoleum. Each step striking like gavel blows, Her eyes landed two doors down to her right. Her sonâs hospital room. A small placard etched in childlike font, glinted faintly under the hallway light. "Junior S âUnit C" Her pace falteredâthe nurses had called yesterday evening and reminded her about his discharge which was over two days.ðððð¢ðâð¬ ðððŠðð¬ð¢ð¬Â°Â°Â°Liza walked slowly, hands clasped white-knuckled. She didnât look at Antonio as she took the stand, but he was watching her every moveâ maybe resent or remorse.She swore in without blinking, awaiting the prosecutor's question.âMrs Liza Minnelliâ native of Sombra Azul and also John Minnelli mother?â the judge read from the file in front of him, and she replied with a nod. âCounselor!â the judge called, slouching forward, toward the prosecutor. âYou can go aheadâ The prosecutor adjusted his cufflinks and called up Antonio to the stand, then he turned to Liza with a confident aura. âMrs Minnelliâ do you know this man?âThe courtroom held its breath as Liza scrutinized Antonio from head to toe. âYesâ she managed after a long pause. âI know himââOkayâ the prosecutor clasped his hands in triumph, dismissing Antonio. âMaâam can you please give this court an account of how he murdered your Willow.ââWillow?â Liza repeated âonly this time her voice cracked
ðððð¢ð'ð¬ ðððŠðð¬ð¢ð¬Â°Â°Â°An hour laterâŠ.The visiting room smelled of stale coffee and old sweat. Antonio sat cuffed to the metal table, wrists raw, shirt still stiff with dried river water and Nevenaâs blood. His face was stoneâeyes fixed on the scuffed linoleum as he awaited his visitor.The door opened quietly and revealed Grinch, alone. He stood in the doorway a long moment before stepping inside the holding cell. The door clicked shut behind him. Just two men whoâd grown up bleeding together.He didnât speak at first, he just looked at Antonioâ trying to recognize someone he used to know. Cuffed wrists, blood-stiff shirt, this man before him was different.âYou signed it,â he said at last. The words came out quiet, almost careful, like he was afraid saying them too loud would make them real. âNo lawyer. No call. Nothing.âAntonio didnât lift his head.âWe had everything lined up,â Grinch continued, voice dropping lower. âHe offered Malaysia for your extraction route. Cle
ðððð¢ðâð¬ ðððŠðð¬ð¢ð¬Â°Â°Â°Antonioâs world narrowed to the wet heat spreading across his chest. He looked down at Nevenaâs face, hand pressing to her arm, but blood seeped between his fingers.He shoved her behind the nearest bridge supportârusted I-beam. Then he spun, drawing his concealed Glock in the same motion.âHold fire! Holdâ!â Breanna shouted, but it was too late. Fresh rounds chambered with a click.He shifted his weight, eyes meeting the three people who had just made the worst mistake of their lives. âYou want Knuckles?â he said quietly. âCome and get me.âHe fired three quick, precise shots. Vincenzoâs lead man dropped. Another staggered while Cesar hissed at his grazed shoulder.The shooting exploded in earnest, both the police and goons. When Antonio saw that the two forces were closing in sporadically, he scooped Nevenaâs limp weight and vaulted the railing, hitting the river like a fist.On the bridge, the gunfire stuttered to confusion.Everyone rushed to the ra
ðððð¢ð'ð¬ ðððŠðð¬ð¢ð¬Â°Â°Â° The first thin ray of dawn sliced the horizon just as Antonio stepped onto Otowi Bridge. Though he wasn't tired, Nevenaâs constant, anxious chatter behind him had worn him thinner than any distance. âAre we close to the city now?â she asked. He didnât answer, rather he slipped a hand into his pocket and retrieved his phone. He thumbed the screen alive and dialed Grinch's number. As soon as the line connected, she tipped her head forward, ear brushing his, eavesdropping childishly. He noticed but didn't rebuke her. âGrinch,â he said as soon as the receiver connected. âIâm heading for the border. Negotiate a pass for meâ âWhich border?â Luca's voice floated through, instead of Grinch's. âThailandâ Antonio switched the phone to the other ear. âI will cross Otowi and cut through Sangre de Cristo. That's the route.â âKeep breathing. Iâll grease the wheels.â he assured and killed the line. ----------- Back in the shadowed ship, Lucas took a long
ðððð¢ðâð¬ ðððŠðð¬ð¢ð¬Â°Â°Â°She stared at the bodies a moment longer, then sagged against him in relief. In the darkness, blood looked like shadow and she didnât know the difference and was too exhausted to question it.Antonio scooped her up carefully âone arm under her knees, the other cradling her back. She weighed nothing.âHold on to me,â he whispered.She did, arms looping around his neck, face tucked into the curve of his throat.Behind them, Slimeâs shallow breathing gurgled, and Breanna's net closed in faster.He carried her south through the pines, careful of the bruise blooming across her ribs where his elbow had caught her in the dark. Though guilt sat heavy in his chest, he buried it deep. There would be time for apologies laterâ when he figured out how to get them out safely.The abandoned hunting cabin finally faced them five minutes later, a squat silhouette against the treeline. He shifted her weight to one arm, thumbed the biometric lock, and shouldered the door
ðððð¢ðâð¬ ðððŠðð¬ð¢ð¬Â°Â°Â°Antonioâs boots pounded the earth of the north woods, his breath fogging in sharp bursts under the moonlit sky.The mansion was miles behind him now, yet he utilized every second to push farther.His phone vibrated in his pocketâinsistent, frantic. He yanked it out mid-stride, thumb smearing blood from a cut across the screen.One new text from Grinch.He ducked behind a fallen pine, chest heaving, and hit callback on Nevenaâs number instead of opening the message thread.âCome on, come onâŠâ he muttered with each ring as the call went straight to voicemail.He stared at the screen until it dimmed, then he killed the backlight.There's no point in calling again. Her abductors had surely triangulated her phone by now.He glanced at his compass watch and hastily broke from the treeline, scanning the dark for headlightsâ police or otherwise. Only a thinning forest lay ahead.âI need to get to Nevena.âHe veered left, following a faint path until the silhoue







