Chapter 7—THE NARROW WAY.

Kael moved before the Hollow could reach Rue.

He snatched a length of loose metal from the wreckage and struck it against the side of an abandoned car. The clang split the street. The creature's head whipped toward him, its jaws snapping shut inches from Rue's face.

He struck the car again, harder, then ran toward the opposite pavement, dragging the metal along a railing. The screeching noise followed him. The Hollow twisted away from Rue and charged after him, its limbs punching through the broken road.

“Get her up!” Kael yelled without looking back.

The father of the two children rushed to Rue. He caught her beneath the arms and pulled her upright, nearly lifting her off her feet.

“Come on! You have to move!”

Rue blinked at him, but her gaze stayed fixed on Kael. The Hollow was gaining on him. Every time he struck metal, the creature surged toward the sound, tearing through anything in its path.

“No, Kael, don't!” Rue shouted, finally finding her voice. “Stop! You're too close!”

Kael hammered the metal against a street sign and sprinted past a row of parked cars. The Hollow followed, its open mouth clicking as it lunged at the noise. He kept moving, drawing it farther from the others, but the distance between them was shrinking.

Rue tried to run after him, but the man held her back.

“He's buying us time!” he said. “Don't waste it!”

“He'll get himself killed!”

“And we'll all die if you go after him!”

Rue stood shaking as the man pulled her toward the others. The injured passenger leaned heavily against the woman, who had one child clutched to her chest. The other child was pressed against her father's side, staring at the monster with wide, silent eyes.

A black car roared away at the far end of the street.

Rue turned just in time to see it swing around a corner. Adrian was behind the wheel, with Celeste beside him. They were gone, leaving Rue with no apology, no explanation, and not even a glance back.

He had abandoned her again.

For one heartbeat, the familiar sting of betrayal threatened to overwhelm her. Then Kael struck something metal again, and the sound snapped her attention back to the danger.

He had reached the far end of the street. He threw the piece of metal toward a distant stack of pipes. It struck with a ringing crash, bouncing twice before settling. The Hollow rushed toward it, leaving Kael a few seconds to change direction.

Kael doubled back, running hard toward Rue and the others while the creature followed the fading clang. He had almost reached them when the Hollow arrived at the pipes and found nothing alive to attack.

“Run!” Kael shouted.

They scattered into a narrow passage between two buildings. The father hurried the children ahead, the woman supporting the injured man while Rue stayed behind to help him keep his balance. Loose bricks rattled above them as the Hollow crashed into the alley entrance.

“Faster!” Kael called.

The Hollow's claws scraped the walls behind them.

Rue grabbed the injured man's arm. “Keep moving. Don't stop.”

“I can't—my leg—”

“You can. One more step. Then another.”

He gasped and stumbled, nearly dragging her down with him. She braced her feet and hauled him forward. The woman caught his other side, and together they pulled him toward the gap.

A shadow filled the passage.

Kael appeared behind them, sprinting straight at the narrow opening. The Hollow's jaws opened behind him, close enough for Rue to see the pale spikes lining its mouth.

“Kael!” she cried.

He threw himself sideways into the gap just as the creature lunged. Its head struck the narrow entrance, wedging between the walls. Its jaws snapped inches from Kael's boot, but its broad body could not force its way through.

“Move!” he barked, scrambling to his feet.

They stumbled through the gate and kept running until the creature's furious shrieks faded behind the buildings. Only then did Kael slow down, one hand pressed to his ribs as he caught his breath.

“We can't stay here,” he said. “We have to go. We need an empty house, somewhere we can get off the street and think.”

Rue stared at him, still trembling. Then she stepped forward and wrapped both arms around him.

Kael went completely still. His hands remained at his sides, and surprise crossed his face as she held him tightly against her.

“Thank you,” she whispered. “Thank you for saving me.”

His expression changed. Slowly, he brought one arm around her waist and the other behind her head, drawing her close. He held her firmly, as though he needed to make certain she was still there. Rue shut her eyes for a moment, breathing against his shoulder while the last of the terror shook through her.

They stayed like that until a small throat cleared beside them.

Rue pulled away so quickly that her bag swung between them. Kael dropped his hands. Both looked toward the children, who were watching with solemn curiosity.

“Sorry,” Rue murmured.

Kael cleared his throat. “We should keep moving.”

They found an empty house nearby. Kael checked the rooms before letting everyone inside, and they closed the door quietly.

Only after everyone had settled in the living room did Kael turn to her.

“So, what's the plan?”

“For now, we stay quiet,” Rue said.

“For how long?”

“As long as we need to plan properly.”

She pulled her bag from behind her, opened it, and took out a folded map. Her hands were steadier now. She spread the paper across a low table and pinned its corners with a bottle and a small flashlight.

“Here,” she said, pointing to a marked location beyond the city. “This is where we're going. My bunker.”

The injured man leaned forward, his face tightening as he studied the distance. “That's fifty kilometers. How are we supposed to get there?”

“On foot.”

Kael stared at her. “We need to find a car.”

“No.”

“Rue, don't start.”

“A car creates vibration. Have you forgotten what happened to our van?”

“That van fell into a hole. It doesn't mean every vehicle is going to summon those things.”

“The engine, the tyres, the metal rattling over the road—every bit of it can give them something to follow. We don't know how far they can detect vibration. Until we do, we're walking.”

Kael dragged a hand down his face. “Are you insane? Did nearly getting eaten knock something loose in your head?”

“A little,” Rue admitted. “But walking is still our best option.”

He pointed toward the injured man and then the children. “We have someone who can barely stand, two small children, and their parents. Fifty kilometers isn't a walk around the block.”