Chapter 61
The Edge of Escape
Elena pressed her back against the cold ground, inhaling sharp, dry air as the adrenaline from their escape still surged through her veins. They had made it out of the tunnel, but they weren’t safe yet.
The quarry stretched out before them—a vast, open expanse littered with jagged rock formations, rusted equipment, and deep pits filled with stagnant water. The moon cast long shadows across the uneven terrain, making it hard to tell where safety ended and danger began.
Naomi adjusted her earpiece. “Jordan, tell me you have a plan.”
His voice crackled in their ears. “Vincent’s men are sweeping the west side. You need to move east, toward the old loading docks. There should be an access road leading out of there.”
Mateo crouched beside Elena. “That’s assuming the road isn’t blocked.”
Elena exhaled slowly. “One problem at a time.”
Richard, still shaken, pointed toward the distant movement of flashlights bobbing against the rocky terrain. “We have about five minutes before they reach us.”
Amira slid a fresh magazine into her rifle. “Then we move. Now.”
A Desperate Run
They kept low, weaving between large boulders and rusted machinery. The ground beneath them was unstable, shifting with every hurried step. The deeper they went into the quarry, the more they realized how much of a dead end it could be. If they got cornered here, there would be no escape.
Naomi kept her voice low. “I don’t like this. Feels like we’re running right into a trap.”
Elena’s jaw tightened. She had the same feeling.
They reached a rusted conveyor belt structure, half-collapsed and covered in vines. Jordan’s voice came through again.
“There should be a service ladder leading up the side of the quarry wall. It’ll get you to higher ground.”
Mateo scanned the area. “I see it. But it’s not gonna hold all of us at once.”
Elena made a quick decision. “We go up two at a time. Amira, Naomi, go first. Richard, you follow with Mateo. I’ll cover the rear.”
Naomi didn’t argue. She and Amira sprinted toward the ladder, moving as silently as possible. The metal creaked under their weight, but it held.
Richard hesitated. “I—”
Mateo shoved him forward. “Go, or you die.”
Richard swallowed his fear and climbed. Mateo followed right behind him.
Elena turned, scanning the darkness. The distant flashlights were growing closer. The voices of Vincent’s men carried through the still night air.
Then—a gunshot.
The bullet slammed into the rock near her foot, sending debris flying.
They had been spotted.
Holding the Line
Elena ducked behind an overturned mining cart, gripping her gun. A second shot whizzed past her ear.
Damn it.
Through her earpiece, Jordan’s voice turned urgent. “They’ve got snipers—move now!”
Elena pivoted, firing a few shots toward the approaching figures. She wasn’t aiming to hit—just to slow them down.
Naomi’s voice rang out from above. “Elena, MOVE!”
She sprinted for the ladder, leaping onto the rusted rungs. The metal groaned beneath her, but she didn’t stop.
A third gunshot rang out.
Pain exploded in her shoulder.
She gasped, nearly losing her grip. Fire burned through her arm, and for a split second, she thought she was going to fall.
“Elena!” Mateo’s hand shot down, gripping her wrist just in time.
He yanked her up the last few feet, dragging her onto the rocky ledge.
Amira pulled out a cloth, pressing it against the wound. “It’s a graze, but you’re losing blood.”
Elena gritted her teeth. “I’ll live.”
Below them, Vincent’s men reached the bottom of the ladder. But they weren’t climbing.
Instead, one of them pulled out a radio.
Naomi’s face paled. “They’re calling for reinforcements.”
Nowhere to Hide
Jordan’s voice was rushed. “You need to move east. There’s a drainage tunnel that leads to an abandoned road. It’s your only chance.”
Mateo helped Elena to her feet. “Can you run?”
She nodded, though pain pulsed through her shoulder with every movement. “Let’s go.”
They sprinted across the uneven ground, pushing forward as fast as they could. The moment they disappeared over the ridge, gunfire erupted behind them.
Bullets ricocheted off the rocks, but they didn’t stop.
The drainage tunnel came into view—a narrow opening barely big enough to crawl through.
Richard groaned. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“Move!” Amira shoved him forward.
One by one, they slipped into the tunnel, crawling through the tight space. The air was thick with the smell of damp earth and rust.
Naomi went first, followed by Richard, then Amira and Mateo. Elena forced herself to keep going despite the sharp pain in her shoulder.
The sounds of gunfire faded behind them.
Then—silence.
Elena’s breath was heavy as she reached the end of the tunnel. Naomi and the others were already climbing out onto the cracked pavement of the abandoned road.
Jordan’s voice came through, softer now. “You made it.”
But Elena wasn’t so sure.
She turned back toward the tunnel.
For just a moment, she thought she saw a shadow move inside it.
Something had followed them.
And it wasn’t human.
