I scrambled to my feet and bolted in the opposite direction.

"Stop, or I'll shoot!"

The fear of death never got easier. It just became familiar.

Adrenaline surged through me, numbing the pain in my leg. My mind sharpened, instincts taking full control as I wove like a shadow through the ruins. Collapsed houses blurred past. My attackers stayed on the road, their footsteps like thunder on the cracked pavement.

Faster.

I forced my legs to move, even as agony lanced up my thigh with each step. The pain was distant now. It had to be. I twisted into a narrow alley, knocking over garbage cans behind me. The metallic clatter split the silence, but I didn't stop. Couldn't.

A building loomed ahead. No time to think. Knife clenched between my teeth, I leapt, clawing my way up the jagged wall. My fingers scraped against rough stone. The worn soles of my shoes struggled for grip as I hauled myself upward.

Pain roared back, sharp as the rusty nails jutting from the half-collapsed floor when I reached the second level. I dropped onto the wooden planks, pressing myself flat. The boards groaned under my weight. I clenched my jaw, biting back a sob as fire spread through my leg.

Breathe.

My heart pounded against my ribs. Blood rushed in my ears, drowning out everything else—until a voice cut through the darkness below.

"Where is she?" Gruff. Heavyset. Two hundred pounds. Broad shoulders.

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"I don't know! She just disappeared!" The second voice was thinner, reedy. One-fifty. Small frame. Weak arms.

"A girl doesn't just vanish. Keep searching. Remember—boss wants them alive."

They were getting closer. My lip trembled as I pressed deeper into the shadows. I wouldn't be found. I had fought, scavenged, stolen, killed. I wouldn't die here. Not like this. Not another forgotten body rotting in the streets.

I let the knife slip from my teeth. It rolled to the floor with a quiet clink. Too loud.

I held my breath.

"Come out now," the smaller man taunted, voice sickly sweet. "We won't hurt you."

Lies. All of them liars. Just like everyone else in this wretched city.

The heat of my hate kept me steady. But my hands still trembled, and my heart still pounded. I was afraid. No—I was a coward.

Then I saw her.

A shadow on the rooftop across from me. Small. Huddled in the corner, hair outlined in silver against the moonlight.

No.

I didn't think. I didn't hesitate. My hand closed around a chunk of rubble beside me, and with everything I had left, I hurled it. The stone hit the roof with a sharp crack, echoing through the alley. The girl's head shot up, startled.

"There she is! On the roof!"

The girl sprang to her feet and bolted for the edge. My chest clenched with hope. She was fast. She could make it—

But hope was for fools.

The heavy man moved faster than I expected, lunging onto the roof before she cleared the gap. His hand clamped around her ankle, and she fell hard, face slamming into the ledge with a sickening crack.

Her scream tore through the night.

"No—no, please! Please—"

The plea shattered, cut off as the two men dragged her back into the shadows. The heavyset one chuckled darkly, his companion joining in.

I didn't know what their boss wanted with her. I wouldn't let myself guess. But whatever horror awaited her, she would be grateful for that broken nose. It would make her less of a target.

I stayed there, trembling, as the echoes of her screams faded. My body felt heavy, too heavy, my breath shallow. Another life, traded for mine. Another stain on my soul.

But I had done what I had to do.

Survive.

I blinked away the tears trailing down my cheeks, even as the weight of my guilt pressed harder on my chest. I couldn't collapse now. Not yet. Grace and Mother were waiting. I would keep moving. Keep fighting.

Because if I stopped—if I let this city take me—

It would take them too.