President Maganti loomed over him, pressing a semi-automatic rifle to his head. His sister stood frozen a few feet away, along with Milli and Fasih, their backs pressed to the cold, hard wall.

He wanted to scream at them to run. He was the one who’d gotten them into this mess in the first place. And now, they were all going to die just because they refused to leave him behind.

But he knew the futility of it. Rito would never leave without him, and he had a feeling Milli wouldn’t go anywhere without his sister.

Fasih, for his part, didn’t have the survival instinct of a rock.

Abhijat closed his eyes. Maganti was shouting something in his ear, but he couldn’t bring himself to pay attention. He had to do something. He had to save them.

He couldn’t bear the thought of standing here and watching them die.

If he screamed, or struggled, or did something – anything – that’d make Maganti shoot him, the others could try and escape. With him dead, there’d be nothing holding them back.

It was far from a fool-proof plan, but it was better than nothing. Better than watching them sacrifice themselves to buy him a few extra minutes of life.

Sucking in a deep breath, his hands clenching into fists, Abhijat prepared to attack. He was a skilled fighter, but there was no way he was going to win barehanded against a man holding a semi-automatic. Still, if he could only give them a little headway...

Out of the corner of his eye, Abhijat watched Rinisa stagger to her feet, inches away from Rito.

His lips parted in surprise. Moments from letting out a warning cry, he saw his sister give the minutest shake of her head, her eyes boring straight into his.

He clamped his mouth shut, forcing himself to look away. Maganti, who was still facing Abhijat and screaming in his face, seemed to have noticed nothing.

A second passed. And as much of a cliché as it was, the world slowed down around Abhijat.

Then, Rinisa was flying towards them, her arms outstretched.

She threw both hands around Maganti’s neck, forcing him to turn around before smashing her lips into his.

Taken aback, Maganti growled, his fingers clenching. A shot rang out inches from Abhijat’s face.

Unthinkingly, Abhijat launched himself at Maganti. All three of them went down in a heap, their limbs flailing.

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After a moment’s struggle, Abhijat overpowered Maganti – who still had Rinisa clinging to him – and wrenched the rifle from his grip.

He sprang to his feet. His hands shaking, Abhijat pointed the gun at the man still lying at his feet on the floor.

Maganti snarled, glaring up at Abhijat, even as Rinisa clung to him, sniffling. “Get away from me, you bitch.” He pushed her away from himself. She clutched at him, her eyes bright and desperate.

He kicked her in the stomach, sending her crashing against the wall, her lips parted in a silent scream.

“Stop it!” Abhijat roared, pressing the mouth of the gun to Maganti’s forehead. “If you so much as move a pinkie without my permission again, I will shoot.”

He kneeled, hauling the president to his feet by the scruff of his neck. “Do not do anything stupid,” Abhijat growled, driving the muzzle into his back. “I’m a trained soldier, remember? I won’t misfire. Give me one reason, make the slightest move, and you’ll have twenty bullets inside you within the fraction of a second.”

“If you kill me–”

“What? They’ll put me in front of a firing squad?” he laughed. It sounded manic even to his own ears. “You think that scares me, Maganti? Do you think I was expecting a medal after I delivered Fasih to you and Rinisa?

“I was willing to risk execution on the mere suspicion that Fasih might harm my family. You think I won’t shoot you after you had my sister chained to a wall like an animal? Are you really willing to bet your life on that theory?”

The guard whom Rito had bludgeoned with Rinisa’s briefcase stirred, groaning. He felt blindly around the floor, until his fingers closed around the rifle which Rito had dropped moments ago.

“Tell him to stay still,” Abhijat snarled, driving the rifle into Maganti’s back until the president stumbled forward with a cry of pain. “Tell him to stay still and drop the gun!”

After a moment’s hesitation, Maganti complied.

Letting go of the weapon, the barely conscious guard squinted dazedly and held up his hands.

“Get out,” Abhijat shouted at the others, who had by now inched away from the wall and were approaching him with hesitant steps. “Get out of here, and stay a few steps ahead of me. We need to get outside, to the car.”

One step at a time, they made their way out of the holding room and to the main entrance of the warehouse. Rito and the others walked ahead and Abhijat followed them, his gun trained on Maganti. The few guards they met on the way were ordered by the president to stand down.

Soon, they were at the main gates. The car in which he and Fasih had arrived was visible, lying abandoned less than forty feet away.

With a flick of his finger, Abhijat signaled Rito to get everyone to the vehicle.

Rito nodded, her lips pressed into a thin line. She herded the other two out of the warehouse. Within seconds, all three of them had darted across the open stretch of land to the car.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Abhijat prodded Maganti, forcing him to walk ahead as he left the warehouse behind and moved towards his friends.

The piercing sound of a gunshot rent the air moments before he reached the vehicle.

Abhijat spun around, trying to hold on to Maganti even as he pointed his gun at the guard shooting at them from the second floor of the warehouse. He pulled the trigger, letting loose a volley of bullets.

Maganti pulled free, pushing Abhijat away and running into the warehouse even as the guard returned fire from his hiding place on the second floor.

“Drive,” Abhijat screamed at Rito. He jumped into the back of the car after Fasih. Rito pulled Milli in with her as she leapt into the driver’s seat moments later.

The engine revved. A few bullets dented the exterior, even as the vehicle lurched forward, gathering speed with every passing second. Soon, the sound of gunfire had faded into the background.

Abhijat leaned out of the back window, firing one more shot at the rapidly receding warehouse.

He wouldn’t rest until this was over.